by Larry Stout

The Disciples Dilemma

Imagine being one of those original disciples at the time described in the book of Acts. You barely have time to stop and think about all the events that have cascaded in the past couple of months; Jesus’ arrest, trial, crucifixion, and then his resurrection from the dead.

You then had a reunion with Jesus for forty days, but it was undoubtedly unlike anything like the past three years! The resurrected One walked you and your fellow disciples through the Old Testament and showed you again and again and again how these texts related to His life and work that you had been witnessing the past three years.

As euphoric as this must have been, those disciples also realized that this was going to end sometime soon. It must have been bittersweet to be sitting at the feet of the resurrected Savior, soaking up the treasures of God’s Holy Word from the very one who WAS the Word — and yet at the same time knowing this would not last. Jesus was telling them that he was departing back to His Father but would still be with his disciples. How was that going to happen, they must have wondered.

The answer was prayer. During Jesus’ ministry on earth, he was continually seeking His heavenly Father in prayer. Jesus had given these disciples the ability to preach and even heal in his name, but they realized that something was still missing. This is why they asked him to teach them how to pray.

Many, many Christians struggle in this area, and to grow in our faith in Christ very much depends on growing in our prayer life. Yet, on the other side of this coin is the very desire itself to pray. It is one thing to know HOW to pray, it is another to WANT to pray. Worship, preaching, fellowship, evangelism — all are important and necessary for the church, but Jesus stated in Matthew 21:13, Mark 11:17, and Luke 19:46 that His house would be a house of prayer.

The church that was born out of those first disciples did not begin in a synagogue or even some particularly significant landmark like the Mount of Olives or even at Golgotha. No, it began in a large room in Jerusalem that hosted 120 followers of the risen Christ who gathered together for one purpose — and that purpose was prayer.

The prayer meeting’s participants were formed around Jesus’ eleven disciples. In his commentary on Acts, the distinguished theologian Kenneth Gangel noted that, “The outstanding thing about these men is that they were not outstanding.” He hit the mark, for those disciples featured fishermen, a tax collector, a zealot — there was not a theologian in the bunch.

But (and this is a big But), they knew Jesus. They had followed Jesus. And now, they were ready to continue to follow him, but they had no idea what that meant. He had ascended to the Father, and now they were on their own. And yet… they knew they were NOT on their own. He made a promise to them that we read at the end of Matthew’s gospel that he would NEVER leave them or abandon them. Thus, they knew that they still had their Savior with them. Hence, they realize to find wisdom, courage, direction and all their needs — it would be on their knees.

Our House of Prayer

Like all of Scripture, the book of Acts is given to us for our instruction, and not just to supply us with information. We have the same mandate as those first disciples, and that was to take the gospel to all the world. The driving force for this mission must come from the Lord Himself, and that is why every church should be a house of prayer. In the book of Acts there are thirty specific references to prayer, which certainly indicates that they understood how much they needed to depend on God’s help in the overwhelming task that had been given to them.

In the next thirty days, each of these references to prayer in the book of Acts will be highlighted and explained. Through these examples in the early church, we should be encouraged and energized to be as diligent in prayer as they were for the issues, problems, opportunities, threats, joys, sorrows, sufferings, wisdom, guidance, and everything else that a fellowship of believers in Jesus Christ experiences as it seeks to grow in Christ together.

Prayer makes the difference between a church that is vibrant and alive, breathing the joy and power that Jesus promised His church and a stale, functionally operational but lifeless institution that survives through manmade management. An old Wesleyan Methodist pastor by the name of Samuel Chadwick who had a true zeal for the church once said, “Satan dreads nothing but prayer. His one concern is to keep the saints from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, and prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, he mocks our wisdom, but he trembles when we pray.”

Would that we would have that spirit-directed, gospel-energized, Heavenly Father-loving focus on prayer that carried the church for two millenniums. May we be the workers who roll up our sleeves and grab the tools that the Lord puts in our hands to build His church by His design. And may we do so in humility and faith as we draw near to the throne room in heaven — His House of Prayer.

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A Look Ahead the next thirty days

1 - United Prayer (Acts 1:14)

2 - Guidance Prayer (Acts 1:24)

3 - Discipline of Prayer (Acts 2:42)

4 - Diligent Prayer (Acts 3:1)

5 - Adversity Prayer (Acts 4:23-24)

6 - Ground-Shaking Prayer (Acts 4:31)

7 - Ministry Prayer (Acts 6:4)

8 - Commissioning Prayer (Acts 6:6)

9 - Ground-Breaking Prayer (Acts 8:15)

10 - Repentance Prayer (Acts 8:22)

11 - Intercessory Prayer (Acts 8:24)

12- Answered Prayer (Acts 9:11)

13 - Healing Prayer (Acts 9:40)

14 - Faithful Prayer (Acts 10:2)

15 - Astonishing Prayer (Acts 10:4)

16 - Preparation Prayer (Acts 10:9)

17 - Connection Prayer (Acts 10:30-31)

18 - Surprising Prayer (Acts 11:5)

19 - Fervent Prayer (Acts 12:5)

20 - Answered Prayer (Acts 12:12)

21 - Comission Prayer (Acts 13:3)

22 - Church Planting Prayer (Acts 14:23)

23 - Place for Prayer (Acts 16:13)

24 - Disrupted Prayer (Acts 16:16)

25 - Deliverance Prayer (Acts 16:25)

26 - Blessing Prayer (Acts 20:36)

27 - Comforting Prayer (Acts 21:5)

28 - Life-Changing Prayer (Acts 22:17)

29 - Desperation Prayer (Acts 27:29)

30 - Ministry Prayer (Acts 28:8)