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The Necessity of Prayer
Edward M. Bounds
XI. PRAYER AND VIGILANCE
"David Brainerd was pursued by unearthly adversaries, who were
resolved to rob him of his guerdon. He knew he must never quit his armour, but
lie down to rest, with his corselet laced. The stains that marred the
perfection of his lustrous dress, the spots of rust on his gleaming shield,
are imperceptible to us; but they were, to him, the source of much sorrow and
ardency of yearning." -- LIFE OF DAVID BRAINERD. THE
description of the Christian soldier given by Paul in the sixth chapter of the
Epistle to the Ephesians, is compact and comprehensive. He is depicted as
being ever in the conflict, which has many fluctuating seasons -- seasons of
prosperity and adversity, light and darkness, victory and defeat. He is to pray
at all seasons, and with all prayer, this to be added to the armour in which he
is to fare forth to battle. At all times, he is to have the full panoply of
prayer. The Christian soldier, if he fight to win, must pray much. By this
means, only, is he enabled to defeat his inveterate enemy, the devil, together
with the Evil One's manifold emissaries. "Praying always, with all prayer," is
the Divine direction given him. This covers all seasons, and embraces all manner
of praying.
Christian soldiers, fighting the good fight of faith, have access to a place
of retreat, to which they continually repair for prayer. "Praying always, with
all prayer," is a clear statement of the imperative need of much praying, and of
many kinds of praying, by him who, fighting the good fight of faith, would win
out, in the end, over all his foes.
The Revised Version puts it this way:
"With all prayer and supplication, praying at all seasons in
the Spirit, and watching thereunto in all perseverance and supplications, for
all saints, and on my behalf, that utterance may be given unto me, in opening
my mouth to make known with boldness the mystery of the Gospel, for which I am
in bonds." It cannot be stated too frequently that the life of a
Christian is a warfare, an intense conflict, a lifelong contest. It is a battle,
moreover, waged against invisible foes, who are ever alert, and ever seeking to
entrap, deceive, and ruin the souls of men. The life to which Holy Scripture
calls men is no picnic, or holiday junketing. It is no pastime, no pleasure
jaunt. It entails effort, wrestling, struggling; it demands the putting forth of
the full energy of the spirit in order to frustrate the foe and to come off, at
the last, more than conqueror. It is no primrose path, no rose-scented
dalliance. From start to finish, it is war. From the hour in which he first
draws sword, to that in which he doffs his harness, the Christian warrior is
compelled to "endure hardness like a good soldier."
What a misconception many people have of the Christian life! How little the
average church member appears to know of the character of the conflict, and of
its demands upon him! How ignorant he seems to be of the enemies he must
encounter, if he engage to serve God faithfully and so succeed in getting to
heaven and receive the crown of life! He seems scarcely to realize that the
world, the flesh and the devil will oppose his onward march, and will defeat him
utterly, unless he give himself to constant vigilance and unceasing prayer.
The Christian soldier wrestles not against flesh and blood, but against
spiritual wickedness in high places. Or, as the Scriptural margin reads, "wicked
spirits in high places." What a fearful array of forces are set against him who
would make his way through the wilderness of this world to the portals of the
Celestial City! It is no surprise, therefore, to find Paul, who understood the
character of the Christian life so well, and who was so thoroughly informed as
to the malignity and number of the foes, which the disciple of the Lord must
encounter, carefully and plainly urging him to "put on the whole armour of God,"
and "to pray with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit." Wise, with a great
wisdom, would the present generation be if all professors of our faith could be
induced to realize this all-important and vital truth, which is so absolutely
indispensable to a successful Christian life.
It is just at this point in much present-day Christian profession, that one
may find its greatest defect. There is little, or nothing, of the soldier
element in it. The discipline, self-denial, spirit of hardship, determination,
so prominent in and belonging to the military life, are, one and all, largely
wanting. Yet the Christian life is warfare, all the way.
How comprehensive, pointed and striking are all Paul's directions to the
Christian soldier, who is bent on thwarting the devil and saving his soul alive!
First of all, he must possess a clear idea of the character of the life on which
he has entered. Then, he must know something of his foes -- the adversaries of
his immortal soul -- their strength, their skill, their malignity. Knowing,
therefore, something of the character of the enemy, and realizing the need of
preparation to overcome them, he is prepared to hear the Apostle's decisive
conclusion:
"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in he power
of His might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand
against the wiles of the devil. Wherefore, take unto you the whole armour of
God, that ye may be able to stand in the evil day, and having done all, to
stand." All these directions end in a climax; and that climax is
prayer. How can the brave warrior for Christ be made braver still? How can the
strong soldier be made stronger still? How can the victorious battler be made
still more victorious? Here are Paul's explicit directions to that end:
"Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit,
and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all
saints." Prayer, and more prayer, adds to the fighting qualities
and the more certain victories of God's good fighting-men. The power of prayer
is most forceful on the battle-field amid the din and strife of the conflict.
Paul was preeminently a soldier of the Cross. For him, life was no flowery bed
of ease. He was no dress-parade, holiday soldier, whose only business was to don
a uniform on set occasions. His was a life of intense conflict, the facing of
many adversaries, the exercise of unsleeping vigilance and constant effort. And,
at its close -- in sight of the end -- we hear him chanting his final song of
victory, a I have fought a good fight," and reading between the lines, we see
that he is more than conqueror!
In his Epistle to the Romans, Paul indicates the nature of his
soldier-life, giving us some views of the kind of praying needed for such a
career. He writes:
"Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake,
and for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your
prayers to God for me, that I may be delivered from them that do not believe
in Judaea." Paul had foes in Judaea -- foes who beset and
opposed him in the form of "unbelieving men" and this, added to other weighty
reasons, led him to urge the Roman Christians to "strive with him in prayer."
That word "strive" indicated wrestling, the putting forth of great effort. This
is the kind of effort, and this the sort of spirit, which must possess the
Christian soldier.
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