How To Pray in The Spirit

Last Updated on September 25, 2021 by Pastor Ikechukwu Chinedum

Today we teach ourselves how to pray in the spirit.
1 Cor 2:14, “But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither, can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”

One hallmark of the believer is that he has the indwelling of the Spirit of God. He is spiritually inclined to the things of the Spirit, on the flip side the unbeliever does not have this access. Acts 2:17, “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:”

The believer has the trademark of the Spirit of God on Him. This marks him out from the Unbeliever. It is our signature, it is our seal. It is how we identify with the Heavenly Father. So we understand that there’s a place where the believer does things from the Spirit because He has the Spirit of God upon Him, indwelling of the HolySpirit. 1John 4:13, ” Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.” So the believer dwells in Him by the Spirit, halleluyah. That’s how we access the Father.

1 Peter 2:5, “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”
1 Peter 3:18, “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:”

How Believer pray in the Spirit

Giving thanks

1Thessa. 5:18
In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
We must come to understand that Thanksgiving is part of our prayerlife. We do the Will of the Father when we give thanks. We can draw numerous references from the scriptures where Jesus gave thanks.
Matt. 15:36, “And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and broke them, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.”
Mark 8:6, “And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and broke, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people.”
We see that in everything, Jesus gave thanks to the Father. Jesus did the Will of the Father.
In all situations, He gave thanks. Halleluyah.
We do the Will of the Father by Giving thanks.
Also, we give thanks for the victory in Christ Jesus.
1 Cor. 15:57,”But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
2Cor. 2:14 says, “Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph,, in Christ, and maketh manifest the savor of his knowledge by us in every place.”
Halleluyah for the victory.
2 Cor.9:15, “Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.”
Further references from scriptures on Thanksgiving
Col.1:12, “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:”
We give thanks for what Christ has done for us, made us partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light. That is, all that the saints should have in possession, we have become partakers of that inheritance.

Worship in the Spirit

The Believer is to worship in the Spirit. It’s the right thing to do. Phil. 3:3,”For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence, in the flesh.”
John 4:23-24
23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father (2532) seeketh such to worship him.
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
There is a manner in which the believer is to offer worship – in the Spirit. It is where our confidence lies. Halleluyah.
Eph.5:18-19
“And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;”
It is not enough to just sing songs but to sing the right songs. Songs by the Spirit and of the Spirit. We do not get edified by singing the songs of the World. They are not Spirit-filled. Singing in hymns and Psalms and Spiritual songs. All these are spirit originated.
To talk about what Christ has done, what he has provided for us, to celebrate His love and show aappreciaation for the salvation we have received.
Halleluyah!

Communication in the Spirit.

First, we understand that Prayer is pure communication with the Father. Prayer is fellowshipping with the Father. We talk to God as a Man talks to His friend-in prayer.
Prayer is the lifestyle of the believer. It’s a call to duty and Responsibility. In the New testament, Apostle Paul prayed and laid examples of how we are to pray in the Spirit. In his letters he prayed for men, and encouraged the church to do so.
In communication, we are beng filled with the Spirit
Eph. 5:18
18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
In the preceding verse we see that we are to understand what the Will of God is, as stated earlier, it goes in in verse 18 as an instruction for us not to be filled with wine wherein is excess but to be filled with the Spirit.
There’s an instruction in Gal. 5:16 to walk in the Spirit. It’s a posture to maintain for the believer who is to be filled. So there’s a walking to be done so as to be filled. When we read further to verse 16 to verse 24 of Gal.5
Verse 25 says, 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. So we live in the Spirit, we are filled in the Spirit to communicate in the Spirit.
By the extension of what the believer enjoys, the indwelling if the Spirit which prompts a Living and walking. The availability of these is what makes us alert at all times.

Obedience to the Spirit

1 Thessa. 5:19, “Quench not the Spirit.”
There’s this story of a man who was driving home and somehow he didn’t know how he got home. On getting home, he met his wife asleep as opposed to her being asleep as at that time. She then asked, “how was your ride?”
He replied saying he didn’t know how he got home because at some point he felt really sleeping behind the wheels. His wife answered saying, ” I figured, that’s why I prayed for you at 4:30pm”
She received the nudge to pray at that point even though she felt sleepy also. So we use this to our advantage. The Unbelievers do not enjoy this, so if we have this in our possession, the last thing we’d want to do is quench the Spirit of God.
We pray in the Spirit in Obedience to the Spirit.

Dependence on the Spirit

Rom.8:26, ” Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
Here we see that the Spirit of God helps us to pray in the Spirit as we ought to which is the will of God. There are moments where our words fail us, we rely on the Spirit of God.

Praying In Other Tongues

Mark 16:17
“And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;”
Jesus speaking here said that there’s a power that we be given to the ones that believe. They shall speak with new tongues.
1 Cor. 14:2
For he that speaketh in an unknown tongue speaketh not unto men, but unto God: for no man understandeth him;
We see from the verse above that a man who prays in the Spirit prays to God. Apostle Paul in verse 18 of the same chapter which says, ” I thank my God, I speak with tongues more than ye all:”
So we pray in the Spirit by speaking in tongues.
We see the clarity of this in chapter 14
A man who speaks in the Spirit edifies himself and speaks to God but in a congregation there should be an interesprtayion for those who are without.
Glory to God, no one is left out of the Gift of the Spirit
You can desire to speak in other tongues. When there’s a desire,byou expect to speak. Remember, it’s speaking to God in other tongues that no one understands.

In Conclusion:

Prayer is our lifestyle. Prayer works all the time and 100% of the time. If Elijah could pray how much more he who has the indwelling of the Spirit of God. We pray with understanding of what we have, we pray in the light of God’s Word. We pray as the Spirit helps us only when we rely on him. We are helped in Jesus name.