Effective Prayer: The 4 Marks of the Early Church

Introduction

You know prayer is important. You've heard it a thousand times. Maybe you even came to the Lord because someone prayed for you, or because you yourself sought God in a moment of distress. And yet, if you're honest, prayer has become something you neglect. You don't have time, you feel like God isn't listening, or you feel like your prayer won't change anything about your situation.

Jean-Marc Botteron opens his message with this observation, drawing on Psalm 34:4-7: "I sought Yahweh, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears. They looked to him, and were radiant. Their faces shall never be covered with shame. This poor man cried, and Yahweh heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles." Prayer is powerful. Prayer is effective. But it is often neglected. And if you don't pray, everything falls apart: your service, your witness, your Christian life stay fruitless.

In this article, you'll walk with the preacher through four marks drawn from the book of Acts of the Apostles: praying with regularity, praying when everything goes wrong, praying to receive God's direction, and praying for the sick.

Article outline

1. Praying with regularity (Acts 2:42)

From the very birth of the church, the first Christians continued steadfastly "in the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and prayer" (Acts 2:42). That must be the DNA of the church, even today. Without prayer, nothing happens on the spiritual level, because you are in a spiritual battle.

To continue steadfastly, another translation says "they devoted themselves to prayer." That means not praying only when everything is going well, but also when the winds are against you, when things don't go the way you had planned. If you haven't yet set up a regular time of prayer, every day, that's the first step. Why? Because you are a disciple, and a disciple is someone who is disciplined. He has built a daily habit of prayer.

"I don't want to become a legalistic Christian, I'll pray if I feel like it." No. Because the devil, every single day, is making plans to destroy you. If you don't pray every day, his plans keep moving forward. You grow weaker, your fellowship with God shrinks, you become fragile, and little by little you can let go of the Lord's hand. On the other hand, when you pray every day, you connect with God, and he is at work in the spiritual realm to bless you, to protect you, to act on your behalf.

Look at Peter and John in Acts 3:1: "Peter and John were going up into the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour." They had made an appointment. They had blocked out time. Around three in the afternoon. They could have done something else, but they were present where God wanted them. If you can't manage to block time in your schedule, if you don't seriously set up times of prayer, they will get eaten away by other activities and prayer will never find its place.

2. Praying when everything goes wrong (Acts 4:24; Acts 12:5)

When the apostles are threatened and ordered not to proclaim the word of God, they choose prayer. Acts 4:24: "When they heard it, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord." They had a choice: submit and stop speaking about Jesus, or pray and keep going with the strength God gives. They chose prayer. The result: "The place was shaken where they were gathered together. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness" (Acts 4:31).

A little further on, you see Stephen, in the middle of being stoned, praying a short but powerful prayer: "Lord, don't hold this sin against them" (Acts 7:60). That prayer was answered. Saul of Tarsus, who was present, was converted some time later. He became the apostle Paul and wrote a large part of the New Testament. You too, pray for the salvation of the souls around you: your spouse, your children, your parents, your coworkers. You might be the only witness who speaks to them about Jesus and prays for them.

When Peter is arrested by Herod and threatened with death, what does the church do? "Peter therefore was kept in the prison, but constant prayer was made by the assembly to God for him" (Acts 12:5). An angel came into his cell, the chains fell off, and he walked out under the blind eyes of the guards. And where does he go first? To the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, "where many were gathered together and were praying" (Acts 12:12). That little word "many" matters. The Christians felt mobilized. In the church, you need to support one another through prayer. God hears fervent prayers.

3. Praying to receive God's direction (Acts 10:9; Acts 13:2)

It was during a time of prayer that Peter received the revelation about the salvation of the Gentiles. Acts 10:9: "Peter went up on the housetop to pray about noon." This wasn't a meeting, it was his own personal initiative. That shows a certain spiritual maturity: deciding on your own to spend time with God, even when no one is making you.

And during that time of prayer, God showed him this vision of unclean animals on a sheet, with these words: "What God has cleansed, don't you call unclean." His mindset as a religious Jew was turned upside down. He would never have thought of preaching the gospel to the Gentiles without that time of prayer. Through prayer, God changes your mindset and you receive his thoughts so you can do his work.

Another example, Acts 13:2: "As they served the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, 'Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, for the work to which I have called them.'" Here, one element is added to prayer: fasting. Abstaining from food in order to spend that time in prayer. It was during that time of fasting and prayer that the Holy Spirit revealed his missionary plan for Paul and Barnabas.

Jesus insisted on this point. When the disciples couldn't cast out a demon, he answered that it took faith, and that "this kind can come out by nothing, but by prayer and fasting" (Mark 9:29). Fasting multiplies spiritual power. But everything works against you fasting: the flesh refuses, tiredness sets in, even the thought of skipping a meal becomes a psychological obstacle. You have to prepare yourself, motivate yourself. The flesh and the spirit are opposed to each other (Galatians 5:17), so that you don't do the things that you desire. As long as the flesh isn't crucified (Galatians 5:24), you won't manage to fast, and you won't manage to truly pray.

