First published by Christian Publications, Inc., 3825 Hartzdale Drive,Camp Hill, Pennsylvania 17011 Republished by www.kneillfoster.com in 2005. K. Neill Foster, Publisher. Paul L. King, Editor. A.W. Tozer, 1897-1963, Editorial Voice.
WELCOME TO: CLASSIC-CHRISTIANITY/THE E-ZINE
#2 CLASSIC CHRISTIANITY/THE INDEX
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1) THE PUBLISHER ON "CHOPPING UP CORPORATE PRAYER"
2) THE EDITOR ON CORPORATE PRAYER
3) A.W. TOZER ON "CORPORATE PRAYER--KEY TO THE SPIRIT'S OUTPOURING"
4) RECOMMENDED READING: RENEWED DAY BY DAY
5) S.D. GORDON ON "THERE IS ALWAYS ONE MORE"
6) MATTHEW HENRY ON "JOINT-PRAYING IN CRISIS"
7) A.T. PIERSON ON "THE SYMPHONY OF PRAYER"
8) E.M. BOUNDS ON "AN OCEAN OF POWER"
9) JONATHAN EDWARDS ON "A CONCERT OF PRAYER TO STIR END-TIME REVIVAL"
10) RECOMMENDED READING: POWERLINES
11) CHARLES G. FINNEY ON "MOVING GOD"
12) CHARLES SPURGEON ON "THE POWER OF BLENDED PRAYER"
13) ALEXANDER MACLAREN ON "RELEASING POWER IN MISSIONS"
14) JOHN A. MACMILLAN ON "THE WIDER EFFECT OF CORPORATE PRAYER"
15) CHURCH FATHER IGNATIUS ON "CORPORATE POWER OVER SATAN"
16) ANDREW MURRAY ON "RULING THE WORLD BY CORPORATE PRAYER"
17) LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
1) THE PUBLISHER ON "CHOPPING UP CORPORATE PRAYER"
Corporate prayer hints at a body just as corporal punishment describes bodily punishment. Hence, corporate prayer is prayer that comes from the body of Christ. Ignatius, in 15), sees a larger picture--and indeed there is a larger picture. When the 120 were gathered in the upper room they enjoyed corporate prayer on a level beyond the two or three concept. Somehow they had been webbed and welded together by the Holy Spirit so that they had a new dimension of corporate power!
Armin Gesswein, long-time confidant of Billy Graham, has been talking up corporate prayer for years. Citing the book of Acts, he notes "They were all together in one place" (2:1). "The very first thing about an assembly is that it must assemble! . . . In assembly-action the individual members do not cease to be strong as individuals. They become stronger." [1] These days, many prayer leaders "chop up" the power of an assembly. Small prayer clusters are thrust together, often with no thought given to the cumulative power of the Spirit of God's capacity to weld hundreds or even thousands into one powerful prayer instrument. Don't misunderstand me. God works in small groups. Jesus has promised His presence there (Matthew 18:20). But corporate prayer has another wholly different dynamic--the corporate power of God's indwelling Spirit in every heart being multiplied a thousand times over when kindred hearts lay hold of and grip each other. That kind of corporate prayer power produced the first Pentecost.
[1] Armin Gesswein, WITH ONE ACCORD IN ONE PLACE (Camp Hill, PA: Christian Publications, 1978), 87-90.
2) THE EDITOR ON CORPORATE PRAYER
Welcome to the second issue of CLASSIC-CHRISTIANITY. We are devoting this edition to classic quotes on corporate prayer. This is a popular concept today, but it is by no means new. The biblical principles that "Two are better than one" and "a cord of three strands is not quickly broken" (Ecclesiastes 4:9, 12) have no greater impact than when applied to corporate prayer. Great things can happen when people covenant together in what Jonathan Edwards calls a "concert of prayer." Prayer power is not merely added, but multiplied, when we unite in prayer: "Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand. . ." (Leviticus 26:8). Armin Gesswein calls this "assembly power." What insights these classic spiritual leaders can impart to us today to empower our churches and personal lives!
3) A.W. TOZER (1897-1963) ON "CORPORATE PRAYER--KEY TO THE SPIRIT'S OUTPOURING"
Corporate prayer is a high Christian privilege to pray for one another within each local church body and then for other believers throughout the world . . . . We may lack everything else, but we must have the cloud and fire of God's presence. We must have the enabling and power of the Holy Spirit. We must have the glow of the Shekinah glory of God with us. Then, even lacking all else, we still will have a true church! [1]
I have often heard people pray, "O Lord, send the Holy Spirit so that we may become a united people." That . . . is precisely backward. The Holy Spirit comes BECAUSE we are a united people; He does not come to make us a united people. Our prayer should be more like, "Lord, help us to get united in order that the blessing might flow and there might be an outpouring of oil and dew and life. . . ."
