Silas
Beloved of All
Your prayer reflects a heart that takes Scripture seriously and wants to see God glorified among the nations, and I am grateful you shared it.
What you have expressed about God's sovereignty is true and comforting. He has made all peoples from one man and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live, as Acts 17 says. The nations are as a drop in a bucket and as dust on the scales before Him, as Isaiah says. That does not mean He is distant. It means no ruler, no army, and no plan is outside His rule. He raises up and brings down whom He wills, and He will one day gather the nations for judgment and show perfect justice for how they have acted, especially toward His people.
You are right to pray for restraint of evil. The present world lies under the influence of the evil one, who Jesus called the prince of this world and a murderer and liar from the beginning. We are not unaware of his schemes. One way God restrains evil is through law. Law is not a terror to those who do good, but to those who do evil, and it is given to check unprincipled people. Another way He restrains evil is through the prayers of His people. There are two kingdoms at work, the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of God, and our allegiance is shown by submitting our lives to God's authority and seeking His will on earth as it is in heaven.
That is why the call in 1 Timothy 2 is so important. We are urged to offer supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgiving for all people, and especially for kings and all who are in authority. The purpose given is that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty, and the reason behind it is that God desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth, which is through Jesus Christ alone. He is the visible image of the invisible God, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed, and who now ever lives to make intercession for us. The Holy Spirit also intercedes for us according to the will of God. When we pray for leaders, we are joining that interceding work.
This kind of prayer is not limited by party or personality, and it is not only for leaders we agree with. In Paul's day that command included praying for a hostile emperor and a corrupt senate. Today it means praying for every leader who bears responsibility, that God would give wisdom, restrain evil counsel, expose deceit, and grant repentance and salvation. It is right to pray for honesty in public life. A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but accurate weights delight Him. That principle applies to commerce and it applies to elections and to every place where truth is measured. To ask for honest elections is to ask for what God loves, that deceit would be restrained and truth would prevail.
You mentioned the unseen battle behind the news, and Scripture speaks of that as well. Daniel was shown that there is struggle in the heavenly realm and that answers to prayer can be contested. We also see how praise drove back distress in the account of David playing before Saul, and how God made known the secret plans of an enemy king to Elisha. God is able to intercept evil plans, to bind the spirit of retaliation, and to turn hearts. We can ask Him to do so, and to lead leaders not into temptation but to deliver them from evil.
Prayer moves from our own needs to intercession for others, for the church, for the nation, and for the world, and then to thanksgiving. God answers prayer, sometimes by giving what we ask, sometimes by saying no and showing that His grace is sufficient, but always according to His perfect will as He searches our hearts. He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked but calls all to turn and live, and He has shown His love by giving His Son to deliver us from this present evil world.
Continue in this work. Confess sin humbly, as Daniel did for himself and his people. Do not speak evil of others or return evil for evil, but follow what is good. Rejoice, be patient with all, support the weak, and pray without ceasing. Keep asking that God would restrain the liar and murderer, frustrate plans that are against His will, protect the innocent, grant honest and just dealings in every nation you carry on your heart, and above all bring salvation through Jesus. He has given us authority in Christ, but our deepest joy is that our names are written in heaven and that we belong to Him.
May the Lord keep you close to Himself as you keep watch in prayer, and may you know His peace as you trust His sovereign hand over every nation and every leader.
What you have expressed about God's sovereignty is true and comforting. He has made all peoples from one man and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live, as Acts 17 says. The nations are as a drop in a bucket and as dust on the scales before Him, as Isaiah says. That does not mean He is distant. It means no ruler, no army, and no plan is outside His rule. He raises up and brings down whom He wills, and He will one day gather the nations for judgment and show perfect justice for how they have acted, especially toward His people.
You are right to pray for restraint of evil. The present world lies under the influence of the evil one, who Jesus called the prince of this world and a murderer and liar from the beginning. We are not unaware of his schemes. One way God restrains evil is through law. Law is not a terror to those who do good, but to those who do evil, and it is given to check unprincipled people. Another way He restrains evil is through the prayers of His people. There are two kingdoms at work, the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of God, and our allegiance is shown by submitting our lives to God's authority and seeking His will on earth as it is in heaven.
That is why the call in 1 Timothy 2 is so important. We are urged to offer supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgiving for all people, and especially for kings and all who are in authority. The purpose given is that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty, and the reason behind it is that God desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth, which is through Jesus Christ alone. He is the visible image of the invisible God, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed, and who now ever lives to make intercession for us. The Holy Spirit also intercedes for us according to the will of God. When we pray for leaders, we are joining that interceding work.
This kind of prayer is not limited by party or personality, and it is not only for leaders we agree with. In Paul's day that command included praying for a hostile emperor and a corrupt senate. Today it means praying for every leader who bears responsibility, that God would give wisdom, restrain evil counsel, expose deceit, and grant repentance and salvation. It is right to pray for honesty in public life. A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but accurate weights delight Him. That principle applies to commerce and it applies to elections and to every place where truth is measured. To ask for honest elections is to ask for what God loves, that deceit would be restrained and truth would prevail.
You mentioned the unseen battle behind the news, and Scripture speaks of that as well. Daniel was shown that there is struggle in the heavenly realm and that answers to prayer can be contested. We also see how praise drove back distress in the account of David playing before Saul, and how God made known the secret plans of an enemy king to Elisha. God is able to intercept evil plans, to bind the spirit of retaliation, and to turn hearts. We can ask Him to do so, and to lead leaders not into temptation but to deliver them from evil.
Prayer moves from our own needs to intercession for others, for the church, for the nation, and for the world, and then to thanksgiving. God answers prayer, sometimes by giving what we ask, sometimes by saying no and showing that His grace is sufficient, but always according to His perfect will as He searches our hearts. He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked but calls all to turn and live, and He has shown His love by giving His Son to deliver us from this present evil world.
Continue in this work. Confess sin humbly, as Daniel did for himself and his people. Do not speak evil of others or return evil for evil, but follow what is good. Rejoice, be patient with all, support the weak, and pray without ceasing. Keep asking that God would restrain the liar and murderer, frustrate plans that are against His will, protect the innocent, grant honest and just dealings in every nation you carry on your heart, and above all bring salvation through Jesus. He has given us authority in Christ, but our deepest joy is that our names are written in heaven and that we belong to Him.
May the Lord keep you close to Himself as you keep watch in prayer, and may you know His peace as you trust His sovereign hand over every nation and every leader.
