June 10, 2024

The Remnant Doesn’t Give Up

“And Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all those who were selling and buying on the temple grounds, and He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves. And He said to them, ‘It is written: My house will be called a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of robbers’”  (Matthew 21:12-13, NASB; also in Mark 11:15-17 and Luke 19:45-46).

What do you think would occur in the spirit realm over America, followed by breakthroughs in the natural realm, if even half of the churches in America obeyed Jesus’ command to be “A house of prayer”? Satan is nothing if not a cunning strategist. He somehow motivated the church - God’s change agent on earth - to ignore Christ’s words, the context of which was one of the only two violent acts He performed. Not coincidentally, the other violent act was also a cleansing of the temple, carried out at the beginning of His ministry (John 2:14-16). I should add that Luke tells us this last one occurred immediately after Christ wept uncontrollably over Jerusalem and announced its destruction (Luke 19:41-44). It seems logical that the two were related: the blindness of Jerusalem and its destruction were caused by religious blindness. This infuriated Him. 

How does He feel today? I can assure you that in churches across America this weekend, not even 1 or 2 minutes will be given to prayer for the lost, for this collapsing nation, for salvation to the nations of the earth, or for anything else! Most churches will have NONE.

Let that sink in.

If a church has any prayer in a given week, it is typically relegated to a handful of people in a backroom before the service, or a weeknight when most people are busy with work and family. Sundays are reserved for more important things like fellowship, a feel-good praise or singalong time, and the pastor’s weekly opportunity to preach. I know these and most other activities in churches are important, but EVERY activity of the typical church in America has been deemed more important than prayer. EVERY…SINGLE…ONE.

To assess the fruit of this, don’t count the people in the pews - the Temple was filled with people when Christ wept, made His whip, overthrew tables, and scattered merchandise. We should look at the real fruit: God mocked by our government, the Bible scorned, a lukewarm church, murdered babies and mutilated kids, and a lost nation. What motivated the church to redefine success by size and happy congregants? The cunning strategist. 

And the piper, as the story warned, is now being paid.

Because of God’s unending mercy and extravagant grace, it is not too late for recovery. “If I can find even a remnant,” He says, “that will cry out to Me, I’ll send a great revival and heal the land.” In the following great teaching, Dave Kubal of Intercessors For America brings us back to the basics, and to hope for change. Remember, a few days after Jesus wept and cleansed the temple, He went to the cross…and mercy triumphed over judgment.

WHY WE SHOULD PRAY FOR AMERICA (written by Dave Kubal) 

“God above, we pray that You would wake up Your church. Put a burning passion in the heart of every believer to pray for this nation You’ve entrusted to us!

“Do you ever wonder why you should pray for America? Have you asked yourself how your prayers can possibly make any difference if God is sovereign and does what He pleases anyway?

“If that’s you, I want to encourage you today and show you why your prayers are important.

“Here’s an important passage to consider: ‘The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s, but the earth He has given to the children of men’ (Psalm 115:16 NKJV).

“Both heaven and earth belong to God. What’s interesting is that He has sovereignly chosen to entrust the earth’s stewardship to us. It’s as if He has made us His middle managers over the earth. Now, the earth still belongs to Him, and so does all it contains, as Psalm 24:1 (NKJV) states: ‘The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein.’ But God has decided to delegate stewardship and dominion over His earth to people, His created beings made in His own image.

“And God always respects our free will.

“God didn’t make us as robots. He made us to have free will; in fact, the Bible says that wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. And since the Spirit of the Lord is everywhere in heaven and earth, he gives us freedom and liberty to make our own choices (although, of course, there are consequences if we employ our free will to disobey Him).

“Because God has entrusted stewardship of the earth to us, He waits to move on earth until we ask Him to do so.

“God respects authority, and that includes the authority He has personally given us. So, if we want Him to move in the spheres He has entrusted to us, we have to ask Him to do that. We have to ask Him to move. And that is called ‘prayer.’

“This is one of the reasons prayer is so important, and it’s why we must pray for America.

“If we want to see God move in America, we must pray for America, asking for His help. We see everywhere that we need His divine intervention. Although God is sovereign, He also allows human beings (the lost and the saved alike) to make their own choices - for good or for evil.

“But God can turn the hearts of men.

“‘The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes’ (Proverbs 21:1 NKJV). God can and will move when we pray, even at the national level. He will turn the hearts of kings to do His own will, even if they don’t know Him. In the Bible, God often used even pagan kings to do His will. He would call them, and they would come; he would scatter them, and they would leave. Although they didn’t know Him, they still found themselves yielding to His work in their hearts whenever He wanted them to do something.

“And that’s why your prayers for America DO matter.

“Your prayers for America move heaven, and they shake earth. Your prayers for America cause God to turn the hearts of kings toward righteousness and justice. Your prayers bring our Lord’s divine intervention into manifestation on the earth in every sphere about which you pray.

“Intercessors For America was founded during times like today. Vietnam War protests and riots were occurring on campuses and elsewhere. The Vice President had resigned in disgrace, and then the Watergate scandal broke open. People had no confidence in the leadership of the nation. The Supreme Court mandated legal abortion. Christians were discouraged by lawlessness, corruption, and moral depravity of the nation. For 50 years, we have been praying, and we have seen many miraculous answers to prayer.

“So we pray and keep praying: ‘And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart’ (Galatians 6:9 NKJV).

“Let’s pray continuously and without quitting - as Jesus instructed the disciples to do in the parable of the persistent widow in Luke 18:1-8. And even when we don’t see progress yet, let’s keep praying until we do. Don’t give up. God does hear your prayers for America.

“And He’ll answer.”(1)

Pray with me:

Father, again we stand in the gap for America, including for the prayerless church, and ask for Your merciful cleansing. Whatever it takes - whatever - awaken the church, turn our nation back to You, and revive us with a third great awakening. Send revival! Send revival! Send revival! Save millions, restore our destiny, send the gospel from these shores to all the earth, and bring earth’s greatest harvest ever!

As many fast and pray this week and next, use their obedience and petitions to bring signs and wonders, the power that confirms the gospel (Mark 16). Use these miracles to grab the attention of millions, then transform them with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Perform miracles on campuses, in government buildings, in homes and hospitals, and on the streets. Show up!!!

You, only You, are our hope. And we state strongly that in spite of the great desperation and grief we feel, our hope in You anchors us and sustains our faith. We believe You’re the Savior of the world and ARE coming to save; You’re the Healer and ARE coming to heal; You’re the deliverer and ARE coming to deliver. America shall be saved, and the harvest will be reaped.

Our decree:

With grateful hearts, we decree once again that God’s mercy triumphs over judgment.

Click on the link below to watch the full video.

Thanks again, Dave, for your bold words reminding us to pray for America. You can find out more about Intercessors for America at IFAPray.org.

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1. Dave Kubal, “Why We Should Pray For America” (Intercessors For America), www.ifapray.org. Used with permission.