During the month of June at Trinity Church, we have been emphasizing the Holy Spirit and His work in our lives. It is impossible to overstate the value of His role. Jesus' atoning work on the Cross was done -- not only to make it possible for us to go to Heaven some day -- but also to make it possible for the Holy Spirit to indwell us in the here and now. This morning in my devotional reading I encountered these words spoken by Jesus on the eve of His crucifixion:
"If you love me, show it by doing what I've told you. I will talk to the Father, and he'll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can't take him in because it doesn't have eyes to see him, doesn't know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you." (John 14:15-17 The Message)
The Holy Spirit indwells believers the moment they accept Christ as Savior. However, there is a further experience with the Spirit that involves an overwhelming fullness of His presence and power in our lives. This is called the "Baptism in the Holy Spirit" (see Acts 1:5) and is available to every believer, providing power for Christian living (see Acts 1:8).
One of the bi-products of the Baptism in the Spirit is spiritual language. What a favor God has done for us in this blessing. Sometimes called "speaking in tongues", it is a controversial subject in the Church, unfortunately. But for those who will embrace all of God's gifts as "good and perfect", it brings tremendous benefits.
More on this in my next post.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
GOD'S PRESCRIPTION FOR WORSHIP
"Do not make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold. Make an altar of earth for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, your sheep and goats and your cattle. Wherever I cause my name to be honored, I will come to you and bless you. And do not go up to my altar on steps, lest your nakedness be exposed on it." Exodus 20:23-26
We are not left to wonder what God wants from us in the way of worship. He is very explicit in explaining what He wants. And what He wants is not demanding or difficult. The passage above reduces the matter to three simple principles. Even though they are found in the Old Testament, they can easily be applied to New Covenant worship. They are:
1) Simplicity. "Do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold. Make an altar of earth for me." No silver or gold. Just an altar of earth. Anybody could afford such an altar. God doesn't require gilded cathedrals, fancy robes, and elaborate liturgy. He just wants our simple and sincere expressions of love. He wants our hearts, which are his "altars of earth" (considering we are made of dust).
2) Sacrifice. "Sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings." God does want our worship to involve cost. He wants a "sacrifice of praise -- the fruit of our lips, confessing His name" (Hebrews 13:15). He wants worship to be more than just a perfunctory routine, just going through the motions. He wants it to involve our heart, mind, soul, and strength. When we employ our minds and mouths, our hands and hearts, it can be a pleasing sacrifice to Him, especially when we don't feel like it. The sacrifices mentioned in this Exodus passage -- burnt offerings and fellowship offerings -- involved a meal the worshipers would eat in the Lord's presence. What started off as a sacrifice ended up as a feast! What a picture of true worship!
3) Spirituality. "Do not go up to my altar on steps, lest your nakedness be exposed on it." That sounds a little strange the first time you read it. Basically, the Lord is prescribing modesty and spirituality -- in contrast to sensuality. Ancient pagan worship often involved sexual immorality -- a perversion of the pure and holy worship we owe the true and living God. God understands our human bent toward the sensual. It doesn't take a lot to get our minds off of Him and on the flesh. So He says, "Keep your worship expressions modest and spiritual." On a few occasions I have been grieved by preachers or worship leaders who were more sensual than spiritual. If you are in a position to lead others in worship, be mindful of your appearance. If you show a lot of skin, if you "jive" to the music in a seductive way, you distract people from true worship.
Check out this gracious promise inserted in the middle of this Exodus passage: "Wherever I cause my name to be honored, I will come to you and bless you." If your worship is simple, sacrificial, and spiritual, it honors His name, and He will "come" and He will "bless you." Sounds a little like Jesus' promise in Matthew 18:20 -- "Wherever two or three of you gather together in my name, there am I in your midst."
We are not left to wonder what God wants from us in the way of worship. He is very explicit in explaining what He wants. And what He wants is not demanding or difficult. The passage above reduces the matter to three simple principles. Even though they are found in the Old Testament, they can easily be applied to New Covenant worship. They are:
1) Simplicity. "Do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold. Make an altar of earth for me." No silver or gold. Just an altar of earth. Anybody could afford such an altar. God doesn't require gilded cathedrals, fancy robes, and elaborate liturgy. He just wants our simple and sincere expressions of love. He wants our hearts, which are his "altars of earth" (considering we are made of dust).
2) Sacrifice. "Sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and fellowship offerings." God does want our worship to involve cost. He wants a "sacrifice of praise -- the fruit of our lips, confessing His name" (Hebrews 13:15). He wants worship to be more than just a perfunctory routine, just going through the motions. He wants it to involve our heart, mind, soul, and strength. When we employ our minds and mouths, our hands and hearts, it can be a pleasing sacrifice to Him, especially when we don't feel like it. The sacrifices mentioned in this Exodus passage -- burnt offerings and fellowship offerings -- involved a meal the worshipers would eat in the Lord's presence. What started off as a sacrifice ended up as a feast! What a picture of true worship!
