Silas
Beloved of All
Thank you for pouring out your heart in prayer for leaders, for those who serve, and for ordinary people caught in conflict. Your desire to pray for all people, for rulers and for all who are in authority, is exactly what Scripture urges when it says to offer prayers, petitions, intercessions and thanksgivings for everyone, for kings and all in high positions, so that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in godliness and dignity, because God our Savior wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
That heart for life is godly. It is right to ask the Lord to protect the innocent and the vulnerable, to spare life wherever possible, and to give wisdom and restraint to those who bear responsibility for decisions of war and peace. The true purpose of government in God's design is to preserve what is good and to restrain what is evil. When government becomes self serving or promotes evil, something is deeply wrong, and that is why we must pray for those in authority, that God would guide them, humble them, give them wisdom in what they say and how they say it, and turn their hearts like channels of water in His hand. He sits in the heavens and does whatever He pleases, working all things after the counsel of His will, thwarting the plans of the wicked while working all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.
We join you in praying for the peace of the places where God has placed us. The prophet was told to seek the peace of the city where the people had been carried captive and to pray to the Lord for it, for in its peace they would have peace. In that same way we pray for stability and peace in every land, not as an end in itself, but so that the gospel of Jesus Christ may go forth with freedom and clarity, that free speech and open proclamation would be preserved, that godly alliances would be strengthened and evil alignments diminished, and that false teaching and persecution would be removed.
We also pray with you for the peace of Jerusalem and for the Jewish people. Scripture makes clear that God has not cast away His people. There is a blindness in part that remains until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in, and then all Israel shall be saved when they recognize Jesus as Messiah and turn to Him. The church has not replaced Israel, and the promises God made to Israel still stand. We pray for both Jew and Gentile throughout the earth to hear the good news, to repent and turn to God, and to be brought from darkness to light through faith in Christ alone, for that is the only way of salvation for any tribe, tongue, and nation.
We must remember as we pray that lasting peace will not come through human government, military power, or even movements that speak much about peace. Human governments, even at their best, soon become self serving, and vast military power cannot secure the heart. There will be no true and enduring peace on earth until the Prince of Peace Himself reigns. He is our peace. Through the blood of His cross He has made peace between us and God, breaking down every wall. He alone can give peace to those who are far off and to those who are near, healing the troubled heart that is like a restless sea. For those who continue in rebellion there is no peace, but for those who come to Him there is a deep peace that passes all understanding, a peace that guards hearts and minds.
So we continue to submit ourselves to God, to put on His armor, to stand against the spiritual forces of evil, and to ask for His loving kindness, truth, and angelic protection over all people, over those in authority, and over those who serve. He is greater who is in us than he who is in the world, and His angels are ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation. We pray that He would expose hidden threats, protect the innocent from being placed in harm's way for evil purposes, restrain those who plot wickedness, and grant that any necessary action be measured and just, aimed only at what must be stopped, with mercy toward human life.
We give thanks that the Lord God Almighty reigns, that He has taken His great power and reigns, and that we can bring every request to Him with thanksgiving, trusting His peace to guard us as we pray in the name of Jesus.
That heart for life is godly. It is right to ask the Lord to protect the innocent and the vulnerable, to spare life wherever possible, and to give wisdom and restraint to those who bear responsibility for decisions of war and peace. The true purpose of government in God's design is to preserve what is good and to restrain what is evil. When government becomes self serving or promotes evil, something is deeply wrong, and that is why we must pray for those in authority, that God would guide them, humble them, give them wisdom in what they say and how they say it, and turn their hearts like channels of water in His hand. He sits in the heavens and does whatever He pleases, working all things after the counsel of His will, thwarting the plans of the wicked while working all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.
We join you in praying for the peace of the places where God has placed us. The prophet was told to seek the peace of the city where the people had been carried captive and to pray to the Lord for it, for in its peace they would have peace. In that same way we pray for stability and peace in every land, not as an end in itself, but so that the gospel of Jesus Christ may go forth with freedom and clarity, that free speech and open proclamation would be preserved, that godly alliances would be strengthened and evil alignments diminished, and that false teaching and persecution would be removed.
We also pray with you for the peace of Jerusalem and for the Jewish people. Scripture makes clear that God has not cast away His people. There is a blindness in part that remains until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in, and then all Israel shall be saved when they recognize Jesus as Messiah and turn to Him. The church has not replaced Israel, and the promises God made to Israel still stand. We pray for both Jew and Gentile throughout the earth to hear the good news, to repent and turn to God, and to be brought from darkness to light through faith in Christ alone, for that is the only way of salvation for any tribe, tongue, and nation.
We must remember as we pray that lasting peace will not come through human government, military power, or even movements that speak much about peace. Human governments, even at their best, soon become self serving, and vast military power cannot secure the heart. There will be no true and enduring peace on earth until the Prince of Peace Himself reigns. He is our peace. Through the blood of His cross He has made peace between us and God, breaking down every wall. He alone can give peace to those who are far off and to those who are near, healing the troubled heart that is like a restless sea. For those who continue in rebellion there is no peace, but for those who come to Him there is a deep peace that passes all understanding, a peace that guards hearts and minds.
So we continue to submit ourselves to God, to put on His armor, to stand against the spiritual forces of evil, and to ask for His loving kindness, truth, and angelic protection over all people, over those in authority, and over those who serve. He is greater who is in us than he who is in the world, and His angels are ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation. We pray that He would expose hidden threats, protect the innocent from being placed in harm's way for evil purposes, restrain those who plot wickedness, and grant that any necessary action be measured and just, aimed only at what must be stopped, with mercy toward human life.
We give thanks that the Lord God Almighty reigns, that He has taken His great power and reigns, and that we can bring every request to Him with thanksgiving, trusting His peace to guard us as we pray in the name of Jesus.
