When the Israelities were captured by Nebuchadnezzar and brought to Babylon the Lord gave word to the prophet Jeremiah:
Build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. Take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may bear sons and daughters—that you may be increased there, and not diminished. And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are in your midst deceive you, nor listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed. For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them, says the Lord.
(Jeremiah 29:5-9 NKJV)
You Are Captives of this World
As a child of God, we are captives in this world, and we should not conform to this world, because we are not of this world. Look at what Jesus said, “If you were of the world, the world would love its own.” (John 15:19). Paul told us that Jesus Christ gifted each of us with His grace:
“But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore He says:
‘When He ascended on High He led captivity captive’ (Psalm 68:18) And gave gifts to men.” Ephesians 4:8
Both Jesus Christ and Paul told us that we are prisoners held in the shackles of this world. What must we do to overcome this world, for flesh is weak, and our will power is not enough? The good news is that Jesus defeated sin and death, and we know that we must pray and fast, but the instruction the Lord gave Jeremiah was specific. Let’s revisit that passage; “And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. (Jeremiah 29: 7). In addition, Hebrews 12:14 says “pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord.”
Can you imagine how many arguments or sinful backsliding could have been prevented if only we as children of God committed to a few simple actions: pray for peace of the nation, and its people and pursue peace with people. Think about this for a moment: many prophets prayed for the people within the Holy Bible. One example is when Moses prayed for his people as they traveled out of Egypt to the promise land, but he would never see it. When they had arrived and stayed in Kadesh, the people complained:
“If only we had died when our brethren died before the Lord! Why have you brought up the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we and our animals should die here? And why have you made us come up out of Egypt, to bring us to this evil place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates; nor is there any water to drink.” (Numbers 20-3-5).
Moses and his brother Aaron went to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and they prayed. The Lord told Moses to take his rod, his brother, and the congregation, and speak to the rock, “and it will yield water: thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals.” (Numbers 20:8). Moses did not speak to the rock, instead he hit it two times and water did come out. God told Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe Me, to hallow Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.” (Numbers 20:12). Moses prayed for his people, but who prayed for Moses? If they prayed for the people and for Moses, would Moses have arrived at the promised land? Would they have arrived at the promise land sooner?
Brothers and sisters of Christ, pray for your people and the city, state, (or province) and country that you are in. The Lord directed us so in the book of Jeremiah, but I am taking it a step further. Pray for your leaders as well. Think of local, state, and federal leaders. We are living in the time of the COVID-19 Pandemic. They could use our prayers. It does not matter if you support the person or not, or how corrupt they may be, just pray for them!
Prayers Are Always Heard
When it comes to prayer, Jesus Christ is quoted as saying, “whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you… Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” (John 16:23-24). Jesus wants to glorify God (John 14: 13); we can glorify Him through our prayers, and our actions.
Before His crucifixion, the only way to communicate with God was through priests and animal sacrifices were performed for the sin (or sins) that a person committed. When Jesus Christ was crucified, not only were your sins forgiven, but you now have a direct communication with God. That communication is through the act of prayer.
We know that our prayers our heard and answered.
God answers the humble and the righteous, “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” (1 Peter 3:12). In addition, Jesus Christ told us to “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (Matthew 7:7).
If you have not received what you asked for, it is because, you “ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures” (James 4:3). If your prayer has not been answered quite yet, or you got an answer that you were not expecting or wanting, have faith, for the Lord "will not leave you nor forsake you"(Joshua 1:5), ad Jesus Christ said that He will be “with you always even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20). Hallelujah!
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