“I am the LORD, I have called you in righteousness, I will also hold you by the hand and watch over you, And I will appoint you as a covenant to the people, as a light to the nations, to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon and those who dwell in darkness from the prison.” Isaiah 42:6-7.
First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2:1-4.
Today your LORD (יהוה) God says:
If you want to live a perfect life, that is, one that is complete and mature, you must pray. And for others to have a good life, in fact, even for their very salvation, you must pray. There are certain people I have entrusted to you that depend on your prayers of intercession and your partnership with Me in acting on their behalf so that they may be saved and come to know the truth that will set them free. For example, do you remember the disciple Ananias? You only read about him once in the entire Bible, but you do hear a lot about the one he brought into salvation and being filled with the Spirit. He partnered with Me in delivering My Word to Saul who became Paul, laying hands on him to impart My Spirit and baptizing him with water. First I recount to you that Ananias was a disciple. That means, by definition of Jesus, that he was one who believed in Jesus and continued (remained, abided) in My Word so that he knew the truth which had set him free. And when I called his name he immediately answered, “Here I am, Lord.” Acts 9:10. He knew Me from My Word and from prayer. I gave him specific instruction on where to find Saul and what he would be doing. And I gave Ananias specific instruction of what he was to do for Saul. Ananias was comfortable in talking with Me, which lets you know he was a man of prayer, and told me his misgivings about going to seek out Saul as he had heard that he had been harming believers and was coming with authority from the chief priests to bind all who called on My name. But I said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake.” Acts 9:15-16. Partnership is a dialogue where you can express your doubts and misgivings and then I explain what I am about. I call you friends because I make known to you My purpose and what is going on in people’s hearts. Remember, both Abraham and Moses prayed prayers of intercession in the partnership with Me and I called both of them My friends. So Ananias departed and entered the house, and after laying his hands on Saul said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” And immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he regained his sight, and he got up and was baptized; and he took food and was strengthened. Acts 9:17-19. I can call on those who are My disciples to partner with Me in Kingdom business on earth.
And here we have come to the second aspect of the pattern of prayer given to you by Jesus, “Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.” This is not a passive prayer, this is active prayer that involves you in a covenant partnership with Me as a member of the Body of Christ on earth.
I look for intercessors. “And He saw that there was no man and was astonished that there was no one to intercede; then His own arm brought salvation to Him, and His righteousness upheld Him.” Isaiah 59:16. Jesus is your ultimate and eternal example of intercession. He is Salvation. But let Me show you an example of intercession in partnership with Abraham, My friend, and your father in the faith. I visited Abraham by the terebinths of Mamre where he had pitched his tent and promised him and Sarah a son by that time the following year, but when I left, Abraham walked with Me in fellowship. As we came to look down on Sodom, I said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed? For I have chosen him, so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring upon Abraham what He has spoken about him.” Genesis 18:17-19. I do nothing without first sharing it with My prophets. Why? So they can partner with Me in obtaining the Kingdom result on earth. So I told Abraham,, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave. I will go down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.” Genesis 18:20-21.
Abraham stood before Me and began to intercede with Me about Sodom, primarily because his nephew Lot was there. Intercede for your family when I show you they are in danger. My Holy Spirit warns you of things to come. And let My Spirit pray in you when you do not know what to pray, that is, pray in tongues, “In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” Romans 8:26-27. I may be wanting you to rescue a soul in Lebanon that you do not know, but My Spirit knows. Or I may be warning you to pray for your son or daughter and you are not sure what to pray, but the Spirit knows. So pray in the Spirit and ask for interpretation with your understanding.
But back to Abraham. I tell you he came near to Me to intercede. Genesis 18:23. Draw close to Me and I draw close of you. So, he came near and said, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?” Genesis 18:24-25. He knew Me. Moses would intercede this way too. They would put Me in remembrance of My promises and who I am: gracious, slow to anger, filled with loving kindness, but just and righteous, not tolerating sin. And I responded to Abraham, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.” Genesis 18:26. And we went on talking our way down to ten righteous people, and My reply? “I will not destroy it on account of the ten.” Genesis 18:32. And there he stopped. So there I had to stop also. And there were not even ten in that city. You know the rest. Intercessory prayer can save a person, a city, a nation. Your prayer matters before Me. I have given you dominion in the earth.
