Friday 27th March 2009 Devotion
The daybreak is coming
Romans 8:18-39; Isaiah 40:31
After sharing about storms, I believe our minds and hearts are now set and focused on Christ. It doesn’t matter what comes our way, we are assured of victory on our side. Paul talks about tribulations coming our way but it doesn’t matter. James reminds us that God will never allow us to go through more than we can handle in our lives. Sometimes so many things encamp around us until we can’t find a way of escape. This is the time that many of us find ourselves asking God so many questions; God, why do I have to pass through this? Are you still with me? We lose our focus on Jesus such a time and we find ourselves doing our own things.
Such times are always the darkest times of our lives. David regards these moments as the midnight moments but he reminds us the daybreak is coming. Remember… weeping may endure for a night, but joy is destined to come in the morning. It doesn’t matter how dark is your night, the morning is coming. Paul reminds us that our present sufferings cannot be compared to the glory that awaits us. In our sufferings, we are encouraged to endure everything because we are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus. As we realized yesterday, not all storms are destined to harm us, they all come with a purpose. Paul knowing this, he tells us that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose. Remember, you are just like clay in the hands of a potter. God being the potter he has the big picture in his mind in regards to the purpose that he created you for in this earth. There is a purpose that you need to fulfill in your generation.
Remember God has chosen you and he has set you apart. As if that is not enough, he knows you by name, he has conformed you to the likeness of his son Jesus Christ that you might be a co-heir with him in the kingdom and he predestined you for the purpose he created you for and he is ready to glorify you through his son Jesus Christ. What else can we yearn for when we have all these promises on our belt? All we need id to be firm in our faith and remain unwaivered and steadfast in God. It happens that when we are in these hard moments in our live is when we loose our grip on God; we forsake the first love that we had for God… the passion we used to serve him with and alternatively we try and find other solutions to our woes but in the long run, we find ourselves in deeper trouble more than we were before simply because we missed our footing.
Paul asks a simple question that I want us to ponder for today; what can separate me form the Love of God? Paul goes ahead to list a few things that he though would have made someone lose his passion and for God but his conclusion is what gives me strength to face tomorrow… he says “no… in all these things, we are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus who loved us.” God’s love for you is so immense that you can’t comprehend it. He can’t allow you to go through what you cannot handle and thus, he always provides a way out for you in all the hard situations that you go through. Remember, it is always darkest at daybreak… when a new day is about to begin, that’s when there is great darkness.
Do not let the situations you are in dictate the future for you. The situation you are in is you night. It might not be pleasant to be in or go through, but all you need to know is that “morning is coming” and it might be sooner than you expect it to be. Morning doesn’t have to be the real actual morning of a day, the end of what you are going through is your morning. Your morning may come at any time. All you need is to hold on and keep trusting in Jesus. I finish with the words of Isaiah the prophet (Isaiah 40:31) “but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Do you want your strength to be renewed? Then, trust in the Lord.
Amen!!!!
Storms of life!!
Acts 27
Storms! Storms! Storms!!! No one likes to be caught in a storm, may it be a rainstorm, physical or even spiritual; all storms are the same. I know especially here in Nairobi, people fear rain more than anything else. At this point when it rains, fares are hikes and it’s never pleasant to be caught in such a messy situation like that especially of you are caught up and you are rained on. But did you know that storms are important to us and in our lives? Many may think that storms come to break us and discourage us, but can I tell you that not every storm is destined to break you or discourage you in whatever you are doing. In fact, they often come as a stepping stone or the final stage to your miracle or breakthrough.
Taking a look on what we go through each day in our lives, we can clearly see that God has always an upper hand in all that we pass through and he guides us through each step. Storms come for several reasons as I said but I want to consider 4 reasons today.
a) Storms come to rebuke us and show us our sins and help us reconcile with our maker: Take a look at Jonah… God sends him to Nineveh but instead he opts to go his own way to Tarshish (Jonah 1:4-17, 2:1-10). Jonah defies the word of the Lord and decided to act as per his will, but because God is God and he watches over his word, he created a storm that caused Jonah to change his mind and go to Nineveh where he was sent. How many times have you acted like Jonah? You know clearly this is the way God has shown us and we clearly need to walk in it but we don’t until we meet/we are engulfed in a storm that’s when we change our mind and follow the right direction as instructed. Remember God will always follow his word to the letter; he is watching over his word to accomplish it… (Jeremiah 1:12) Our disobedience to God’s word, voice or leading may cause us to go through things that we shouldn’t have gone through if we had obeyed from the first minute.
b) To strengthen our relationship with God: we have a strong character in the bible who braved the storm that he went through and yet he remained strong in his faith in God. Despite losing all his wealth and children even his own wife deserting him and telling him to curse God and die, he was steadfast in his faith in God and he triumphed. How many times would you pass through a small trial even in your place of work and stand and hold onto your faith? What are the challenges that come along your way in your day today life and leave you standing? Job was indeed a man of faith and he was steadfast in God till the last minute and he gives a testimony of God and what he can do. This is what he says… (Job 42: 2-5) “I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted. You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. "You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me.’ My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.” Job had really seen God and he wasn’t the same again. His fellowship with God had grown deeper and he could know the heart of God and testify of the same.
c) Storms come as a stepping stone to our elevation to Glory/fulfillment: Joseph, the darling boy of his father Jacob is hated by his brothers because if his dreams. He shares the same with his own parents but they too despise him and mock him. This would have discouraged him but he was very confident and he held onto his dream. He kept it in his heart. This hatred from the brother see him sold away into Egypt where he find himself in one problem after another but despite all this, he remains faithful to God and he was promoted by God from one glory to another. From the pit to Portiphar’s house; from Portiphar’s house to the prison; from the prison to the palace. This was Joseph’s journey of elevation to his glory but it wasn’t that easy as you may think. He persevered so much that even I myself couldn’t have; but thanks to God, his grace was sufficient for him and we read of Joseph today and we are encouraged.
d) To test and strengthen your faith: Jesus sends his disciples ahead of him as he went to pray. (Matthew 14:22-33) and later he catches up with them and he walks on the water. When the disciples saw him, they thought it is a ghost and were terrified. When Peter realized it was Jesus, he asks him to tell him to come… and while he is walking in the water, he loses his focus on Jesus and immediately, he starts sinking. This is what happens to us. The minute you shift your focus from your object of faith, the world around you crumbles and you sink. Thank God for Jesus that he was there to save him. This particular incident shows how we lose our focus on Jesus who is the author and perfector of our Faith. I pray that we will always remained focused on him and never sink.
What do we do when a financial, or medical, or family break-up, or persecution, or storm in our place of work has come down upon us? When we are hit by a storm we tend to think there is something bold that we must do. Perhaps you are facing a storm this morning, or it may hit you in the coming week. Just remember that Jesus is in control of the wind and the waves, and look in his direction.
The secret of facing any kind of storm in our life is not to focus on the problems we face but look firmly at the Jesus who is in complete control.
Amen!!
Thursday, 26th March 2009
Obeying not because of what you get but to touch the heart of God!!
Taking on from yesterday’s devotion, I realize that many times we take that step of obedience and do what we have been commanded but not that we are willing to do it. Some of us (me included because I have found myself in such a circumstance) do this because it’s more of an obligation or a requirement to do so that we get the blessing attached to it. But I strongly believe that we shouldn’t do this because of what we are getting there after, it should be mutual. Never the same, you will come to notice that every blessing that God has promised in his word, there is always a command to follow or fulfill. As we noted yesterday, many of us rush for the promise before fulfilling the command.
Take a look at this passage Isaiah 1:19 “If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best of the land” There is the promise of eating the good of the land but the command is that you must be willing and obedient. But how many of us will run ahead and ask God to furnish us wit the good of the land? Remember you have to sit back and ask yourself, ‘yes, I want to eat the good of the land, am I willing and will I be obedient to what it entails me to partake and eat/partake the good of the earth? It is the high time that we sit back and count the cost. Jesus said, before you build your house, sit down and count the cost. Be not like the foolish builder who built his house on the sand and when the winds blew, mighty was its downfall but when you sit back and count the cost, you will be wise not only in the eyes of men and yourself, but also in the yes of God. Remember, God is the master planner and he also sat down and did his mathematics. For his love for human kind, He had to let Jesus go so as he could be a sacrifice to redeem man from his sinful state.
