Praying the Prayer of the Age and Exercising Christ’s Lordship and Headship in Prayer

We as the Body of Christ can exercise the authority of Christ to deal with any frustration and problem, and we can pray to exercise the lordship and headship of Christ to deal with anything negative, anything that frustrates the fulfillment of God’s purpose.

There are many kinds of prayers that we can utter to the Lord, and one kind of prayer is the prayer of the age, that is, the prayer that exercises the authority of Christ as the ascended Lord and Head of the Body; such a prayer is for the fulfillment of God’s economy.

We need to grow in life, pray to fellowship with the Lord, pray to deal with anything negative that frustrates our growth in life and our being built up, and we need to arrive at the fourth stage of the experience of life to enter into a different realm.

As we grow in life, as we experience Christ stage by stage, we arrive at a level where we pray to fight the spiritual warfare, to deal with God’s enemy, and to bring in the kingdom of God.

The church is not only the household of God, the bride of Christ, and the church of the living God; the church is also a corporate warrior that fights the battle for God with Christ.

On one hand, the church is the Body of Christ to be the one new man for God’s expression and representation; on the other hand, this one new man is a corporate warrior fighting the spiritual warfare in prayer.

God’s purpose is twofold: the positive aspect is to express Christ (the church as the bride expresses her Husband by being His duplication) and the negative aspect is to represent Christ (the church as the corporate warrior fights the battle in prayer one with Christ).

The book of Song of Songs ends with a bride that is also a warrior; the loving seeker has become the Shulamite, the feminine form of Solomon, and she is lovely to the Lord and terrible as an army with banners to the enemy.

Similarly, in Ephesians at the end, we see that the church is the bride of Christ, the wife of Christ to match Him, and the church is also a spiritual warrior that puts on the full armor of God to deal with the enemy.

At the end of Revelation, we also see a similar picture, for the church is consummated to be the bride of the Lamb, and she follows the Lamb to deal with God’s enemy and put him in the lake of fire.

His name is called the Word of God; His weapon to destroy the enemy is not nuclear bombs, ballistic missiles, or any kind of man-made weapon of mass destruction – it is the word of God!

And as the Lord utters the word, we as the Bride say AMEN! We cooperate with the Lord’s word in prayer by standing in the position where Christ is and exercising the lordship and headship of Christ to deal with the enemy!

This is our destiny, and today we are in the process of growing in life, advancing in our experience of life, and going on from a personal and individual prayer to corporate prayer, even the prayer of the church as the Body of Christ.

Day by day, month by month, and year by year, we want to grow in life and advance with the Lord; also, our prayer needs to advance, and we need to pray in the Body and as the Body to exercise the Lord’s headship and lordship to deal with the enemy.

In our prayer life – both individually and corporately – we need to advance; there should be a change, a progress, an advancement until we arrive at the level where we pray the prayer of the age to execute God’s authority and say amen to His will.

What is the Prayer of the Age and how can we Pray the Prayer of the Age today

One aspect of what the Lord is doing in His heavenly ministry is that He is waiting for His enemies to be subdued and be made a footstool for His feet.

How can the enemies of God be subdued? It is by the church praying a certain kind of prayer; this is not an ordinary prayer but an extraordinary kind of prayer, a specific and definite prayer.

Especially in these extraordinary days what is needed is an extraordinary kind of prayer; our prayer has to match the age, for the Lord to have a way to do what He intends at this time on earth.

So we need to utter the prayer of the age; the Bible doesn’t mention “the prayer of the age“, so what we refer to when we say “the prayer of the age” is the prayer offered to God through the church as the Body of Christ for God to end this age and bring in the age of the kingdom.

The church is called “a house of prayer”; out of all the things that the Lord could use to describe the church, He chose to call it, a house of prayer.

This means that the church is not only the household of God full of the enjoyment of God but also a house of prayer; as such, the church’s characteristic is to cooperate with the Lord in prayer for the accomplishing of His purpose.

God has an eternal economy, which He works out in time; He works out His eternal economy through the successive ages of time, especially in human history.

An age is a period of time not with a determined length, but a portion of time characterized by something unique, something outstanding.

If we look at human history through the lens of God’s economy and by studying the Bible, we will realize that there are different ages.

God’s eternal economy never changes from age to age; what He desired to do in eternity past is exactly what He wants to do today.

However, the specific thing that He must accomplish in His economy changes from age to age. We need to know what age we live in, what is God after in this age, and how we can cooperate with Him by uttering the prayer of the age for Him to accomplish what He desires today.

What is the specific thing that God does today, and what is the prayer of the age that we can offer to cooperate with his operation!?

For example, Daniel and his companions knew the times they lived in, and they prayed the prayer of that age; there must have been many other people of God living at that time, and many of them must have prayed, but we know for sure that these four young men prayed, and they turned the age.

Their prayer – in particular Daniel’s prayer – brought about the release of God’s people from the Babylonian captivity.

Many Israelites must have known and read the book of Jeremiah, but it is only Daniel and his three friends that prayed.

Similarly, before the Lord Jesus came, many must have read the prophecies and must have prayed, but only two, Anna and Simeon, prayed day and night for the incarnation of the Savior; that must have been a prayer of the age.

The Lord must gain groups of people who see what He is doing in that age and join themselves to His desire in His word to pray the prayer of the age.

Then, He can act, He can carry out what He desires, and He can turn the age, for He has a group of people who give Him the cooperation in prayer that He needs.

