Ask For Nations (part 2) by Pastor Philip Olubakin: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

Continuing to Build on Kingdom-Driven Prayer

This month of prayer continues to build on the foundation already laid: the prayer that hallows God's name, the prayer for the coming of God's kingdom, the prayer of submission to God's will above personal preferences, and the prayer for the advancement of God's kingdom on the earth.

Psalm 100:3 reminds us, "Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves." Our bodies do not belong to us to do with as we please; the idea that "my body, my choice" grants unlimited rights over one's own life is a distortion of a truth that belongs to God alone. Submission to His will, even where it conflicts with personal desire, whether about relocation, marriage, or opportunity, is part of what it means to pray a kingdom-driven prayer.

Praying for the Advancement of God's Kingdom Through Kingdom Marriages

Praying for the advancement of God's kingdom on the earth, as described in Colossians 4:3 and Ephesians 6:19, includes praying that the kingdom of God will expand into every sphere, including the home. Marriage is part of God's kingdom design, not merely a path to personal happiness. When God looked at the man He had made and saw him alone, He said it was the only thing among all His creation that He called "not good." Everything else He made, He called good; only the absence of a suitable companion for the man was called not good.

Kingdom men marrying kingdom women and raising kingdom children is part of how the next generation is preserved and how the kingdom advances. This is part of the prayer for the kingdom's expansion: that the enemy will not overrun the institution of marriage and family, just as he must not be allowed to overrun the academic and educational sectors.

Raising Kingdom Laborers

Matthew 9:37-38 says, "The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest." There is so much ground to cover, but the laborers are few. The response to this is not to rush into the harvest, but to pray for the Lord of the harvest to send laborers, more pastors, more teachers of God's word, more intercessors.

Honor for those called to lead and serve in ministry matters here. No leader is perfect, and honoring a man of God is not the same as idolizing him. Scripture records how Israel turned against the very prophets sent to them, stoning those who brought them God's word. A house of honor does not join in tearing down those whom God has sent, even while holding them accountable. We pray for more laborers, more intercessors, and more people willing to do the work of the kingdom.

Defeating Spiritual Opposition

2 Corinthians 4:4 says that the god of this world has blinded the minds of those who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel should shine unto them. When people refuse to believe, something is responsible for that blindness. As kingdom citizens, the prayer is that the gospel will find expression in people's hearts, that the blindness over the nations will be lifted, and that as Jesus taught, the kingdom is sought first, before personal needs, because what is added afterward flows from seeking the kingdom first.

Ephesians 6:12 says, "For 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." Many conflicts that consume time and energy, with neighbors, landlords, colleagues, or others, are not the real battle. Often, the irritations these people cause are meant to reveal that we have settled where we should not be content to stay; the proper response is to convert that frustration into the hunger and drive needed to move forward, rather than into petty conflict. Scripture instructs that anger itself is not forbidden, but it must be channeled rightly and not allowed to dissipate into distraction.

Mark 4:15 describes how the enemy operates: when the word is heard, the wicked one comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown. This is why people can sit through a powerful service, describe it afterward as deep or powerful, and yet within a short time cannot recall what was said. It was not forgotten; it was taken. This is part of what is being fought in prayer: not human beings, but the unseen forces working to steal the word before it can take root.

This spiritual opposition is also visible in the wider nation. Communities have been attacked, children kidnapped from schools, and demands made for ransom, for the release of captured combatants, and for the imposition of religious law contrary to the freedoms of the nation. Job 5:12-13 says, "He disappointeth the devices of the crafty, so that their hands cannot perform their enterprise. He taketh the wise in their own craftiness, and the counsel of the froward is carried headlong." This means that the plans of schemers are frustrated and the cleverness of the crafty becomes the very thing that traps them.

The prayer is that every plan to terrorize, to kidnap, to hold communities in fear, and to impose foreign systems on the nation by force will not succeed, that confusion would come into the camp of every group orchestrating such violence, and that they would be exposed and turned back. Psalm 8:2 says that out of the mouth of babes and sucklings God has ordained strength, to still the enemy and the avenger. The blood of Jesus is pleaded over every region of the nation, that the wisdom behind these schemes would be turned to foolishness and that the enemy's plans would not stand. This is not a substitute for legitimate civic action, policy, or the involvement of believers in government and public life, but it recognizes that behind visible violence there is an unseen influence that only prayer and the light of God can fully expose.

Sanctification and Holiness in the House of God

John 17:17 records Jesus praying for His disciples, "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth." Holiness and purity must return to the church. Many believers carry hidden compromises: relationships built on dishonesty, courtships that drag on for years with no real intention of marriage, people kept as a "backup option" while pursuing someone else, secret immorality, and broken promises between people who claim to belong to the same household of faith.

There is also the matter of unforgiveness and malice quietly nursed within the church, people who pray for hours yet hold on to bitterness toward others in the same congregation, refusing reconciliation while presenting an appearance of devotion. Scripture says that when the enemy came to Jesus, he found nothing in Him to hold against Him; believers are called to the same standard, living in such integrity and forgiveness that the accuser finds no foothold.

Honesty in relationships matters as well: agreements between believers, whether financial or relational, should be kept without the need for outside enforcement, and courtships should be conducted with honesty rather than deception. The call is to repentance, to laying down hidden compromises, and to a return to the kind of integrity and forgiveness that reflects the household of God. As Ephesians 5:14 says, "Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." This change begins with each individual, in the small compromises that are often overlooked.

Praying for the Provision of God's Work

Just as those orchestrating violence and disorder require resources to sustain their operations, the work of the kingdom also requires resources, and believers are called to pray that the work of God will be supernaturally and abundantly supplied. 2 Corinthians 9:8 in the New Living Translation says, "And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others."

Every kingdom citizen carries a sense of stewardship: that what is in their hands is not for themselves alone, and that resources, finances, time, or even practical assets, have a part to play in advancing the work of God. This includes giving toward the practical costs of ministry, such as facilities, equipment, and outreach, recognizing that even simple comforts enjoyed in a place of worship come at a real cost that someone has provided for.

One testimony illustrates why this provision matters: a young man who once lived a life marked by deception, addiction, and despair came to the lowest point of his life and considered ending it during a service, only to be drawn in by the sound of the preaching reaching him from outside the building. He came forward, gave his life to Christ, was baptized, and today serves as a leader in the church. Reaching even one person at the right moment is worth every resource invested, because the gospel is only good news when it arrives in time. Faithfulness in giving, including tithes and offerings, reflects an understanding that everything belongs to God and that withholding from His work while spending freely elsewhere reveals where true priorities lie.

Praying for Unity in the Body of Christ

The final point of this foundation is a prayer for oneness within the church and among the various bodies that represent the church across the nation. Jesus prayed, "That they all may be one, as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee" (John 17:21). The prayer is that every spirit of division would be removed, that unforgiveness and malice within the church would be dealt with, and that the body of Christ would stand together in unity rather than in fragmentation.

• We declare that every plan of the enemy to terrorize this nation shall not stand and shall not come to pass.
• We declare confusion in the camp of every power working against the peace of this nation, in the name of Jesus.
• We plead the blood of Jesus over every region of this nation.
• We pray for holiness and purity to return to the house of God, beginning with each of us.
• We pray that the work of God will be supernaturally supplied and that it will never be shut down for lack of provision.
• We pray for unity in the body of Christ, that every spirit of division be taken out, in the name of Jesus.