Jesus is the perfect example for us to follow when it comes to obedience. I can figure out this discussion they had with God when he was asked to come down to the earth, be a sacrifice and die so that man could be redeemed from his sins and reconcile the fellowship that was broken, He was willing and he didn’t ask many questions. I remember the days I was a kid and whenever someone would send me, I was quick to ask, what will you give me? But as I said this shouldn’t be the case. Obedience is a command that has blessings attached to it. Apparently, this attitude is passing on to the children in this generation, until you give a kid a tip or you promise something, he/she wont do what you have requested the kid to do. How I pray that God will help us, especially parents and wanna-be parents like me in the near future to raise us a Godly generation and instill these values in them.
Take a look at our father of faith – Abraham; In Genesis 22, God speaks to him and asks him to sacrifice his one and only son, the son of the promise in his old age and without uttering a word, he prepares his son and off they go to the mountains of Moriah as God had instructed so that he could offer his son as a sacrifice. Remember all this time, God hasn’t told him what lies ahead of him but through his obedience, we see that God honoured him and he provided a lamb for sacrifice instead of Isaac. More to that, Abraham was blessed (Genesis 22:15-18) God blessed him and promised to bless the nations and his offspring by the virtue of his obedience. This is the kind of obedience that touches the heart of God. Let me tell you this secret; it is said that if you want to live under open heavens Give; I don’t dispute that either because it’s in the word of God, nevertheless I have discovered this; – people will give and yet live under closed heavens, why? Because when they gave, they were not obeying, they gave because of what they want or the promise as I said earlier on. But thing one thing is clear in my mind and I want to tell you, whether you believe or not, I believe that obedience is the ultimate key to unlock all your blessings that God has in store for you.
Yesterday, I finished up with the window of Zarepath and still today I want to do the same again. 1 Kings 17:7-15. Obedience sometime requires our sacrifice too. We will have to let go some of the things that we really value in our lives. Some may be our relationships, our jobs, money, time, possessions name them – just like Abraham and the window did. Surrendering/letting-go is a sign of total obedience to God in regards to his word. You may say that the window was told what would happen after she obeyed but looking at it, this was a man of God and He was commanded to speak the word of God. What touches me most with this window is that she was adamant at first not to let go what she had left in the house to cater for her and her son then they die, but regardless of the word of the man of God, she took a risky step of faith and obeyed.
Obedience means we Risk. The window risked and went ahead. If it was in a time like now, some people would first serve themselves then when there is something remaining, that’s when they would serve the man of God. Obedience is just like faith. You don’t know what lies ahead but you dare to trust he who commanded you to do so. It entails releasing what you have not knowing whether you will have something else to replace it; but knowing that He who gave the promise is faithful and just to fulfill his word because he watches over it, you can risk and obey. Brethren, lets not seek the hand of God but lets seek to do his will and seek and see his face. Seeing his face and talking and sharing with him face to face is far much better than having his hand only. When you see his face, it will ever remain engraved in your heart and mind but the hand; you will soon forget the feel of it and go back seeking it again.
Amen!!!
Wednesday, 25th March 2009
Hindrances to our success!
1One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, 2he saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets.3He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 4When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” 5Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” 6When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. 8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” 9For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” 11So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.” Luke 5:1-11
Ever tried to do something you are used to and it backfires on you? I know certainly you have. If you work in the IT industry, I know sometimes commands do fail you and you have to keep on repeating and sending the same command again and again until it is accepted and goes through. Sometimes this is how our Christian walk of faith tends to be. You trust God for something, He does it; you do it again, he does it, but the minute He delays to do something that is very urgent and crucial to you, you start murmuring and talking ill of how he is delaying to answer our prayers. I have found myself in this situation several times and I thank God that He shows himself strong all the time by being Faithful to his word that He has spoken.
Simon Peter and his friends have been fishing all night long and they haven’t caught anything. They row their boats offshore and they start washing their nets in preparation for the day ahead and evening when they will be coming to fish again. I can figure out in my mind how they were feeling so bad that they had toiled all bight yet they dint have anything to show off for their toil the whole night. Maybe, the children and the mother were trying to overlook the road to see whether their daddy was coming over with something for breakfast before they went to school, but unfortunately, he was not. They had toiled all night long using their experience but they dint manage to get anything. You can imagine the disappointment that Peter and his friends had after toiling the whole night without a catch.
Sometimes, this is how our lives are. We try so hard using our own knowledge and might but we end up failing. We forget that God is there to help us if only we could ask him to. If Peter and his friends knew this, I know they would have gone to ask Jesus for help or ask him to say a prayer for them before they went out fishing the previous night. This is what many of us do. We go ahead and do what we know and think its best for us but not long before we realize that we are heading nowhere and that’s the time w turn back to God for help. This should not be the case. Solomon said in Proverbs 3:5-7 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not in your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight; and be not wise in your own eyes” (refer to this passage too Proverbs 16:1-4) This is the first major mistake that we do in our lives; leaning on our own understanding. How I pray that this day, God will touch your heart and remind you always to trust in him and him alone.
When Jesus came on the shore, he saw two boats that were at the shore left by the fishermen. He went ahead and got into one boat and he started preaching to the crowd. The second thing that we do is that we have never learnt the art of letting go. Peter and his friends forgot that they didn’t have any catch for the night and they left their boats and started washing their nets in preparation for the evening again. Many of us when we do something and we end up failing, we still hold onto that failure and we keep on referring onto it. Whenever someone encourages you to try again, you are so adamant that you have done it and failed. Who said that when you try again you will fail again? If Peter dwelt on the outcome of the night, I am sure Jesus would have met him seated on the boat counting the loss he had incurred. First, he hadn’t slept the whole night, he had braved the chilly night and the cold and yet there is nothing to show up. But he chose to forget all that and he was optimistic for the day. Paul says Philippians 3:13b-14 “But one thing I do; Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus”. If we dwell on the past, where will our future then go?
Again, we tend to be very rigid and we never allow God to use us the way he wants. Jesus asked Peter to move his boat deeper into the sea and Peter obeyed. I ask myself, if it was the world of today, the first question Peter would have asked Jesus is Who gave you the permission to use my boat? But Peter didn’t. He obeyed and allowed Jesus to use his boat. How many times have you allowed God to interfere with your plans and alter them to go the way he wants? Have you been obedient like Peter was? Peter’s obedience is what earned him the blessing. Samuel told Saul in 1 Samuel 15:22 that the Lord doesn’t delight himself so much in the burnt offerings and sacrifices, all he needs and delights him is our obedience and rebellion is worse than the sin of divination. When Peter was told to launch his net into the sea, he obeyed and he had a catch of a lifetime. Obedience opens up closed up blessings and doors that have been closed in your life.
Remember the window of Zarepath 1 Kings 17:7-15… when she obeyed, she survived the famine just because of here obedience. Later on, we also see that her son was restored back to life all by the virtue of her obedience to the word of God. Dear brother and sister, as much as it is to obey and fulfill what we are called upon to do, lets always strive to obey simply because, we unlock very many blessings that have been kept on hold for us. Have a blessed day.
Amen!!!
Monday, 23rd March 2009 Devotion.
Faith!!
Hebrews 11
Faith is really a broad subject that we cannot exhaust in one day or a week. In our day to day life, we exhibit faith in different aspects of our lives and it is also manifested in diverse ways. Faith is the substance of things hoped for and an evidence of things yet unseen (Hebrews 11:1). 70% of whatever you do here on earth is in regards to faith. We live a life of optimism and Faith filled. We take risks in various dimension and areas and all these are cultivated by Faith. Paul takes a closer look on this subject of Faith in Hebrews 11. He lists down the hero’s of Faith in the bible till he had no enough time to list them all.
Faith is an important component of our day to day life. It is by faith that you slept last night and you woke up this morning; it is by faith that you are optimistic that the day will go on well with no eventualities that may come your way and above all, we live in this world by faith. We have faith that one day we will see God and enter into his eternal kingdom. Hebrews 11:6 “For without Faiths, it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that He exists and he rewards those who earnestly seek him” Paul wanted the believers to know that even in this journey of salvation to heaven, we are going by faith. We need to seek God and believe that He is there and He exists. Salvation is by Faith. You believe that once you have prayed the sinner’s prayer, your sins are forgiven and acquitted of all your wrong doings.
Paul at the end of the chapter says that all the people he had named were all commended of their faith yet there is none who received the promise that God had promised. Paul says that God had a plan that through the lives of these dear ones who are hero’s of faith, we can live the way they lived and through us, they are made perfect. Faith is what perfects what is imperfect in us. None of us is perfect. If we were all perfect, then there would be no sin; but since we are not perfect, thus why we work out our salvation daily and ask God to forgive us.