Unity is necessary to the outpouring of the Spirit of God. If you have 120 volts of electricity coming into your house but you have broken wiring, you may turn on the switch, but nothing works--no lights come on, the stove doesn't warm, the radio doesn't turn on. Why? Because you have broken wiring. The power is ready to do its work . . . , but where there is broken wiring, there is no power. Unity is necessary among the children of God if we are going to know the flow of power . . . to see God do His wonders. [2]
[1] A.W. Tozer, TRAGEDY IN THE CHURCH: THE MISSING GIFTS (Camp Hill, PA: Christian Publications, 1990), 51-52, 58.
[2] A.W. Tozer, SUCCESS AND THE CHRISTIAN (Camp Hill, PA: Christian Publications, 1994), 86-87, 97.
*Read the TOZER DAILY DEVOTIONAL or find out about the Tozer CD-ROM at
http://www.christianpublications.com
4) RECOMMENDED READING:
RENEWED DAY BY DAY: Daily Devotional Readings by A.W. Tozer, Compiled by Gerald B. Smith, Vol. 1 or 2, 365 pages each (plus Scripture indices).
Always fresh, RENEWED DAY BY DAY is a soul-searching, penetrating and uplifting introduction to the true worship of God and His Son Jesus Christ. Each volume is a distillation of the wisdom Tozer gleaned from his lifelong
pursuit of God. Tozer writes for those who want spiritual muscle!
"The reader is challenged and confronted throughout to truly search their heart and witness . . . . Powerful and thought-provoking." --Choice Books review
Order from Christian Publications by calling 1-800-233-4443 (in North America) or fax 1-717-761-7273 or web: www.christianpublications.com.
5) S.D. GORDON (1859-1936) ON "THERE IS ALWAYS ONE MORE"
If there are two persons praying, there are three. If three meet to pray, there are four praying. There is always one more than you can see.
S.D. Gordon, QUIET TALKS ON PRAYER (New York: Fleming H. Revell Co., 1904), 130.
6) MATTHEW HENRY (1662-1714) ON "JOINT-PRAYING IN CRISIS"
Many were gathered together praying, in the dead of the night, praying for Peter, who was the next day to go to trial, that God would find out some way or other for his deliverance [Acts 12:1-18]. Observe: (1) They continued in prayer . . . ; they did not think it enough to have presented his case to God once, but they did it again and again. . . . (2) Now when the situation became critical, . . .they were more fervent in prayer than before. . . . He thus stirred up a spirit of prayer for his deliverance, for He never said . . . Seek my face in vain.
. . .(3) It has always been the practice of God's praying people to unite their forces in prayer (2 Chronicles 20:4; Esther 4:16) . . . . This demonstrated both their discretion and their zeal. . . . It is valuable for Christians to assemble in private for prayer, especially in times of distress.
Matthew Henry, COMMENTARY ON THE WHOLE BIBLE (New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1935), 6:152-153.
7) A.T. PIERSON (1837-1911) ON "THE SYMPHONY OF PRAYER"
Only God can . . . awaken the "unutterable groanings" after God and holiness; and only He can bring praying believers into sympathy and symphony in united prayer. That promise of power is dependent on agreement. . . . It implies higher unity with and in the Spirit. Symphony, which is the result of musical accord, is neither arbitrary nor accidental; it obeys the law of the chord. It is awakened by the Intelligent Hand which touches only such keys as are in harmony. . . . The church is like some grand instrument on whose keys the divine Artist lays His hand, and so makes united prayer to sound, like chords of music, in God's ear. [1]
There has never been a revival but by such united supplicatory praying, and no revival has ever continued beyond the continuation of the same praying.[2]
[1] A.T. Pierson, THE ACTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT (Harrisburg, PA: Christian Publications, 1980), 84-85.
[2] A.T. Pierson, as quoted by Armin R. Gesswein, WITH ONE ACCORD IN ONE PLACE (Harrisburg, PA: Christian Publications, 1978), 21.
