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At the risk of repeating myself somewhere else in this work, there are several verses in Scripture taken in context that indicate Praying in the Spirit is much more than speaking in strange tongues. (Praying in strange tongues can also be done silently--but for what purpose if there is no understanding?)

First verse is when Jesus is in the Garden and He says in Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Jesus is teaching here not only about the current situation but also about the purpose of prayer which is pray lest we enter into temptation. Notice He did not say “lest you yield to temptation.” He is telling us to pray about those thoughts that enter our head and bring them to God so that we can shut the door to temptation and not entertain those thoughts but dismiss them yielding to God’s will, not our fleshly desires.

Note: “The spirit (lower case meaning human spirit) is willing but the flesh is weak.” Jesus lays it out for God, “I don’t want to go through with this, Father, is there any other way?”

There is a powerful message here that we should savor. Jesus openly admitted to His Father He did not want to do what was surely coming. There is great strength in this because once we admit our weaknesses to God openly, then He can give us His strength to overcome them. Jesus knew it would take superhuman effort to stay on the cross because preservation of self is a strong natural human reflex. Here his human nature was at war with His divine nature. No where else is this war seen as clearly as right here in this moment of time.

Then He says, “Not My will, but Thine.” We should do this, too. When temptation comes our way, immediately bring it to God the very instant that we recognize it as fleshly desire or temptations from Satan. Confess it for what it is and God will give strength to overcome those thoughts, but – and this is crucial – we must be willing to turn from them.

Romans 8:26 states that the Holy Spirit prays for us. Therefore, the Holy Spirit is always within us and Paul testifies to this in Romans 8:14-16 For all who are moved by the Spirit of God are sons of God. The Spirit you have received is not a spirit of slavery leading you back into a life of fear, but a Spirit that makes us sons, enabling us to cry “Abba! Father!” In that cry the Spirit of God joins with our spirit in testifying that we are God’s children; and if children, then heirs. We are God’s heirs and Christ’s fellow-heirs...”

Since we are joint heirs with Christ, we possess the first fruits of that relationship which is the Holy Spirit. Glory!

We have the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit prays for us, interpreting our prayers and amplifying our prayers. I find that so glorious. Then Jesus is sitting right beside the Father and He intercedes for us. How great is that?

As in Romans 8:26ff “...We do not even know how we ought to pray, but through our inarticulate groans the Spirit Himself is pleading for us, and God Who searches, our inmost being knows what the Spirit means, because He pleads for God’s people in God’s own way; and in everything, as we know, He co-operates for good with those who love God and are called according to His purpose.” NEB

"Today's Little Lift" from Jim Bullington

Mercy and not Sacrifice (Sept. 30, 2010)