There is a powerful mystery in prayer. Have you ever questioned why it is so important that we pray? Doesn’t it seem puzzling when you think it through? Why should there be a requirement or need for prayer at all? Isn’t God all-powerful?

Self-sufficiency is one of His characteristics so why does He need anything that man can provide? If it is true that it is important for us to pray—as Jesus, Paul and the disciples revealed—then do we assume that God actually needs outside help? Look at this vital verse of scripture:

“So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.  Therefore I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; and I have recompensed their deeds on their own heads,” says the Lord God.”  Ezekiel 22:30-31

We know from scripture that God spoke the worlds into existence. His word is the framework that upholds everything. So why on earth would God need the help of seemingly insignificant man? Why did He devise the plan of prayer in the first place? How and why did He become dependent upon the intercession only His children can provide? Here lies the mystery of prayer.

Scripture tells us that God desires that no one would perish, yet He doesn’t take control to get what He wants. “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

Even with this one verse from scripture we perceive that God is requiring partnership, not dictatorship. His desire is for us to choose Him and take a simple but powerful step into relationship. He does not force us, but longs for us to respond.

There is a reason God chooses to do nothing in the area of human redemption apart from human cooperation. We seem to accept that God doesn’t provide salvation without our deliberate acceptance—which we activate through a prayer of faith. Why does an all-powerful God need man to be any kind of link to His plans, yet alone a vital one? Why would He give us that kind of power over the outcome?

Without Man God Is Limited
The mystery of God’s design of prayer is clearly indicated in Ezekiel 22:30-31. During a time of national rebellion, God said, “So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.  Therefore, I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; and I have recompensed their deeds on their own heads,” says the Lord God.”

Here we see God’s desire to avoid carrying out deserved judgment. He longs to spare the nation, yet, He has chosen not to act without man agreeing with Him. When there is no intercessor, God will dispense judgement. If no one will intercede and stand in the gap, God has determined that He is unable to withhold justice. He is not desiring a unilateral outcome unless no one else will participate.

Why would almighty God allow Himself to be dependent upon the prayers of people to defend the nation from judgment? Especially in light of  scripture that states repeatedly that He desires to withhold His judgment? God is the supreme Sovereign of the universe. He is the Executive and the Enforcement Authority. He reigns and rules. He is the ultimate Judge and Jury. Or is He?

If God longed to withhold judgment against His people, then why didn’t He exercise His power to withhold it? If He yearned to show mercy, then why didn’t He simply choose to show mercy? Since God’s will is supreme in all things, why doesn’t He arbitrarily go over our heads and carry out His will?

Why has God set up a system that has made Him dependent upon you and me? At first glance this is nothing short of a baffling mystery? However, the more we look into this heavenly system, we discover powerful and shocking truths that should shake us to our core and spur us into action.

God Wants and Needs Us to Pray
Throughout scripture God’s people are invited, and even urged, to pray. If we take Biblical history to heart, we learn that God will do nothing outside of mankind’s participation through prayer and intercession. We discover that this powerful privilege of partnership with God is God’s great aim.

Let’s look at Matthew 7:7. “Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” The Amplified Bible further elaborates to say, “Ask and keep on asking and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking and you will find; knock and keep on knocking and the door will be opened.”

It is important to understand that God is saying, “Participate!” He is telling us to keep participating. This is not a single act or a momentary event—it is a lifestyle He is requesting—with great reward attached. It seems clear that God will do nothing outside of our prayers of faith.

Jesus was a wonderful example—one we are told to imitate. Throughout His life  He prayed every day. And He taught His disciples how to pray. He commanded us to pray in Matthew 9:38 when He said, “Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” If God wants laborers in the harvest, why wouldn’t He send them without our prayers? He is the Lord of the harvest—both the laborers and the harvest belong to Him. Yet He compels us to pray in agreement with His will in order to bring about His desire.

God has put man in charge of the earth as representatives of the Kingdom of Heaven. He has always worked through a chain of command… and will never change.

God Unquestionably Promises to Answer Prayer
We must change our perceptions about prayer and God’s desire to answer. Prayer is the most powerful force we have available to us. But just as God set boundaries for Himself, He has also set boundaries around how His system of prayer works. If we want to see our prayers answered, then we must pray in agreement with God’s will. He never promised to answer any random or selfish prayer. But He does promise to answer any prayer that is prayed with faith, and in agreement with His will.

Here are some examples of God’s plan for prayer: “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” Let’s look at this scripture again in the Amplified version: “And I will do whatever you ask in My name [as My representative], this I will do, so that the Father may be glorified and celebrated in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name [as My representative], I will do it.”

What a powerful position Jesus puts His followers in when He says, “as My representative.” When we represent someone else, we carry out what they would do and facilitate their desires—not our own.

Another scripture that teaches us about our partnership in prayer is John 15:7. “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.” Again, when we look at the Amplified we see more deeply into the meaning and condition He is speaking of: “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you [that is, if we are vitally united and My message lives in your heart] you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.”

To be “vitally united with Christ” and to be His “representative,” puts these scriptures into a new light. These are conditions to the effectiveness of our prayers—but fair conditions for a dedicated follower of Jesus. To abide in Christ means “to remain in.” Nowhere in scripture is it said, or inferred, that if we pray correctly our prayers might not be answered. In fact, just the opposite is true.

Jesus could not offer this much power to someone who was not trustworthy to act as His representative. He is looking for true believers to take authority over the earth just as Jesus did when He walked in the flesh among mankind. He is calling on those who follow Jesus to be His representatives and trust Him with their whole heart.

Jesus also exposed the error of some prayers when He said in James 4:3, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss…” Also indicating that if we ask correctly, we will receive what we have asked for.

It is as though we are being told that as God’s representatives on earth, we have been given a blank check that God Himself has signed. If we use this hypothetical check according to God’s will, it will provide what is being sought.

Action To Take Now
Let’s join together believers, and stand united in love and in prayer for our nation and for a spiritual harvest of souls worldwide. Paula and I are ready to sound the alarm as loudly as we can, for as long as God gives us breath. With your help we will preach and teach His word until the last moment. He has led us to keep preaching to the remnant Christian Church.

We each must take action—for the sake of our families, our future, and the world as we know it. We must take a stand for Jesus. I hope you will join us through prayer and by donating to our cause—while there is still time to keep teaching and proclaiming the life-changing gospel of Jesus.

You remain in our hearts and prayers. Remember also, with God nothing is impossible!

Dale and Paula Black