The Lord Jesus calls every local church to be a “house of prayer for all the nations” (Mark 11:17).

In earlier posts (Part 2, Part 3), I said the foundational pillars for that house of prayer must be the glory of God, the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom, the Gospel, and divine desperation.

Last week (Part 4), we examined the first building stone to this house of prayer, praying the heart of Jesus. Today we will look at the second building stone, praying the name of Jesus.

What does it mean to pray in the Name of Jesus? If I say at the end of my prayer, “in Jesus’ name,” does that mean my prayer will be automatically answered? If so, why not pray for a million dollars today in the name of Jesus and see what happens? I tried it. Nothing!

Jesus’ name is not a magical coin we put in the cosmic slot machine expecting God to give us whatever we want. He is not a cosmic genie. He is the Holy God who is sovereign Creator and Master over the universe and over you and me.

When we pray in Jesus’ name, we are praying by His authority and power (Heb 4:14-16), for His glory (John 16:14), and surrendered to His divine plan (Lk 22:42).

We can only enter into the Presence of the Holy God in the authority and power of Jesus’ name. That authority and power came through His Cross, Resurrection and Ascension. But we also must pray for His glory, not ours. So often I pray for my glory in my way and in my time. God will only answer prayer that is all about the glory of His Son.

Finally, to pray in Jesus’ name means we are surrendered to His divine plan in His divine time. So often the Lord says “Wait” or “No” when we pray in Jesus’ Name. The Father said “No” to His Son in the Garden of Gethsemane. As we pray in Jesus’ name, our hearts must be the heart of Jesus who was totally surrendered to His Father’s divine plan for Him. That meant the Cross.

It is because of that Cross we remember this week that you can pray freely in the Name of Jesus through His power and authority, all for His glory, and all surrendered to His divine plan.

The Lord Jesus calls every local church to be a “house of prayer for all the nations” (Mark 11:17).

The last two weeks, I said the foundational pillars for that “house of prayer” must be:

• the glory of God,
• the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom,
• the Gospel, and
• divine desperation

The first building stone to this “house of prayer for all the nations is praying the heart of Jesus. God will not hear or answer our prayers unless they are from the heart of Jesus.

So what is the heart of Jesus? Jesus said in Mathew 6:33, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” The heart of Jesus is His kingdom and His righteousness.

Just prior to this statement, He had told His disciples how to pray His heart for the kingdom and righteousness in the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13). Don’t just recite the prayer repetitively, but pray through it. This praying includes

• worship of the Father,
• asking for His Kingdom to come,
• asking that the Father’s will be done,
• asking our Heavenly Father for our needs to be met (not our wants),
• confession and asking forgiveness for our sins and offenses against God and others, and
• asking God to protect us from temptation and evil.

If you want to pray the heart of Jesus, you will find His heart in that prayer. Pray the Lord’s heart by praying the Lord’s prayer.

The Lord Jesus calls every local church to become a “house of prayer for all the nations” (Mark 11:17). To become a “house of prayer for all the nations,” a local church must have at least 4 foundation stones and 12 building stones.

Last week we said the first two foundational stones were the glory of God and the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom. The last two foundational stones are the Gospel and divine desperation.

The Gospel of the Lord Jesus is ultimately all we have, and it is all we need. Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, ascension, and seating at the right hand of the Father is the basis for our justification, sanctification and glorification. The Gospel is the door we walk through into the Christian life, but it is also the path we walk every day. It is the basis for our transformation (Rom 1:16-17; 2 Cor. 3:18).

Without divine desperation we are just spinning our wheels. Every major move of God in the Bible and historically has been preceded by someone having this divine desperation. Divine desperation is an intense grief over the status quo and an intolerable burden for the glory of God in a situation or location. This divine desperation drove Abraham, David, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, the Lord Jesus, and the Apostle Paul.

Business as usual will only lead to the demise of our nation and the continued decline of the Church. We must have this divine desperation. Several individuals with an intense divine desperation for the glory of God and the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom can transform a local church into a “house of prayer for all the nations.” Prayer for these individuals is like fresh air to a person who is suffocating. It is the air they breathe!

Will you ask God for this kind of heart and will to be a catalyst to transform your church into a “house of prayer for all the nations?”

The Lord Jesus said His house should be a house of prayer for all the nations (Mark 11:17). God calls every local church to be a house of prayer for all the nations. So what does that look like?

There must be at least 4 foundational pillars and 12 building stones. The 4 foundational pillars sustain the entire structure.The 4 foundational pillars are:

• the glory of God,
• the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom,
• the Gospel, and
• a divine desperation.

The primary pillar is the glory of God. Everything must be for His glory (1 Cor. 10:13). Psalm 96:3 states, “Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.” A praying church will be a church revealing and proclaiming the glory and majesty of God.

The second pillar is the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom. Christ’s will is that His Kingdom may be known on the earth, [His] salvation among all nations (Psalm 67:2). The gates of hell shall not prevail again the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom on this earth (Mt 16:18). We advance Christ’s Kingdom on our knees, corporately and individually.

The great glories of God and the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom on this earth strangely do not depend on our great programs or our new ideas, but on the prayers of the saints. E. M. Bounds said,

What the church needs today is not more or better machinery, not new organizations or more novel methods. She needs men [and women] whom the Holy Spirit can use – men [and women] of prayer, men [and women] mighty in prayer. The Holy Spirit does not flow through methods, but through men [and women] …. He does not anoint plans, but men [and women] – men [and women] of prayer!

Will you be that man or woman that help to make your Church into a house of prayer for all the nations?

This is the second post of a continuing series.

Special thanks to Dr. Henry Krabbendam & Rev. Al Baker for the ideas of the foundational pillars and building stones above.

Note: This is the first of a series on becoming a house of prayer for all the nations.  These posts will also appear in the Chapin Presbyterian weekly prayer list.  Look here for a new post in the series each Thursday.

It happened on Monday, the day after the Lord Jesus’ Triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Mark 11:15-18). Jesus came into the Temple, saw many getting ripped off by the money changers who forced people to pay exorbitant prices for their sacrifices, and so the Lord began overturning the tables of the money changers and casting them out of the Temple. Then Jesus said it, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations. But you have made it a robbers’ den.” (Mk 11:17; Is 56:7; Jer 7:11)

Our Lord’s will is for every local church to be a house of prayer for all nations. We understand the Lord was speaking directly about the Temple being that house of prayer, but we can derive from what He said that every local expression of the body of Christ is to become a house of prayer.

So what does a house of prayer for all the nations look like? Over the next several weeks we will examine the four foundational stones and the 12 building blocks for a local church to be a house of prayer. What do you think it will take to make your church a house of prayer for all nations? Are we becoming a house of prayer for all nations? How are you doing in contributing to that happening?

Next week: the first 2 foundational stones: the glory of God and the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom.

Special thanks to Dr. Henry Krabbendam and Rev. Al Baker for some of the content of this blog.