Concluding Session: Global Day Of Prayer by Pastor Chris Oyakhilome: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

Prayer Was Always God's Idea

The beautiful thing about praying together is that we don't pray for nothing. We don't pray as a form of religion. When we pray, God actually hears and answers.

Prayer was always God's idea — never man's idea. He told us to pray because he intended to answer. It wasn't us wanting to pray or looking for a way to get God to do something. It was God who came looking for man.

It was God who came out calling Adam — "Where are you?" It's been the same ever since. The Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost. Sinners weren't looking for him. He was searching for them.

Because God has given man authority over the world, he needs us to give him the legal right to act — to intervene in men's circumstances. He needs us to invite him into our life situations.

Whosoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Psalm 50:15 — call upon me in the day of trouble. I will hear. I will deliver you, and you will glorify me. Throughout scripture, the principle is the same: you have not because you don't ask. Ask and receive that your joy may be full.

Believing Activates Your Spirit

All he ever asks for is your trust, your faith. If you can only believe, all things are possible to him that believes. Why does he need you to believe? Because your believing activates your spirit.

The human person is a spirit being. When you believe God, your spirit is activated to respond to him. That is what believing is — an act of your spirit responding to God. Spirit communicates with spirit.

Romans 10:10 — with the heart, with your spirit, you believe. That's how your spirit is activated to connect with God. When you don't believe, you're not connecting. Your believing establishes the connection.

If you can only believe, all things are possible — because at that point you are connected to infinite resources. There is no situation in life that God cannot respond to. There's no problem too hard for God.

Two blind men followed Jesus, calling on him to respond. He said, "Do you believe I am able to do this?" They said yes. He touched them and their eyes were opened. That's the way it is — it doesn't matter what your case is.

Pray for All Men — Including Those in Authority

1 Timothy 2:1-2 — I exhort therefore that first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men — for kings and for all that are in authority.

God is telling us how to pray and who to pray for. He gives four different kinds of prayer to be made for everybody. As we pray for those in authority, they are going to get what we pray for because we are asking on their behalf. But we also get blessed. He tells us what blessings we get: a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

If you don't pray, you're going to get into trouble. That's the reason some of us can be at rest in a troubled world. The church must get involved and pray.

The Church Has Come to the Place of Sonship

God's word gives a timeline for the world from beginning to end. The wisest thing for men is to discover their purpose and fulfill it — to know your purpose is to know your timing. Jesus knew his purpose. Jesus knew his timing.

The church has come to manhood, to the place God wanted it to come, and is now able to exercise the rights of sonship. We have not come this far to be put underground. We have come this far to exercise our rights in Christ — to use the name of Jesus with the authority vested in that name.

God expects us to watch and pray. When we see what our heavenly Father doesn't like, he expects us to do something about it.

This is our day.

Greater is he that is in us than he that is in the world. Whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world. We have overcome the world and its fears, its economics, its threats, its deceptions.

Father, we affirm our victory in Christ.

The world is subject to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We pray for the nations. The peace of God upon these nations.

The power of the Holy Spirit.

Satan has no claims to any of these nations — they all belong to the Lord.

In Jesus name. Amen.