Pastoral Intercessory Prayer, Part 1

In this part of the sermon: Martin establishes the duty of ministerial intercession, focusing on Acts 6:4 as the pivotal text where the apostles resolve to continue steadfastly in prayer and the ministry of…

Martin quotes Lenski's translation of Acts 6:2 to emphasize the strong meaning of 'katalipo' (forsake), illustrating the apostles' conviction that their current activity was diverting them from their primary calling.

that it was not fitting that they should forsake the word of God and serve tables. Lenski's translation is as follows. It does not please us that we, having forsaken the word of God, keep ministering to tables. Now that word forsake, katalipo, is a very strong word.

10:09 - 10:33 Read in full sermon

The point: Those who would be leaders in Christ's church in the ministry of the word must be those who give themselves to ministerial prayer, specifically geared towards and found in conjunction with that ministry.

The example of Levi (Matthew 19:5, Luke 5:28) forsaking all to follow Christ is used to further illustrate the strong, decisive meaning of the Greek word 'katalipo' (forsake), reinforcing the apostles' sense of urgency regarding their ministry priorities.

It's used in Matthew 19 and verse 5 and again in Luke 5 and verse 28. Speaking of Levi, he forsook all and he followed him. So the apostles sensed that there was an actual forsaking, if not absolutely, certainly, relatively speaking, in terms of their previous pattern of activity, they felt there was a forsaking already taking place with respect to the ministry of the word. And then they offer this proposed solution, as we noted it in our previous lecture from verse 3, and it all has this end in view.

10:33 - 11:17 Read in full sermon

The point: Those who would be leaders in Christ's church in the ministry of the word must be those who give themselves to ministerial prayer, specifically geared towards and found in conjunction with that ministry.

Martin quotes John Owen extensively from 'The True Nature of a Gospel Church' (Vol. 16, p. 77) to underscore that continual fervent prayer is the second principal duty of a pastor, without which preaching and other duties are not performed as they ought and sincerity is suspect.

Now here again, Owen speaks so perceptively as he often does on matters technical as well as matters experimental, and in volume 16 and page 77, a section in which he is expounding the especial duty of pastors of churches, he gives as duty number one, this, the first and principal duty of a pastor is to feed the flock by diligent preaching of the word. That's on page 74. Now then, on page 77, the second duty of a pastor toward his flock

14:27 - 15:08 Read in full sermon

Driving home: In this constant prayer for the church, which is so incumbent on all pastors as that whatever is done without it is of no esteem in the sight of Jesus Christ.

Martin quotes Matthew Henry's commentary on Acts 6:4, which describes the 'great business of gospel ministers' as giving themselves continually to prayer and the ministry of the word, emphasizing their role as God's mouth to the people and the people's mouth to God.

the motives for all the other duties are suspect. And he understood this great principle of the necessity of ministerial prayer, and he rested down primarily upon this very pivotal text that I have set before you. And then quaint old Matthew Henry commenting on this text, and this is the six-volume set, page 71 of the Commentary of Acts, listen to Matthew Henry's words to us. What is the great business of gospel ministers?

17:16 - 17:56 Read in full sermon

Driving home: God's grace can do all without our preaching. But our preaching can do nothing without God's grace.

Martin quotes John Smith (1808) from Eugene Bradford's booklet, emphasizing that prayer is the 'life and soul of the sacred function,' without which ministry is barren and useless, and a minister without piety and prayer is a 'servant of Satan'.

And those ministers, without doubt, are the successors of the apostles, not in the plenitude of their apostolic power , but in the best and most excellent of apostolical works, who give themselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word. And such Christ will always be with, even to the end of the world. And then in a booklet that I hope eventually to have reprinted, Intercessory Prayer, a Ministerial Task, by Eugene Bradford, at least one time Executive Secretary of Westminster Theological Seminary,

19:19 - 20:03 Read in full sermon

The point: If there is any justification for not engaging in normal employment, it is to give oneself to prayer and the ministry of the word.

The analogy of a minister being like an angel on Jacob's ladder, ascending and descending, is used to illustrate the minister's dual role of pleading God's cause with the people and the people's cause with God through prayer.

that reconciler of man to his Maker, if he himself is not a man of prayer? As we, my brethren, are ministers of reconciliation between God and man, prayer is one of our principal duties. God often grants the grace indeed for the people to the prayers of the minister. Of that minister who, like one of the angels who ascended and descended on Jacob's ladder, not only pleads the cause of God with the people, but the cause of the people with God.

21:24 - 22:02 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The second line of evidence for ministerial intercession comes from the general example of spiritual leadership in the Old Testament. Martin highlights figures like Abraham…

Abraham's intercession for Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18) is presented as a powerful example of eminent prayerfulness, with the specific application that his prayers likely delivered Lot from destruction.