Lord Jesus, we want to see what age we live in, what You are accomplishing in this particular age, and what is the prayer of the age we can offer You to cooperate with what You are doing. Unveil us, Lord, to realise what You are doing today in this particular age. We want to cooperate with You in prayer. Uplift our prayers. Make us the Daniels of today, those who realize what You are doing in this age and who join themselves to Your desire in Your word by praying the prayer of the age. Amen, Lord, may the church be built up to be the Body of Christ, the one new man, and the bride of Christ! May the overcomers be produced and may this age be terminated, for the age of the kingdom to come in!

Touching the Authority of Christ and Exercising His Lordship and Headship in Prayer in the Body

Christ, the Head of the Body, has been raised, ascended, and enthroned above all things; we need to know what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the operation of the might of His strength (Eph. 1:19-21).

This might of His strength operated in Christ in raising Him from the dead and seating Him at God’s right hand in the heavenlies, far above all rule and authority and power and lordship and every name that is named. Wow!

Now we as the Body of Christ, those being headed up in Christ and being one with Christ, we can exercise the lordship and headship of Christ.

And we can do this not only in the prayer meetings of the church but even we ourselves as believers and in vital groups, in twos and threes.

For example, we may meet a brother who is in a poor condition, and we sense that his condition is not right with the Lord.

Instead of praying in a natural way for the Lord to be merciful to him and work in him, do something in him, etc…we can simply pray one with the Lord to bring this one under His headship so that he may know Christ’s lordship.

We may tell the Lord,

Lord Jesus, here is a brother who is still not under Your headship; we don’t agree with this! We don’t go along with such a situation, and we stand one with You to proclaim Your lordship and to claim it over this situation! May Your lordship be exercised over this person: we claim it!

When we pray in such a way, even though we don’t pray for any specific situation, we touch the authority of Christ, we stand one with Him, and we are one with the Body in doing this.

We can never pray such a prayer as individuals, for only the members of the Body under the Head can pray such prayers.

We may not be together with other believers when we pray this, but inwardly, we are one with the Body. Amen!

Even though we may be at home in our room, we have the consciousness of the Body, we stand in the Body, and we pray as a member in the Body, under Christ as the Head.

We may not pray “Lord, I don’t agree with this situation”; rather, realizing we’re members of the Body and our prayer is the prayer of the Body, we pray, “Lord, we don’t agree with this situation!”

Our prayer needs to be uplifted and brought to the standard that God wants it to be, so that we may move the Lord’s hand and enable Him to do what He wants to do.

When we realize what the Lord has attained and what He has obtained, we will have the consciousness that the Head of the Body has obtained and attained to the highest extent and the highest height!

And we as His Body are joined to Him, we have one position with Him (we are in the heavenlies, in resurrection and ascension), and all that He has attained and obtained is ours by virtue of being His Body! Hallelujah!

And we apply this in our experience by praying with His authority to exercise His lordship and headship over all things.

We may have a certain illness, and we may become sick; instead of praying begging prayers that the Lord would heal us and make us well, we may pray one with Him in ascension.

When we have the consciousness that we are one with the Lord, our ascended Head, we will ask in His name,

Lord, You are the transcended One; You have been exalted to the heaven of heavens, and we are Your Body! Amen, Lord, we are sitting with You in the heavenlies, and all things are under our feet for we are joined to You and all things are under Your feet! Yes, Lord, even this sickness is under Your feet. Sickness, don’t trouble me – go to the lake of fire! You cannot touch me – you are under my feet!

When we pray in such a way, we stand in the Body and one with the Lord, claiming His authority and exercising His lordship and headship, and the devil will run away.

The devil still tries to deceive us by accusing us of this and of that, for he knows that, if we know and stand on our position in the heavenlies and in the Body, he will be defeated by our prayer with authority. Amen!

We should simply declare in prayer who we are and where we are we are not poor sinners and defeated believers – we are in the Body, the Body is one with the Head, and the Head is victorious and transcendent! Hallelujah!

The authority of the Body of Christ is the authority of the Head being exercised by the Body; thus, the authority of the Body is the authority of the Head. Praise the Lord!

Amen, Lord, we stand one with You in the heavenlies and in the Body. We want to know what is the surpassing greatness of Your power toward us who believe, according to the operation of the might of God’s strength which operated in Christ to raise Him from the dead and seat Him at God’s right hand in the heavenlies! Hallelujah, we as the Body of Christ are joined to our ascended and enthroned Head, and we can exercise the authority of Christ! Amen, Lord, save us from praying begging prayers. Uplift our prayers. May we pray by exercising Christ’s lordship and headship, standing one with Christ and in the Body for the carrying out of God’s economy in this age!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Sources of inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, the message by Mark Raabe for this week, and portions from, Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1963, vol. 1, “The Prayer of the Age“, pp. 162-164, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, The Christian Life, the Church Life, the Consummation of the Age, and the Coming of the Lord (2020 fall ITERO), week 5, The Prayer of the Age Offered to God through the Church as the Body of Christ as a House of Prayer.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – Let us work together with the Lord through prayer, / Praying every time and everywhere. / He will not accomplish His will on His own; / Seek Him ‘till His purpose is made known. (Song on, Let us work together with the Lord through prayer)
  – Pray to touch the throne of God / By the hand of living faith; / Exercise authority / Over all the pow’r of death. / Pray to touch the throne of God, / Pray to shake the evil pow’r; / Pray with kingship on the throne, / Pray with Christ this very hour. (Hymns #783)
  – “Amen, Jesus,” is our prayer / To the purging work, whate’er; / Now Thy church must desperate be / More the growth in life to see. (Hymns #1239)