3) Spirituality. "Do not go up to my altar on steps, lest your nakedness be exposed on it." That sounds a little strange the first time you read it. Basically, the Lord is prescribing modesty and spirituality -- in contrast to sensuality. Ancient pagan worship often involved sexual immorality -- a perversion of the pure and holy worship we owe the true and living God. God understands our human bent toward the sensual. It doesn't take a lot to get our minds off of Him and on the flesh. So He says, "Keep your worship expressions modest and spiritual." On a few occasions I have been grieved by preachers or worship leaders who were more sensual than spiritual. If you are in a position to lead others in worship, be mindful of your appearance. If you show a lot of skin, if you "jive" to the music in a seductive way, you distract people from true worship.
Check out this gracious promise inserted in the middle of this Exodus passage: "Wherever I cause my name to be honored, I will come to you and bless you." If your worship is simple, sacrificial, and spiritual, it honors His name, and He will "come" and He will "bless you." Sounds a little like Jesus' promise in Matthew 18:20 -- "Wherever two or three of you gather together in my name, there am I in your midst."
Friday, February 11, 2011
ANATOMY OF A TRAITOR
"That is when one of the Twelve, the one named Judas Iscariot, went to the cabal of high priests and said, 'What will you give me if I hand him over to you?' They settled on thirty silver pieces. He began looking for just the right moment to hand him over." Matthew 26:14 (MSG)
Judas' betrayal of Jesus occurred on the heels of offense. Mary of Bethany had just broken her expensive alabaster box of ointment and poured its contents on Jesus. (There are multiple accounts of this incident in the gospels and each supplies additional details to the story.) The disciples protested such "waste" of resources, which, they said, could better have been spent on the poor. One account indicates Judas actually voiced the objection. Jesus intervened, rebuking the disciples and defending Mary's action: "What she has done is a beautiful thing. She has anointed my body for burial. You will always have opportunity to do something for the poor. You will not always have opportunity to do something for me."
Judas was stung by Jesus' rebuke. As treasurer he handled the money, and evidently he felt he should have a voice in how it should be used. Judas' perspective was too narrow-- monetary decisions were defined only by a "cost/benefit analysis." Furthermore, all this talk of death and burial didn't fit Judas' paradigm of success. Again, his perspective was too narrow -- too utilitarian (what "works" is what's good) -- too temporal ("kingdom now not later") -- too selfish ("what's in it for me?")
A purely "cost/benefit" analysis of expenses might be fine in the case of for-profit business, but not in the case of Kingdom matters. They must be viewed from a higher, wider perspective -- a spiritual perspective. Jesus knew the deeper dimension to Mary's act. The disciples did not. Judas had personal spiritual problems that further skewed his perspective on this incident. Another account indicates he was dishonest. For him, money was the all-important consideration.
While we should be good stewards of resources, beware of the tendency to make money the all-important consideration. Look beyond the "cost-benefit" concept and see if there might be other things to consider. What appears to be "waste," may in fact, be something very pleasing to God. Check your heart on this. Beware of taking offense over money issues. It can lead to the betrayal of God's people and God's purpose.
Judas' betrayal of Jesus occurred on the heels of offense. Mary of Bethany had just broken her expensive alabaster box of ointment and poured its contents on Jesus. (There are multiple accounts of this incident in the gospels and each supplies additional details to the story.) The disciples protested such "waste" of resources, which, they said, could better have been spent on the poor. One account indicates Judas actually voiced the objection. Jesus intervened, rebuking the disciples and defending Mary's action: "What she has done is a beautiful thing. She has anointed my body for burial. You will always have opportunity to do something for the poor. You will not always have opportunity to do something for me."
Judas was stung by Jesus' rebuke. As treasurer he handled the money, and evidently he felt he should have a voice in how it should be used. Judas' perspective was too narrow-- monetary decisions were defined only by a "cost/benefit analysis." Furthermore, all this talk of death and burial didn't fit Judas' paradigm of success. Again, his perspective was too narrow -- too utilitarian (what "works" is what's good) -- too temporal ("kingdom now not later") -- too selfish ("what's in it for me?")
A purely "cost/benefit" analysis of expenses might be fine in the case of for-profit business, but not in the case of Kingdom matters. They must be viewed from a higher, wider perspective -- a spiritual perspective. Jesus knew the deeper dimension to Mary's act. The disciples did not. Judas had personal spiritual problems that further skewed his perspective on this incident. Another account indicates he was dishonest. For him, money was the all-important consideration.
