Specific Prayer/Specific Answer

Acts 4:23-31

This passage gives us the first prayer recorded in the book of Acts. Peter and John had been released and went to their companions and shared what had happened to them. All of them apparently lifted their voices in prayer to God recognizing His sovereignty. We also learn that they realized that the Holy Spirit directed the writing of the Old Testament as they quote Psalm 2. Finally, they recognized that the opposition encountered was predestined by God.

In verse 29 they asked that they might be given boldness to “speak Thy word with all confidence.” We see the answer occurs quickly in v. 31 where we are told they “began to speak the word of God with boldness.”

Prayer is an important part of our Christian lives and one that is often neglected unless we are encountering some type of problem. Many Christians seem to want their relationship with God to be like one with a mechanic. They only come to Him when there is a problem. These men had just escaped a problem and were now asking for boldness to continue their ministry in spite of the opposition they expected to face.

Notice that first they gave praise to God and recognized His sovereignty. That is a good process in our prayer life. It is profitable for us to recognize the largeness of God and the smallness of ourselves. They also recognized God’s power and desire to work through them as they prayed for boldness to proclaim His message. When we are carrying out God’s will in our lives we can anticipate the leading and power of His Holy Spirit in our lives. We must be careful, however, never to take that for granted and we should also give Him the glory for anything that is accomplished through us.

I pray that you will recognize the awesomeness of the Holy Spirit residing within you and that you will also see the need to maintain a vital prayer life.