Here is a verse in James that talks about this effectual and fervent prayer of Elijah.
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit. James 5:16-18 KJV
When we talk about prayer, or say the word prayer, we usually see it as a request. It’s usually understood that it is a “please God I need this or that” kind of prayer. But so often the prayers recorded in the Old and New Testament were more commands than they were requests. These commands made by men like Elijah were still referred to as prayer.
In the verse above James is talking about the prayer of Elijah, and if we read the account in Kings we see that this particular prayer was not a request but rather a command, given by Elijah, that it would not rain “except by his word.” He didn’t ask God to stop the rain anywhere in the text, he commanded it not to rain, and also commanded that it would stay that way until he, Elijah, said otherwise. Elijah prefaced this prayer by saying “As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand…” This of course indicates that Elijah understood that the source of his authority came from God. He also understood that he needed to do the commanding, as God had taught him to do.
Here is the prayer of Elijah as it is recorded in 1 Kings 17.
(I have included this verse from two versions of the Bible to show their similarity.)
Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”
1 Kings 17:1 NASB
And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
1 Kings 17:1 KJV
Here is a similar situation with Moses.
God told Moses to divide the sea. Look at these verse below and see if Moses, at any time, says, “Oh God, please divide the sea for me!” You can also see in these verses, that God is repositioning Moses idea of prayer when He says, “Why are you crying out to Me?”
Here are the verses in Exodus 14.
But Moses said to the people, “Do not fear! Stand by and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent.”
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the sons of Israel to go forward.
As for you, lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and the sons of Israel shall go through the midst of the sea on dry land.”
“As for Me, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them; and I will be honored through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen.”
Exodus 14:13-17 NASB
Not only did God say, “Why are you crying out to Me?…” He also said, “as for you, you lift up your staff and stretch forth your hand over the sea and divide it.” Then God says “as for Me, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians…”
God was basically saying, “Moses, you do your part, and I, God, will do my part.” We must understand that prayer is not always looking to God to do something for us. We have been given authority by all that Jesus did for us on the cross and in His resurrection. We have a part in all of this, and our prayer life is not one of only asking God to do things, but understanding the authority He has given us and use it according to His Word. We need to, like Elijah and Moses, and the greatest example, Jesus, speak to and command the mountains in our lives to move, and to calm the storm, all with the authority we have been given in Jesus name.
Here is another way to say it:
For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Mark 11:23 NKJV
Some versions also end with the words, “It will be done for them.” I like this because in the end, as Paul says, “it is God who gives the increase.”
So, when there is a mountain standing in your way, like persistent sickness, poverty, or any problem or sin blocking your peace and joy or stance in Christ, then this verse above gives you the right idea as to what you can do with it, and God is always right there to give you the victory. Speak to that mountain and tell it to take a hike in Jesus name!
