[Special] Why we should cry out in prayer
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November 19, 2023 |
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Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.”
God promises He will answer our prayers when we cry out in prayer. It’s because crying out in prayer drives away idle thoughts, fatigue, and drowsiness and enables us to pray from the inner heart. Of course, when we pray shortly before the services or when we pray late at night at home, we need to offer silent prayers not to disturb those around us. But it is God’s will to cry out in prayer unless otherwise noticed.
God is pleased with our crying out in prayer and answers us
Luke 22:44 records that Jesus went to the Mount of Olives and prayed so fervently and earnestly that His sweat became like drops of blood falling to the ground. It means Jesus cried out in prayer for God’s answer. In the same way God answered pioneers of faith such as Moses, Samuel, and Stephen when they cried out in prayer (Exodus 15:22-25; Numbers 12; 1 Samuel 7:7-10; Acts 7:54-60).
When Elijah cried out and prayed to the LORD for the dead son of the widow of Zarephath, the child came back to life (1 Kings 17:17-24). When Jonah cried out to God in the belly of the fish, it vomited him onto the land and he was saved (Jonah 2). Blind Beggar Bartimaeus regained his sight when he cried out to Jesus (Mark 10:46-52).
‘Crying out in prayer’ means praying to God with a sincere heart and talking to Him loudly with concentration. Through this prayer we will be filled with the Holy Spirit and the enemy devil and Satan depart. Then we will receive answers and experience spiritual works.
Crying out in prayer is in accordance with God’s law
When the first man Adam ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, the land was accursed along with him and people came to eat of it only by sweat and in toil (Genesis 3:17-19). Jesus became a curse on our behalf through His crucifixion and we are liberated from all curses through His resurrection. But as we have mortal body, we can eat of the ground only by sweating. That is why we need to pray loudly and with sweating.
God knows our heart’s desires, but angels need to gather the incense from our prayers. The angels hear our prayers and gather the incense from prayers and send it to the archangel, and then the archangel puts the collected incense of each one’s prayer into the prayer censer around the throne of God. When we cry out in prayer, the scent of our prayers reaches God’s throne and He answers.
What does it mean “Go into your inner room, close your door and pray”
With the quotation of Matthew 6:6, which reads, “Go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret,” some say we don’t have to cry out in prayer. However, we have to grasp the spiritual meaning embedded in the Scriptures as all Scripture is God-breathed and inspired by the Spirit.
Jesus prayed all night at the mountain (Luke 6:12) and went to a secluded place to pray early in the morning (Mark 1:35). Daniel had windows open toward Jerusalem and prayed (Daniel 6:10). Apostle Peter went up to the roof and prayed (Acts 10:9) and Apostle Paul found a place of prayer and prayed there (Acts 16:13-16). They all did so to cry out in prayer with all their hearts.
What then does it mean “Go into your inner room, close your door and pray”? In the Bible, ‘room’ spiritually means ‘our heart.’ When we close the door in a private and quiet room, it can be cut off from the outside. In the same way, when we cut off idle thoughts and worries of the world in prayers, we can pray with concentration and cry out to God with all our hearts.
In Jesus’ time the Pharisees and the priests prayed loudly on the street to receive praise and recognition from others. Jesus told them that such prayers of theirs were not accepted by God. He meant they had to pray from the bottom of heart.
Therefore, we should not boast praying for long with many words, but humbly pray to God who looks at our hearts and believe God knows all aspects of our lives and gives us everything we ask for.
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