Fervent Prayer

James 5:16–18 “16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. 17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.”

The fervent Prayer

Prayer from an Individual Is Tremendously Powerful

Often, we think of our need to get as many people praying as possible to get God’s will done. In fact, there does seem to be magnified power in the prayers of agreeing people. In Matthew 18:19 “19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.”

Certainly, there is power when a small group, a church, or churches agree in prayer. However, there is also great power when one person prays.

Ezekiel 22:30 “30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.”

Ezekiel reminds us to consistently stand in the gap for our friends, family, church, nation, and the world. God hears our prayers, even if we’re the only person praying, and he moves powerfully through them.

Prayer Is Affected by Our Righteousness or Lack of It

Again, James said, “The prayer of a righteous man availeth(have Power) much.” Certainly, all believers are righteous because of Christ’s righteousness being charge to their account 2 Corinthians 5:21 “21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”

Because Elijah separated from the compromise of Israel who worshipped Baal and separated himself to the true God, there was great power in his prayers to bring change. In fact, in 1 Kings 18, the priests of Baal were praying for fire from heaven for hours, and yet, it did not come. But when Elijah prayed to the one true living God, fire came down from heaven. There is power in the life of a godly person! This is why the sick are encouraged to go to the elders for prayer, as they should be godly people (Jam 5:14-15; cf. 1 Tim 3:1-7). Other Scriptures also teach the importance of righteous living for our prayers to be effective. Psalm 66:18 “18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, The Lord will not hear me:” Also, Psalm 34:15 “15 The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, And his ears are open unto their cry.”

Therefore, we must ask ourselves: Are we compromising with the world through our language or entertainment?

Or, are we being holy unto God—set apart from our ungodly culture unto him?

Are our prayers effective or ineffective?

A compromised life leads to ineffective prayer. In James 1:7-8, James said a doubled-minded man—one who professes to trust God but does not really, as evidenced by his life—should not expect to receive anything from God when praying because he is unstable (and unfaithful) in all his ways. Not walking in faith hinders the effectiveness of our prayers.

Prayer Should Be Offered in Accordance with God’s Word

Prayer is not about getting our will done on earth but getting God’s will done, as Christ taught in the Lord’s Prayer— Matthew 6:10 “10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”

Therefore, we should always pray according to God’s Word and his revealed will. This means if we are not in God’s Word, we will often not know his will and, therefore, how to pray. In fact, while reading God’s Word, we should commonly stop to pray exactly what it says—whether for our leaders, for healing over the sick, for unity in the church, or even for our community. Prayer should be according to God’s Word.

Prayer Should Be Heartfelt—Not Thoughtless

Certainly, we see the effectiveness of passionate, heartfelt prayer throughout the Scripture: With Hannah, she prayed so passionately at the temple, Eli thought she was drunk 1 Samuel 1:14–15 “14 And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee. 15 And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord.”

God heard her prayer and gave her a son named Samuel who would become a prophet and the last judge of Israel.

With Christ, while in the Garden of Gethsemane, he prayed so intensely that his sweat became like great droplets of blood Luke 22:44 “44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”

When we pray, do we really mean what we say?

Are we really reaching out to the heart of God with our heart when we petition him, or are we simply mouthing religious words out of a sense of duty or tradition?

Effective prayer is fervent prayer—prayed with our heart and mind.

Prayer Should Be Specific

James said that Elijah prayed for it to not rain and it didn’t. Then, he prayed for it to rain and it did. Elijah didn’t simply pray broad prayers for judgment and then broad prayers for blessing; he prayed specifically. We should ask specific requests of God as well when praying for someone’s marriage, job, or future. This reminds us of the importance of asking people for their prayer requests and also updates after receiving them. It is better to pray specifically than generally for people. When praying specifically is not possible, it may be wise to ask the Holy Spirit how to pray before interceding for a person, a community, or a nation. Romans 8:26 “26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”

We should pray specifically, as much as possible.

Prayer Should Be Persistent

While praying, it will commonly seem like nothing is changing. However, we should remain consistent and pray until there is break-through. In Luke 18:1-6,

Luke 18:1 “1 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;”

Jesus taught his disciples about a widow who kept shamelessly petitioning a judge until he brought her justice. Jesus shared the story so the disciples would learn to “pray and not to faint”(Lk 18:1). Certainly, we should pray for a person’s salvation and not lose heart when he(she) is indifferent, or it seems like his(her) heart has gotten more calloused.

We should pray for revival in our country and not faint when there are riots and protests.

God is sovereign over the storm and over the calm.

We should faithfully petition in both seasons. He is seeking people who will stand in the gap, so he can heal the land (Ez 22:30). Effective prayer is persistent.

Are we faithfully praying for our families, churches, communities, cities, and nations?

The prayers of the righteous are effective.

James shows some reasons why Elijah’s prayer life was so effective: First, he prayed; one cannot be effective in prayer unless one prays in the first place.

Second, he prayed fervently; he was aware of what he was praying, and kept praying with diligence and discipline.

Third, he prayed an “effective” prayer; that is, he expected results.

Fourth, he was a righteous person; he did not allow sin to cloud his conversation with God.

Fifth and finally, he prayed specifically, first for a drought, then for rain, in accordance with God’s word (cf. Deut 28:12, 24); he prayed according to Scripture.

Elijah was a great prophet granted extraordinary results by God. Nevertheless, there is no reason why any believer today cannot pray using the same principles as he did. Imagine what God might do in our world if Christians begin praying with fervent belief.

Align your prayers with God’s Word: Embrace the powerful effect and tremendous power of praying scripture back to the Lord, grounding your requests in His promises.

Pray in faith, believing in great things: Trust in the wonderful results Jesus promises to those who pray believing they will receive.

Embrace persistent prayer: Make prayer your habit, knowing that continual prayer, like those of Elijah on Mt. Carmel, bring results.

Seek righteousness in Christ Jesus: Your prayer life flourishes when you live righteously through the power of the Holy Spirit, aligning with the righteousness of God revealed in the New Testament gospel of faith in Jesus Christ.

Invoke the name of the Lord in your prayers: Recognize the authority and power in Jesus’ name, making every prayer in His name an avenue of our Heavenly Father’s will.

Mark 11:23–24 “23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. 24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”