THE CHURCH AT PRAYER

THE CHURCH AT PRAYER

Acts 12:1-19

Dr. Wm. J. Maxwell

First Presbyterian Church, Newport, RI

September 10, 2006

“He doesn’t have a prayer!” “He doesn’t have a prayer of a chance!” Ever hear this line? It’s usually said in a situation that appears desperate, with little hope for success or perhaps even survival.

That must have been what some thought or even said when the apostle Peter was arrested, immediately following the beheading of the apostle James. After all, Herod Agrippa was king and his family had quite a reputation. His grandfather was the notorious Herod the Great, under whose orders infants were killed in Bethlehem. His sister was Herodias, who was responsible for the death of John the Baptist.

Now in this situation, when Herod Agrippa saw how much the Jews were pleased over the death of James, he thought he could go one better: he would go after the leader and the chief spokesman of the Twelve. The only thing that got in the way was the celebration of the Passover, but this was only a temporary setback. Surely, after Passover ended, the numerous Jews in Jerusalem would find even greater pleasure in the death of this apostle.

What Herod did not see or anticipate was the sovereignty of God, the faith of the Apostle Peter, and the prayers of the Church. The three of these were of such formidable strength, far more than the Fortress of Antonia in Jerusalem or the will of a devious king.

As we look at the events of this situation in the Church’s life, we can learn a great deal about the church in prayer. There are lessons here for all of us as we consider the importance of prayer in the life and witness of the Church, and this includes our own life together here at First Presbyterian Church.

ONE LESSON IS SURELY THIS:

GOD IS ALWAYS SOVEREIGN AND AS SUCH,

PRAYER CAN OFTEN BE A MYSTERY TO US.

When we read the events of this chapter, it’s hard to get past the obvious question: “Why would God allow James to die as a martyr, while deciding to miraculously save and rescue Peter?” From the New Testament, we know that both of them were faithful disciples and servants of Christ. One may have been more outspoken than the other, but both of them were part of the inner three with Jesus – Peter, James and John.

We may also assume that the Church had been in prayer for both of them. It’s hard to believe that the Church hadn’t been at prayer for James, as it had been for Peter. But the outcomes were so different, so very different!

The words of our Call to Worship this morning are not words spoken without meaning or relevance.[i] They do have significance for us. The wisdom and knowledge of God are of the deepest depths. The decrees and decisions of God are not always clearly understandable or definable by finite creatures such as we are. So often, “His paths (are) beyond tracing out”!

One current example of this is the fifth anniversary tomorrow of the tragedy of “9 / 11”. Many of us are still lost in sad amazement over the reality and the consequences of this tragedy. Still another and more recent example is the death of Steve Irwin this past week. The 44 year old “Crocodile Hunter” and Australian wildlife conservationist was killed by a stingray’s attack in the Great Barrier Reef. After hundreds of episodes in far more dangerous settings – including that of crocodiles - how could this happen?

Life is full of such difficult and hard questions. Parents of sick or handicapped children wonder why their children are not healthy or athletically gifted. Spouses like Terri Irwin and her children struggle in searching for answers that are not always so easily found.

Some questions will in fact remain unanswered in this life. But while we may not have all the answers, we may be assured that God knows all and sees all. And even though we live in a fallen world where accidents, illness, and death are allowed for a time, we must remember that they are allowed only for a time. Our full redemption and that of the world will come! We may believe this fully because of the great victory over sin and death won for us by our Lord Jesus Christ!

In the meantime, we may also be certain that God will not forsake those who love Him and who have been called according to His purpose.[ii] Even suffering of one form or another can and will be used for the good of those who love God and who turn to Him in faith and in trust.

William Cowper, a close friend of John Newton’s (who wrote the hymn, “Amazing Grace”), experienced emotional and physical frailties most if not all of his life. And yet, out of this kind of life and out of his extraordinary literary talents, there came some wonderful hymns that have blessed and encouraged God’s people for two centuries.

One of his great hymns is the hymn, “God Moves in a Mysterious Way.” In the midst of all the mystery, we can still trust God and turn to Him in prayer. As Cowper encourages us:

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,

but trust Him for His grace;

behind a frowning providence

He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast,

unfolding every hour;

the bud may have a bitter taste,

But sweet will be the flower.

