Don’t Fail to Pray for Others
1 Samuel 12:23 – Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way.
Samuel the prophet stood before the people of Israel at Gilgal and reminded them of the things God had done for them and their forefathers. It is here that the people begged Samuel to pray for them because they had added to their wickedness by asking for a king to be placed over them. They wanted to be like the surrounding nations. In so doing they had rejected God as their king, and now felt the guilt.
The prophet Samuel’s response is a teachable moment for us. Samuel did not respond with anger or hate to their request though he was disappointed in them. He was not indifferent to their needs. He didn’t tell them to seek someone else to pray for them. Instead he said “…far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you”. Samuel did not deny their request for prayer, he would continue to take them before the Lord. In fact Samuel regarded ceasing to pray for others as a sin against the Lord!
Let us remember that the word of God, the Bible, is inspired by God. God sees neglecting to pray for others as the sin of prayerlessness!!!! These sinful people requested prayer and Samuel obliged them out of a fear of sinning against God! Do we do the same? Do we pray for others?
This applies to us today. There are many among us who are hurt, broken and downtrodden, perhaps even aware of sin against God. In those moments they cry out and ask us to pray for them either individually or in a prayer meeting. Perhaps the burdens they bear are so great or their sin overwhelms them.
Do we oblige? Or are we jaded to the needs of those around us? Do we feel the pain and suffering of others or are we consumed only with our prayers and our needs? If we are and we neglect to pray for others then we are guilty of the sin of prayerlessness against God.
In letter after letter to the churches, we find the Apostle Paul abounding in prayer for others. He is constantly praying for others. In Romans 1 he says he remembers them in his prayers always. Likewise, in Ephesians 1 Paul says he remembers those in Ephesus in his prayers always. And on it goes, in Ephesians 3, Philippians 1 and multiple places we find Paul praying for other believers. You see the power of Paul’s ministry was not just in his preaching but in his praying. It is his prayers that strengthened those to whom he preached.
In Romans 15 Paul requests prayer for himself, that he may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea. This is the church in operation. Praying for one another. And not only prayer – but comforting. In 2 Corinthians 1 verse 4 we read of the God of all comfort –
who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.
Beloved, do we pray for and comfort those around us? You have been prayed for and comforted in your affliction by God, so that you may comfort others!
When we gather for prayer meetings, it is a time to abound in prayer for others with a hearty zeal to see God work in their lives. It is a time to comfort those in the prayer meeting with an encouraging scripture or a testimony of how God comforted you, so that they may find strength in Him too. Let us not be guilty of sinning against God by failing to pray for those in our midst who are hurt and broken.
We are a local church in Astoria Queens New York
