Blog 45 / Our High Calling
November 4, 2021
Our Motivation in Praying for the Lost
A significant part of our work in GRN is praying for unreached peoples to become followers of Christ and to display His glory in their lives. When praying for the lost, my focus usually has been on people’s need to be saved. I want them to know the joy of salvation, full and free. I don’t want them to face a Christ-less eternity and the horrors of hell. I would rather they experience and enjoy the glories of Heaven.
God has led me of late to consider our Lord when praying for the lost. What are the longings of His heart? There are several things on which to reflect. The Father has promised the Son the nations for His inheritance. When people reject Christ, this means He is not receiving His rightful inheritance. Nor is the Father receiving the full measure of worshipers that His heart desires.
And when people reject Christ, the Holy Spirit is grieved as the bride He is forming with people from every tribe and tongue and nation is missing many members. Not only that, the enemy is trying to steal the bride’s affections for himself. These belong to Christ alone, the One who paid the bride-price for her.
When we are burdened for the lost, nothing should motivate us to pray more than a longing to see the Father’s heart satisfied as He is worshiped in Spirit and in truth, to see the Son receive His full inheritance as a reward for His sacrifice, and to see an ungrieved Holy Spirit rejoicing over a spotless bride as she emerges from the nations.
And so, while we should give ourselves wholeheartedly to the task of intercession and winning people to Christ, we must keep the ultimate purpose of evangelism clearly in view. It’s about the Father’s glory and seeing His heart satisfied as He is worshiped and His Son honored and loved by the people He has redeemed.
Colin Stott
GRN Global Prayer Coordinator
