Category Archives: Elijah Prayed

Why Pray when God Already Knows

In Matthew 6, Jesus teaches us to pray “Let Your will (God’s will) be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

A great mystery is right here, why should we pray when God already knows what we need? God is ready to fulfill his will and purpose, but waits for His people to cooperate with Him in prayer. God will not move until somebody prays.

With the example of Elijah in 1 Kings 18, God wanted someone to show to the unbelieving world that He, the Lord is God. It took the obedience and prayers of Elijah to fulfill this. God could easily have shown the world who He is, but He, that is God, waits for a man on the earth to cooperate with Him. God loves to work with men in the fulfillment of his will and purpose.

Elijah’s Prayer in First Kings 18

First Kings 18:17 And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Now, art, thou, troubling Israel? 18 And he said–I have not troubled Israel, but, thou and the house of thy father,–in that ye have forsaken the commandments of Yahweh, and followed Baal. 19 Now, therefore, send, gather unto me all Israel, unto Mount Carmel,–and the prophets of Baal, four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the Sacred Stem, four hundred, who do eat at the table of Jezebel. 20 So Ahab sent among all the sons of Israel,–and gathered the prophets unto Mount Carmel. 21 And Elijah drew near unto all the people, and said–How long are ye limping on the two divided opinions? If, Yahweh, be GOD, follow, him, but, if, Baal, follow, him. But the people answered him, not a word. 22 Then said Elijah unto the people–I, am left, Yahweh’s, only, prophet,–but, the prophets of Baal, are four hundred and fifty men. 23 Let there be given us, therefore, two bullocks, and let them choose for themselves one bullock, and cut it in pieces, and lay it upon the wood, but, fire, shall they not put,–then, I, will make ready the other bullock, and place upon the wood, but, fire, will I not put. 24 Then shall ye call on the name of your god, and, I, will call on the name of Yahweh, and it shall be, the God that respondeth by fire, he, is GOD. And all the people responded–Well spoken! 25 Then said Elijah to the prophets of Baal–Choose for yourselves one bullock, and make ye ready, first, for, ye, are many,–and call ye on the name of your god, but, fire, shall ye not put. 26 So they took the bullock which was given them, and made ready, and called on the name of Baal–from the morning even until the noon, saying–O Baal! answer us. But them was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped about by the altar which had been made. 27 And it came to pass, at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said–Cry with a loud voice, for, a god, he is, either he hath, a meditation, or an occasion to retire, or he hath, a journey,–peradventure, he, sleepeth, and must be awaked. 28 And they cried, with a loud voice, and cut themselves, after their custom, with swords, and with lances,–until the blood gushed out upon them. 29And so it was, when noon was passed, that although they prophesied until the offering up of the evening gift, yet was there no voice nor any that answered, nor any that hearkened. 30 Then said Elijah unto all the people: Draw near unto, me. And all the people drew near unto, him. Then repaired he the broken-down altar of Yahweh; yea Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob,– 31 unto whom the word of Yahweh came, saying–Israel, shall be thy name; 32 and built, with the stones, an altar, in the name of Yahweh,–and he made a trench, as large as would contain two measures of seed, round about the altar; 33 and he put in order the wood,–and cut in pieces the bullock, and laid upon the wood. Then said he–Fill four pitchers with water, and pour out upon the ascending-sacrifice, and upon the wood. And they did so. 34 And he said–Do it the second time. And they did it the second time. And he said–Do it the third time. And they did it the third time. 35 And the water ran round about the altar,–moreover also, the trench, filled he with water. 36 And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the gift, that Elijah the prophet drew near, and said, O Yahweh, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel! To-day, let it be known–That, thou, art God in Israel, and that, I, am thy servant,–and that, by thy word, have I done all these things. 37 Answer me, O Yahweh! answer me, That this people may know, that, thou–Yahweh, art GOD,–so shalt, thou thyself, have turned their heart back again. 38 Then fell fire from Yahweh, and consumed the ascending-sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust,–even the water that was in the trench, it licked up. 39 And, when all the people saw it, they fell upon their faces,–and said, Yahweh, he, is GOD, Yahweh, he, is GOD.

Pay close attention to all the portions of this passage on on Elijah’s prayer.

Elisha Prayed – Open His Eyes

2 Kings 6:15 And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16 So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who [are] with us [are] more than those who [are] with them.” 17 And Elisha prayed, and said, “LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain [was] full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

The key words here is “Elisha Prayed” (note: this is different from “Elijah Prayed”). Elijah and Elisha are two different men of God, both who know the power and ability of prayer.

Notice here in 2 Kings 2:9 And so it was, when they had crossed over, that Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask! What may I do for you, before I am taken away from you?” Elisha said, “Please let a double portion of your spirit be upon me.”

So Elisha prayed “Open his eyes”. Notice he did not pray for power but just to see what God had already done and what God was about to do. The Lord God had angels taking care of the seemingly impossible situation.

God Hears Prayer

Look at these verses on prayer in the Bible, God listens to every prayer. Have this confidence that in every pray, whether it be small or large, whether it be well phrased, or just a bunch of broken words, God listens. Sometimes what we think are the worst prayers, God just loves, since we are expressing our real feelings.

Psalms 66:19 But certainly God has heard me; He has attended to the voice of my prayer.

Psalms 66:20 Blessed be God, Who has not turned away my prayer, Nor His mercy from me!