4. Praying for the sick (Acts 9:40; Acts 28:8)

Tabitha, a Christian in Joppa who did many good works, falls sick and dies. The Christians send for Peter. "Peter put them all out, and knelt down and prayed. Turning to the body, he said, 'Tabitha, get up!' She opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up" (Acts 9:40). A great miracle, known throughout the whole city.

This is the prayer of faith. Prayer in stuck situations, in situations that may be dead, where there is no more hope, no more solution. Brothers and sisters, even if your situation seems completely lost, pray to the Lord, who is able to raise up what is completely dead. It might be a project, a relationship, a calling that someone told you "it's over" about. God is the almighty one. Sometimes he raises up, sometimes he takes back. God decides, God is sovereign. Your part is to pray and trust him.

Another example, Acts 28:8. Paul lands on Malta after a shipwreck. The father of Publius is in bed, sick with fever and dysentery. "Paul entered in to him, prayed, and laying his hands on him, healed him." Paul wasn't discouraged, he wasn't defeated. He didn't tell that man, "You're sick, you'll always be sick." He trusted God, he prayed, he laid hands on him in faith. When you face sickness, pray to the Lord, don't lose heart. It is God who heals. Your part is to obey.

Key takeaways

• Prayer is powerful and effective, but often neglected. Without it, your service, your witness, your Christian life stay fruitless.
• A disciple is disciplined. Daily, personal prayer isn't legalism: it's the foundation. While you're not praying, the enemy is carrying out his plans.
• Pray when everything goes wrong: the early church never fell silent in the face of persecution, it lifted its voice together and was renewed by the Holy Spirit.
• Fasting multiplies spiritual power. It's in fasting and prayer that God reveals his direction and sets his servants apart for the work.
• No situation is too hopeless for God. Pray for the sick, pray for what seems dead. God is sovereign, your part is to pray and obey.

Personal application

Take a moment before God and answer these questions honestly.

• Do you have a truly established daily time of prayer, or is it getting eaten away by your schedule? What time slot will you block out this week, like Peter and John at the ninth hour?
• Is there a situation where you stopped praying because nothing seems to be moving? What would "perseverance" look like in that specific case?
• When opposition rises (tiredness, excuses, discouragement) right as you decide to pray, how will you respond: follow the flesh, or do the opposite of what those thoughts tell you?
• For whom around you might you be the only witness? Are you ready to carry that person in prayer, the way Stephen prayed for those who were stoning him?
• Is there a humanly hopeless case in your life or in someone close to you? What does it concretely mean, today, to "pray to the Lord who raises up what is dead"?

Bible references

• Psalm 34:4-7 (WEB) · "I sought Yahweh, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears."
• Acts 2:42 (WEB) · The first Christians continued steadfastly in the apostles' teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer.
• Acts 3:1 (WEB) · Peter and John go up to the temple at the hour of prayer.
• Acts 4:24-31 (WEB) · The church prays in the face of persecution, the place is shaken, all are filled with the Holy Spirit.
• Acts 7:60 (WEB) · Stephen's prayer for his executioners.
• Acts 10:9 (WEB) · Peter goes up on the housetop to pray and receives the vision that opens the gospel to the Gentiles.
• Acts 12:5-12 (WEB) · Peter is freed from prison while the church is praying for him.
• Acts 13:1-3 (WEB) · In fasting and prayer, the Holy Spirit sets apart Barnabas and Saul.
• Acts 9:40 (WEB) · Peter prays and Tabitha is raised.
• Acts 28:8 (WEB) · Paul prays for the father of Publius, who is healed.
• Galatians 5:17 (WEB) · The flesh desires against the Spirit.
• Galatians 5:24 (WEB) · Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions.

FAQ

Why is prayer so hard when it seems so simple?

Because you are engaged in a spiritual battle. For a good meal or a concert, there's no such battle, you go there naturally. But the moment you decide to spend time on your knees seeking God's face, the flesh reacts, the enemy plants thoughts of excuses, tiredness, discouragement. Know this: the next time you decide to pray, opposition will already be there. One simple piece of advice: do the exact opposite of what those thoughts tell you.

Isn't praying every day just legalism?

No. A disciple, by definition, is disciplined. He has built a daily habit of prayer, not to check a box, but because he has understood the battle. If you only pray when you feel like it, the devil isn't waiting for you: he keeps making his plans. You grow weaker, your fellowship with God shrinks, and little by little you can let go of the Lord's hand.

What's the point of praying for a humanly hopeless case?

To let God be God. Peter prayed for Tabitha while she was dead, and she got up. Paul prayed for the father of Publius while the treatment wasn't working, and he was healed. God is able to raise up what is completely dead. Sometimes he raises up, sometimes he takes back, but no situation is ever too hopeless for him. Your part: pray and trust him.

Taking action

You won't build a life of prayer in a day. Start small. Block out a slot tomorrow morning, before the day eats it away. Write down the name of one person you'll pray for every day this week. And if opposition rises ("don't feel like it," "no time," "can't do it"), do the opposite of what those thoughts tell you: open your mouth, even just a few words. That's how you win the first spiritual victories. One at a time.