Prayer isn’t something we do only for ourselves. It’s also something we do for others. And, I know you already pray for your family, church members, and friends.

But, what I’m going to share with you in this article is the power that comes out of praying for others. For that, we’ll use 1 Peter 2: 1-9.

In case, you didn’t know; in most of my writings, I use the English Standard Version Bible (or ESV).

Before discovering the power that comes out of praying for others, you should know the following about prayer.

• First, prayer changes you into a winner, an achiever, and makes you unstoppable.
• Second, prayer helps you listen better. Last, prayer is a tool to help you with discernment.

Back to 1 Peter 2: 1-9.

Let’s take a look at verses 1 through 6,

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ESV.

You become life-giving

[clickToTweet tweet=”When you pray for people, God makes you life-giving.” quote=”When you pray for people, God makes you life-giving.” theme=”style1″]

Becoming life-giving is a transformation that requires you to do three things, and we will use verses 1, 2 and 4 to help us with that.

First, put away all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander. In other words, what Peter’s saying here is to get rid of all forms of evil (sin).

This Scripture also echoes Matthew 11: 28, 29, I used as our foundation, when I wrote about “prayer helps us listen better.”

You can’t get rid of all your evil-doing or sins on your own. You’ve got to bring it all to Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, and Savior.” quote=”You can’t get rid of all your evil-doing or sins on your own. You’ve got to bring it all to Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, and Savior.

Next, long for pure and spiritual milk. In this verse, we come across what Jesus is asking all of us to do, ask, knock and seek (Matthew 7:7). When you ask, knock or seek through prayer, God changes you into a winner, an achiever and you become unstoppable.

Lastly, you’ve got to come to Jesus. Peter, in this verse, in a way echoes what Jesus’ invitation to Him and that we have to bring all our labor and heavy laden (Matthew 11).

It’s by doing the above that God makes us a living stone.

As a result of being a living stone, God then builds us into a spiritual house (see verse 5). 

You are a living stone, and that’s why God will add you to God’s house.

God doesn’t stop there because God also wants you to be a holy priesthood (verse 5). All that takes place as you come to Jesus and humbly offer yourself to God through prayer by faith in Jesus Christ.

God builds you up into a spiritual house

Coming to Jesus humbly, and with the longing to grow, enables God to build you up into a spiritual house.

Remember though that you can’t be a spiritual house on your own. God builds you up first on the cornerstone, and this is Jesus Christ.

That’s why we pray in the name of Jesus Christ. And, every time we do so, something happens. Whether we see the results of our prayers right away or not, God does something and somehow.

Peter talks about Jesus as the cornerstone that was rejected by the builders. I know he’s referring to the religious leaders who arrested and crucified the Christ.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ESV.

And, as you continue reading 1 Peter 2, Peter adds saying “As you come to Him …”

Malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, slander, so forth, represent our labor and heavy laden. In other words, anything that wears you out is precisely what you’ve got to bring to Jesus Christ.

What’s going on in your life can either enable you to experience power through praying for others or not.

For you to be free, you’ll need to do the above: put away everything and long for the pure spiritual milk. Bring all things that bind you so that you’re free to experience God’s Power.

The idea of longing comes out of what Jesus said according to Matthew 7:7,  ask, knock and seek. I talked about that in my article, prayer life changes you into a winner.

Peter adds a new approach to reading it: the pure spiritual milk. That phrase implies two things: humility and the desire to grow.

For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.

God, through prayer, builds you into a spiritual house on Jesus Christ. But, you become a house only when connected with other living stones (other Christians).

God makes you a holy priesthood

As a spiritual house, you become through Jesus Christ; God makes you a member of the sacred priesthood. What this means is you become a priest.

According to Hebrews (7: 23-28; 9:11-14 and10:10-14), and with Jesus as our High Priests, I can say that your role and mine as members of God’s holy priesthood, we have to do the following:

• Lead people to God through worship.
• Offer prayers on behalf of people (petitions).
• Stand between God and people.

I know there’s more to what our roles should be as God’s priests. But, for me, the above three sum up everything about the priests’ functions into one: to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ (see 1 Peter 2: 5).

You stand between God and the People

When you come to Jesus Christ in humility and with the desire to grow into someone better according to God, God claims you as God’s child.

God blesses others through you because you’re God’s child!

That’s a promise God made to Abraham and all his descendants (read Genesis 22: 18). Because you believe, faith also makes you offspring of Abraham (Galatians 3: 29).

You are, therefore:

• a chosen race.
• a royal priesthood.
• a people of God’s possession (1 Peter 2: 9).

That’s power, which we acquire through our calling as God’s holy priest. This power transforms your life into a means God uses to proclaim God’s excellencies in private as well as in public.

[clickToTweet tweet=”The more you pray for others, the closer God is to each one of them!” quote=”The more you pray for others, the closer God is to each one of them!” theme=”style6″]

Bringing it together

Prayer enables you to experience power, especially as you do it while praying for other people. But, it all has to start with you coming to God through Jesus Christ, the cornerstone, and who transform you into a living stone. Next, God establishes you as God’s holy priest. As a result, you stand between people and God. Your life becomes a means God uses to draw closer to the people for whom you pray.