What is warfare prayer?

In this warfare prayer is a distinct weapon, a part of the panoply of God enumerated in Eph. 6:18-19. "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; and for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel." Epaphras illustrates prayer as a mode of spiritual conflict. The Auth. Vers. says, "Epaphras … saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers" (Col. 4:12). But the true rendering of the word "labouring" is "combating." It is the same word as, in John 18:36, is translated "fight" — "then would my servants fight." Prayer, the last-mentioned piece in the panoply, is the active expression of the essential principle of the conflict, namely, dependence. Man has no strength against Satan, and, in nature, is his willing slave; and the Christian's resource is to lay hold upon a strength which is divine, and which alone can cope with the power of Satan. Hence the entire subject of the armour, and the believer's conflict, is introduced by laying down the foundation principle, "Be strong in the Lord, and in the might of his strength" (Eph. 6:10, New Trans.). Man must get back to God, and to the creature's condition of dependence, or he remains the slave of Satan. And the saint must be genuinely cast upon the Lord in the sense of his weakness and dependence if he is to be a victor in the battle.

In this warfare prayer is a distinct weapon, a part of the panoply of God enumerated in Ephesians six. "praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints -- and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel" (v.18,19). Epaphras illustrates prayer as a mode of spiritual conflict. The Authorized Version says, "Epaphras . saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers" (Col.4:12). But the true rendering of the word "labouring" is "combating". It is the same word as, in John 18:36 , is translated "fight" - "then would my servants fight." Prayer, the last mentioned piece in the panoply, is the active expression of the essential principle of the conflict, namely, dependence. Man has no strength against Satan, and, in nature, is his willing slave; and the Christian's resource is to lay hold upon a strength which is divine, and which alone can cope with the power of Satan. Hence the entire subject of the armour, and the believer's conflict, is introduced by laying down the foundation principle, "Be strong in the Lord, and in the might of his strength" (Eph.6:10, JND Tn). Man must get back to God, and to the creature's condition of dependence, or he remains the slave of Satan. And the saint must be genuinely cast upon the Lord in the sense of his weakness and dependence if he is to be a victor in the battle.

The sword is also used actively in the spiritual warfare, in which it judges all that is opposed to us. In this sense it is both defensive and offensive. But, behind all this armour, there is a state, a disposition, a means of strength, which quickens and gives all the rest its power: this is a complete dependence on God, united to trust in Him, which expresses itself in prayer. "Praying always"; this dependence must be constant. When it is real, and I feel that I can do nothing without God, and that He wills my good in all things, it expresses itself. It seeks the strength which it has not: it seeks it from Him in whom it trusts. It is the motion of the Spirit in our hearts in their intercourse with God, so that our battles are fought in the communion of His strength and His favour, and in the consciousness that we can do nothing, and that He is all. "At all times"; "with supplication." This prayer is the expression of the man's need, of the heart's desire, in the strength that the Spirit gives him, as well as in confidence in God. Also since it is the Spirit's act, it embraces all saints, not one of whom can be forgotten by Jesus; and the Spirit in us answers the affections of Christ, and reproduces them. We must be watchful and diligent in order to use this weapon; avoiding all that would turn us away from God, availing ourselves of every opportunity, and finding, by the grace of the Spirit, in everything that arises, an occasion (by means of this diligence) for prayer and not for distraction.

Praying always. We do not detach this from the armor of God. It belongs to it. Prayer always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, is next to the sword of the Spirit the most powerful weapon against the devil and his wicked hosts. We must read the Word and pray. Prayer and the Word cannot be separated. The searching of the Word must be done with prayer and prayer will be effectual through knowing the Word. Prayer is dependence on God; we lean on Him. And as we pray in the Spirit (not for the Spirit) we are to watch also and remember all the saints of God, the blessed members of the body of Christ, the masterpiece of God.

Firstly, the Apostle says, “Submit yourselves therefore to God.” Grace alone will lead to submission. The sense of the grace and goodness of God will give such confidence in God that the soul will gladly give up its own will and submit to God. Instead of seeking to be somebody and something in the world, the Christian will cheerfully accept the circumstances that God orders. The Lord Jesus is the perfect example of One whose confidence in God led Him to submit perfectly to God. In the presence of the most sorrowful circumstances, when rejected by the cities in which He had wrought His miracles of love, He said, “Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in Thy sight” (Matt. 11:26).

Secondly, the Apostle exhorts, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” Submitting to God and being content with such things as we have will enable us to resist the devil's temptations to exalt ourselves by the things of this world. As in the temptations of our Lord, the devil may tempt us by natural needs, by religious advancement, or by worldly possessions. If, however, his temptations are met by the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, his wiles will be detected and he will not be able to stand against the grace of the Spirit that dwells in us. The Lord has triumphed over Satan and, in His grace, we can so resist the devil that he has to flee.

