We are still at the prayer-meeting in Jerusalem. The new church was treathened by persecution. In a situation of uneasiness the disciples took hold of a prophecy and confirmed who is the source of the words:
You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servantThen they quote a prophecy about rebellion against the Lord and his anointed. It is interesting to study the prayers in the Bible. Many of them relate the situation of concern, with an analogue situation in the Bible.
Acts 4:25a
If it is the situation that triggers the prayer, I call it:
Praying with the Word of God.If it is the Word of God triggering the burning need to pray, I call it:
Praying the word (or the word of God).In this specific prayer-meeting they pray with the Word of God. They quote Psalm 2:1-2, which they know as a psalm of David. But since they now have received the Holy Spirit they recognize the Spirit in the words of David. The whole psalm is Messianic. The disciples probably thought that Jesus was the Messiah, but persecution is also confirming them and their mission: It's because they speak in the name of Christ that they are being persecuted.
Why do they pray what God already knows and wants?Prayer is confession. It is a confirmation of what they see in the word, and that they also believe that God is in control of their situation. They build faith to ask for protection, but not because protection was important in itself. It was important for the completion of the mission that lay at their heart. Such prayers will give results.
'Manna' for today:
The Holy Spirit speaks through God's servants----------------------------
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