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By: Robert E. Zink
August 14, 2023
The Great Commission needs great intercession. The magnitude of the Great Commission stipulates that it needs not just heart-induced, knee-postured prayer from individuals but from the corporate body of Christ. We come together in corporate prayer, pleading for the souls of people according to the will of the Lord. Interestingly, though, the passage of 1 Timothy 2:1-7 implies that the discipline of prayer is not motivated just by who we are in Christ, but who Christ is in us. That is to say, that prayer is a response to who the Lord is.
A straightforward reading of 1 Timothy 2:1-2 makes for easy conclusions and application about the need to pray. This is something I have discussed over the last few weeks (you can read those articles by clicking the links at the end of this article). Paul inserts the following words, “This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time” (1Tim 2:3-6 (ESV). These words seem to divert from the content of the prayer he has discussed in the previous verses. However, they tell us some critical things.
As a good and perfect God, prayer is a good and perfect gift from Him to His followers (cf. James 1:17). Undoubtedly, to utilize that good and perfect gift to pray for the salvation of people would be pleasing to Him. Note with me three aspects that determine why we pray to the Lord in this way.
Because of God’s Desire
First, the Lord has a great desire for all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. This verse does not speak of universalism, suggesting that all will be saved. It only speaks of the Lord’s desires that none should perish (2Pet 3:9). The reality is that some will perish, and the Lord says, “I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked . . .” (Ezek 33:11; see also Ezek 18:23, 32). The desires of the Lord should direct the desires of His people. Since the salvation of people is a preeminent concern of our Lord, then it would make sense that their salvation should be our concern, making its way into the prayers we submit to Him.
Because of God’s Oneness
Paul also notes that this God we pray to is the only God. This is recounted in the Shema of Deuteronomy 6. Verse 4 reads, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.” There are no others, and there can be no others. Either we believe in this God, or we believe in no god at all. If He is the only God, then He is the only God of salvation. There is no other God to whom we may pray to bring about salvation. It will be the Lord who both justifies and judges (cf. Isa 45:21-22; Rom 3:30). In praying to the Lord for the salvation of people, or for the circumstances that may at least direct people towards Him, we are acknowledging that He is the one God and the only one who is able to bring about their salvation through the work of the Holy Spirit.
Because of God’s Son
Finally, we pray to God as a response to God’s Son. Jesus Christ is pinpointed as the Mediator between men and God. The Lord Jesus Christ is able to occupy this role of Mediator because He is the ransom. It was He who placated God's wrath by receiving what was intended for men. Through Him, we were given access to God. There is no need to direct our prayers through anyone else, but instead, we take them directly to the Lord, pleading that others may see this wonderful gift as it is and turn to Him.
We pray for all people as a response to all that God is. There is something very incredible about this truth. If prayer is a response to who God is and what God does, then prayer is an act of worship.[1] Prayer is so much more than just us asking the Lord to fulfill our wants and desires; but instead is a step of active worship. Why should we gather as the body of Christ and pray for the salvation of people? Because it is a means by which we can honor, glorify, and worship the God of that salvation.
To read the previous articles in this series, click the following links:
[1] Worship may be defined as “A response to the activities and attributes of God in Spirit and truth (John 4:20-24). This definition is one I adopted from Dr. Greg Harris, former professor at The Master’s Seminary and University and author of books such as The Cup & The Glory and the Bible Expositor’s Handbook: Old Testament.
