Day 15: Prayer for Our Seeing of the Heavenly Vision of the Ascension of Christ

Pray that all the saints would receive a heavenly vision of the ascension of Christ in order to pray the prevailing prayer of the church, the prayer of the age—Eph. 1:17; Heb. 1:3; Acts 2:36.

Eph. 1:17—That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Him.

Heb. 1:3—Who, being the effulgence of His glory and the impress of His substance and upholding and bearing all things by the word of His power, having made purification of sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.

Acts 2:36—Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you have crucified.

In the Scriptures, especially in the New Testament, there is one kind of prayer that is far beyond our human concept. To enter into this kind of prayer, we need a heavenly vision. We need to see something that is far beyond our natural concept.

The first aspect of this heavenly vision is the ascension of Christ. Nearly all believers know something about the ascension of Christ, but I wish to point out two very important matters concerning its meaning.

First, the ascension of Christ indicates that the Lord’s redemptive work is fully complete. After the Lord ascended to the heavens, He sat down at the right hand of God (Heb. 1:3; 10:12). Here, to sit down means to rest…The Lord has accomplished everything related to the work of redemption in a full way. Nothing has been left undone; everything has been accomplished. Thus, the Lord is sitting in the heavens and resting. The ascension of Christ is an indication of the complete accomplishment of the work of redemption.

 Second, the ascension of Christ indicates that the lordship of Christ has been established. The lordship of Christ was established by the ascension of Christ…Today there is a man in the heavens who has been exalted and established to be the Lord of the universe…we need a heavenly vision to believe that there was a man in the history of mankind whose name was Jesus and who has been exalted to the heavens and made the Lord of the whole universe. On the day of Pentecost Peter declared, “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you have crucified” (Acts 2:36). The apostle Paul also tells us that God “subjected all things under His feet and gave Him to be Head over all things” (Eph. 1:22). (CWWL, 1963, vol. 1, “Prayer on the Ground of Christ’s Ascension,” pp. 159-160)

© Living Stream Ministry. Used by permission.

 

Day 16: Prayer for Our Praying by Taking the Ground of Christ’s Ascension

Pray that all the saints, taking the ground of Christ’s ascension and based on the fact that the Lord has ascended to the heavens, attained to the highest place, and obtained all things, would enter into a specific, definite, and extraordinary kind of prayer—prayer that is based upon Christ’s ascension and claims all that He has obtained and attained in His ascension—Rev. 5:6a; Matt. 28:18; Eph. 1:22. 

Rev. 5:6a—And I saw in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures and in the midst of the elders a Lamb standing as having just been slain.

Matt. 28:18—And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.

Eph. 1:22—And He subjected all things under His feet and gave Him to be Head over all things to the church.

What is the Lord doing in the heavenlies today? The Bible tells us that He is waiting for His enemies to be subdued and made the footstool for His feet (Heb. 10:13). How will this be accomplished while He is waiting? This will be accomplished by the church praying a certain kind of prayer. The prayer that is needed is not an ordinary kind of prayer but a specific, definite, and extraordinary kind of prayer. This kind of prayer is based upon the ascension of Christ and claims all that the Lord has obtained and attained in His ascension. This prayer takes the ground of Christ’s ascension and is based upon the fact that the Lord has ascended to the heavens, attained to the highest place, and obtained all things. 

Today there is nothing left for Christ to attain or obtain. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Him, all the enemies have been subjected under His feet, and He is now Head over all things (Matt. 28:18; Eph. 1:22b). Moreover, God not only subjected all things under His feet and gave Him to be Head over all things; He also gave Him to be Head over all things to the church. Christ is not only Head over all things for the church; He is also Head over all things to the church. This means that since He is Head over all things, the church as His Body shares in His headship over all things. We are in Him, we are identified with Him, and we are mingled with Him. Thus, He is Head over all things, and the church participates in His headship. He has been made Head over all things to the church.

We need to take hold of this fact. We need to take this ground and claim all that the Lord has obtained and attained. Today the Lord is waiting for His church on earth to function. He is waiting for the church to pray, claiming all that He has obtained and attained. Thus, we all must go to the Lord, not by ourselves but with some other brothers and sisters, to pray in a special way. Perhaps we have never prayed in this way, but I believe that if we look to the Lord, He will show us something. (CWWL, 1963, vol. 1, “Prayer on the Ground of Christ’s Ascension,” pp. 154–155)

© Living Stream Ministry. Used by permission.

