Chapter 32, Footnote 1:
Praying in the Spirit:
This is an arena of prayer that is greatly misunderstood by many in the Body of Christ. It has been mocked by opponents and sometimes misused by those who believe in this gift from the Holy Spirit. Let’s first make some things clear: First, the New Testament church made evident and purposeful use of this gift as documented in Scripture. Second, Scripture does not say that these gifts have ended. On the contrary, Paul makes it clear that “until the perfect comes” the gifts of the Spirit will persist.2 We do not live in the perfect time, yet. And my guess is that we won’t until, at the very least, the Millennial Reign of Christ. That said, there is Scriptural basis for all of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit. Third, if the gifts that are received, such as the gift of praying in the Spirit, come as a direct result of asking the Holy Spirit to give them, then how can anyone dispute that they are gifts from God? As Jesus said, “What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?”3 You can trust the Father, through the Holy Spirit, to only give what is a benefit to you. Fourth, and finally, praying in the Spirit is very similar to, but not the same as, speaking in tongues.
The gift of praying in the Spirit is talked about by Apostle Paul. He mentions the ability in no less than three of his letters, to the believers in Rome, the churches at Corinth, and the churches in Ephesus. Obviously he wanted this gift to be utilized widely and often. “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” “For if I pray in tongues [or a tongue], my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful. What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.” “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”4
Does Paul make this sound optional? Why would Paul speak this as a necessary component to the believers if God was going to just strip it away sometime after the believers of the First-Century church died off? The answer is that God didn’t remove the gift. Rather we moved away from the gift with corruption in the church that lasted for generations, disallowing Christians to even know what was said in the Scriptures.5
Paul wasn’t the only one of the church fathers to teach it. Jude also made it clear that this was an important practice when he said, “But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit.”
For those who think that praying in the Holy Spirit is in your modern-day English, re-read what Paul said to the Corinthians. He said that “if I pray in tongues, I don’t understand what I’m praying.” That means that he wasn’t praying in any earthly language that he understood. And it would be impossible for him to pray in a human language that he had never learned. So, what is the answer to that? Pray in the spirit (without human understanding) and pray with my mind (with human understanding). The same goes with praising God in song! How about that?!
This gift has to be asked for from the Holy Spirit. Some teach that it only comes from the laying on of hands, but I won’t limit God in this respect. Ask for the gift, and if you attend (or find) a church in which this gift is practiced, ask the believers there to pray for you to receive, first, the baptism in the Holy Spirit, which is step one to receiving the gift of praying in tongues.
Practical Usage:
If you feel a burden from the Holy Spirit to begin praying, or maybe you just have a situation weighing on you but are unsure about how to pray, just launch into your gift of praying in the Spirit (praying in tongues). Keep praying until the burden subsides and you feel at peace. Sometimes you’ll know in your mind what to pray, so pray in English (or your native language). Don’t think that only one or the other type of prayer is best. Use all the tools that the Lord gives you.