This document discusses the importance and power of corporate prayer. It begins by stating that corporate prayer is needed to bear the weight of God's glory and visitation. It then provides examples from the Bible where corporate prayer preceded significant events from God, such as fire falling from heaven and the Holy Spirit being poured out. The document emphasizes that God waits for his people to gather in prayer before he acts or moves in power. It encourages believers to commit to regular times of corporate prayer to experience all that God has planned.
2. God is building a foundation of prayer in our church to bear the
weight of the visitation of the Spirit and the needs of the many
people who will come as a result of the visitation!
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Without significant corporate prayer we will not be able to
bear the weight of his glory that is coming upon us!
!
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3. The Power of People Together in Prayer!
Every religion encourages corporate prayer to
influence their god. All spirits—even evil ones— like
corporate worship & prayer by their followers. !
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Many religions command their people to fast & pray
together. !
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Seven corporate gatherings were commanded in
the OT for special days to honor God: Feast of
Unleavened Bread, Passover, First Fruits,
Pentecost, etc.
4. Why do all gods request corporate prayer?!
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Greater numbers = Greater honor to the god
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The gathering shows the seriousness of their request!
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The agreement of corporate prayer intensifies the prayer by
all. !
!!
Takes more prep and sacrifice to do, adding value to the
request. All gods honored by the sacrifices of their followers!
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Our God loves unity and mutual love and mutual submission
and anything that makes us dependent on each other as a
Body!
5. •
God Waits for Corporate Prayer before He Does
Great Events!
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FIRE FALLS FROM HEAVEN
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GOSPEL IS SENT OUT TO THE GENTILES
6. The Fire Falls
Now when Solomon had finished praying, fire came
down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and
the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the house. The
priests could not enter into the house of the Lord
because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord’s house. All
the sons of Israel, seeing the fire come down and the glory
of the Lord upon the house, bowed down on the pavement
with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave
praise to the Lord, saying, “Truly He is good, truly His
lovingkindness is everlasting.” (2 Chron. 7:1-3)
7. First Visitation of the Spirit
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After 10 days of corporate prayer in upper room
“These all with one mind were continually devoting
themselves to prayer…”
“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together
in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise
like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where
they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of
fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of
them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to
speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them
utterance. (Acts 2:1-4)
8. Gospel Sent to Gentiles
Acts 13:2-3: “ While they were worshiping the
Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set
apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to
which I have called them.” Then after fasting
and praying, they laid their hands on them and
sent them off.”
9. Spirit Shakes & Fills
“On their release, Peter and John went back to
their own people and reported all that the chief
priests and the elders had said to them.
24 When they heard this, they raised their
voices together in prayer to God.
31 After they prayed, the place where they
were meeting was shaken. And they were all
filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word
of God boldly. ( Acts 4:23-31)
10. Promises for Corporate
Prayer
Matt. 18:19-20: “Again I say to you, that if two of
you agree on earth about anything that they
may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father
who is in heaven.
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For where two or three have gathered together in
My name, I am there in their midst.”
~~ KPC Trailer Meetings, Vineyard Sat Night Meetings
11. THIS VERSE SAYS that agreement in prayer strengthens
our prayer.!
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The power of our agreement in prayer on earth brings a
response in heaven. Heaven is waiting for earth to ask in
agreement.!
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Just gathering in Jesus name brings the Presence of
Jesus in a special way even though He lives in us by His
Spirit. !
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Then those who feared the LORD spoke with each other, and the
LORD listened to what they said. In his presence, a scroll of
remembrance was written to record the names of those who feared
him and always thought about the honor of his name. (Mal. 3:16)
12. Most of the greatest moments in my spiritual life have come during
times of corporate worship & prayer!
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I was baptized in the spirit and Japan in 1973 during a small prayer
meeting. Spent 6 hours in a trance on floor in 1994 at Toronto!
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Jean Allen and a dozen other local Christian leaders in the trailers at
KPC weekly. God would come and transform us from glory to glory in
corporate prayer. A birthing room. Refreshing teams with pastors.!
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In the early 90’s, in the Vineyard church we would have Saturday
night prayer meetings that was so intense they are often better than
the Sunday morning meetings. !
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No pleasure or no power is greater than the presence of God who
comes in response to corporate worship and prayer!
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13. Harmony in Agreement
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Two or more agree (symphōneō) = symphony: people
in harmony via real Christian love.
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The power of God will come to a people only if they
are walking in humility, forgiveness and love toward
one another ( marriage, family, church, city, nation)
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Jesus taught us: shortest way to the house of God is
by the house of the offended brother. Reconcile first,
them pray. Unreconciled believers can hinder
corporate prayer.
14. •
A couple that prays together will stay together
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A family that prays together will stay together
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A church that prays together will draw the
Presence of God
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A group of churches that pray together in a region
will draw the Lord to that region
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A city of churches that pray together will draw the
Lord to that city.
15. Why We Don’t
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Devil fears corporate prayer & evangelism: the
two things most churches don’t do.
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Exactly the opposite of the early Church:
“Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and
breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their
meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God
and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to
their number day by day those who were being saved. ( Acts
2:46-47)
16. There has never been a spiritual awakening in any country or locality
that did not begin in united prayer.
1858-1860
Following the second great awakening, which began in 1792 just after the
death of John Wesley and continued into the turn of the century, conditions
again deteriorated.
The country was seriously divided over the issue of slavery, and second,
people were making money lavishly.
In September 1857, a man of prayer, Jeremiah Lanphier, started a
businessmen's prayer meeting in the upper room of the Dutch Reformed
Church Consistory Building in Manhattan on Fulton St. In response to his
advertisement, only six people out of a population of a million showed up. But
the following week there were fourteen, and then twenty-three when it was
decided to meet everyday for prayer. By late winter they were filling the Dutch
Reformed Church, then the Methodist Church on John Street, then Trinity
Episcopal Church on Broadway at Wall Street. In February and March of
1858, every church and public hall in down town New York was filled.
!
17. Then a landslide of prayer began, which overflowed to the churches
in the evenings. People began to be converted, ten thousand a week
in New York City alone.
The revival raced up the Hudson and down the Mohawk, where the
Baptists, for example, had so many people to baptize that they went
down to the river, cut a big hole in the ice, and baptized them in the
cold water. When Baptists do that they are really on fire!
When the revival reached Chicago, a young shoe salesman went to the
superintendent of the Plymouth Congregational Church, and asked if he
might teach Sunday School. The superintendent said, 'I am sorry, young
fellow. I have sixteen teachers too many, but I will put you on the waiting
list.'
The young man insisted, 'I want to do something just now.’ 'Well, start a
class.’ 'How do I start a class?'
'Get some boys off the street but don't bring them here. Take them out
into the country and after a month you will have control of them, so bring
them in. They will be your class.'
18. The name of that young man was Dwight Lyman Moody, and
that was the beginning of a ministry that lasted forty years.
Trinity Episcopal Church in Chicago had a hundred and
twenty-one members in 1857; fourteen hundred in 1860. That
was typical of the churches. More than a million people were
converted to God in one year out of a population of thirty
million.
Then that same revival jumped the Atlantic, appeared in
Ulster, Scotland and Wales, then England, parts of Europe,
South Africa and South India anywhere there was an
evangelical cause. It sent mission pioneers to many countries.
Effects were felt for forty years. Having begun in a
movement of prayer, it was sustained by a movement of
prayer.
!
19. •
Everything Jesus was born for can be accessed
and released in a more intense way when we pray
together.
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God desires His people to pray and work together
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Jan 2014: 21 day fast and prayer time. We have
to pray more together if we want all that God has
for us as individuals and as a church.