The Holy Spirit and prayer
Let’s be changed to be men and women empowered to pray
This is a translated summary, by Ken Reddington, of the chapter “The Holy Spirit and Prayer,” from Be Filled with the Spirit by Kōji Honda.1
We cannot stress enough how important and necessary prayer is. Prayer is fellowship with God, but also the greatest weapon to move the hand of God.
The prophet Samuel said, “Far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you” (1 Sam. 12:23 NASB 1995). He says that not praying was sin. God waits for us to pray, and through our prayers, He works. In reality, we often neglect prayer altogether. However, we cannot separate prayer and the Holy Spirit. Through prayer, the Holy Spirit comes into the believer’s heart, indwells, and fills him.
The Lord Jesus taught His disciples to seek the Holy Spirit: “How much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?” (Luke 11:13). So the Lord’s disciples continued to pray after His ascension. At last, on the Day of Pentecost, they were filled with the Spirit. The Apostle Paul encourages Christians to pray: “With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints” (Eph. 6:18). Power to pray comes from the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit knows our needs even now. The Spirit is given as a gift from the Lord to those who earnestly seek Him. In addition, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of prayer, so when the Holy Spirit fills a person, they become a person of prayer. Prayer is one of the greatest ways for us to serve Him. Prayer is very important for all churches; it’s the driving force behind them.
He leads us to pray
“Now in the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words” (Rom. 8:26). The Spirit teaches us to pray. Sometimes we fall into sin and give in to temptation. Other times, we are overwhelmed by opposition and persecution. We can forget to pray because of our weakness and misery and sink into the mire of hopelessness and dejection. But the Holy Spirit “helps our weakness” by comforting, encouraging, and leading us to prayer.
He intercedes for us
The Holy Spirit is also the Spirit of intercession. Sometimes, danger or bodily harm closes in, and we aren’t even aware of the gravity of our situation; we really need to pray, but we can’t. The Holy Spirit intercedes for us “with groanings too deep for words” (Rom. 8:26). When the words of our prayer are not enough, even though halting words, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us before the Heavenly Father with deep groanings. Isn’t that wonderful?
He is the power of prayer
Prayer is fellowship with God, but it is also spiritual warfare. The Holy Spirit is the motivating force within us to pray. He enables us to pray and helps us continue praying. When we are tired from praying, when we groan while interceding, the Holy Spirit gives us a greater thirst, giving us a desire to seek the Lord’s answers. Praying in the Spirit is actually the secret to prayer. It is praying in reliance on the Holy Spirit.
The Spirit of the Lord works powerfully in the church when Christians who can pray in the Holy Spirit are raised up. Prayer is the driving force behind churches. The Scottish pastor John Knox is said to have prayed, “Give me Scotland or I die.” His prayers were feared by Mary, the Roman Catholic queen of England at the time. When I think of Japan’s current situation, when I think of the church, I want to be changed to become a man of prayer who moves the hand of God. For that cause, I earnestly seek the Spirit of prayer. Through this Holy Spirit, may we be changed into people of prayer to God.
1. Kōji Honda 本田弘慈, 聖霊の満たし [Be Filled with the Spirit] (Saitama, Japan: New Life Ministries, 1995), 35–39.