There are actions that we take that perfectly illustrate our faith in God. When we are sick, we speak the word of God and believe in the word that we will be healed. Some even don’t bother to go to the hospital. Again, the difference between faith and foolishness is very thin. You may act foolishly and suffer ever consequences. There are many examples in the bible of people who used/exercised their faith and God was manifested in the situations:
2 Kings 4:1-7: Gives us an account of a woman, a wife of a son of a prophet who had died and left the family in debts. The woman acts in faith and goes Prophet Elisha to seek advice from him. AS per the word of the prophet, the little oil she had was multiplied and she sold the oil and paid all the debts and lived on the rest. Sometimes we need just to get one word from the Lord that will motivate you and stir your faith to action and through this, you see yourself accomplish big things that you thought can’t be accomplished. At Cana in Galilee, Jesus is invited to a wedding and the wine runs out before the banquet was over. John 2:1-7 we see Jesus being approached by his mother to help with the situation. She had faith that Jesus would help them and indeed he did. Peter is full faith that he tells Jesus …if its you; bid me to come (Matthew 14:22-32) but while in the middle of the waters, he forgets and loses his target which was Jesus and he starts sinking. I could go on and on and not finish all the examples, but Jesus said, with as little faith as the mustard see, you can command the mountains to move and they move (Luke 17:6). Jesus meant that with your faith is what will determine the outcome of what you want to see happen. If you have no Faith, thus nothing happens but if you believe and have faith, no matter how small it is, there will be manifestation of faith in action.
In Hebrew 11, we find several qualities of faith. These are:
a) Faith is rational – (vs. 3) “by faith we understand that the world was created by God”. Faith helps us understand that god is the architecture and creator of the universe. Faith and facts go hand in hand. You can have one and miss the other. You may choose to ignore the facts and act on your Faith but you need to know that you also need the facts to weigh your actions.
b) Faith depends on revelation – God has, in history, “borne witness,” “warned,” “called,” etc. (vs. 4, 5,7,8). Man does not intuitively know how to serve God. The Lord has spoken (Heb. 1:1), and, in the final analysis, that revelation is embodied in the Holy Scriptures. It is through faith that we are able to understand God’s word and also hear and work out what He speaks to us.
c) Faith Involves Trusting Our Maker – When Noah was warned of God, though he had never seen a flood, he prepared the ark (v. 7). Abraham left Chaldea “not knowing whether he went” (v. 8). Clearly, trusting the unseen God is a vital component of true faith. Faith is what connects us with God and we are able to trust in Him that He will do what he has promised.
d) Faith Is an Action Word - Whereas many seem to entertain the notion that faith is merely a mental conviction, this chapter reveals that faith, in order to be valid, must act. By faith Abel “offered” a sacrifice (v. 4), Noah “prepared” an ark (v. 7), and Abraham “obeyed” the Lord (v. 8). Faith, divorced from obedience, is dead (Jas. 2:26).
e) Faith Discriminates – It chooses the spiritual over the material, the eternal over the temporal. Moses chose heavenly riches over the treasures of Egypt (v. 26). When you have faith, it doesn’t matter what you are being offered to counter what you are trusting God for, true faith will always choose to believe in the promise given by God and hold on waiting for the fulfillment of the same.
It is my prayer that our faith in God will grow and be deep rooted in Christ who is the author and perfector of our faith.
Have a blessed week.
Amen!!!
Thursday, 5th March 2009 Devotion
Reasons why we should pray:
As we have realized through the prayer series, prayer is essential for all of us in the different aspects of our day to day life. We ought to pray as Jesus said; else we will fall into temptations. Prayer is the only way that we can commune with our father in heaven and get to know his will, plan and purpose for our life. In this regard, Prayer is therefore referred to as the multifaceted communication between God and Man. In addition “praying,” as an activity is referred to as: calling upon God (Psalm 17:6), calling upon the name of the Lord (Genesis 4:26), crying unto the lord (Psalm 3:4), lifting up one’s soul unto God (Psalm 25:1), seeking the lord (Isaiah 55:6), coming boldly unto the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16), and drawing near to God (Hebrews 10:22).
In the light of this; a singer sang and said that we take everything to God in prayer. Many of us have believed that we only go to God in prayer when we really need him to do something or we are pressed and we need divine intervention; but there are many aspects of prayer as we have seen in the series that we have just concluded. Looking at the different aspects of prayer, there is Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving and Supplication. But you will come to realize that most of us dwell more supplication part than the others. Why should we then pray? The Bible provides some clear reasons why believers ought to pray. Here are some of them:
1. First and foremost, believers are commanded by God to pray. God desires our fellowship; by prayer we maintain our relationship with Him. God used to come and have fellowship with man (Adam and Eve) every afternoon in the Garden of Eden and when man sinned, God had to find a way to restore back that fellowship and thus Jesus had to come and die for you and me to restore back that fellowship. That’s why the temple curtain was torn into two to let us approach God directly through our prayers and worship. In the light of this, you will come to see that many passages in the bible command us to pray. Take a look at these passages: (I Chronicles 16:11; Psalm 105:4), prophets (Isaiah 55:6; Amos 5:4,6); apostles (Ephesians 6:17-18; Colossians 4:2; I Thessalonians 5:17); and the Lord Jesus Himself (Matthew 26:41; Luke 18:1; John 16:24).
2. It’s the necessary link to receiving God’s blessings and power, and the fulfillment of His promises. Numerous Bible passages illustrate this principle. For example, Jesus promised His disciples that they would receive whatever they ask if they persisted in asking, seeking, and knocking at the door of their heavenly Father (Luke 11:5-13). Thus, after Jesus’ ascension, His disciples continually devoted themselves to prayer in the upper room until with power the Holy Spirit was poured out on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:8; Acts 1:14; Acts 2:1-4). When the apostles gathered together after their arrest and release by the Jewish authorities, they prayed earnestly for the Holy Spirit to give them boldness and influence when speaking His word. “And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spoke the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:31). The apostle Paul frequently requested prayers on his behalf, knowing that his work would not be successful unless Christians were praying for him (Romans 15:30-32; 2 Corinthians 1:11; Ephesians 6:18-20; Philemon 1:19; Colossians 4:3-4). James states explicitly that physical healing can come to the believer in response to “the prayer of faith” (James 5:14-15).
3. Prayer is the only way to pave way for God’s plans and purposes to be accomplished on earth. There are many things that will not be accomplished in God’s kingdom without the intercessory prayers of believers (Exodus 33:11). For example, God desires to send forth workers into the gospel harvest; Christ teaches that this will only be accomplished to God’s full purpose through the prayers of His people: “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest that he will send forth labourers into his harvest” (Matthew 9:38). In other words, God’s power to accomplish many of His purposes is released only through the earnest and effectual prayers of His people on behalf of the progress of His kingdom. If we fail to pray, we may actually be hindering the accomplishment of God’s redemptive purpose, both for ourselves as individuals and for the church as a body.
4. Prayer is the place where intimacy with the Father takes place. Prayer is the constant connection and continuous communication for the sustaining and growing of our relationship with our Father. It is the place where we get to know Him in a personal way. Prayer at its core is all about relationship and fellowship with God almighty. It is returning to the habit of Adam walking with God in the garden. It is our purpose at creation to be in relationship to God and prayer is our way as sinners to connect with the Almighty until we reach God’s restored creation in heaven. This should actually be at the top of the list.
5. To overcome temptation. Jesus said, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” Matthew 26:41 The disciples of Jesus were with Jesus on the mountain praying but they couldn’t stay awake and pray. And Jesus comes and tells them to try and pray so that they could not fall into temptation. Remember what peter did to the chief priests servant? How many times have you struggled to pray and then you when you haven’t prayed and you end up falling into temptations? My pastor tells us that the simple one minute prayer that you say fights a lot of battles for you that you couldn’t have fought on your own. Remember Jesus took time and prayed for his disciples when he noticed that they couldn’t hold on and pray, and that prayer took them a long mile. So no matter what you feel or what is holding you not to pray, say a word and it will take you far.
6. To get help. The bible says “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” Hebrews 4:16 It is only at God’s throne of mercy that we can get the help that we need. Each day has got its own demons and battles to fight. So don’t depend on the grace of yesterday to fight today’s battles. You will find yourself defeated and you will have yourself to blame. The bible reminds us that God’s mercies are new every morning and we should strive to acquire these new mercies each new day that God grants us to live.
