Ephesians 6:10-20 — Prayer

Ephesians 6:10-20 — Prayer

After presenting the six components of the whole Armor of God, the apostle Paul exhorts us to be in prayer at all times. Although not an additional weapon, prayer is at the heart of all we do regarding spiritual warfare. Prayer is how we make use of the Armor and all its weapons.

The Confusion
Prayer, however, is a word that is misused and abused. Some think prayer is foolish because God either does not exist or He will do what He wants to do anyway. Others turn prayer into a form of superstition, good luck, or sorcery (a means by which we can manipulate reality). Both groups betray a lack of understanding of what Scripture means by prayer. Although Scripture exhorts us to let our requests be made known to God (Philippians 4:6), prayer is not a formula to manipulate God into getting what you want.

The Characteristics of Prayer
Prayer is an intentional communication with God by which we have intimate communion with Him to primarily express our devotion and worship. We pray out of faithful obedience to the Lord's command, who gave us the Model Prayer in Matthew 6. The Lord Jesus specified how His disciples ought to pray. The Lord Jesus modeled a prayer that expresses a relationship with God marked by intimacy, faith, and worship, petitioning Him in hope and expectation but also in humility and submission. We petition for our needs but also confess our sins and offer forgiveness to others to receive forgiveness from God. We ask for guidance and protection, expressing dependence on Him. We end our prayer acknowledging that He alone is the One we can pray to.


Scripture, Faith, and Prayer
Prayer is woven into everything we do in spiritual warfare and how we deploy and make use of the Armor. Nevertheless, Scripture, faith, and prayer especially go hand-in-hand. Scripture is God's Word and how God speaks to us. As we hear God's Word, our faith increases (Romans 10:17). This is necessary to approach God in prayer because "without faith, it is impossible to please Him" (Hebrews 11:6). If we pray (come to Him) in faith, He will hear our prayers. To complete the circle, as we pray, the Holy Spirit will teach the Word of God and remind us of what we need to know (John 14:26).

"Being Watchful"
Prayer is not an obligation that we rush through to fulfill some religious duty. Rather, it is how we receive supernatural power to live as disciples of Christ and fight our spiritual warfare. That is why Ephesians 6:18 says to "be watchful", to be on guard. The Lord Jesus Himself told the disciples: "Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is" (Mark 13:33). He also said, "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation" (Mark 14:38).
Since temptations and trials will characterize this age until the Lord returns, we must maintain deep dependence on the Lord through prayer. Because of the imminent return of the Lord Jesus (Luke 21:36), we should be diligent in prayer, avoiding any tendency:

• to diminish its significance.
• to neglect participation (koinonia) in prayer with fellow believers,
• to become lukewarm by not interceding for those in need,
• or to deprioritize spending meaningful time in prayer each day.

By combining the idea of spiritual warfare and prayer from Ephesians 6:18, Christians have coined the term "Prayer Warrior" to describe those who are diligent in prayer.
Are you a prayer warrior?