And do you remember Abimelech and Sarah? I spoke to Abimelech and told him not to touch Sarah for she was Abraham’s wife. And I told him to have Abraham intercede for him so he would live. “Now therefore, restore the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live.” Genesis 20:7. And Abimelech obeyed. And the result? “Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech and his wife and his maids.” Genesis 20:17. Intercessory prayer in partnership with Me brings healing.
And I ask you to intercede too. You may wonder how to start. First, know you are not doing this alone. Jesus, your great High Priest, ever lives to make intercession for and with you. You are praying with Him for He has released you from your sins by His blood and made you a kingdom of priests unto Me. “And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 2:4-5. Intercession undoes and overcomes the work of the devil. And I tell you how to do that “by the Blood of the Lamb and by the Word of your testimony.” Revelation 12:11. You plead the Blood over people, cities, nations and anywhere Satan is trying to set up a stronghold, and then you find the Word in Scripture that pertains to that hindrance, trial, disease, pestilence, storm, evil and you take it down with that Word—you use the Sword of the Spirit. This is where you have to declare the end from the beginning in faith by using MY WORD in your mouth. Pleading (pouring) the blood over places, people and situations and declaring (sending out) the Word that heals and delivers is partnership with Me in prayer.
I also give you direction in intercession. “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:1-3. Pray for people to be saved and come to know the truth. Pray that I open doors of utterance and hearts to hear you as you witness for Me and lead others in the prayer of salvation. Pray I send laborers into the harvest to preach the good news and to stretch out My hand in healing, signs, and great wonders and mighty deeds. And pray like Isaiah, “Here I am, send me!” And his response came from fellowship, seeing My throne in the spirit and the cries of “Holy, holy, holy,” from the angels before Me. But first I cleansed his lips before he could be My mouthpiece to My people. Cleanse your lips by My Word. Decide you will not say anything vile but only the pure milk of My Word. Godless chatter and angry words hinder intercession and your prophetic message.
And intercessory prayer, partnership prayer, can be made alone or in a group. As persecution against the early church began to step up the church gathered in one accord and prayed “Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that Your bond-servants may speak Your word with all confidence, while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.” And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.” Acts 4:29-31. And I granted that prayer, awesome healings, signs, and wonders took place and thousands more were added to those who believed. Souls were saved.
And partnership flows from fellowship. “Now there were at Antioch, in the church that was there, prophets and teachers: Barnabas, and Simeon who was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.” Acts 13:1-3.
I tell you to pray for the shalom of Jerusalem. Psalm 122:6 (“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: May they prosper who love you.”) Do you? It has a promise with it that you will prosper if you do so. And I ask you to intercede for their salvation. Romans 10:1, Romans 11:11-16. This is very dear to My heart, so I ask you to join Me in this.
And intercession comes back to bless you. I tell you that, “The LORD restored the fortunes of Job when he prayed for his friends, and the LORD increased all that Job had twofold.” Job 42:10. I tell you to pray for your persecutors and to bless those who maltreat you. Begin to pray salvation and good for them as soon as they hurt you. I will reward you. And I will see to your vindication.
You conquer evil with good. I AM the Most High and I alone am good. You can only conquer with Me. Love never fails. And I am Love. Faith works by love. Jesus interceded and partnered with Me in His great love and compassion for you. “To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” Revelation 1:5-6.
And that is what partnership is all about. Love. Your love for Me expressed in your love for others because you know that is what pleases Me. And as you see miracles happen, it will please you too. You will love doing the works Jesus did and greater. And you do those by partnership prayer: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.” John 14:12-14. You pray asking in His Name and the partnership moves into action. You pray, He gives the power, and in partnership it gets done.
I love you. And that is what prayer is all about. Love seeks out the beloved.