7. Prayer is the place of spiritual battle. We fight not the normal battles like the earthly armies do… but we fight against demons and principalities in the heavenliness. This is what Paul tells the Ephesians “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12) Remember also, our mind is the battle field of the enemy, thus you need to be cautious of this. The devil will not tell you “let’s meet at a certain stadium or arena for a duel, no!” He will use your mind and thoughts. And this is the reason Paul reminded the Corinthians that they ought to bring every thought that comes through their mind to the subjection of Jesus’ authority. “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” 2 Corinthians 10:3-5
8. Prayer helps us to focus on God, not our circumstances. Sometimes thing and situations we are going or passing through overwhelm us and we really feel that God may not be any place near us. Job is a good example of a person who would have thought this way but he chose o focus on God. He realized that if he focused on his woes and problems and he trusted the God in whom he believed. Psalm 77:1-12 shows us the best attitude that we should have while we are passing thru trials and hard times. Check out these verses from the psalm… Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion?” Then I thought, “To this I will appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High.” I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds”
I trust that in the knowledge of this, we will have a good reason why we need to pray. There are many other reasons why we ought to pray. I believe that the Holy Spirit will open up your eyes of understanding and as you seek more of him and to get saturated in him, He will continue to uplift you. Be blessed as you launch into the deep to get to know him more.
Amen!!!!
Wednesday, 4th March 2009 Devotion
Prayer Series:
Blessing
This devotion study just sort of flowed into me as a kind of an added bonus to our overall study series. It’s the kind of down to earth type of prayer that at first glance seems to lack any depth whatsoever. But then at second glance it is really charged with deep insights into the power of prayer and contains some very precious blessings for you.
Why We Bless Our Food
As you consider the title of this study, you may believe that it is so elementary that it is not worth your time to even look at it. But let me suggest to you that you will be exceedingly blessed as you discover the depth to which this devotion will take you – far beyond your wildest dreams.
A table blessing, in most cases, consists of a rather elementary rote form of thanksgiving, which in fact may be just fine as far as it goes. However, giving thanks for our food, as well as every other thing that we might do, is only a partial and somewhat limited understanding of a major insight into the power of this type of prayer. Not only do we need to give thanks for our food, but equally important is that we learn to bless our food – in fact, it may be even more important.
As I was preparing this series, I read 1 Corinthians 10:16a, “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ?” I had read this many times before, as we all have. Nevertheless, my eyes saw something that I had never really seen previously. A kind of a revelation was coming to me. What I was beginning to see were various principles which are God given rights as heirs to his Kingdom with Jesus.
Note: The Scripture did not say, “The cup of blessing, which the Lord blesses,” but rather it was saying quite clearly that we are the ones who are being called upon to do the blessing; it is not the Lord who does the blessing in this passage. That struck me very strongly. All my life I had been begging the Lord to bless me, which He does, but now all of a sudden I was seeing something quite new and fresh. I was to do the blessing. In this case I was to bless the wine and I was to bless the bread.
As I pondered this, the thought came to me to look up the word bless, which I did. It was at this moment that a tremendous transformation flowed over me. Yes, I did find passages where the emphasis is upon our being blessed by the Lord. However, the thing that I was seeing more than at any other time was the great many texts that were occupied with the notion that you and I are the ones who ought to be doing the blessing. When I saw this, it made sense to me because I had already taken the time to study the word authority and the word power. Authority and power I had learned are given to us by the Lord. So, we do have the authority and the power to heal the sick and cast out demons. Consequently, knowing that we have this kind of authority and power, it no longer surprised me to see that we have been given the good work of blessing people, places, and things – including food.
Perhaps the most significant passage which came to me in this study was Psalm 103. In this Psalm, David is the one who is doing all the blessing. Psalms 103:1-5. “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”To this point in the Psalm, David is commanding his soul to bless the Lord. Not only does he do it once, but he does it twice. This clued me in to the significance of this passage. In the Jewish culture, when something is repeated two times they intent is for you to sit up and take notice. Jesus does this quite often when He declares, “Verily, verily,” or “Truly, truly.” This repeating means that you and I need to really heed what is being said here. First of all we need to command our soul to pay attention – that is our mind, our reason, and our logic. Our soul, in this case, needs to bless the Lord. There it was, plain as day. You and I have to get our mind on track in blessing the Lord. Not only that, but we need to be about the business of getting our soul, our mind, our heart, our spirit and our whole being busy blessing the name of the Lord. WOW! What an insight! “Blessed be the name of the Lord!” “Bless his holy name!” “Blessed be the name of Jesus!” But then, upon further reflection, I saw that is just what Jesus himself had suggested we do in the Lord’s Prayer – to hallow the name of the Father. “Hallowed be thy name.”
The second insight was to bless the Lord for all of his benefits. We are to bless the Lord for all the manifold benefits which are ours in Jesus. But then you might say, “What benefits?” Interestingly the Psalm goes on to list a number of his benefits, “who forgives all your iniquity,” “who heals all your diseases,” “who redeems your life from the Pit,” “who crowns you with good as long as you live, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”
Instead of saying, “Bless me Lord with forgiveness.” We ought to be saying, “I bless you Lord for your Forgiveness.” And so forth!
The Lord has already provided you with all kinds of benefits through the blood of Jesus. Jesus paid the price. Forgiveness, healing, redemption from the Pit, crowning you with prosperity, and much, much more are all yours. Now all you have to do to receive these very precious benefits is to simply bless the Lord for them. Begin now! Begin to bless the Lord daily for all your needs and they will flow into your life as never before. Interestingly enough all these good stuff come to you out of the Old Testament. Nevertheless, Peter reminds us of the very same promises in 2 Peter 1:3-4. “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises [benefits], that through these you may escape from the corruption that is in the world, [i.e. sin, sickness, demonic oppression from the Pit, and poverty], because of passion [lust], and become partakers of the divine nature.”
I believe that you can easily see the similarities between this passage by Peter and the previous passage by David. Still, in the New Testament, Peter is able to go one step further. He tells us that we can by the divine power of the Lord become partakers of his very divine nature. This is the ultimate promise and/or benefit. You might even say that this is the very goal of this particular study. This is why I suggested at the very beginning of our study that this devotion will lead you beyond your wildest dreams.
As you can see, the more knowledge you have about the benefits and the promises, the more likely you are to receive them. After all you can’t bless the Lord for something that you do not know about. Think about it. If you are not receiving a blessing in some area of your life, then it may well be that you just have not taken the time to find that benefit and/or promise, so that you can bless the Lord for all that He has already given to you. Frankly, finding the promise or the benefit that fits your need means that you must take the time to look up the particular Scripture that speaks to your situation. In our fast food society, we sometimes put demands on the Lord for a fast answer, and we thereby miss our blessing. You need to do it.
Returning to 1 Corinthians 10, I began once again to see things that I had not seen previously. I noted with interest that Paul began his discussion concerning the blessing of bread and wine with an interesting phrase, “Therefore, my beloved, shun the worship of idols.” I began to wonder in what way our participation in the Lord’s Supper had to do with shunning the worship of idols. So, I read on. At first Paul talks about our being one body; Simple enough, we are all one as we join together in the Lord’s Supper. But, the next words really made me think. It had something to do with eating and becoming “partners” with the very thing that we eat. For a moment I could catch that thought. I eat some bread and it becomes a part of me. But Paul is not aiming at anything so elementary. He is standing ready to take us even deeper, much deeper into the supernatural. He tells us point blank, “I do not want you to be partners with demons.” WOW! That’s pretty heavy stuff. None of us want to be partners with demons. I sure don’t! And I am sure that you do not want to be partners with demons – neither you, nor your family. As you ponder the rest of this chapter, I believe that you will begin to see a great deal more. Paul does not want to frighten you, nor does he want you to be ignorant of the fact that it is possible to become partners with demons through the things you are eating.
Keep in mind that you do not know where your food has come from. The rice you eat may have come from Mwea, Pakistan, California; but, somewhere along the line it may have been blessed by a farmer using the zodiac. Or it might have been packaged by a person who is into some form of witchcraft. Or it may have been touched by someone with a form of disease. Of course, Jesus gives us a very special promise concerning such things in that if we eat some form of poison it will not hurt us in Mark 16:18, or in Luke 10:19. These are very powerful promises and benefits that you need to ponder and meditate upon. Ultimately, Paul does tell us that we have nothing to fear if we but continue in giving thanks. Vs. 30 “If I partake with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of that for which I give thanks?” Thankfulness is and ought to be a way of blessing the Lord for our food. In doing so, every threat of demonic power is broken and it will not enter my body. Yes, I know that my body is the temple of the Holy Spirit – yes, it is! And you might tend to believe that no demonic power can enter into your body because of that fact. However, what I do know is that Paul is warning us to be cautious in what we eat by giving thanks and/or blessing the food that we eat. If the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to encourage us in this way, then there must be a solid reason for doing so.
In this case, blessing food and giving thanks for it appears to be vital to this passage of Scripture. In the midst of this is a clear warning that demons can be in the very food you are eating or giving to your children. I know that some people are disagreeing with me on this and that is OK. However, how many of you have had some ailment enter into your body because of some form of virus or germ? So why then are we offended when we consider the possibility of a demonic power coming into our bodies through food offered to idols? Let me assure you that these warnings in chapter ten are for us as Spirit filled Christians.
