ASKING FOR GOVERNMENTS – NOW!

 

“I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” 1Timothy 2:1-2

 

We all know these verses! But they are becoming ever increasingly weighty as governments position themselves in these crucial last days. Lis Stubbs, NW Zone Leader for ASK Network USA,   gives us some pertinent answers to some key questions in answer to the why we pray for governments.  Then Tryna Bahl, a long-time teacher of many of us, internationally as well as in the US, through her own meditation shows us how we can apply the Word in intercession in this crucial area of government.

 

WHY ASK FOR GOVERMENTS?

What can righteous people do when God’s foundational truths and institutions are destroyed in a nation by government decision, or by ecclesiastical division, or by natural disasters or wars?!   They can appeal to heaven where the Holy and Good God sits on His throne of judgment and mercy.[1]

WHAT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF GOD’S PEOPLE IN THEIR OWN NATION?

The often quoted ‘if my people…’ scripture[2] is rightly appropriated to see God’s rule manifested in a nation:  God’s people humble themselves, they pray, they seek God’s face, and they turn from their own lawless ways.  God responds with the ‘then … I hear from heaven, forgive their sins, and heal their land’.  However, when looking at the context in which this word was given, one sees that God is addressing the leader (King Solomon) of a nation (Israel).

It’s imperative for individuals to pray for the leader as he or she is the gatekeeper of any given nation.  The responsibility of fathering and shepherding nations falls squarely on the shoulders of those in leadership, whether their authority was obtained by the will of the few or by the consent of the many.    God holds that person responsible for how he or she governs those He places under their charge.[3]  The question at hand is whether they make a name for themselves, or do they make God’s name great.

While people individually bear a responsibility to pray for leaders to hear God clearly, something spiritually powerful happens when two or three people gather, ASKing in His name.[4]  Praying together releases an exponential power of agreement with God’s purposes that upsets the status quo on earth.     The same scripture 1 Timothy 2:1-6, 8 applies to all believers under whatever type of leadership system they find themselves; there are no exceptions.   However, their obedience to God’s Word and their appeal to God’s throne of grace, releases His Will on earth as it’s being done in heaven.[5]

 WHY SHOULD WE ASK FOR RIGHTEOUS LEADERS?

Scripture states in various ways that the responsibility of a nation falls squarely on the shoulders of  its leader.[6]  This means that although it is the responsibility of people to pray at a grassroots level for those in authority, it is so that the leader will make decisions that allows not only for the peace and security of the ordinary citizen, but most importantly, for the protection of the most vulnerable members of society with the rule of law governing the moral behaviors of all people.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN UNRIGHTEOUS ELADERS COME TO POWER?

If government leadership, at any level, passes unrighteous laws, it leads to unjust behavior by members of society.  We have ample evidence that indicates that when a government is ruled outside of God’s Law, whether a democracy or dictatorship,[7] injustice occurs.  In a democracy, individuals are vexed by preferential treatment of special interest groups who divert from God’s prescribed way of living.  In a dictatorship, the desire of one person, who hands out preferential treatment at will, rules the nation.  In both cases the ‘special ones’ operate outside of the law, while it is rigidly enforced on the rest.

ARE GOD’S PEOPLE HELPLESS AGAINST UNJUST LEADERSHIP?

 One may see how lawless government decisions influences society and feel powerless to do anything.  However, that’s not the case.   Helene Fisher of Open Doors states that: “Prayer goes where governments can’t go.  Prayer reaches what governments cannot.”[8]  Praying for those in authority is a direct appeal to heaven.  Individuals can do something about unrighteous laws that lead to injustice.

Two examples from Scripture (one positive, one negative) illustrate the role of individuals in their upsetting the established order of things: Jael and the women described in Amos 4.

Judges 4 tells the story of Israel’s war with the Canaanites under the leadership of General Barak and Prophetess Deborah.  The Canaanite Commander, Sisera, fled and presuming upon his friendship with Heber, approached his wife, Jael, to protect him.  Jael was an ordinary housewife who understood the horrors that would befall Israel if Sisera won.  She knew that the women would experience brutal rape, for example.  This knowledge compelled her to kill Captain Sisera.  One individual turned the tide of a war between nations.

In contrast, Amos 4 begins with a description of women who live in the lap of luxury at the expense of the exploited ones.  They display a careless disregard of those who provide for their luxury items.  Here, the nation at large is judged because of the behavior of individuals; it is presumed that these wives influenced the decisions of their husbands in leadership.

