Do you want to know more about prayer without ceasing? The Bible gives us a good parable that will help us understand just what it means. Let’s explore prayer without ceasing and some of its important benefits.
Every Christian should believe in the power of prayer without ceasing. Prayer without ceasing requires us believers to remain diligent in prayer and in faith. Its mere persistence alone shows God that you mean business! And it signals that whatever you’re praying for is a serious matter that should not be taken lightly. In Luke 18:1-6, Jesus gave us a clear example of how it all works.
In this post, you will learn how prayer without ceasing shows God that the matter you’re praying for is very serious. You’ll also learn some key benefits for prayer without ceasing.
After reading this post you will learn what prayer without ceasing means through exploring several Biblical examples.
This post is all about prayer without ceasing.
Prayer Without Ceasing
Which verse in the Bible says “pray without ceasing”?
1 Thessalonians 5:17 says “pray without ceasing.” These were some final instructions to the Thessalonian church from apostle Paul, Silas, and Timothy. The King James Version (KJV) of the Bible specifically states the words “pray without ceasing” in 1 Thes. 5:17. However, other Bibles may have the verse worded differently. For instance, the New International Version (NIV) cites it as “pray continually.” Even though they are worded differently, please know that every version of that verse means the same thing.
What is meant by pray without ceasing?
Prayer without ceasing simply means to not give up in prayer and constantly pray. Even when you don’t get answered prayers immediately, God still wants us to pray consistently. In Luke 18:1-6, Jesus shares a parable about a persistent widow. The widowed woman wanted justice, so she went to an unjust judge continuously with her complaint. Keep in mind, the judge didn’t care about others, nor did he fear God. So, the first few times she came to the judge to get justice she was rejected and nothing was done about her complaint. However, because she stayed persistent and continued to “bother” him, he eventually gave in and gave her justice—so that he could finally get her to leave him alone.
Jesus used this parable to show his disciples that they should be persistent in prayer and not give up. He then went on to explain the parable saying that if an unjust judge is capable of providing justice to the woman because of her persistence, then how much more will God do for those He cares about and cries out to Him?
What does 1 Thessalonians 5 17 mean?
1 Thessalonians 5:17 means to always pray and never give up on prayer. Just as Jesus used the persistent widow as a reminder to pray and not give up, Daniel is another example of someone who stayed in constant prayer despite resistance. Daniel chapter 10, is about a time that Daniel prayed for an understanding of a troubling vison that he had about the future. For 21 days he grieved, prayed, and abstained from certain foods to gain a clear understanding of the vision.
As he searched for an understanding, an angel finally appeared to Daniel to tell him what the vision meant and why it took so long to reveal the vision’s meaning to him. The angel ends up giving us a rare glimpse into the spiritual world. He proceeds to tell Daniel that when he first prayed and desired for an understanding that his words were heard. Yet, as the angel came to deliver the vision’s revelation to Daniel, he experienced a spiritual fight with a demon for 21 days, that delayed the message from reaching Daniel.
He also went on to say that the demonic force was so strong that he needed help from another angel—the archangel Michael—to fight off the demon. Eventually, the two angels fought off and won the battle against the demon, and only then was he able to appear to Daniel and give him the revelation.
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Isn’t that so interesting? That scenario lets us know that there can be many reasons that a prayer can be delayed from getting answered. Unanswered prayers are not always what we think they are, so don’t be so quick to become discouraged, give up on faith, or stop praying. As this shows us that we can experience delays because, “we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places,” just as Ephesians 6:12 states. Even angels experience resistance and they literally have to fight demonic forces for us to receive the breakthrough to our prayers.
Benefits of praying without ceasing
1. It shows God that you don’t give up quickly and your faith in Him is not easily shaken.
In life, if you stay consistent and persistent you will always get good results. Take the Israelites who were enslaved in Egypt for example, it took over 400 years for them to see the physical manifestation of their prayers come to pass. Their breakthrough came as they continuously cried out to God and prayed continually.
An interesting thing to know is that their enslavement is closely connected to Genesis 15:13-16, as it offers some insight as to why the Israelites were enslaved for 400 years. The scripture reads:
“Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that for four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved and mistreated there. But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. You, however, will go to your ancestors in peace and be buried at a good old age. In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.”
This implies that 400 years had to pass for Abraham’s descendants to come out with the Egyptians great possessions, to return to the place where Abraham was, and for the Amorites sin to finally reach full measure. The 400 year enslavement also allowed God’s Word to Abraham to be fulfilled. If we look in Genesis 12:2, God told Abraham “I will make you into a great nation.” The enslavement allowed Abraham’s descendants to grow into a nation by “…multiplying greatly and become exceedingly numerous,” just as Exodus. 1:7 states.
2. It strengthens you spiritually and builds patience.
As believers, we shouldn’t expect everything to happen so quickly, then become discouraged when we don’t get what we want quick enough. We must remain strong in prayer and never give up. As discussed earlier, we never know what’s taking place behind the scenes in the spiritual realm or what God’s provision and timing looks like. There could be countless reasons that we may never know as to why we aren’t getting a breakthrough in prayer.
The most important thing is to stay strong in prayer and always keep hope active through praying unceasingly. God is a patient God and he want us to practice patience as well. He pays attention to us, even when He is silent and it seems as if nothing is changing. During times of silence patience and strength is built. Experiencing a time of silence should never make you want to quit praying, in fact you should do the opposite! Pray unceasingly, because it shows God that whatever you’re praying for is serious. In fact, it’s serious enough that you won’t stop praying about it.
3. You’ll know the worth and true value of your breakthrough when you get it.
God can do anything, but if He instantly gave us everything that we desired, then it would be so easy for us to take it for granted. Sometimes things have to be hard for us so that we’ll be good stewards of it once we finally do receive it. When you have to work hard or face hardships and give so much of your blood, sweat, and tears into something you’ll also be more grateful and deeply care about it more. You’ll never forget how difficult it was to obtain, and all the time, energy, and effort that went into getting it. Simply put, when things don’t come easily, you’ll appreciate them a lot more. Easy come, easy go…
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Helpful Scriptures
Psalm 17:6, “I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.”
Acts 14:22, “… We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God….”
Philippians 4:6, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God.”
Psalm 141:2, “May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.”
Matthew 21:22, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
Thanks for reading this post about prayer without ceasing. Hopefully, it helped you! Your comments are greatly appreciated.
This post was all about prayer without ceasing and some of its benefits.
This post was written by MelisaDanielle, an avid lover of Jesus