WRAPPING IT UP
I believe that you will agree with me that giving thanks for our food and blessing it in the name of Jesus is vital to our physical well being as well as our spiritual well being. I have developed a very simple meal time prayer, which I would like to share with you. It is a simple prayer, but it covers all of the bases, thanksgiving and blessing.
“Lord I give thanks to you for this food and bless it in the name of Jesus.”
An Interesting Footnote:
Throughout this study, one word keeps bouncing along and you might just miss it, and so it is that I want to turn your attention to it. It is the Greek word koinonia. This word has a vast and very powerful meaning. An in depth study of just this one word would take up several pages. Perhaps at another time I will be able to delve into its full, rich meaning that we might fully garner all that the Holy Spirit has given to us.
We have seen it in a number of different ways as we moved from passage to passage. We saw it used as our “participation” in the bread and wine. We noted it as having something to do with being a “partner” in what we eat. Or, on the more supernatural side, we witnessed Paul’s admonition not to be “partners” with demons. We are encouraged by Peter to “partake” of the divine nature. In all of our studies, this word in and of itself brings a supernatural quality to the various passages where it is found. Very often you see it as the underlying word for “fellowship.” You might note the use of that word in 1 John 1 as you read that passage you can sense not just a fellowship of good friends – it can have this meaning – but a fellowship filled with divine qualities.
We very often see it in relation to the Lord’s Supper, where we see it translated as communion, such as in 1 Corinthians 10, where Paul declared that we participate in the bread and the wine, or have communion in the bread and the wine, or even fellowship in the bread and the wine. Some translators even go so far as to say that we are inter-participating in the bread and the wine. Now that we have just barely scratched the surface of this very powerful word, I am tempted to continue along this line. However, for this study, I felt that the Lord would at least open your eyes to the vast realm of wisdom which lies just below the surface of so many of the words given to us by the Holy Spirit.
The Lord has loaded every passage with far more than we can ever appreciate or comprehend. And even though our minds may fail us, the Holy Spirit himself intercedes for us as we hunger after the wealth of God’s manifold benefits and promises.
We praise the Lord for you and we bless you in the name of Jesus.
Amen!!!
Tuesday, 3rd March 2009 Devotion
Prayer Series:
Asking and Demanding
Having considered the topic of praying without ceasing, we now move ahead with Jesus as He leads us into the importance of asking, seeking and knocking as being central to your prayer life.
ASKING, SEEKING, KNOCKING, in Luke 11:9-13
Jesus intensifies his instruction on how to pray as He demonstrates the value of asking, seeking and knocking. These five verses are a rich morsel of Jesus’ teaching on prayer. As we consider these verses, I have expanded each verse with highlights from the Greek.
Luke 11:9-13. And I tell you, ask and demand continually and it will be given to you; seek, pursue, and strive for continually, and you will find and discover; knock continually, and it will be opened to you. [Note: The Greek word for ask as we shall see in a moment, may also be translated as demand. Seek has the further meaning of pursue and strive for. In each of these verbs, the Greek has the deeper meaning of asking, seeking, and knocking continually. This aspect of continual or repeated effort is in keeping with our previous lesson on praying without ceasing.] 9For all whosoever asks and demand continually, receives [is receiving], and whosoever seeks, pursues and strive for continually, finds and discovers [is finding and is discovering], and to him who knocks continually, it is opened. {It will be opened – traditional translation.} [Note: Again there is a stress placed on our continual or repeated asking, seeking and knocking. The traditional translation also tends to indicate that the answer will come to you at some time in the future, whereas in the Greek the answer to your prayers is a present reality. Yes, you may not as yet have seen that reality. However, by faith we receive it as being present now.] 10“What father among you, if his son will ask for a fish, will in place of a fish give him a serpent; 11or even if he will ask for an egg, will give him a scorpion?” [Note: Jesus understands that you may be concerned that there just might be some danger in your asking, that you may have a fear that you will get the wrong thing, or that Satan just might slip something over on you. Jesus understands these fears, and so it is that He addresses them head on by giving to us two examples showing you that you have nothing to fear from your asking.]
[Note also: Jesus gives us two examples which are strictly down to earth. He speaks about a common ordinary human father, and points out that such a father will not cheat or deceive his children by supplying them with serpents or scorpions. Serpents and scorpions are, of course, used by Jesus on various occasions to denote demons and evil spirits. In fact, this illustration is so strong, I need to direct your attention to Luke 10:19, which declares, "Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall hurt you." Not only do we have the assurance that our asking will not deceive us with demons and evil spirits, but far more important is the very extraordinary declaration that you and I have power and authority over them.] 12If therefore, you who continually exist in evil, know how to give and bestow good presents {gifts} to your children, how much more [greatly] will the Father in Heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who continually demand and ask him!” [Note: Jesus reaffirms that your Abba Father is quite able to do far more abundantly for you than any human father. If a human father is able to provide good gifts for his children, how much more will your Heavenly Father provide for those who ask? In fact, it is not just those who ask, but for those who continually ask and demand, as the Greek makes clear.]
In the above notes to this passage, I have tried to give you some food for thought. Through the Greek, we can see that there is persistence in these verses that we continually ask, continually seek, and continually knock. The very fact that Jesus uses three words, ask, seek, and knock, and not just one word, ask, stresses the concept that we are to press on. We are not to stop with simply asking once, but we are to ask, then we are to seek, and finally we are to knock – and to do so persistently. We are to keep on knocking, as the neighbor continued to demand bread at midnight, even to the point of importunity. At the same time, as you may have noted, we began to see that the Greek word for ask is also the Greek word for demand. I want to go into this concept with you much further as we continue our study series.
PRAYER AND ASKING IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
One of the key components of prayer in the New Testament is asking. It occurs well over 100 times in just the New Testament alone. To better understand the meaning of this word we need to turn to a study of the Greek. In the Greek New Testament, three words are used to express various forms of asking. They are: aiteo, eperotao, and erotao (a tay’ oh, eh per tay’ oh, er oh tay’ oh). Each of these has its own special meaning and thereby gives a slightly different slant to the way in which they are being used in various verses. English tends to lack that insight and translators have very often neglected it, so that different Greek words are often times translated by the same English word, ask. The sad thing is that none of us are able to know for certain just which of these three words underlies the verse we may be reading. You may even ask, “Who cares?” At one time I pondered that myself. Then, I felt that the Lord was speaking to me and saying, “I do!” The Lord then showed me that the Holy Spirit could have used the same Greek word throughout the New Testament. That would have been simple enough. However, the Holy Spirit inspired different words to give different meanings to each verse. He wanted us to have a deep, full, rich meaning, not just a watered down interpretation. His concern is that you have the fullness of his Word. Attempts to simplify the Word do not do justice to the Word, and very often empty it of its meaning. Our society demands quick easy answers with a fast food mentality.
The Lord is raising up an army in these days of men and women who can handle his Word with skill and confidence based upon an in depth study of that Word. The goal here is to help you to enrich your prayer life so that it will be very pleasing to the Lord and very satisfying to you. “Who cares?” “God cares!” Now, you too must learn to care. If the Lord took the time to pick just the right word, then you need to take the time to learn the meaning of those words. I firmly believe also your ability to pray for others will be enhanced as you increase your comprehension of each of these words. Your ability to intercede will take on deeper power with greater authority and your prayers on behalf of others will have richer meaning. As Paul declares, you are to fight the good fight of faith. And your fight is in knowing the power and the authority which is yours through the words you speak in the name of Jesus. This study will challenge your thinking to enhance your understanding of prayer as we consider each of these three Greek words in turn. To understand these words more fully, we shall consider their use in Scripture. The first Greek word for ask is aiteo.
AITEO – Dr. Kenneth Hagin defines it as having several meanings. He points out that one of those meanings is to make a demand, and/or to command something. Due to some of our traditional denominational training, we may have a difficult time accepting how he is defining this word. Many of us had/have understood prayer as being a form of begging or pleading with God to do something. It was totally incomprehensible for me to even consider the possibility of putting a demand upon God or for that matter upon anything else for which I might be praying. As for commanding – I could not handle that at all. To be honest, a study of the New Testament that has absolutely transformed my life as well as my ability to pray with power and authority and confidence and I am continuing to gain deeper, richer insights to God’s Word and the overall concept of prayer. Thankfully, aiteo is not a complex Greek word with many shades of meaning. Aiteo may be translated by three English verbs, to ask, to request or to demand. Since asking and requesting are of the same nature, we will simply focus our study on the two English verbs, to ask and to demand.