HOW CAN INDIVIDUALS AFFECT GOD’S DEALINGS WITH NATIONS? 

When individuals ‘stand in the gap’ on behalf of a nation, God’s judgment can be averted.[9]  They understand who God is.  They also discern the responsibility of individuals in how their obedience[10] to God’s way influences the destiny of a nation.  They position themselves in authority as gatekeepers, so to speak, in the place of intercession, to pray God’s Word – God’s will.  They act intervening on behalf of another, in this case the nation.

One’s view of God and of people is important as it affects one’s attitudes and behaviors as one responds to the mandate to pray for those in authority.  On the one hand, one holds oneself before God for His daily inspection to see where and how one is out of alignment with His law of love.[11]  On the other hand, one understands that the administration of the world primarily rests with God; acknowledging His Sovereign right to place leaders in place gives impetus to praying for those in authority under the sway of the evil one.[12]  Knowing that God is the ultimate Judge, we trust that He can, as He has in the past, change one governmental administration to set His own in place.[13]

 IS OUR BATTLE  AGAINST FLESH AND BLOOD?

A heavenly battle rages between principalities. This is most evidenced in division between people. When believers are busy fighting each other, it opens the door for moral desolation and cultural disintegration.  However, when they stop … and pray the Word in humility and unity, God goes into action: He commands blessing, and the gates of hell are rendered powerless.[14]  People get saved and nations are healed. The vulnerable ones are protected and society functions in an orderly manner.

Daniel 10 pulls back the curtain on the cosmic struggle taking place in the heavenlies.  Daniel was fasting and praying when he received a messenger, Gabriel (God’s Messiah messenger angel) who opened Daniel’s eyes to the ‘war in the heavenlies’.[15]  To explain his delayed answer to Daniel’s ASKing, Gabriel states that the Prince of Persia opposed him until Michael (angel of the nation of Israel), came to help him.  After relaying the message to Daniel, Gabriel went back to the battle as the Prince of Greece was coming.  In Satan’s hierarchy, princes have principalities[16].  A principality is a ‘state ruled by a prince’.  One could say that it is a domain over which one governs.

Persia and Greece are familiar names of empires that ruled the land of Israel.  Greece may be familiar to those in the west as so much of western governments are based on the Greek ‘democratic’ system.  Persia the ancient name of Iran, is more familiar with those living under despotism.  The name Persia means ‘to cut or divide’ while Greece means ‘false light’.[17]  One can sense an administrative fault line between Persia and Greece which explains how most types of governments differ from those in the west.  Both the despotism (Persia) and democracy (Greece) have its own form of dictatorship: rule by one man or rule by the population.

This heavenly battle manifests itself on earth as either a ‘cold war’, war of words, or a ‘hot war’, war with weapons.  One need only study the history of wars to see this clash of governmental worldviews at play.    One example of such a war was the Crimean War of 1856 in which the ideology or religion of Russia – Russian Orthodox – clashed with the Ottoman Empire – Islam.  This conflict centered on the Crimean Peninsula.

CAN GOVERNMENTS CHANGE?  WHAT CAN WE DO IN THE MEANTIME?

 Isaiah 22 describes the removal of one government official to make room for another.  In order to purge perversion from the land, an administrator had to be removed.  This ‘treasurer’ was busy building a memorial (a tomb) for himself.  He appeared to be a peg on which people could place their hope, but his moral weakness caused them to lose their faith.

Therefore, God replaced him.

God set His choice in place, endowing him with the royal administration inherited from King David.  God states that this new administrator would ‘father’ the nation and who would make a name for God’s ordained King – Jesus Christ.  God affixed him as a sure peg from which people will not lose their faith.

Therefore, yes – governments can change! And that’s why we pray 1 Timothy 2:1-6, 8!

 Case in point: With Nazism rising in Europe, God installed His intercessors to defeat the plan of the enemy again and again. [18]  In the meantime, God raised up people who would resist by living a separate righteous life in the middle of the darkness.[19]  For example, my family risked their lives to help Jews get to safety.

Case in point: Uganda was plagued by a demonically inspired Lord’s Resistance Army, which targeted the country for destruction by kidnapping and abusing its children.  Then… the mothers walked the hard path of forgiveness,  and the pastors did the difficult work or unity to defeat the plan of Satan.[20]  This resulted in the military’s ability to locate the previously hidden LRA’s camps and set the children free.

