PASTOR RYAN LADEN – DEVOTIONALS
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Today we continue in our study of a great challenge given to the church by the Holy Spirit, through the Apostle Paul’s letter to Timothy. As we saw in the previous devotional, we are called by the Lord, as a matter of priority, to take up the four approaches to prayer that are given in verse one. Today, we will focus on the targets of our other focused prayers.
Read the following passage, listening for any descriptor of those whom the Lord is calling his people to pray.
1 I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people — 2 for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. 3 This is good, and pleases God our Savior,
4 who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.
(1 Timothy 2:1-6 NIV11)
Those Over Us
I want to start by looking at the call to lift up those in places of authority and leadership. The Greek term used to describe this group is that of huperoxā. I know that means nothing to most of us, but it does help us think about what it means to pray for those in places of authority and instruction in our lives.
This term is used to describe people in places of preeminence or vaulted positions. This term means much more than political leadership. It is a description of those whom we hold in high regard or esteem. We see that we are called to pray for our governmental leaders in the use of the common term for kings in this verse, but we are not limited to those with titles.
The people of the church, across time and space, are being called to purposefully pray for those who we consider to be leaders and influencers in our wider society and community.
- Who are some of the people that you feel are in need of your intercession as you come before God in prayer?
Purpose
In verse 2, we are told the purpose for this time of prayer. We are being called to ask the Lord to be at work in the leaders who influence our ability to live godly lives. The purpose of this prayer is not to ask for a political party to win an election, but to see that the mission and ministry of the Body of Christ would continue to operate in such a way that we are able to continue to offer corporate worship and to study the message of God’s word together.
It was not long ago that my church family in Australia was severely impacted by the decisions of the leaders in our community and government. During those times, my prayer fell back to asking the Lord to help the people of the church to meet with one another in whatever way they felt was right for their family. And the Lord provided us a way to continue to flourish, even while facing direct attack from the so-called leaders.
All People
The words used to describe the general target of our other focused prayer are those of “panton anthropon.” This is a reference to all of humanity or all of mankind. I will be honest, I cannot really see a way for me, a time-limited human being, to actually, carefully, purposefully, and meaningfully pray for the needs and circumstances of all the people that God places into my life.
This is a major challenge for me.
Help?
In the sermon that preceded this devotional, I included a quote that I remembered seeing at my uncle Tim’s dental practice, which read, “You do not have to brush all of your teeth, just the ones you want to keep.” Tim was a funny dentist who always made me laugh at the worst possible times, but I love his wisdom.
I applied this concept to the issue of those whom I am called to pray for and came up with my own saying, “You do not have to pray for all of your friends and family, just the ones you love.”
This is not meant to be the easy way out of praying for all the people God places into our lives, but it does help me focus my time and attention.
Changes
One thing I have learned about praying for people is that the more I pray for someone, the more the Lord helps me see them the way that Jesus Christ sees them. It is hard to hate someone you are lifting up to the Lord in prayer. For me, the Lord helps me see those I pray for, no matter their relation to me, as those that Christ loves and for whom he purposefully died on the cross.
Prayer changes us. That is an important part of our prayer life.
The more that we bring the needs of others to the Lord in prayer, the more compassion, love, and eternal perspective the Lord gives us in return.
Try it out today. Pray for those in authority and leadership before you complain about the condition of the broken world in which we live.
In Christ,
Ryan Laden
PASTOR RYAN LADEN
Senior Pastor at PARK HILL BAPTIST CHURCH
Worked at MTN. CHURCH
Former Senior pastor at Warnbro Community Church
Studies at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary
Studied at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary
Studied at Baylor University
Studied at Texas Tech University
Went to Castle Hills First Baptist
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