Acts 12:5 But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him. NLT
I want us to examine three cases in the bible. The first case is the imprisonment and beheading of John the Baptist.
But when John rebuked Herod the tetrarch because of Herodias, his brother's wife, and all the other evil things he had done, Herod added this to them all: He locked John up in the prison( Luke 3:19-20 NIV ).
He spoke against Herod for taking the wife of his brother. He was imprisoned and killed cheaply. The daughter of Herodias requested for his head on a platter( Matthew 14:1-12).
The second case was the martyrdom of James by Herod. He was the first apostle to be martyred while Stephen was the first Christian to be martyred.
About that time King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the church. He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword ( Acts of the Apostles 12:1-2 NLT).
Now, I want you to read carefully the third case of imprisonment. There's a pattern I want you to see here.
When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter. (This took place during the Passover celebration.) Then he imprisoned him, placing him under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover ( Acts of the Apostles 12:3-4 NLT).
Three men of God were imprisoned. Two were killed but the third was spared. Something different happened in the case of Peter. Let's check scripture.
But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him( Acts 12:5 NLT).
The corporate prayer of the church made the difference here. The following verses revealed to us an angelic intervention that facilitated the release of Peter.
Suddenly, there was a bright light in the cell, and an angel of the Lord stood before Peter. The angel struck him on the side to awaken him and said, “Quick! Get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists ( Acts of the Apostles 12:7 NLT).
Hallelujah!!! When we pray corporately as believers, there'll alway be a divine intervention. One of the ways to provoke intervention in our lives is to get the brethren to pray on our behalf.
When I and my ministry companion were down with COVID in one of the West African countries after lockdown, one of the things that provoked divine intervention that period was the prayer of the saints back in Lagos.
Prior to the time they prayed, I kept hearing a voice saying "There's a battle in the heavenlies". The day I sent a message home that we called for ambulance to carry my companion to the hospital, the church swung into righteous action of prayer. That was a Sunday.
Shortly after, I heard a voice saying "Prayers has been offered". That very day, I stopped hearing the previous line that reiterated the ongoing battles in the heavenlies.
One of the ministry of the saints to one another is joint intercession. You can take advantage of this benefit as you fellowship with the saints.
Those who do not have a place of fellowship where they're active and known by the saints may miss this benefit when the trial of life comes.
It is bad to be prayerless but much worse when you don't have saints that can hold you up in prayers.
Are you actively involved in the ministry of your local church? Do you have someone you can point to as your Pastor? Now, If you can't answer these questions affirmatively, do the needful. Prayerfully, you can form a team of intercessors and pray for one another.