Since demanding is also a form of commanding, we will use these two words interchangeably. Webster’s tells us, “To command is to demand one’s due.” In regard to demanding, Webster’s tells us, “A demand is a request that is to be regarded as a command.” It also indicates that a “demand is to ask for one’s due” or “to ask for legally as a rightful owner.” As we can see in these English definitions, asking, demanding, and commanding all flow together. Each of these words contains the essence of each of the other words. It is all a matter of degree as to whether or not we use one or the other
EPEROTAO - This Greek word eperotao means to ask, or more precisely to ask a question. More specifically it means to consult. But even more notable is the fact that it never has the meaning to demand or to command. Demanding seems to be exclusively reserved for aiteo.
It is this fact that sets these two Greek words aiteo and eperotao apart. Aiteo has the connotation of demanding, whereas eperotao has a narrower meaning of simply asking a question and/or consulting.
I do not believe that this comes about by accident. It is very clear that the Holy Spirit wanted us to define these words very precisely, and not in the usual haphazard way of the Bible translators who have translated both words with the same English word, to ask. By doing so, most translations have lost all the emphasis and intensity of what the Holy Spirit originally intended. If the Holy Spirit wanted eperotao to be used in place of aiteo, he would have inspired the New Testament writers to use eperotao. As it is, eperotao is used with the overall connotation of asking a question or consultation, such as Pilate consulting with Jesus, or Jesus asking a question of his disciples. As Pilate changes his feelings for Jesus it is interesting to see that the verb also changes to erotao. With this verb change, Pilate is no longer shown as one simply consulting with Jesus, but rather he is shown as one interrogating him. Just with this one example, we can see the difference in the meaning of two distinctive words. In the Greek, Pilate consults then interrogates. Your English version shows Pilate merely asking at each point in their conversation.
It is also very interesting to see that never once is eperotao used by Jesus in teaching us to ask anything from God. Aiteo is used exclusively and very consistently. Whether we like it or not, aiteo very strongly suggests that we are not pleading with God, but rather we are to have the boldness to demand of God that He provide the very things which He has promised us in his Word. As we saw with the widow and the judge, Jesus tells us that we too must learn to pray in this fashion. As hard as that is to swallow, it is a valid concept which we cannot deny. At this point our sensitivities might be injured, but I assure you that God’s pride is not hurt in the least.
EROTAO – The word erotao is a root word for eperotao. Both words mean to ask and have the same basic connotation, to ask a question. It has the deeper meaning to interrogate. It may also mean to beg. However, it does not have the meaning of demand. In other words, only one of these three words, aiteo, has the meaning of demand. Again the Holy Spirit could have used this word, erotao, to replace aiteo. But he didn’t! The Holy Spirit chose a particular word to express a particular concept. It is my firm conviction that Bible translators should have translated each of these words in their own distinctive fashion. My suggestion is that aiteo should have been translated as ask or demand, with an emphasis on demanding. Eperotao should be given the meaning of consulting, and erotao should be shown as asking as in an interrogation. But we do not have these options, so we must make do with the single word, to ask.
Nevertheless you need to grasp these differences. I will pay particular attention to those passages in which the words ask reflects our understanding of prayer. To that end, in every case, aiteo is always used in relation to prayer. Eperotao and erotao, as far as I know, are never used in relation to prayer. As I have strongly suggested, there is a reason for this, that the Holy Spirit selected this word on purpose. If the Holy Spirit wanted us to “consult” with God, he would have given us eperotao. If it were simply the need to ask a question, the Holy Spirit would have inspired the use of the word erotao. But he did not select either of these words in relation to prayer.
The Holy Spirit must have wanted us to ask in prayer with an emphasis on demanding. If he did not want this emphasis, then one of the other two words would have been preferred. Remember, all three words may be translated “to ask,” while at the same time they each have their own particular emphasis. You may feel more at ease staying with the concept of simply asking, which is just fine. However, I would strongly encourage you not to fall back into the notion of begging or making supplication. The instructions of Jesus to continually ask in a demanding fashion reflect back on what He has taught us in the Lord’s Prayer with its strong emphasis on commanding our various needs to be met.
This lesson has challenged me to be even more deeply than any of the previous lessons.
Blessings!!
Monday, 2nd March 2009 Devotion
Prayer Series:
Pray Without Ceasing
As we enter into our sixth part of this study series, I will be considering the topic of praying without ceasing. This brings us into an aspect of prayer that also has to do with asking, knocking and seeking. Each of these various aspects of prayer involves a continual asking, a continual knocking and a continual seeking.
PRAYER WITHOUT CEASING!
In 1 Thessalonians 5:17 – KJ, we are given the exhortation to Pray without ceasing. As you look at this admonition, your first thought is that you cannot carry out this command. You just can’t do it. There seems to be no way that you can even come close to fulfilling such a high calling. To pray without ceasing seems to be beyond human endeavor. It just cannot be done. Glancing back at verse 16, you find no hope for it only adds to the impossibility of your quest by telling you, Rejoice always! You cannot conceive of any possible way to pray without ceasing, while at the same time you are rejoicing always. Our minds tell us that it simply cannot be done. As for verse 18, it only compounds the impossibility by giving to you the added burden to, give thanks in all circumstances. If this is not enough, it concludes by telling you that this is God’s will for your life. In other words, God’s will is that you pray without ceasing as you rejoice always, while you give thanks in all circumstances. Each of these in their own way goes beyond your physical ability to do so; they go beyond human endurance. Nevertheless, these commands of the Lord are there.
If your experience has been anything like mine, then you know that there was a day when it took all your ability to pray for five minutes, and even then you had to toss in a prayer that you had memorized, such as the Lord’s Prayer. At some point, I even added the Apostle’s Creed and the 23rd Psalm to my prayer time. Later, I received the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the ability to speak in tongues. Using tongues doubled my prayer life to all of ten minutes worth of “prayer without ceasing.”
In my early days as a new believer, my Pastor would ask you to pray in public, and my mouth would dry up and balls of cotton would take the place of my tongue – after all – everyone in church prayed out loud. Over the years, I have developed some skills in my ability to pray, and thankfully I have gained some insight with a degree of success. However, even this falls short of the high exalted exhortation to pray without ceasing. Just recently, I have come to feel that this admonition has to do with the admonition to walk in the Spirit. Being in the Spirit is without a doubt the only possible way for any of you and I to fulfill this seemingly impossible request – especially when we understand that these are in fact God’s will for our lives. Living in the Spirit, in and of itself, does not come easily, for it too takes practice and endurance. Verse 19 of this text tells us, “do not quench the Spirit”. This is followed by the admonition in verse 20, “do not despise prophesying”. Now, isn’t that interesting? Prayer without ceasing appears to be accomplished by not quenching the Spirit on one hand, and by not despising the gift of prophecy on the other. This combination would appear to be the very essence of prayer: conversation with God.
Let your requests be made known to God. – Phil 4:6b. The Holy Spirit then intercedes with groans too deep. – Rom. 8:27. And the answer flows back to you in a prophetic word from the Lord. Until this instant, I had never seen this relationship between prayer and prophecy. This revelation, to me, is very insightful. At the same time, not quenching the Spirit and praying without ceasing has to do with, Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. Col. 3:2 – RSV. It is the full realization that we can do nothing of value apart from Jesus.
We are to develop an attitude of having the mind of Christ, of abiding in Him as He abides in us. Abiding in Him means that we are abiding in the Word, because Jesus is the Word. This abiding in Jesus has to do with how we live life. It ought not to be a part time thing, spending part of our life in Him, while spending the remainder of the time in the flesh.
PERSISTENCE IN PRAYER
In our study we have already considered the following two passages of Scripture more fully, but for now let us just take a peek at a portion of each of these very informative teaching parables. Praying without ceasing has to do with persistence and these two parables are filled with persistence, even to the point of importunity. [Note: Sadly the NIV uses the word, boldness, which is in reality a totally different Greek word, and misses the point of the parable entirely.] Luke 11:5-8 – RSV. “And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, `Friend, lend me three loaves; 6 for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within, `Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything’? 8 I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him whatever he needs”. There is a certain aspect of “praying without ceasing” in this parable. In spite of the man’s importunity, he presses on, almost relentlessly, until he gets his way.
In the following parable, we meet with one of Jesus’ most fascinating persons, a widow woman, who by her persistence wins the day.
