- It is also vain to sit up late, making phone calls to follow up souls without praying.
- Except the Lord builds a house, they labour in vain that build it.
- It is mandatory for a praying Church to continue to grow. It is not optional.
- One thing that is missing in a ‘dead’ Church is prayers.
- Every time people pray, God moves and when God moves, He moves people; when people are moved, they are moved to the Church.
WHY MUST WE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR CHURCH GROWTH?
Please note, we must continue to pray. Anything that lacks continuity can never gain impact. Continuity, particularly prayer. The impact of Christ’s ministry grew with prayer (Luke 3:21-22). He prayed, heaven was opened. He returned in the power of the Spirit (Luke 4:1-2, 14). It came to pass on a certain day, the power of God as He was preaching, was present to heal, but the previous day, He prayed (Luke 5:16-17). He went to the Mountain in verse 16, He withdrew Himself and prayed (Luke 5:16). What you do today, the previous day, is what determines the happening on a certain day. In (Luke) chapter 6 verses 12 and 13, He prayed again. In (Luke) chapter 9 verses 28 to 35, He prayed again. The impact of His ministry grew with prayer.
So also the first Church. They continued steadfastly in prayer (Acts 1:14). In (Acts) chapter 2 verses 1 to 6, as they continued, the power of God came down. (Acts) chapter 3 verse 1, they went to pray in the hour of prayer; as a result, signs and wonders began to take place. (Acts) chapter 4 from verse 23 all the way to 33, they went to their company and they prayed; each time they prayed, the Church grew.
For Church to continue to grow, prayer is not optional: only praying Church ends as growing Church even in our contemporary world today. If this Church stops praying for one month, the growth will slide. Many of us are familiar with the Churches that today respectfully we call ‘dead’ Churches. If you go to such Churches, one thing that is missing is prayer. When the Church starts praying, the Church starts growing. When the Church continues to pray, the Church continues to grow. It is not optional, it is mandatory, there is something that prayer does to Church growth. This Church is growing because by the help of God, we have continued to pray. That is why we shall not cease to pray.
Say with me, “We must continue to pray.” It’s a commitment to the Lord. They vowed, “we will give ourselves to prayer” (Acts 6:4). It is not convenient.
“Men ought always to pray” (Luke 18:1).
They continued to pray and they continued to grow. This is why the first attack the devil will launch against any Church is to make that Church stop praying. That is the first attack the devil will launch against any Church. This is what the devil wanted to take from the first Church that led them to a vow. In (Acts) chapter 5, the devil was to scuttle the growth with local administration and they saw it afar. They said, “look, we will abandon every other thing. Every other thing can take care of itself except prayer.” As they prayed, the Church grew. If the devil cannot stop the Church from praying, he can never stop the Church from growing.
-He will not stop us from praying.
Say with me again, “we must continue to pray.”
Very specifically this morning, we want to look at another reason, like we have done every day of the week, ‘Why we must continue to pray!’
Except the Lord builds a house, they labour in vain that build it (Psalm 127:1). When we pray, our effort is multiplied. Prayer is a spiritual advantage because it brings God on board. That’s why the scripture says, “except the Lord builds a house, they labour in vain that build it.”
What is our labour? Among others:
- Our labour is to go out. Jesus said, “go ye into all the world.” So when we go, we are labouring, but our going cannot be adequate without our prayer.
Somebody has said, “we must tell God about the people before we go to tell people about God.” This is where many people miss it. Church Gist. We must tell God about people before we go to tell people about God. When we go tell people about God, we are evangelizing; but when we tell God about people, we are praying, among other things for their hearts to open to our gospel. We are praying for God to lead us to where the harvest is ready.
The two goes together. On our knees, we are praying; on our feet, we are going.
Until we succeed in doing what we should do on our knees, our going cannot be effectual. That is what that scripture means, “except the Lord builds a house, they labour in vain that build it…” (Psalm 127:1-2).
It is vain for you to rise up early, going out for soul winning; to sit up late, making phone calls for follow up. Except the Lord builds a house!
That is why Matthew chapter 16 verse 18, Jesus said, “I will build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail.”
How will He do it? By inviting Him in prayer. Prayer is an automatic invitation to God. When we start praying, God starts coming. When we start praying, God starts moving. There is no place people pray that God does not move. Even when we begin to pray in ignorance, He comes to help our infirmity to pray right. All of us started praying in ignorance and in the process, God saw our ignorance and began to help us by giving us light. Every time people pray, God comes close.
Every time people pray, God moves and when God moves, He moves people; when people are moved, they are moved to the Church.
Jesus said, “I will build my Church” (Matthew 16:18). We need to continue to invite the Builder in prayer. Of course we know what He said in John chapter 15 verse 5, “without Me, you can do nothing.”
It is obvious that God is behind every Church growth experience. Paul acknowledged this in 1 Corinthians chapter 3 verse 6.
“I, Paul have planted, Apollos watered; but it is God who gives the increase” and He cannot give the increase except we invite Him in prayer (Ezekiel 36:37). God will not give the increase except we invite Him in prayer.
They will pray and I will do it for them. They’ve got to pray before I will do it, because the simple law is “ask, it shall be given to you.” I will increase them with men like flock.
Leaving prayer out in the subject of Church growth is an uphill task. No Church grows without prayer. It takes prayers to engage the intervention of God of increase.
Acts 6:4,7
They made a vow, “we will give ourselves continually to prayer and the ministry of the Word and the Word of God increased and the number of disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.”
We can see that when we pray, people are compelled to be obedient. Prayer compels people, prayer subdues the devil. Remember also in Luke chapter 11, Jesus teaching us on how to subdue the forces of wickedness, in verses 21 and 22, “when a strong man, that is referring to the devil, armed keepeth his palace, his victims are under his control: but when a stronger man comes upon him, it is in prayer that we become stronger than the enemy,…it is in prayer we gain strength to overcome the strong man that is holding people down in their captivity in our various communities…and take away the victims from him.”
When we pray, we subdue communities.
When we pray, we rescue the victims of the enemy.
This is why we cannot stop praying for Church growth. When we go into prayer, we move God to go into action. When God moves into action, the enemy is subdued and when the enemy is subdued, captives are set free.
Again as we pray today and continue to do so, we will continue to see the enemy subdued underneath our feet. We will continue to see the enemy subdued in our community and we will continue to see the victims rescued by the mighty hand of God.
Say with me again, “we will continue to pray.”
Say again, “we must continue to pray.”
Will you rise to your feet right now this morning and do that which you have committed to do right now. Raise your voice with me, everybody and let us pray again: In the name of Jesus, we take over the communities for Jesus, we invite the power of God to subdue the enemies underneath our feet and bring out all the victims, all the captives in the precious name of Jesus Christ.
Everyone who believes that prayer, say a loud Amen.
Finally, don’t forget: God is counting. He who sees in the secret shall reward us in the open (1 Corinthians 3:8; 9:10). God is counting our input in the secret so He can reward us in the open.
Will you therefore receive grace for continuity in prayer! Receive the grace right now, for continuity in prayer. Everybody, receive the grace right now.
Father, I shall continue in the name of Jesus. This Church shall continue to pray, we will not give up in the name of Jesus, the effect is showing and it will continue to show. We thank you mighty Father, we bless your name Lord!
Give Him thanks and praise. Exalt His name, lift on high. In Jesus wonderful name we have prayed.
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