Case in point: Cali, Colombia had experienced death at the hands of the drug lords, until God unified the pastors and intercessors to take Satan to task.  And God changed the spiritual and moral climate of the city.[21]  Global intercessors have learned much about the power of agreement in prayer because of what the Colombians experienced.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?

How does one pray when living under dictatorship or democracy?  The same scripture applies.  “I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” 1Timothy 2:1-2.

Praying the Word in unity and humility, opens the door for God’s great gospel to reach to the least, the last and the lost!

 

 

 HOW DO WE PRAY?

The Meditation:

 The Text: 1Timothy 2:1-6, 8

1 Timothy 2:1 “Therefore I exhort you, first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions,

and giving of thanks be made for all men,  2 for kings and all who are in authority that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence (decency).”  3 “For 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.” The truth is 5 “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time…now”

 Intercession here means to interview with explicit instructions.  As in an interview, this passage tells you HOW to pray, WHO to pray for and WHY you pray and WHAT to pray.

HOW to pray: with supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks.

Learn various kinds of prayer and allow the Holy Spirit to lead you. Note that all forms of prayer here are plural.

• Supplications are ongoing, often intense prayers bound to the heart of the intercessor for a time, as in a prayer burden.
• Prayers in general need to line up with God’s will, as revealed in His Word
• Intercessions is intervening, standing before God on behalf of others praying as you are led.
• Giving of thanks exercises faith as it is often expressed before the prayers are answered because prayer according to God’s will is assured.

 WHO to pray for: “all men, kings (heads of nations) and all in authority,” (v1,2).

WHY pray: “that we can live quiet and peaceable lives”, that we will live in a godly society that reverences God and life, and to raise up godly seed, (v2).

 WHAT we are to pray: “God desires (wills):  that all men be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth that there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus who gave Himself a ransom for all…” (v 4-6) There is only one way to God. 

Salvation:  Salvation is comprehensive in that your spirit is reborn, and you become alive to God by the power of the Holy Spirit in Christ Jesus.

What does it mean to be saved? Fullness of salvation expressed as forgiveness of sin, physical protection, deliverance, physical healing, and miraculous power.  (Luke 7 and 8)

Pray these Scriptures that the fullness of salvation is experienced for those in leadership.

 Forgiveness of sin: Godly repentance leads to salvation. For example, a sinful woman ministered to Jesus, washed His feet with tears, wiped them with her hair, and anointed His head and feet with fragrant oil. Jesus said, Your sins are forgiven (v 48) Your faith has saved  you. Go in peace wholeness, (v50). Luke 7:44-50 Pray for godly repentance leading to salvation, 2 Corinthians 7:10-11.

     Physical Protection: During a life-threatening storm, the apostles cried: “Save us!” The actual words.  Jesus rebuked the wind and waves restoring calm.  Matthew 8:25. Luke 8:24

     Deliverance:  “…they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had departed sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind.” (v 35) The Gadarene demonic represents spiritual, emotional healing ‘Right’ mind is rooted in saved.  “They also who had seen it told them by what means the one who had been demon possessed was healed /saved.” v36 Healed here is emotional, spiritual and called deliverance.  Pray for deliverance as part of salvation.  Luke 8:35,36.  You were delivered from the power of darkness and brought into the kingdom of God when you were saved, Colossians 1:13.

    Physical Healing: A woman with a twelve-year issue of blood, whom Jesus healed.  “Daughter, be of good cheer; Your faith has made you well/saved.  Go in peace,” (v50).  Pray for those in authority to know God as Healer. Luke 8:43-48

    Miraculous Power:  A dead girl was resurrected.  “Do not be afraid; only believe, and she will be made whole/saved.”  Pray for those in authority to experience God’s miraculous power. Luke 8:49,50

Salvation in the above scriptures comes from the Greek word  –  sozo; this means    to save, keep safe and sound, to rescue from danger or destruction. one (from injury or peril). to save a suffering one (from perishing); and it implies full healing in the body, soul and spirit.

 Assurance of answered prayer –

1Timothy 2:3 “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.”  It is God’s good will that all men be saved, know truth and live quiet, peaceable, godly and decent lives.  Acceptable means the prayer is both good, godly, from God and acceptable to Him, therefore He will answer it.

Pray that all men be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth:

1Timothy 2:1-6,8– The text urging prayer, for all men, for kings, and all those in authority, puts knowledge of God and Who Jesus is in center focus.  Putting Christ at the center leads to Christian morals without which there is no religious freedom, from which all other freedoms flow.