8) E.M. BOUNDS (1835-1913) ON "AN OCEAN OF POWER"
In the spiritual realm, as elsewhere, in union there is strength; that the concentration and massing of faith, desire, and prayer increased the volume of spiritual force until it became overwhelming and irresistible in its power. Units of prayer combined, like drops of water, make an ocean which defies resistance. So Paul, with his clear and full understanding of spiritual dynamics, determined to make his ministry as impressive, as eternal, as irresistible as the ocean, by gathering all the scattered units of prayer and drenching them on his ministry. The explanation of Paul's prominence in labors and results, and impact on the Church and the world, may be found in this fact that he was able to center on himself and his ministry more of prayer than others.
E.M. Bounds, POWER THROUGH PRAYER (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1978), 111.
9) JONATHAN EDWARDS (1703-1758) ON "A CONCERT OF PRAYER TO STIR END-TIME REVIVAL"
First, God will give great spirit of prayer to His people in many places, stirring them to agree to pray unitedly to God in an extraordinary manner, that He would manifest His presence, and in mercy . . . pour out His Spirit, revive His work, and advance His spiritual kingdom in the world, as He has promised. Then this stirring . . . will gradually introduce a revival of religion, and a desire to greater worship and service of God. . . . This will be the means of awakening others, convicting them of the needs of their souls, exciting in them a great concern for their spiritual and eternal good, putting upon them a burden to cry out to God earnestly for spiritual mercies, and stirring them to join in that extraordinary seeking and serving of God, . . . until all the nations be awakened.
. . . It is . . . pleasing to God for many people . . . to unite in extraordinary, speedy, fervent and constant prayer, for great outpourings of the Holy Spirit, which will advance Christ's church and kingdom, that God has promised in the end-times.
WORKS OF JONATHAN EDWARDS, ed. Stephen J. Stein (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1977), 5:317-318, 320.
10) RECOMMENDED READING:
POWERLINES: What Great Evangelicals Believed about the Holy Spirit 1850-1930, by Leona Frances Choy, 321 pages, Paper
The unique interview style of Powerlines puts the views on the Holy Spirit held by 24 great men and women of the faith into easy-to-understand segments. The vivid experiences of Oswald Chambers, Andrew Murray, A.B. Simpson, Ruth Paxson and twenty others will inspire Christians today who long to experience the Spirit-filled life.
"This is a very valuable volume . . . . It should prove to be a fine sourcebook for the Spirit-filled life and for prayer and revivals." --Armin Gesswein, Founder-Director, Revival Prayer Fellowship
Order from Christian Publications by calling 1-800-233-4443 (in North America) or fax 1-717-761-7273 or web: www.christianpublications.com.
11) CHARLES FINNEY (1792-1875) ON "MOVING GOD"
Another grand design of social prayer is to move God. Not that it changes the mind and feelings of God. When we speak of "moving" God, . . . we do not mean that prayer alters the will of God. But when the right kind of prayer is offered by Christians, then they are in such a state of mind that it becomes proper for God to bestow a blessing. Then they are prepared to receive it, and He gives because He is always the same, and always ready and happy to show mercy. When Christians are united, and praying as they ought, God opens the windows of heaven, and pours out a blessing till there is not room to receive it (Malachi 3:10).
Charles G. Finney, REVIVALS OF RELIGION (Virginia Beach, VA: CBN University Press, 1978), 126.
12) CHARLES SPURGEON (1834-1893) ON "THE POWER OF BLENDED PRAYER"
The prayers of a saint are sweet, but the prayers of saints are sweeter. United prayers possess the power of harmony. . . . If you put all these prayers together--the prayers of the tender and the brave, the prayers of the awestruck and the familiar, the prayers of the importunate and the self-sacrificing--they fill the golden bowl of incense full of sweet odors. . . . Let us blend our prayers. . . . And the golden censer of God's church, full of the prayers of the saints, . . . shall then become a weapon to prevail with men. God will fill it full of coals and pour it out upon the earth. His divine power shall then be seen . . . . Pray. You have the key in the door of heaven-- keep it there and turn it till the gate shall open. Pray, for prayer holds the chain that binds the old dragon. Prayer can hold fast and restrain Satan himself. Pray. God girds you with omnipotence if you know how to pray.
Charles Spurgeon, THE POWER OF PRAYER IN A BELIEVER'S LIFE, compiled and edited by Robert Hall (Lynnwood, WA: Emerald Books, 1993), 88, 190-192.
13) ALEXANDER MACLAREN (1826-1910) ON "RELEASING POWER IN MISSIONS"
Much prayer for the cause of missions by those at the home base means power released on the mission field, and . . . weakness at home means weakness on the mission field.
