THE IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER
1 Pet. 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people acquired for a possession, so that you may tell out the virtues of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.
Ephesians 6:12 For our wrestling is not against blood and flesh but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenlies
We need the preaching and the speaking of the word, but first we have to pray. As Christians, we are priests and kings (1 Pet. 2:9; Rev. 1:6). When we pray, we are functioning as priests. When we preach, we are functioning as kings. As priests, we should bring people to the Lord in our prayer. We have to bring all the people on the campuses to the Lord, and if possible, pray for them by name. While it may not be possible to name every name, we can still pray, “Lord, we do not know all the names of the people on campus, but You know them. We offer them all to You according to Your knowledge.”Prayer is also necessary to deal with the principalities and powers in the heavenly places (Eph. 6:12). Our fighting is against the evil spiritual forces in the heavenlies. Men do not reject the gospel because of its content. There is nothing offensive about the content of the gospel. The content of the gospel is good, bright, glorious, sweet, and rich. People reject the gospel because they are in the captivity of the strong man, the devil (Matt. 12:29). Before the young people go to the campuses, they must pray and bind the strong man (v. 29); otherwise, the demons will control and even frustrate their efforts to preach the gospel. The prayers of the saints will cause all the demons to tremble. We have to be one with the Lord to fight the spiritual warfare against His enemy. (Preaching the Gospel on the College Campuses)