Day 17: Prayer for Our Rising Up as the Body to Claim the Ground of Christ’s Ascension

Pray that all the saints would see that taking the ground of Christ’s ascension is not an individual matter but a Body matter and would rise up as the Body to claim the ground of Christ’s ascension through prayer, claiming all that Christ attained and obtained for the carrying out of God’s economy—Col. 1:18; Acts 4:24a, 31.

Col. 1:18—And He is the Head of the Body, the church; He is the beginning, the Firstborn from the dead, that He Himself might have the first place in all things.

Acts 4:24a, 31—And when they heard this, they lifted up their voice with one accord to God...And when they had so besought, the place in which they were gathered was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.

We must pray, taking the ground of Christ’s ascension, but we must realize that this ground is not for individuals. Rather, this ground is for the Body. Christ is the Head, and we are the Body (Col. 1:18). Today as the Body of Christ, we need to claim the ground of the ascension of Christ. I believe that this was the way the disciples prayed before the day of Pentecost. I believe that by the help of the Holy Spirit they prayed that the Lord would verify His ascension to the people on the earth. We should not cry to God as poor sinners. Rather, we must take the ground of Christ’s ascension and claim, “Lord, we are Your Body. We are in You. You are the Head and we are the Body. You are Head over all things to us as the Body; therefore, we claim all that You have obtained and all that You have attained.” We simply need to claim this ground and tell the Lord that we do not agree with certain things that are happening on this earth. We also need to tell Him that we are not satisfied with the present condition, situation, and state of His people. We need to forget about all our personal problems and declare, “Hallelujah! I am a member of the Body, the Body is in the Head, and the Head, who is over all things, is in the heavens!”

After praying in such a way, we will be greatly strengthened. We will feel that the whole world cannot prevail against us, because we are in the Body and the Body is in the Head (cf. Acts 4:23-31)….I believe that when we begin to take this ground and claim the ascension of Christ, the enemy, sin, the world, the flesh, the satanic forces, the evil spirits, and every negative thing will be under our feet. By ourselves it is impossible to overcome all these things. We must realize that the Head has already overcome and that as the Body, we are joined to the Head. There is nothing for us to do; everything has already been done. Christ has accomplished everything. He is the Head over all things, and all things are under His feet. Thus, as the Body we can take the ground of the Head and claim all that He has obtained and attained. Everything that He has obtained and attained belongs to us. (CWWL, 1963, vol. 1, “Prayer on the Ground of Christ’s Ascension,” pp. 156-157)

© Living Stream Ministry. Used by permission.

Day 18: Prayer for Our Seeing the Authority of the Church as the Body

Pray that the saints would see the position and the authority of the church as the Body of Christ, realizing that the position of the church is exactly the same as that of Christ, and claim and utilize this authority to tread over all the power of the enemy—1 Cor. 12:27; Matt. 28:18b-19a; Luke 10:19.

1 Cor. 12:27—Now you are the Body of Christ, and members individually.

Matt. 28:18b–19a—All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and disciple all the nations…

Luke 10:19—Behold, I have given you the authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

The first main point is the ascension of Christ; the second main point is the position of the church as the Body of Christ. Because the church is the Body of Christ, the position of the church is exactly the same as that of Christ. Wherever the Head is, the Body also must be. Whatever the Head has, the Body also must have. In addition, we need to realize that we are members of the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:27; Eph. 5:30). Since the Body is identified with the Head, the position of the Body is exactly the same as that of the Head.

The third main point…concerns the authority of the Body…The authority of the Body is the authority of the Head exercised by the Body. Thus, the authority of the Body is the authority of the Head…Although the Body has this authority, this authority…must be assumed and exercised by the Body. To assume something means to take something upon oneself. As the church, the Body of Christ, we need to assume the authority of Christ.

After His resurrection the Lord told the disciples that all authority in heaven and on earth had been given to Him. Then He commanded them to preach the glad tidings to all the nations. The Lord said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and disciple all the nations” (Matt. 28:18b-19a).

Having received all authority, the Lord commanded us to go with this authority and preach the gospel…The Lord also told us clearly that He has given us the authority to overcome the power of the enemy (Luke 10:19). The enemy has power, but the Body has authority…We have this authority, but whether or not we exercise it is up to us. (CWWL, 1963, vol. 1, “Prayer on the Ground of Christ’s Ascension,” pp. 161-162)

© Living Stream Ministry. Used by permission.