BLESSED FOR PRAYING FOR OTHERS

PROCLAMATION

“After Job prayed for his friends, The Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.”  Job 42:10 (NIV)

EXPLANATION

During all of the time and things that Job suffered, he did not curse The Lord God or lose faith in Him. (Job 13:15 and 27:3-4)  After The Lord God spoke to him and Job humbled himself. (Job 40:3-5) Then God spoke to Job’s friend Eliphaz and told him that He was angry with him and his two friends, Bildad and Zophar, because they did not speak the truth about Him as Job had done. (Job 42:7-8)  The Lord God forgave them after Job prayed for them. (Job 42:9)  It is also interesting to note that The Lord God blessed Job and restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before, only after Job prayed for his friends. (Job 42:10)  The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than He had blessed him in the first part. (Job 42:12-17) 

APPLICATION

As believers we are told to pray for that which we want. (John 16:24 and James 4:2)  Jesus, The Christ, said, “Ask, and it shall be given you;” (Matthew 7:7-8, Mark 21:22, and Luke 11:9) as long as we ask for it in His name and that it glorifies God. (John 14:13)  However, we are also told to pray for one another. (James 5:16)  We are to love our brothers as we love ourselves (Matthew 22:39, Mark 12:31, and Luke 10:27) and therefore we should pray for them as we would pray for ourselves.  We are also to pray for our pastors and our governmental leaders (Hebrews 13:7) for they were put in their positions by The Lord God. (Psalm 75:6-7)  We all need prayer.  Let us stop complaining and start praying.