Hello. My name is Scott Brown. I am a pastor at Hope Baptist Church in Wake Forest, North Carolina, and the president of Church and Family Life. Today, I want to talk about gathering in corporate prayer and saying “Amen” altogether.
In our prayer meetings at our local church, we encourage the congregation to join together in unity and say “Amen,” which means “may it be done” or “yes, Lord.” It’s the way that we affirm the prayers of one another as a family. The “Amen” unifies the congregation in some ways. When Jesus taught the disciples to pray, particularly in Matthew chapter six, he ended the prayer with “Amen.” I think He did that as an example for us to say it in unison. That’s why in the Old Testament, you find this phraseology: “and all God’s people said amen,” so that everyone is really united in the principle.
Martin Luther encouraged the church to be bold in saying the “Amen.” He said, “You must always speak the ‘Amen’ firmly. Never doubt that God in His mercy will surely hear you and say ‘yes’ to your prayers. Never think that you’re kneeling or standing alone. Rather, think that the whole of Christendom, all devout Christians, are standing there beside you, and you are standing among them in a common, united petition which God cannot disdain.” So there’s Martin Luther.
The testimony of Scripture, I think, leads us to this conclusion in our corporate prayer meetings. Here’s some examples: Moses commanded the people when they were on Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal to speak to one another and to conclude each statement with “Amen.” I’ll quote it: “And the Levites shall speak with a loud voice and say to all the men of Israel, ‘Cursed is the one who makes a carved or molded image, an abomination to the Lord, the work of the hands of the craftsmen, and sets it up in secret. And all the people shall answer and say Amen.'” That’s Deuteronomy 27:14-15. The same kind of thing is occurring in 1 Chronicles 16:36 and Nehemiah 5:13.
So, I’m here to encourage you, as you pray corporately, to be unified one to another. And all of God’s people will say “Amen.” And like Luther said, say it loudly.