James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly…

This last verse in James eventually refers to Elijah who in a very unique situation needed a prayer to bring God in to vindicate Himself. Elijah did pray and God did come in.

So never feel that God does not hear, He does hear and answer. p.s. answers do not always come how and when we expect them.

Prayer and Doing What God is Doing

In James 5, Elijah is mentioned. He was a man who saw a situation, prayed and obeyed God. His prayer was in the middle of doing what God is doing. The story of Elijah in James 5 is from the Old Testament of Elijah in 1 Kings chapter 17 and 18.

God is concerned that His people can experience definite answers to prayers if they will be as obedient as Elijah was. Elijah had frustrations, wonderings, doubts and feelings just as we do, yet he was obedient to God’s word. That obedience gave God an opportunity to answer his prayers.

In the gospel of John 15:7, Jesus says: “If you live in me and what I say lives in you, then ask for anything you want, and it will be yours.”, in the KJV it says: If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. So look at the sections in this verse. First it says to abide or live in God, this is the obedience. Second it says to let His word live or abide in us. Third it says what you pray will be answered. So what a promise when we just choose to obey God.

Accomplish Much through Prayer

James 5:16 …The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

This passage is taken from a section in James about the example of Elijah in the Old Testament, and the passage takes us right into the New Testament.

Consider a person with a right standing before God because of faith in Christ. This person experiences daily cleansing of his sins through confession. This person because of their standing with God accomplishes much through their prayer. Notice that the verse does not indicate there will always be an answer, but in the believer much is accomplished towards conforming this person to the image of Christ.

Consider Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.

These verse are just after the verses in prayer 27 Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to God.

Intercession is a Work of Faith

Intercession is preeminently a work of faith. Not the faith that tries only to believe the prayer will be heard, but the faith that is at home amid heavenly realities—a faith that does not trouble about one’s own nothingness and feebleness, because it is living in Christ. A faith that does not make its hope depend upon its feelings, but upon the faithfulness of the Three–One God, in what each person has undertaken to do in prayer. A faith that has overcome the world, and sacrifices the visible to be wholly free for the spiritual, heavenly and eternal to take possession of it. A faith that knows that it is heard and receives what it asks, and therefore quietly and deliberately perseveres in its application till the answer comes. The true intercessor must be a man of faith.

The intercessor must be a MESSENGER—one who holds himself ready, who earnestly offers himself personally to receive the answer and to dispense it. Praying and working go together. Think of Moses—his boldness in pleading with God for the people was no greater than his pleading with the people for God. We see the same in Elijah—the urgency of his prayer in secret is equaled by his jealousy for God in public, as he witnessed against the sin of the nation. Let intercession always be accomplished, not so much by more diligent work, as by the meek and humble waiting on God to receive His grace and spirit, and to know more definitely what and how He would have us work. It is one thing, a great thing, to begin to take up the work of intercession—the drawing down to earth of the blessings which heaven has for every need. It is a greater thing as an intercessor personally to receive that blessing, and go out from God’s face, knowing that we have secured something that we can impart. May God make us all whole-hearted, believing, blessing-bearing intercessors.

But there is so much conscious sinfulness and defect in our prayer? True, but have you not learned what it is to pray IN THE NAME OF CHRIST? Does the name not mean the living power? Do you know that you are in Christ and He in you—-that your whole life is hid and bound up in His, and His whole life is hid and working in you? The man who is to intercede in power must be very clear that, not in thought and reckoning only, but in the most actual, living, divine reality, Christ and he are one in the work of intercession. He appears before God clothed with the name and the nature, the righteousness and worthiness, the image and the spirit of life of Christ. Do not spend your chief time in prayer in reiterating your petition, but in humbly, quietly, confidently claiming your place in Christ, your perfect union with Him, your access to God in Him. It is the man who comes to God in Christ, bringing to the Father that Christ in whom He delights, as his life and his law and only trust who will have power to intercede.

These are quotes from The Inner Chamber by Andrew Murray on Moses the man of prayer.

Devotion and Obedience to God gives Power in Prayer

“Tell me wherein thy great strength lieth.” It is the question we fain would have answered the men of old, and in later times, as intercessors for others, have had power with God, and have prevailed. More than one, who has desired to give himself to this ministry, has wondered why he found it so difficult to rejoice in it, to persevere, and to prevail. Let us study the lives of the leaders and heroes of the prayer world. Maybe some of the elements of their success will be discovered to us.

The true intercessor is a man who knows that God knows of him that his heart and life are WHOLLY GIVEN UP TO GOD AND HIS GLORY. This is the only condition on which an officer at the court of an earthly sovereign could expect to exert much influence. Moses, Elijah, Daniel and Paul prove that it is so in the spiritual world. Our blessed Lord is Himself the proof of it. He did not save us by intercession, but by self-sacrifice. His power of intercession roots in His sacrifice; it claims and receives what the sacrifice won. As we have it so clearly put in the last words of Isaiah 53, He poured out His soul unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors, and He bare the sins of man.” Study this in connection with the whole chapter of which it is the crown—“and made intercession for the transgressors.” He first gave Himself up to the will of God. There He won the power to influence and guide that will. He gave Himself for sinners in all-consuming love, and so He won the power to intercede for them. There is no other path for us. It is the man who seeks to enter personally into death with Christ, and gives himself wholly for God and men, who will dare to be bold like Moses or Elijah, who will persevere like Daniel or Paul. Whole-hearted devotion and obedience to God are the first marks of an intercessor.