Alexander Maclaren, as paraphrased by Paul Billheimer in DESTINED FOR THE THRONE (Ft. Washington, PA: Christian Literature Crusade, 1975), 104.
14) JOHN A. MACMILLAN (1873-1956) ON "THE WIDER EFFECT OF CORPORATE PRAYER"
United prayer by a body of spiritually alert believers gives a broader approach to any subject presented before the throne of grace. Every aspect is considered: the glory of the Lord, the effect upon the progress of the kingdom, the need of the world, the personal claim of the praying group. [1]
Brethren, . . . the responsibility lies with you . . . to roll back the powers of the air, and make it possible to press forward with the Truth in these regions where the devil is blocking the way; to pray out . . . laborers in each part of the field and seek Holy Spirit power upon them and the work. . . . Who will join in this ministry? [2]
[1] John A. MacMillan, "United Prayer," THE ALLIANCE WEEKLY, April 23, 1938, 258.
[2] John A. MacMillan, "Our Mohammedan Problem in the Philippines," THE ALLIANCE WEEKLY, June 29, 1929, 401, 404.
Editor's Note: John A. MacMillan was a missionary with The Christian and Missionary Alliance who wrote the original classic THE AUTHORITY OF THE BELIEVER in 1932.
15) CHURCH FATHER IGNATIUS (C. 110) ON "CORPORATE POWER OVER SATAN"
If the prayer of one or two possesses such power that Christ stands in the midst of them, how much more will the prayer of the pastor and of the whole Church, ascending up in harmony to God, prevail for the granting of all
their petitions in Christ. . . .
For when you come frequently together in the same place, the powers of Satan are destroyed, and his "fiery darts" urging to sin fall back without effect. For your concord and harmonious faith prove his destruction, and the torment of his assistants. Nothing is better than that peace which is according to Christ, by which all war, both of aerial and terrestrial spirits, is brought to an end. "For we wrestle not against blood and flesh, but against principalities and powers, and against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:12, Greek translation).
Ignatius, Epistle of Ignatius to the Ephesians, Chapter V, Chapter 8, longer version, ANTE-NICENE FATHERS, ed. Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1979), 1:51, 55.
Editor's Note: Ignatius was a disciple of the Apostle John.
16) ANDREW MURRAY (1828-1917) ON "RULING THE WORLD BY CORPORATE PRAYER"
When we feel too weak to exercise the faith necessary to attain a distinct desire, we ought to seek strength in the help of others. In the unity of faith, love, and the Spirit, the power of the Name and the presence of Jesus acts more freely, and the answer comes more surely. . . .
What an extraordinary privilege united prayer is! What a potential power it has! . . . What blessing might be gained:
God rules the world by the prayers of His saints. . . . Lord, teach us to pray . . . grant especially, blessed Lord, that Your Church may believe that it is by the power of united prayer that she can bind and loose in heaven, cast out Satan, save souls, remove mountains, and hasten the coming of the kingdom.
Andrew Murray, WITH CHRIST IN THE SCHOOL OF PRAYER (Springdale, PA: Whitaker House, 1981), 113-117.
17) LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:
Just got the first E-zine. Incredible! You are performing a fantastic service to the church worldwide, I believe! Which brings a thought to mind--what about looking for a translator to put this, or part of it, into Spanish and perhaps into other languages? . . . Oh, the potential of communication which the Lord has made possible today! May He raise up many more Bible translators, ex-pat and national (one of my burdens), that every language may begin to take advantage of these opportunities! --Roger E. Doriot, missionary in Irian Jaya, Indonesia
I don't remember subscribing, but I want to stay on this list of Christian Classics. Thank you. I am the author of the biography ANDREW MURRAY: APOSTLE OF ABIDING LOVE. . . . I have now updated and expanded with the help of abundant new resources and photos . . . [to be published by Christian Publications in 2000]. The title is ANDREW AND
EMMA: THE MURRAYS OF SOUTH AFRICA. . . . Please see my web site (www.goldenmorning.com) for a review of that book and other books I have written. --Leona Choy
We welcome your comments and your questions. Please keep your comments brief.
VOL. I, ISSUE 2, June 1, 1999. Published every other month 2/1; 4/1; 6/1; 8/1; 10/1; 12/1. Archives on www.kneillfoster.com.
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Copyright 1999, Christian Publications, Inc. Republished by www.kneillfoster.com 2005.