Luke 18:1 – 8 RSV. “And he told them a parable, to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. 2 He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor regarded man; 3 and there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, `Vindicate me against my adversary.’ 4 For a while he refused; but afterward he said to himself, “Though I neither fear God nor regard man, 5 yet because this widow bothers me, I will vindicate her, or she will wear me out by her continual coming.” 6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7 And will not God vindicate his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? 8 I tell you, he will vindicate them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of man comes, will he find faith on earth?” In verse one, Jesus urges that you “ought always to pray and not lose heart.” Again, the idea here is that we need to “always pray.” This is a kind of “praying without ceasing.”
In the parable, the widow woman could have stopped going before the judge. After all, she knew the kind of man that he was. She knew that her chances were very slim at best. She could have lost heart and given up. However, in a somewhat kindly fashion Jesus adds the notion, “not to lose heart.” This is understandable. Your case just may seem to be unobtainable. You may be on the verge of giving up. And Jesus knows that, even as He urges you to “always pray and not to lose heart.” Consequently, Jesus is standing with you and urging you not to lose heart, not to despair or even to mope. At the end of the parable Jesus exhorts us not to give up but to “cry unto God day and night.” Later in the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus finds that his elite chosen disciples have fallen asleep during a moment of crisis in his own life, “Could you not watch with me this one hour?” He is distressed that they have fallen asleep. Still, he quiets them by saying, “Take your rest.” The compassion of Jesus is seen even in this climatic moment. Still even here, we see the human inability to pray for one hour, let alone to pray “without ceasing.” Even Paul urges you, “Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart.” – 2 Corinthians 4:1 – RSV. Endurance: This is just one of the many aspects of our being able to pray without ceasing.
PERSISTENT PRAYER WITHOUT CEASING
Acts 12:5 – KJ. “Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing by the church unto God for him.” Some Translations speak about earnest prayer. Earnest prayer would be intense, serious and devoted prayer. But, what we see here is group prayer without ceasing, where a number of common ordinary folks come together to blend their efforts into one intense effort. From my own personal experience and thinking, I know that folks coming together are able to spend more time in earnest prayer, which during a prayer vigil can go forth for several hours. However, this still does not add up to prayer without ceasing. Since the advent of e-mail earnest, persistent prayer can reach around the world touching thousands and even tens of thousands, and may ultimately become a kind of prayer “without ceasing.”
PAUL PRAYED WITHOUT CEASING
Even Paul, on a number of different occasions indicates that he does pray without ceasing, such as in the four passages below. It is interesting that in his praying, he prays “without ceasing” for the sake of his flock. In Romans, Paul tells them that God is his witness that he is praying for them. Having God as your witness is truly unbeatable. Romans 1:9 – RSV. “For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers.” As Paul writes to the Thessalonians, he tells them that he is praying for them “without ceasing.” As he does so, it is interesting that Paul is giving thanks to the Lord for these folks. Even more fascinating is that Paul does this twice in the same letter. In one case, he is thankful for their work in the Kingdom. In the second, he is thankful for their having received the word and that the word is bearing fruit in their lives. 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 – KJ. “We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers; 3Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father.” 1 Thessalonians 2:13 – KJ “For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received [it] not [as] the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.”
As Paul writes to Timothy, once again he is giving thanks to the Lord for Timothy “without ceasing.” Not only does he give thanks without ceasing, but he does so both day and night. To pray without ceasing is one thing. But to pray without ceasing both day and night, that is powerful. As we noted above, Paul calls on God to be his witness. In this verse, he swears – as it were – by his forefathers, that he has a pure conscience. Just the fact that he can claim a pure conscience is insightful.
Psalm 1and Joshua 1 both contain the notion of meditation both day and night, which is in fact a form of prayer. As we have bounced from passage to passage, we have encountered this notion of continual prayer both day and night so that we can see that it is not just a New Testament thing. Both David and Joshua are being admonished by the Lord to meditate both day and night, to pray without ceasing. In looking at these two portions of Scripture, we note with interest that Joshua urges us a number of times “to be strong and of good courage.” I have come to believe that prayer without ceasing has a great deal to do with our being strong and of good courage so that we do not lose heart. I believe also that we have almost accidentally hit upon an aspect of prayer which is vital to our study, and that is the gift of meditation. Christian meditation has to do with persistence as you permit certain passages of God’s Word to flow through your lips continually and repeatedly, which in and of itself becomes a form of prayer. A need in your life for healing or in the life of a friend or a relative can be met by meditation upon verses dealing with healing.
HAVING A CLEAR CONSCIENCE
For most of us, claiming a pure conscience does not seem possible. Still, I believe that if it is possible for Paul to make such a claim, then it is encouragement for us that we too can come to the place where we may know that we do have a pure conscience, washed clean by the blood of Jesus. 2 Timothy 1:3 – KJ “I thank God, whom I serve from [my] forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day.” The lesson that we have learned here is that it is possible for us to pray “without ceasing.” If Paul can do it, so can we. If that seems far too elementary, it may well be that praying without ceasing is that simple. In the following verse, Paul tells us something that we have already alluded to. 1 Corinthians 14:15-17. “What am I to do? I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with the mind also; I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the mind also.” In this verse, I am amused by Paul’s question, “What am I to do?” It is as though the Holy Spirit was anticipating our question concerning prayer, “What are we to do?” Paul’s answer is fascinating in that it covers both praying and singing, as well as praying in the mind and in the spirit. This being able to pray with both the mind, “in English,” and with the spirit, “in tongues,” is a very blessed ability. The gift of tongues is so very precious, that none of us can fully understand just what a priceless gift this is that our Heavenly Father has given to us. 1 Corinthians 14:18. “I thank God that I speak in tongues more than you all.”
Paul thanks the Lord that he is able to speak in tongues more than any other person. Often times folks take little note of this verse and rush pell-mell into the next verse, 19. “Nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind, in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue.” Paul is not suggesting that speaking in English is somehow better than speaking in tongues; not at all! He is telling us that he is very thankful that he can in fact speak in tongues. Not only is he thankful but he is bragging that he can speak in tongues more than any other person. This is a very strong statement in favor of tongues, not in opposition to them. Paul is praising the use of tongues and in doing so; he is encouraging us to manifest this very precious gift. Admittedly, he does go on to tell us that it is far more valuable to speak with our mind when we are in the presence of others. This makes sense. If I were to stand in front of a congregation and speak in tongues it would be meaningless; it would make no sense to anyone. I believe that we all understand this. There is no argument. None of us would speak to a group of people in tongues. There is of course the one exception and that is to follow the speaking of tongues with the gift of interpretation. However, we do not want to miss the fact that Paul is thanking the Lord for the ability to speak in tongues and to do so more than any other person. This ability is not to be taken lightly. Undoubtedly this ability has much to do with Paul’s ability to pray without ceasing.
Another insight to what Paul is telling us is in his ability to also sing in tongues. Here again the ability to either speak or sing enhances our ability to add variety to the various ways in which we can spend time in prayer. Prayer is not meant to be laborious. It is meant to be an experience of communication with the very Creator of the universe, whom you call “Father.”
PAUL ENCOURAGES PRAYER WITHOUT CEASING
Romans 12:12 – RSV “Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” In this passage being constant in prayer is joined together with a combination of rejoicing with hope and patience in spite of persecution. [Note: In the dictionary, tribulation is a synonym for persecution, but not for wrath.] In this passage, as well as in the following passages, Paul is not asking us to do anything that he, Paul, is not able to do. If he is able to be constant in prayer, then he fully anticipates that you and I are going to be constant in prayer – nothing more and nothing less.
In the following verse, Paul reminds us again of certain factors which are vital to our understanding of how we are to pray without ceasing. Ephesians 6:18 – RSV “Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.”
The most important clue on how to pray without ceasing is to be found in this verse. Prayer without ceasing must always be in the Spirit. Whether we pray with the understanding or with tongues make no difference. Whether we are speaking or singing has nothing to do with our ability to pray. Being in the Spirit is all important to whichever way you pray. Walking in the Spirit and living in the Spirit means that we can succeed in praying at all times without ceasing because it is the Spirit who does the praying, even as we see in the following verse. Romans 8:26-27. “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words. 27 And he who searches the hearts of men knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”
The moment we acknowledge the impossibility of our being able to pray without ceasing is the very moment that we acknowledge our need of the Holy Spirit. If we could enter into the essence of this entire eighth chapter of Romans, it would be very exciting. All I can do at this moment is to urge you to side with this very anointed Word and meditate on it until the fullness that all of what Jesus has for you flows into you through his Holy Spirit. This is the answer I have been searching for, that I might pray without ceasing. In the previous verse, perseverance has to do with standing firm in the knowledge that the Holy Spirit is in the midst of your praying at every moment both day and night.
Finally, we have this admonition from Paul. Colossians 4:2 – RSV “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.”
I conclude our study with this same exhortation, “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.“ at all times in the Spirit, who intercedes without ceasing for you.