If we were thinking simply of an intercessor seeking to plead with God for the aversion, for the avoiding of judgment, what greater example of eminent prayerfulness do we find than that of Abraham in that moving passage in Genesis 18.60 and following, where he intercedes for God to spare the cities of the plains. We just read through that in our own family worship and I was struck again at Abraham's chastened but sanctified boldness in arguing with God, sitting down as it were and bargaining with God

25:31 - 26:15 Read in full sermon

Driving home: He did not have confidence that even his inspired epistle would effect the change apart from those dynamics of the spirit given in answer to prayer.

Paul's language in Galatians 4:19, 'my little children of whom I travail again in birth till Christ be formed in you,' is used as a metaphor for the intense, agonizing spiritual exercise of pastoral prayer for the spiritual formation of the flock.

1 Timothy 1 verses 3 and 4 and sometimes it breaks out into language that's nothing short of moving in its intensity Galatians 4 19 my little children of whom I travail again in birth till Christ be formed in you that's pastoral prayer travailing he said his spiritual exercise was like that of a mother on a birthing table on a birthing bench travailing that Christ might be formed in them did he write a white hot letter did he carefully and powerfully and analytically and scripturally flay as it were the heresy

33:21 - 34:05 Read in full sermon

The point: Follow preaching with constant and fervent prayer for its success, both before and after the sermon.

Martin shares an anecdote about his friend Pastor Reisinger, who often says, 'It's a sin to preach and not to pray,' which serves as a personal conviction and a reminder of the ongoing need for prayer after preaching.

where my conscience smites me the most because so often our mental and physical and spiritual energies are so depleted in the prayer preceding the ministry of the word and in the dispensing of those energies in the actual proclamation of the word that to go back home on a Lord's day evening and fall upon one's knees and engage in the agony of intercession is very very taxing upon poor frail humanity yet as my dear friend Pastor Reisinger has said on more than one occasion when we've been together in ministry and I've preached or he's preached and he said brother

46:26 - 47:10 Read in full sermon

The point: In a season of prosperity, plead with the Lord to keep your people from becoming subtle idolaters, trusting in riches, or being lifted up in pride.

The Old Covenant warnings about the dangers of material prosperity (forgetting God, idolatry, pride) are used as an example of how pastors should tailor their prayers to the specific temptations facing their flock in times of ease.

and tranquility are of another nature than those that attend a time of trouble persecution distress and poverty and so it is as unto other occasions in circumstances these the pastors of churches ought diligently to consider looking on them as the means and ways whereby churches have been ruined and the souls of many lost forever with respect unto them therefore ought their prayers for the church to be fervent if your people for the most part are employed and doing well in their employment and God is blessing them materially then you certainly have enough acquaintance with the Bible to know th...

47:54 - 48:39 Read in full sermon

The point: If God brings your people through material privation, pray that they are not tempted to question God's goodness or love.

Job's wife's advice to 'curse God and die' is used as an example of the temptation to question God's goodness and love during periods of material privation, illustrating how pastoral prayer should address such specific trials.

and being the occasion of their being lifted up in pride and if God brings them through a period of material privation then they are exposed to the temptation to question God His goodness His love they are tempted to be like Job's wife curse God and die she says to Job well recognizing that we need to pray accordingly that's the point that Owen is making not only to pray for the success of the word in general but to pray for the specific general state of the flock in the light of its present and ongoing and often changing overall climate of existence that ought to be one of the dominant concer...

49:23 - 50:08 Read in full sermon

The point: Cherish and plead for the regular, felt presence of Christ in your stated meetings, recognizing it as the most precious possession of the church.

The analogy of people being unable to 'feed upon a carcass' is used to explain why some might defect from orthodox churches to charismatic or shallow evangelical ones, suggesting that a lack of Christ's felt presence leaves their hearts hungry despite sound doctrine.

because they are disciples only in name but on the other hand I wonder I wonder if some defect because they simply can't feed upon a carcass their hearts are hungry for the felt presence of Christ and though they are running to that which on the surface may seem to be his felt presence only to find that that's a mirage and that all of the hoopla is just that religious hoopla could it be the very reason they run is because there is not that experience of his felt presence and I testify to God's praise when I'm asked in pastors conferences do you lose people to the charismatics I say no

54:33 - 55:18 Read in full sermon

The point: Cherish and plead for the regular, felt presence of Christ in your stated meetings, recognizing it as the most precious possession of the church.

Martin shares his experience of gaining former 'tongue speakers' from charismatic churches, illustrating that when Christ's true presence is felt in a Reformed assembly, people are drawn to substance over religious 'hoopla'.

because they are disciples only in name but on the other hand I wonder I wonder if some defect because they simply can't feed upon a carcass their hearts are hungry for the felt presence of Christ and though they are running to that which on the surface may seem to be his felt presence only to find that that's a mirage and that all of the hoopla is just that religious hoopla could it be the very reason they run is because there is not that experience of his felt presence and I testify to God's praise when I'm asked in pastors conferences do you lose people to the charismatics I say no

54:33 - 55:18 Read in full sermon