We join you in lifting up this man before the throne of grace and we thank you for standing in the gap for him with such compassion and discernment. We agree with you that our Father knows the plans He has for him, plans for peace and not for evil, to give him hope and a future as spoken in Jeremiah 29:11, and that His thoughts and ways are far higher than ours as written in Isaiah 55:8-9. We also agree that where two or three are gathered and agree in the name of Jesus, the Lord hears us according to Matthew 18:19-20, and we are grateful you have come to the Father in the mighty name of Jesus, for there is no other name by which we have access to God and no other name by which we can be saved as declared in John 14:6 and Acts 4:12.
We see the burden you carry for this former landlord and we share your concern for the false identity he has taken on and the sinful relationships and activities that have led him away from the narrow path. Scripture warns us that narrow is the gate and narrow is the way that leads to life and few are those who find it in Matthew 7:13-14, and that we must not be conformed to the desires of the flesh but be transformed by the renewing of our minds. When a person walks in sexual immorality outside of the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman, Scripture calls it fornication or adultery and calls us to flee from it in 1 Corinthians 6:18, for such sin is against our own body which is a temple of the Holy Spirit and it brings confusion, bondage and destruction. We must gently but firmly rebuke that way of life, for God ordained marriage as a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman to reflect Christ and the church, and any relationship outside of that design, including being controlled, blackmailed or manipulated by an ungodly woman or any ungodly influence in his household, is not of God and must be forsaken. The Word tells us to not be unequally yoked with unbelievers in 2 Corinthians 6:14 and to come out from among them and be separate, and to fear the Lord and depart from evil in Proverbs 3:7.
We also hear your heart for his deliverance and for his true identity to be restored. We are reminded that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old things have passed away and all things have become new in 2 Corinthians 5:17. The Lord promises to take away the stony heart and give a heart of flesh in Ezekiel 36:26, and to set us free indeed when the Son sets us free in John 8:36. We pray that he will submit himself to God, resist the devil and the devil will flee from him according to James 4:7, and that as he confesses and turns from his sin he will receive forgiveness and cleansing in 1 John 1:9.
We pray together now.
Heavenly Father, we come before You together in the powerful name of Jesus Christ Your Son who suffered on the cross for all who believe. We thank You for Your mercy and for Your unending love. Lord, You know this man intimately, You see where he lives, whom he lives with, and the chains that bind him. We ask You to open his eyes to the clear and unmistakable truth of his identity in Christ and to expose the lie of the false identity he adopted when he followed his own desires into sinful relationships. Father, break his stony heart and give him a new heart that is soft toward You, give him courage to choose the narrow path even when it is difficult, and give him a holy fear of Your name so that he will depart from evil. Lord, separate him from every ungodly influence, including those in his own household, and especially from the evil woman who controls and blackmails him and who may even put his life in danger. We ask for Your divine protection over him, for You are our refuge and fortress in Psalm 91:2 and You deliver the righteous out of all their troubles in Psalm 34:17. Loose every chain of fornication, manipulation and fear, and bring him into the freedom of a life surrendered to Christ. Lead him to repentance, to walk in purity, and if it be Your will for him to marry, lead him to a godly marriage to a believing woman that honors You, for we know that courtship should be with the goal of a Christ centered marriage. Give him understanding, give him godly counsel, surround him with believers who will speak truth in love, and let him know the depth of Your love that casts out fear. We ask that You make Your holy plan for his life unmistakable to him and that he will hear Your voice and obey. We trust You to complete the good work You have begun. In the mighty and saving name of Jesus we pray, amen.
We encourage you to continue to intercede for him with steadfast love and to let your life be a quiet witness of the hope that is in you. Continue to speak the truth in love when God gives you opportunity, and trust that the Lord who is faithful will protect him from the evil one in 2 Thessalonians 3:3 and will lead him out of darkness into His marvelous light as he turns to Jesus with his whole heart.