What is truth?!

1 Timothy 2:5-7 The truth is: “For there is One God and One Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus who gave Himself a ransom for all…”.

     One God – Our God is the Jewish God, Creator God who made heaven and earth and all those in it, a Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28;19)

     One God and One Mediator – Jesus is the only mediator between God and man. Jesus is the only way to God; the truth that there is only one God, and the life of God lived through salvation.  Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through Me,” (John 14:6)

      The Man– Jesus is the incarnate Man, the Second Person of the Trinity; Jesus is the Son of God Who put aside His glory in heaven by being born by the Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary, a virgin, to bear a child of flesh and blood without Adam’s sin. He lived thirty-three years on earth to show man who God is.  He was born to die as the final sin offering for the sins of men of all nations, ransoming and redeeming them as Savior. The doctrine of the Incarnation declares Jesus was born in the flesh, fully human and fully God.

      Christ – Christ means The Anointed One. Only prophets, kings, and priests were anointed. Jesus Christ was a prophet like Moses (Exodus 18:15,18). Jesus Christ is the High Priest ever interceding for us now, and He was not only the priest but also the sacrifice, the sinless Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29). Jesus is the King of the Nations (Psalm 2). He is the coming Ruling King in the Millennium.

      Jesus – His earthly mother and father, Mary and Joseph were told to call His Name Jesus for He will save many from their sins (Luke 1:31-33, Matthew 1:21).

      Messiah – He is the Hebrew Messiah, The Savior.  His name Yeshua name means Jehovah Saves in the Hebrew[22]. Jesus is the One who died on the cross to redeem and ransom us from the evil One (Isaiah 53). Jesus is called the Second Adam because He restored what Adam lost – fellowship with God (1 Corinthians 15:45).

       Resurrected One – When Jesus rose from the dead, He opened Paradise for those who accept Him as Lord and Savior. He told the thief on the cross, crucified alongside Him, that He would see him that day in Paradise (Luke 23:38-43).

       Jesus as Savior – is also Deliverer from evil spirits and Healer by virtue of the blood shed on the cross (Isaiah 53:4,5).

      Jesus, the Son of God –  Jesus is called the Son of God, in the Old Testament (Psalm 2),  and He is called God’s Beloved Son when He was baptized by John the Baptist (Matthew 3:22) who called Him the sinless Lamb of God and when He was transfigured before His disciples showing them His heavenly glory (Matthew 17:2).

Our Response

1Timothy 2:8 “I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands,

without wrath and doubting…”  Will you ASK God who you should be praying for?  If you will not, who will?  This is especially important when there is division in a nation. You are to pray for whoever leads the country without anger or doubt that God will be true to His promises. When Paul wrote this letter to Timothy, they were under the tyrannical Roman rule of Nero, a dictator.

Our Response – Our Prayer Target:  ASK that the Church will pray for leadership, governmental and Church leadership. The text urges prayer for all men, all kings, and all those in leadership, putting Jesus Christ at the center focus.  It is important during times of contention that we pray salvation for those in authority, not with anger or doubting but with faith believing that God will answer prayers in accordance with His will.

[1] Psalm 11: 3,4, Habakkuk 2:20

[2] 2 Chronicles 7:14

[3] Hebrews 13:17

[4] Matthew 18:19

[5] Matthew 6:10

[6] This is also true of the church – see Ezekiel 8, 9 & 10, Ezekiel 34, Acts 15, Titus.

[7] There are other forms of government, but the contrast between democracy and dictatorship is used here.

[8] Open Doors reports on the various ways Christians are persecuted around the world and gives opportunities for other believers to help their persecuted brothers and sisters.

[9] See Ezekiel 22:30

[10] 2 Corinthians 10:6

[11] Psalm 139: 23, 24

[12] Daniel 2:21

[13] See Isaiah 22 – is a case in point: Shebna replaced by Eliakim

[14] Psalm 133, Matthew 16:18

[15] Revelation 12:7

[16] See Ephesians 6:12

[17] Hitchcock’s Bible Names.  Impact Ministries, Ireland.

[18] See Rees Howells Intercessor by Norman Grubb

[19] See Dietrich Bonhoeffer or Corrie Ten Boom

[20][20] See An Unconventional War by Sentinel Group

[21] See Transformation I by Sentinel Group

[22] Strong’s Concordance, #3091