(V. 8). Thirdly, we are exhorted, “Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you.” The devil resisted has to flee, leaving the soul free to draw nigh to God and to find that He is very nigh to us. If, like the Lord in His perfect path, we set Him always before us, we shall find, even as He did, that He is at our right hand and, with His being near to us, we shall not be moved (Psalm 16:8). Drawing near to God is the expression of the active confidence in Him and dependence upon Him, of a heart moved by grace to find that His throne is a throne of grace.

In short, if the presence of God is realised in the heart, if the Spirit of God rules there, and the sense of dependence is active in the soul, we shall feel that what the enemy presents to us is not of God, and the will of the new man will not desire it. Satan once detected, the new man resists him, and he has no strength. Jesus has overcome him for us. We learn here that, if we resist him, he will flee; he finds that he has met the Spirit of Christ in us, and he flees. The evil is, that we do not always resist him; we accept his enticements, because the will of God is not everything to us: in many things we still like to please ourselves. If grace is known, obedience and dependence guard us from the wiles of the devil. He has no power against the resistance of faith; he is manifested as Satan, the adversary, as he was when Jesus suffered Himself to be tempted for us, and Satan fled before His resistance. He knows it is the same One whom he meets in us.

Now in his desire for their earnest prayers, Paul appeals to their allegiance to the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to their love in the Spirit — the first objective, the second subjective. How could the Roman saints resist this tender entreaty? It is their striving together with him in prayer that he seeks: it is a battlefield, and he would press them into active service, that they might be fully united with him in the conflict. If we know anything about prayer, we know it means serious conflict with spiritual enemies. Would we rather cease from praying, and allow the enemy to gain the field?Indeed the results of this would be far more dreadful than any conflict! If we would avoid dire consequences, we cannot excuse ourselves from service on this battleground. Nor, if we have any honest devotedness to Christ, would we want to be excused.

"What great conflict I have for you." There we see what prayer can be (the same word as that used for the Lord agonizing in Gethsemane). It is not merely going to God with confidence as to our Father with our needs, though we cannot get on if we do not; but this is overcoming Satan. Where we have to move the power of Satan (which we have to do in all service), the word of God is the weapon; but the first thing is for the heart to be with God about it. Paul had never seen these saints, but he got exercised with the Lord about them, and the Lord was as much in one place as another. He was with them, though Paul was not. It is positive conflict here for the blessing of others. We find a lack of that now. There is not that kind of interest with God, and connecting His people with Himself so as to set the heart in this conflict and exercise.

Help our comrades. Every one is not placed in the same part of the field nor called to the same kind of warfare. There are those in the forefront of the battle who carry the Standard of Truth right into the enemy’s land. We can help such by prayer. That great and valiant soldier, the apostle Paul, asked for the prayers of God’s people. “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak” (Eph. 6:18-20). Here you have the case stated, and mark it well, this is connected with the great conflict, for which the whole armour of God is needed. It is evident that the great Captain’s eye is on the field of conflict. He sees every movement, knows all the strategy of the foe, and connects His succour with the prayers of His people. No more honoured place could any have than that of intercessors. It is the place that our Lord has taken in heaven. It is in intercession that we help our brethren; but to truly intercede we require two things—we must be acquainted with the need, and at the same time be in touch with the supply. Have you not felt the fierceness of Satan’s attacks yourself, and that the Lord was your only resource? Did you not find how strong He was to deliver? Knowing then the need and the sufficiency of the supply, you can intercede for others. Oh that this were always our happy occupation! Alas! we often find Christians treating each other as foes. They turn and wound and bruise each other. How pitiful is this! May the good Lord deliver us from it!

Our warfare is upon another plane altogether. With us there are "strongholds" to be overthrown. Who holds these strongholds? The great adversary himself. He it is who has entrenched himself in human hearts, so that they are filled with "imaginations" or "reasonings," so that they exalt themselves on high against the knowledge of God, and are filled with lawlessness. All these lofty thoughts have to be brought low into captivity to Christ, so that lawlessness is exchanged for obedience to Him. What weapons are sufficient to produce that result?

Merely human weapons must be perfectly futile. Fleshly weapons can no more subdue flesh than Satan can cast out Satan. Spiritual weapons alone can prevail; and they must be used in a way that is according to God, if they are to be effectual.

What spiritual weapons are at our disposal? In this passage the Apostle does not pause to specify, though the succeeding verses seem to show that he was specially thinking of those powers of discipline which were vested in him as an Apostle, powers peculiar to himself. There are however, spiritual weapons which all may use: those for instance, which were mentioned by the Apostles in Jerusalem when they said, "We will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word" (Acts 6:4). Every saint can pray, and every saint can in some way speak forth the Word.