Friday, 28th, February 2009 Devotion
Prayer Series:
Luke 18, Persistence
Receiving Your Rights and/or Your Vindication
Luke 18:1-8
Having considered the parable of Jesus in Luke 11 concerned with persistence even to the point of importunity, we will once again consider the topic of persistence in prayer. Over the years, I began to notice that my pastor and few of my partners have been urging me to be persistent in prayer, whereas others have been urging me to pray once and only once. They told me that praying more than once was a lack of faith and even an insult to the Lord. This was a very pressing dilemma, because I wanted my prayer life to be very pleasing to the Lord. Over the years, the Lord has been showing me a variety of Scripture passages which tend to deal with persistence. I have noted with fascination that in Mk 8:22-26, even Jesus had to lay his hands on the blind man two times. Paul at one point tells us that he prayed three times for a particular thorn in his side in 2nd Cor. 12:8. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed three times that this cup would pass from Him Mt. 26:36-46.
Benny Hinn told a story of one woman who was very persistent, who followed him from crusade to crusade until she was healed. Ken and Gloria Copeland tell of any number of folks who spoke words of faith numerous times before receiving their healing. One woman affirmed healing to her body 100 times per day until she received her healing. In our own family we have seen times when one prayer brought healing. My mother was healed from a persistent disease which had troubled her for one year moving from one hospital to another as we laid hands on her just one time. While in the midst of remembering all this, the Lord led me to two passages: Luke 11:1-13 & Luke 18:1-8. Both of these have to do with being persistent in prayer. I would like to share one of those with you at this time, Luke 18:1-8. I desire to have the most undefiled understanding of this parable, because in this passage Jesus is instructing us to be persistent. Being persistent also means to be diligent. However, if in English there is an emphasis on persistence, then wait until you see what is contained in the Greek. Greek has an even higher degree of emphasis on being persistent.
Being Given Your Rights or Your Vindication Luke 18:1-8
As you read my translation, you might have one or two other versions in front of you for comparison. Here is my translation followed by some helpful notes. 2And Jesus told them a parable that it is necessary to pray continually and not to lose heart or to despair, not even to mope. He said, there was a judge in a certain town, who never feared God and never regarded men. 3And a widow was in the same town, and she was continually coming to him and continually saying, I demand that you give me my rights, to vindicate me from my adversary. 4For a time he was not willing; but afterward he said to himself, I do not fear God nor regard men, 5yet if by her holding out, the widow wears me out, I will give her, her rights and vindicate her and put an end to her continual coming. 6And the Lord said, I command you to hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7And, will not God give rights, and vindicate the elect, those who are especially beloved and chosen, who cry out to Him continually both day and night? He will have patience and will not long delay over them. 8I tell you that He will give them their rights and vindicate them quickly and speedily.
Some Helpful Notes Verse by Verse
1. The word necessary comes from a Greek word having to do with an “essential duty” or “obligation.” Prayer is something that we ought to do. It is a necessity, a duty or an obligation. Here too we see the first emphasis on our praying continually or always.
2. The word never has the added emphasis of being a “continual” negative action. In this case the judge “continually did not” or “never” feared God and never regarded man. If he had no regard for men, how much less regard would he have for a widow?
3. In a number of different situations, widows are mentioned in Scripture. It is my understanding that a widow in Israel was very often looked down upon and had no place in society, and very often widows had few or no rights. In a male dominated society, a woman’s rights were in her husband. Consequently, for a widow woman to bring a demand to an overbearing judge would be unheard of. You might say that she had three strikes against her even before she came to court.
This Widow Woman Knew Her Rights!
This woman knew her rights, and she had the gall to pursue those rights with a vengeance. The Greek tends to stress her “continual” coming, and her “continual” speaking. Then, she does something that must have been absolutely outrageous. She tells the judge, “I demand my rights!” “I command you to give me my rights.” This is very strong language, but the Greek is in the imperative, command, form of the verb.
The woman had several things going for her before she came to court.
a. She knew her rights. I urge you to discover your rights in God’s Word. Far too many of God’s children lack an understanding of their Biblical rights.
b. She was not hesitant in coming “continually” and speaking “continually.” I urge you not to hesitate in coming and speaking affirmatively and “continually” to God. This is a God given right to “continually” come before the Lord.
c. She was not unwilling to make demands of the judge. I urge you not to be unwilling to bring your demands before God. Bringing a demand to the Lord is a God given right.
Note also that the word normally translated as vindication may also be translated as rights. To vindicate someone also means to give someone their rights. In my translation, I felt that I would use a combination of vindication and rights to amplify the text.
4. In this verse, we need to note the passing of time, which is something that many of us are unable to do when it comes to prayer. Jesus is admitting that the answer may take time, and this is why He tells us, “not to lose heart or to despair or to mope,” but to pray “continually.”
5. Two things occur in this verse. The judge becomes weary and tired of her coming. The Greek also has the meaning of being struck under the eye. You might even say that she gave the judge a black eye. Most important of all, he becomes weary because of the woman’s “continual” coming and “continual” talking. Again the stress of the parable is on our “continual” or “incessant” coming.
6. Jesus now commands us to hear. Again the same Greek verb tense is used by Jesus in this verse as was used by the widow in verse three i.e. the imperative, command, form of the verb.
7. Verse seven now turns away from the judge and applies what we have learned to God Himself. We are told that the elect – that is the chosen or the exalted or the specially beloved – are to cry out to God continually. Again the stress is on our continually crying out to the Lord. Further stress upon our continually crying out comes from Jesus as He urges us to cry out all the more both day and night.
8. Beginning in verse seven and flowing over to verse eight we see that those who continually cry out both day and night will be rewarded. God will not long delay over them, and He will in fact give them their rights and vindicate them speedily and quickly. This is a tremendous promise!
What I would like to add at this point is to encourage you to use these same principles as you intercede for others. In fact, as I have pointed out, the very essence of love is that we stand by another person as much as we would for our own rights. As you fight the battle on the front lines for other people, learn how to fight the battle from a distance. Day by day, as you pray for others, the Lord gradually show you how to pray. Over a period of time, various aspects of prayer have begun to come to me. One of the things that I tended to do was to extend my hand in a certain direction mostly the direction in which the person am praying for lives. At the same time, I feel that I needed to cast out some spirits while at the same time to bless the person with the fruit and the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Nevertheless, there are no Robert’s Rules on how to pray. It’s a learning experience day by day. God is a Creator God, and He is at work on your behalf to help you develop your prayer life according to your own distinctive needs and desires.
In Closing
This parable (of the persistent widow) leaves no doubt that we are to come continually or incessantly to God. Such continual incessant coming and speaking is not a lack of faith. Obedience to the parable produces reward. God acts. I trust that I have been able to stimulate your insight into this parable as well as to your way of praying, giving you a new tenacity and diligence.
Let’s continue to follow the lead of Jesus. As you recall, the disciples of Jesus demanded that He teach them to pray. In response, Jesus laid out several steps in his method of training. He showed them that their Abba Father was deeply concerned about their needs. He then provided them with an outline of how to pray in the Lord’s Prayer. Following that, Jesus began to train his disciples in the concept of asking, knocking and seeking as vital aspects of their prayer life. A portion of asking, knocking and seeking is that of praying “without ceasing.”
God love and bless you in your study of his Word.
Amen!!!
The Word…
"May my life always Radiate thy Glory oh Lord!"
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you, and Lo! I am with you always till the end of the world.” AMEN!
Matthew 20:19-20
This is the greatest commandment that we have ever been given. “Go ye therefore…” When you got saved, you were not taken to heaven directly, that’s why you are here so that you can help someone else know the truth just as someone else helped you and you came to the light. Many of us think that this call is just for the people in the five-fold ministry just as I used to think, but Jesus was speaking to you and Me. We have no excuse of not going out there to share the love of Christ to the nations. Jesus said, the fields are white and ready for harvest, but the labourers are few. Once you and I avail ourselves to go and be part of the labourers, we will fill out the empty pews in the church and the devils kingdom will be on the losing end.
Word of Life is a site whose aim and agenda is to equip you daily with the word of God and encourage you to fulfill the mission and purpose that God has called you to do here on earth. I don’t want us when we reach heaven to be told that… you had this soul to bring to the kingdom and now it is perishing…. NO!!! I want a situation whereby, we will all be commended by God for a work well done “Good and faithful servant….” That will be my joy when we will all be gathered together to celebrate our Victory.
This is a call I am making to you who is reading this blog, don’t just benefit, inform your friends, family and everyone else and let us help each other in this journey of faith till we reach our heavenly home.
Yours in Christ’s vineyard,
Dennis.
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