By God’s grace and mercy, I’m sure that many of us here this morning can testify to the “flower,” as well as to the “bud.” The reason is surely this: God never forsakes or fails His own!

HOWEVER, IN HAVING SAID THIS, THE OTHER LESSON FOR US IS THIS:

GOD SO OFTEN ANSWERS OUR PRAYERS,

FOR WHICH WE SHOULD TAKE NOTICE

AND GIVE THANKS!

We are told by Luke that as Peter was being held in prison, the Church was earnestly praying to God for him. The Greek has the idea of continuing, earnest, fervent prayer for the apostle. Whereas Herod had the Fortress of Antonia and four squads of four soldiers each to guard Peter, all paled in comparison to the power of God’s people when they got on their knees!

What happened then should amaze us in reflection. First of all, there was Peter, fast asleep. His dear friend James had just been beheaded. In addition, it was the very eve of his trial and quite possibly of his execution. He had one soldier chained to his left and another chained to his right. And yet we are told that Peter was fast asleep; he was deep in sleep! What a picture of complete trust and faith in God!

Then there was the delivering ministry of an angel. The Bible tells us that angels are spiritual beings in service to the Almighty, and that they are also “sent to serve those who will inherit salvation.” [iii] In this case, it only took one angel to bring the apostle out into freedom!

Then, of course, we have the almost humorous response of the Church. They had prayed and prayed for Peter. But when the answer to their prayer was literally staring them in the face, they couldn’t believe it! All they could do was to lean on the Jewish idea that guardian angels assumed the same appearance as the persons they protected. But, oh, no, the man standing before them was the genuine article. God had answered their prayers in a most miraculous way!

Now, we don’t want to find too much fault with this band of believers. While they were in fact surprised by such an answer, they had nevertheless been faithfully engaged in prayer. They hadn’t given up in complete resignation. They hadn’t focused only upon the “mountain” and not upon the “Mountain-Mover.” And when God’s people seek the intervention of the Almighty with even mustard seed-sized faith, they find out soon enough that God acts on behalf of His people!

Such was the case of Wesley Duewel when he was summoned to leave his mission work in the Himalayas for a meeting. The meeting was to be held in Los Angeles, CA, but on the day he was to leave, he became ill. He was experiencing a fever, headache, raw throat and aching body. But he hid these symptoms from his family, fearing they would not let him leave.

Once on a bus, having said goodbye to his family, the symptoms of his illness increased in intensity. He then found his way to a train in Delhi, but the train car had no fans or lights, and he was by then in physical agony. His fever went even higher, coupled with severe nausea and a splitting headache. He then thought to himself, ““If I could only find one Christian and ask him to pray for me!”

It was precisely at that moment when out of the darkness of that hot train car, “a cool, human hand wiped the sweat from his face with a damp, refreshing washcloth. Instantly, his fever, headache, nausea, and sore throat were gone. He was completely healed.”

Duewel stopped over at Hong Kong and then Tokyo, telling friends and mission co-workers along the way what had happened to him so miraculously. “I am here today,” he told them, “because someone prayed for me. I don’t know who it was, but I felt that one’s hand.”

When Wesley Duewel finally arrived at the meeting in L.A., he received a letter addressed to him. The author of this letter said that he had been given a burden from the Lord to pray for Duewel. There had suddenly come upon him an overwhelming sense of need to pray for him. In this letter, it was noted that the sense of burden came at 9:15 pm on the very day Wesley Duewel left the Himalayas!

Recognizing immediately God’s gracious intervention in calling this person to pray for him, Duewel had this to say: “Whether I had felt the actual hand of the prayer, or whether it was the hand of an angel in answer to the prayer makes no difference. Prayer spanned the miles and left its healing touch on a speeding train that hot June night.” [iv]

While the Almighty is the great I AM, is most certainly sovereign, and is able to do anything He wants to do without us, He has yet chosen to work so very often through the vehicle of our prayers. Such prayers can bring us into more intimate communion with Him and into a posture of renewed faith and trust.

And when we come face to face with the answers to our prayers, may we return yet again to the Lord in prayer, in praise, worship and thanksgiving, acknowledging both His glory and His grace!