Successfully Present Your Case in the Courts of Heaven: 8 Effective Steps to Revolutionize Your Prayers
“Present your case,” says the Lord. “Bring forth your strong reasons,” says the King of Jacob (Isaiah 41:21 NKJV).
Two of the most frequently asked questions by people who discover the Courts of Heaven are:
“How do I present my case in the Courts of Heaven?” and “Is there a spiritual and established protocol for presenting cases in the Courts of Heaven?” Thankfully for us, the Bible does not leave us second-guessing on how to make our approach before God. So before you delve into a chronicle of Prayers that Hit the Mark, which I include in my new book, Following the Footsteps of Rabbi Jesus into the Courts of Heaven, I want to first bring you into an understanding of how to present your cases effectively and successfully in the Courts of Heaven.
In Isaiah 41:21, the Lord encourages us to present our case before Him, and in the process bring forth our strong reasons or evidence for why we deserve a righteous verdict in our favor from our righteous Judge.
“Come now, and let us reason together,” says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18 NKJV).
The following are eight important ways to get ready to present your case in the Courts of Heaven:
1. Get off the battlefield.
As Robert Henderson shares in his bestselling book: “The first thing we must do to step into the Courts of Heaven is to get off the battlefield. We must recognize the need for legal precedents to be set before we run to the battle. We are in a conflict, but it is a legal one. Remember that Jesus never pictures prayer in the battlefield context. He did put prayer however in a courtroom or judicial setting in Luke 18:1-8.”
2. Ask for the Courts of Heaven to be seated.
A fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him. A thousand thousands ministered to Him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before Him. The court was seated, and the books were opened (Daniel 7:10 NKJV).
The second thing we must do before approaching the Courts of Heaven is ask that the Courts of Heaven be seated to hear and adjudicate our case. We make this request in and through the mighty name of Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord. It’s impossible to get a judicial ruling from any court of law if the court is not yet seated to hear the case. Consequently, there is no court- room trial that ever proceeds until the presiding judge has been duly seated. Once you have a confirmation in your spirit that the Court is seated to hear your case, start presenting your case in faith.
3. Stand on Christ’s finished work.
After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!” Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. So, when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit (John 19:28-30 NKJV).
The third thing we must do is realize that approaching the Courts of Heaven must be based on the finished work of Christ on the cross. Without this substitutionary work of our Savior, none of us qualify to approach the courts of our holy God. So when presenting cases in the Courts of Heaven, quoting Scriptures on the finished work of Christ on the cross really gives us stature and an advantage over the accuser in this heavenly court.
4. Repent.
The fourth thing we must do while presenting our case in the Courts of Heaven is repent! We need to ask the Holy Spirit to search our hearts and see if there is any unconfessed sin in our life. It is very interesting to me that repentance is at the heart of entering the Kingdom. The introduction of the gospel of the Kingdom by both John the Baptist and Jesus was directly connected to the act of repenting.
From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17).
In biblical terms, to repent means to change your mind and reverse course. Repentance resets our relationship with God and gives us a favor- able standing in the Courts of Heaven. It’s quite sad when you hear some proponents of the hyper-grace message tell Christians that they only need to repent once—as if born-again believers are incapable of sinning against God in this body of flesh. Nothing could be so far from the truth.
5. Present your case with boldness.
Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16 NKJV).
Boldness is an important spiritual ingredient for approaching the throne of grace, which is one of the Courts of Heaven. It demonstrates our confidence in the finished work of Christ and the goodness of God. When we approach the Courts of Heaven, it’s important that we do so in a spirit of boldness, not fear. Fear only works against us and gives the devil, our chief adversary, legal footing against us in the Courts of Heaven. This is why the Bible says a person who fears is not perfected in the love of God, because fear has torment (see 1 John 4:18).
6. Wait for the Spirit’s witness.
The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God (Romans 8:16).
One of the most important things we can do while we are presenting our case in the Courts of Heaven is wait for the witness of the Holy Spirit before we leave the courtroom. As I stated earlier, the Holy Spirit is the highest Officer of the Courts of Heaven operating on earth today. He’ll give you a witness in your spirit when the righteous verdict you’re seeking has been granted. If it has not been granted, ask the Holy Spirit, “Why?” He’s faithful to answer you promptly because all of Heaven wants to answer your prayers. This is why the Bible says as many as are “led by the Holy Spirit they are children of God” (Romans 8:14 NKJV). So being led by the Holy Spirit in the Courts of Heaven is an absolute must. Amen.
7. Receive the Court’s verdict by faith.
When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more” (John 8:10-11 NKJV).
No legal case inside any courtroom is ever considered complete until a final verdict has been rendered. If a verdict has not been rendered, it may mean that the prosecutor has more evidence against the plaintiff that the courts must also consider, or the plaintiff ’s attorneys have witness testimony or evidence that they want the court to consider. This is why it’s important for you to be persistent until the Courts of Heaven have rendered a righteous verdict on your behalf.
The devil can only resist the Courts of Heaven from rendering a righteous verdict on your behalf because he still has legal grounds to do so. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what is in satan’s evidence docket so you can render it useless by repentance and invoking the blood of Jesus. When your righteous verdict is rendered, you must receive it by faith. This is because everything in the Kingdom of God is received by faith. You will not get a physical courier with a physical letter stating your righteous verdict. But believe me, a verdict rendered by the Courts of Heaven is more real and consequential than any verdict rendered by a natural court of law.
8. Reinforce your righteous verdict daily through thanksgiving.
One of the most powerful weapons in the Kingdom of God is thanks- giving. Thanksgiving places us in an attitude of continual praise over what the Lord has already done for us. Thanksgiving is so powerful that God has made it His direct will for all of His children. Thanksgiving feeds your spirit with hopeful anticipation. Thanksgiving feeds the spirit of expectancy inside you. Miracles only happen in spiritual atmospheres charged with divine expectancy. Once the Holy Spirit gives you the “witness” that the divine restraining order you requested has been granted, it’s important that you maintain an attitude of thanksgiving in the aftermath. “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18).
Life Application
Memory Verse
“Come now, and let us reason together,” says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18 NKJV).
Reflections
Why is it important to wait for the witness of the Spirit before leaving the heavenly courtroom?
How do you reinforce a verdict rendered by the Courts of Heaven?