Prayer XXIII

In the first article, I wrote on definitions on prayer, when prayer starts and some of the components of prayer. While in the second article I finished my brief exegesis on components of prayer. The third article is centered on those who should pray. The fourth is on some of the reasons why talk (pray) to our heavenly father. The fifth article is on places of prayer while the sixth and seventh centered on occasions that move men to pray unto God. The eight article is on period (time) that men can pray. The ninth article focuses on how we should be praying. In the tenth article I write on a type of prayer, which is the prayer of thanksgiving.

While in the eleventh article I talked about three types of prayers which are, prayer of praise, prayer of worship and prayer of dedication (consecration). In the twelfth article I have talked about the following types of prayer: prayer of supplication, prayer of agreement, corporate prayer, prayer of commitment and prayer of imprecation. And in the thirteenth article I talked about prayer of vengeance, prayer of restoration, prayer of forgiveness, prayer of repentance and silent prayer. Article fourteen focuses on prayer of binding and loosing. In article fifteen I write on the prayer of contemplation. In the sixteenth article I start writing on the intercessory prayer and capped this up with some of the essentials of this prayer in article seventeen. Articles eighteen to twenty talk about prayer of faith.

In article twenty-one, I wrote on prayer of faith and then proceed to another type of prayer which is called eyes opening prayer. In article twenty-two I wrote prayer of difference. In this article I want to write on prayer of authority.

After Jesus resurrection and ascension, he placed the disciples and apostles at a new position, which is the position of authority. This is the position where men was in the garden of Eden before it got lost from us through sin from our ancient parents. This lost position was restored to men through the disciples and believers.

Therefore, he says,

“Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” (Luk 10:19)

Power here is written in Greek as “ἐξουσία”, Romanized form is exousia (pronounced as ex-oo-see'-ah) which means delegated influence, authority, token of control, force.

The word that late Reverend Ajayi Crowther who translated the bible into Yoruba version used for this power is authority. Authority is higher than power. Governors, judges, Kings, etc. have some measures of power, but they do not have the authority that President of a nation has, at least in the countries where democracy is being practiced. And in small villages it is the Kings who use authorities there. The chiefs under them can use power but they do not have the authority over the people like the Kings.

Take as instance the story in second Kings chapter five, you will see that Naaman being the captain or say general in the army has power, but he does not have authority. The authority resides with the king.

Authority is what is spoken that cannot be reversed by anything or anyone except the person who says it, and in some cases where people use demonic power and influences they cannot reverse what they have used demonic authority to utter.

Authority makes a person a small god indeed because whatever is spoken would be executed. In the academic world they call some people “authorities” in their field, when they speak, others become silent, when they speak no one can speak again, thence, they are those who usually speak last during seminars and other academic presentations, because their words is the final say.

A person who prayed a prayer like this in the bible was the person called Joshua.

When the Israelites were fighting with their enemies and the war is till fierce, and Joshua and the Israelis desired to put to an end their enemies that day, but that would not happen except something extra-ordinary happens, thence, Joshua spoke to things created by God to work in their favor by commanding the sun and the moon to stop moving until they secure habitation for their God. This was done. It was a prayer that stems out of the ordinary.

“Then spake Joshua to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon.

“And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day.

“And there was no day like that before it or after it, that the LORD hearkened unto the voice of a man: for the LORD fought for Israel.” (Jos 10:12-14)

e-sword Bible in her commentary says, Joshua acted on this day by the impulse of the spirit of God in him and commanding the sun which appeared unto them at Gibeon and moon which was at the valley of Ajalon to stand still. We though through the astronomical science know that Sun does not move, but to them those days when this knowledge has not been gotten it was the sun and the moon that were moving. Now we know that it is the earth that is rotating on its axis. The wonderful thing about this was that what he said happened because they were able to fight their battle that day without the day closing.

He tapped into the position that God has earlier put man while he says men should have dominion over all things he has created. We have dominion through authority that he has given us. (Gen 1:28)

Jesus’ miracles were often centered on the use of authority and that was why the people used to marvel at his teachings and at some of the miracles he used to perform like opening of the eyes of the person born blind. (Joh 9)

Although historians and the scribes would not believe what Jesus did as he makes a clay from his spittle and put it on the man’s eyes, asking him to go to the pool of Siloam to wash the eyes there to be a miracle. They said this is because in the ancient orient they believed that the clay has some healing powers and there some things inside the clay of their land that does magic or miracles. But come to think about it, since those things have been there why cannot any of them do such to the man before Jesus did it? Or was it because of their hatred for the man that they could not do that?

This obviously shows that the people were always looking for means of discrediting Jesus works when he was alive to show that he was not supernatural like believers have claimed him to be.

It is from whence Jesus operates from that he wants us, believers to be operating from, that is why he has said all powers belong unto him that he now has all authority and he has assigned us to be operating in that position.

When a person who has authority speaks the heavens and the earth listen. Just like apostle Peter after the Holy Ghost has fallen on them all. When he speaks people marvel and the leadership of those days could not but marvel at how they were operating.

This kind of prayer is being used for stiff-necked troubles and situations. Situation that has defied all methods. Apostle Paul uses this kind of prayer to command the demons of divination in a damsel’s heart to get out of the place. (Act 16:16-18)

God really wishes that we all operate in this kind of level for it is a higher level, but the flesh has been disturbing us to operate from such level, until we conquer the flesh we shall not be able to operate in that level.

In the next article I shall be writing on praying in the spirit.