“But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer” (1 Peter 4:7). Prayer is our first response to uncertain times!!
Pentecostals have been accused of focusing on the return of the Lord to the point of neglecting the concerns of suffering people. Historically, this does not reflect the reality of the Pentecostal church. From the early days, the Assemblies of God has focused on reaching both the spiritual and physical needs of people. We have focused on the harvest fields of the world—whether next door or in places where the gospel and the church does not yet exist.
The end is near—not only eschatologically but also personally. The end is near for each person’s life, and eternal things, rather than temporal things, are of utmost importance. As Christians, we should constantly ask ourselves a probing question: “Why do I cling to things that are just a passing vapor?”
The Apostle Peter challenges us to recognize that the end is near. He also instructs us to embrace a three-fold response. First, we must be sober-minded or clear-thinking regarding the present realities. Second, we are told to be watchful. Third, we are instructed to be habitually in prayer.
D. M. Carlson, preaching on this passage of Scripture in 1949, spoke a timely word about the importance of prayer in the life of the church:
If we are to exert a mighty influence in our generation, it will not be by our vast numbers, or by our great institutions, but it will be by the heartfelt supplication of righteous men and women. They are the people who shall shake this world and bring glory to God. All men of God who have brought glory to the name of Jesus, who have exerted a mighty influence in the world, have been people of prayer, people of intercession.
I recently received an email from a former student, who lives in a Muslim-majority nation and participated in a Global Initiative training program. He shared how the Lord has blessed his outreach and church planting efforts. He now has ten house gatherings where people meet to worship the Lord! Prayer plays a key role in the advancement of the gospel among Muslim people.
Join Global Initiative as we think soberly, watch intently, and pray fervently as the end of all things is at hand. Specifically, let’s make intercession for the lost Muslim world a priority because there are over 1 billion Muslims living in darkness with no light of the gospel of Jesus Christ.