20th Annual Arizona Lectureship
10/14/04-10/17/04
Lectureship Theme:
I Will Pray with the Spirit & with the
Understanding Also (1 Corinthians 14:15)
Topical Theme:
What are Some Ways in Which God Answers Prayer? (Acts
12:1-19)
Lecturer: Dr. Ammar Saheli, Evangelist
West Oakland church of Christ,
Oakland, CA
“Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him. And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. And behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands. And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about the, and follow me” (Acts 12:5-8).
Acts 12:1-19 provides biblical investigators with a plethora of picturesque illustrations and many transformative Christian principles. The primary focus of this study finds anchorage in Acts 12:5-8 and three elements will be explored for personal growth, increased prayer life, and Christian praxis:
The passage above provides a phenomenal view of God’s omnipotent power and restoration through prayer. However, before investigating God’s power, the role of the prayer warrior(s) must be observed. In Acts 12:5 it is plainly stated that the members of the church prayed for a shackled, bound, and incarcerated apostle named Peter, without ceasing. The English phrase, “without ceasing” is derived from the Greek word “ektenes” and means continual, intense, and fervent. In connection with the text of investigation, James said, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray for one another that that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayers of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16). Contextually, the English phrase rendered “effectual fervent” finds its roots in the Greek word and concept “energeo”, which means energetic and inspired by the Holy Spirit of God.
A neglected yet crucial component to an effective prayer life is consistency and even more so, zeal, passion, and energy. The prayers that were made on behalf of Peter were continual and with great zeal. How easy it is to become laissez-faire in prayer life: praying in the bed, car, or bathroom. Of course prayer can arguably be made anywhere, but often times when done in the latter forms it is because people become slothful, failing to fall on their knees in prostration to God. God is worthy to be praised and reverenced (Psalms 18:3; 111:9). The prayer life of the Christians petitioning for Paul were consistent, full of faith, spirit, and zeal. Although it may be a neglected component, individual prayer lives should be filled with serious spirituality and passion.
The Liberating
Power of God in Prayer
Clearly it is revealed that a stale and lethargic prayer life is not acceptable to God. He requires commitment, devotion, and serious focus. When prayer is offered effectively, God responds. Acts 12:6-7 provides an awesome picture of God’s liberating power through answering prayer. In verses 6-7, Peter was in no position to deliver himself from quandary. Aside from giving God thanks and praise for His wonderful and continual blessings, Christians pray to God because there are many things that simply cannot be accomplished, completed, resolved, or obtained without divine intervention. And God does want to hear the prayer requests of His children (Philippians 4:6). The church could not physically rescue Peter but they were able to pray to an entity that could. When God answers the prayers of a Christian it is truly amazing because the deliverance arrives in a power and methodology not possessed by man or woman.
Peter was in need of liberation and deliverance, but God painted the picture that spiritual, psychological, and even physical liberation is His business. Initially Peter could do nothing for himself. God wants all of His children to know that with Him all things are possible (Philippians 4:13), but without Him all is void and vanity. God said to Paul, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in his weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). The message of God was that His delivering power is made perfect when the Christian is totally helpless because then he/she is not able to attribute the apparent liberation to human intellect or might. Notice the helpless predicament of God’s apostle, Peter:
To further indicate the helplessness of Peter and his total dependence on God, notice the following observation. If Peter was not sleep, guarded by two soldiers, and chained, he still would have needed to physically fight through two professionally trained prison watch guards. Peter was in need of a form of liberation he could not provide for himself. God wants all of His children to be aware of His delivering power before He delivers to prevent from deliverance distortions.
The recipients of God’s love are referred to in Greek terminology as the agapetos/beloved. God is surely out to perform some amazing things in the lives of His beloved children. Before God acts He makes sure that the Christian is aware that He is in operation and not someone else, as was the case with Israel and Pharaoh. Through the ten plagues: water into blood, frogs, lice, flies, dead cattle, boils, hail, locust, darkness, and the death of the first-born children (Exodus 7-11). God wanted Israel to be sure that Pharaoh was not their liberator, and that He was. The same was true for Peter and the church. He needed for all of them to be clear about who provided the liberation.
In Acts 12:7, Peter was asleep in prison, but notice the elements God used to capture his attention:
Because Peter was sleep he was in no position to acknowledge God as his deliverer, therefore God had to wake him up. God will deliver His faithful children but He needs to be acknowledged by those in need of liberation before liberation. The eunuch had to acknowledge and confess Christ as his Savior before he was saved (Acts 8:36-37). If God would have liberated Peter while he was sleep, he could have attributed his freedom to sources other than God just as many in the world continually do today.
God presented Himself to Peter, shined His light in on his crisis, and woke him out of his unconsciousness. The next move of God illustrates His Love, Power, Will, and Liberation Methodology. After touching Peter on the side, the angel raised him up, saying arise up quickly (Acts 12:7b). This process indicates the cooperation necessary between God and man/woman for the purpose of earthly spiritual success. God initiated the majority of the liberation process, but Peter had to play a small role in comparison. Notice how the angel of the Lord began to pick up Peter and then also mandated him to arise or stand quickly. When God enters the heart, shines His light, and knocks on the mental door of the believer, it is time to quickly respond. When God pricks the heart it is time for urgent restoration, reconfiguration, regeneration, reconciliation, and liberation. Imagine how beautiful it is to know that God is picks up His troubled children, simply asking them to lift up/stand up, while He lifts them up. As Peter responded and cooperated with God, his chains of bondage fell from his hands and he stood as a liberated Christian soldier.
After Peter was liberated from his shackles he was ordered to put on his clothes, which may symbolically represent the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18). Liberated and prepared by God, Peter walked with God past all of his adversaries and directly back into freedom. His deliverance was so miraculous that it was initially too amazing for him to believe and the church.
God answered the prayers of the church because their prayers were of faith, effectual, fervent, and Peter cooperated with the will of God. God is the reason and source for liberation but man/woman must acknowledge God’s liberating power in prayer before He liberates.
“If any you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord” (James 1:5-7).