Prayers 25th Jan PM

(Acts 15:1–16:5)

Gracious Father,

We praise you that the gospel we have received is not a message of human effort, but good news of your grace. As the apostles declared in Jerusalem, “We believe it is through the grace of the Lord Jesus that we are saved.” Thank you that our salvation rests not on what we add, improve, or achieve, but on the finished work of Christ alone.

Help us as a church to stand firm in the freedom Christ has won for us,

freedom to joyfully live under your gracious rule and will, and help us to hold out that same freedom clearly and joyfully to others.

Father, we pray for your church throughout the ages.

Thank you for the example of the early believers in Acts, who faced disagreement honestly, searched the Scriptures carefully, and submitted humbly to your word.

Thank you for the apostles, comissioned by your Son to bring truth. When questions arose that threatened the gospel, you preserved unity without compromise.

Grant that same wisdom to your church today. Where there is confusion, bring clarity from the scriptures. Where there is disagreement, bring humility from your Word. Where there is fear of change, bring confidence in your truth.

Lord, we pray for unity among your people.

In Acts, you showed that unity is not achieved by lowering the truth, but by holding firmly to the gospel of grace. Help us to be a church where believers from different backgrounds, with different experiences and weaknesses, can stand together at the foot of the cross.

Protect us from pride, comparison, and suspicion. Teach us to welcome one another as Christ has welcomed us — not because we are the same, but because we share the same Saviour.

Father, we thank you for Jonathan and Dawn Clarke and your work through them in Greece. Thank you they are seeking to estbalish your Gospel again in places Paul the apostle did in Acts.

We praise you for your kindness to their family — for Joel’s work, Ruth’s schooling, and Hannah and Esther flourishing. Thank you for good new leadership in student ministry, for Touki in Athens and Charis in Thessaloniki, for funding for the Jesus Storybook Bible project, for joyful gospel unity in the church, and growing interest in InterAction.

Lord, we bring before you those among us who are weary or burdened.

Some struggle under guilt, feeling they must do more to be accepted by you. Others feel crushed by expectations — their own or those of others. Remind us today that Christ has carried the weight we cannot bear. Let the truth of grace bring rest to anxious hearts and assurance to troubled consciences.

Father, as we hear your word preached today,

give us ears to listen, hearts ready to submit, and lives willing to be shaped by the truth. Strengthen us in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, so that, like the early church, we may be built up, united, and sent out for the glory of your name.

We ask all this in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.