Pray in the Spirit

Pray with the understanding and pray in the Spirit. The spoken word is powerful and effective.

April’s Awakening, Day 13

To pray in the Spirit is the inward principle of prayer. It comprehends both the spirit of the person praying, and the Spirit of God by which our spirits are fitted for, and acted in, prayer.

 —William Gurnall 

The Holy Ghost has two offices: first, he is a Spirit of grace, that makes God gracious unto us, and receive us as his acceptable children, for Christ’s sake. Secondly, he is a Spirit of prayer, that prays for us, and for the whole world, to the end that all evil may be turned from us, and that all good may happen to us.

 —Martin Luther

Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the soul to God, through Christ in the strength and assistance of the Spirit, for such things as God has promised.

 —John Bunyan 

Where there is much prayer, there will be much of the Spirit; where there is much of the Spirit, there will be ever-increasing prayer.

 —Andrew Murray

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. Romans 8:26–27 NIV 

For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding. Otherwise when you are praising God in the Spirit, how can someone else, who is now put in the position of an inquirer, say “Amen” to your thanksgiving, since they do not know what you are saying? 1 Corinthians 14:14–16 NIV 

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Ephesians 6:18 NIV   

But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, Jude 1:20 NIV

            As Paul clearly delineates in 1 Corinthians 14 above, there are two distinct ways in which believers can pray (and sing praises, as well). First, is the typical way in which we all pray, with the understanding, which is of course praying with the words of our own language. Second, is praying in the Spirit, which is praying in a tongue, an unknown language, words formed and spoken through our vocal apparatus, driven by the Holy Spirit Himself. These unknown words may sound like babbling or groans or mere utterances, but they are still words of a language known by the Holy Spirit, who is the author of all languages since the Tower of Babel, when all the languages of mankind were confounded. We do not know the original language of Adam and Eve, nor do we know with what language God spoke light and all creation into existence with, but regardless, the spoken word is powerful and effective in any language.

            Since the Day of Pentecost in the Book of Acts, when Christ sent the Holy Spirit to us to indwell us, believers have had access to the fullness of the Holy Spirit and the ability to pray in tongues—praying in the Spirit. Praying in tongues is the private prayer language that all believers can access, and is separate and distinct from the spiritual gift of tongues and interpretation of tongues, which is a special gift given by the Holy Spirit to those He chooses, to be used in the public edification of the body of believers. It may sound the same, but the spiritual gift is given to only a select few for public use, while praying in the Spirit is available to all believers who earnestly seek it. Praying in the Spirit is as valid today for believers as it was in the Book of Acts, as I can personally attest, and so too, a multitude of Pentecostals and Charismatics alike, and to negate its existence is unfounded. Praying in the Spirit is the evidence of what is called being filled with the Spirit or Spirit-filled, such that a Spirit-filled believer can pray in the Spirit. Once you have this fullness of the Holy Spirit it is a part of you. Remember, every believer already has the Holy Spirit within them, this is just an extra gifting available to all who eagerly seek it. This all may seem a bit foreign and bizarre, but also remember that God uses the seemingly foolish to confound the apparently wise. Being Spirit-filled is not required by any means for salvation, it simply allows you to experience the fullness of what God has for you as a believer, and to be the most effective you can be in prayer and empowerment of your personal spiritual gifting. God has provided this ability to help us pray when we don’t really know what to pray for or how to pray most effectively according to His will.

            Receiving the ability to pray in the Spirit may be difficult for some, as it requires an earnest desire to receive everything that is of God and it requires a total surrender and submission of self to the full leading of the Holy Spirit. You are allowing the Holy Spirit to literally take control of your thoughts and vocal apparatus and allowing Him to speak. It is best to pray for this in the good company of trusted individuals who have this ability and can help you to receive it. It may take multiple attempts on multiple occasions and if you are apprehensive, fearful, doubtful, or insincere about it, you will, in fact, have great difficulty in receiving it. Once you have it, however, you will find that it is quite natural and flows easily indeed. So, pray with the understanding and pray in the Spirit.  

            And yes, God hears every silent prayer, but remember, if you’re doing spiritual warfare against Satan, he will only hear your spoken words as he cannot read your mind or know your thoughts as only God can do that. And yes, most assuredly the Holy Spirit assists us in our thoughts and words as we pray with the understanding too.