While we should be good stewards of resources, beware of the tendency to make money the all-important consideration. Look beyond the "cost-benefit" concept and see if there might be other things to consider. What appears to be "waste," may in fact, be something very pleasing to God. Check your heart on this. Beware of taking offense over money issues. It can lead to the betrayal of God's people and God's purpose.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
EVIDENCE
"The two of them climbed into the boat, and the wind died down. The disciples in the boat, having watched the whole thing, worshiped Jesus, saying, 'This is it! You are God's Son for sure!'"
Matt 14:32 (Message)
When He came walking across that blustery sea in the middle of the night, Jesus gave his disciples an amazing show of indisputable evidence that he was the son of God --something he did not do for the pharisees when they asked for a "sign". Why would He grant evidence to one group and not to another?
By the time of this miracle, his disciples had demonstrated their faith in and commitment to Him. They were not curiosity-seekers merely wanting a show. Nor were they hangers-on, seeking the fringe benefits of Jesus' ministry -- interesting talks and free lunches. These men had made the commitment of faith. They had forsaken the world and put their lives on the line for Him and His kingdom. And He accommodated their faith with faith-confirming evidence.
This illustrates the principle that to those who have, more will be given. To those who have simple, trusting faith, more evidence will be given to bolster and grow their faith. To those who have no faith, yet demand evidence, what they have will be taken from them -- the rare and precious opportunity to believe.
But Jesus didn't reserve convincing evidence only for His inner circle. A couple of verses later we read, "On return, they beached the boat at Gennesaret. When the people got wind that he was back, they sent out word through the neighborhood and rounded up all the sick, who asked for permission to touch the edge of his coat. And whoever touched him was healed." Matthew 14:34 Those dear people trusted Him for healing and their faith was not disappointed.
Someone has said: For the one who doesn't believe, no proof is adequate; for the one who does believe, no proof is necessary.
Still, God always confirms the faith of the simple, trusting heart.
Matt 14:32 (Message)
When He came walking across that blustery sea in the middle of the night, Jesus gave his disciples an amazing show of indisputable evidence that he was the son of God --something he did not do for the pharisees when they asked for a "sign". Why would He grant evidence to one group and not to another?
By the time of this miracle, his disciples had demonstrated their faith in and commitment to Him. They were not curiosity-seekers merely wanting a show. Nor were they hangers-on, seeking the fringe benefits of Jesus' ministry -- interesting talks and free lunches. These men had made the commitment of faith. They had forsaken the world and put their lives on the line for Him and His kingdom. And He accommodated their faith with faith-confirming evidence.
This illustrates the principle that to those who have, more will be given. To those who have simple, trusting faith, more evidence will be given to bolster and grow their faith. To those who have no faith, yet demand evidence, what they have will be taken from them -- the rare and precious opportunity to believe.
But Jesus didn't reserve convincing evidence only for His inner circle. A couple of verses later we read, "On return, they beached the boat at Gennesaret. When the people got wind that he was back, they sent out word through the neighborhood and rounded up all the sick, who asked for permission to touch the edge of his coat. And whoever touched him was healed." Matthew 14:34 Those dear people trusted Him for healing and their faith was not disappointed.
Someone has said: For the one who doesn't believe, no proof is adequate; for the one who does believe, no proof is necessary.
Still, God always confirms the faith of the simple, trusting heart.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
A TALE OF TWO KINGS
Genesis 14:17 (MSG)
After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and his allied kings, the king of Sodom came out to greet him in the Valley of Shaveh, the King's Valley. Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine---he was priest of The High God---and blessed him: Blessed be Abram by The High God, Creator of Heaven and Earth. And blessed be The High God, who handed your enemies over to you. Abram gave him a tenth of all the recovered plunder.
Today's reading in Matthew 6 and yesterday's reading in Genesis 14 correlate with each other. Jesus teaches us not to be so preoccupied with getting that we miss all that God is giving. Abraham illustrates this principle. Following the battle in which he rescues his nephew Lot, Abraham is visited by two kings. The King of Sodom represents a world-view all about getting. The King of Salem is about giving. One offers Abraham material riches. The other offers him spiritual blessing. One offers him what he wanted. The other offers him what he needed. Abraham wisely chooses the latter and gets both!
There is no disconnect between spiritual and financial blessing. They are not mutually exclusive. When you prioritize the spiritual you are not forfeiting the material. However, when you prioritize the material, you do forfeit the spiritual.
Every day two hands are extended to each of us. Both are full. One contains the promise of momentary profit and pleasure. The other contains the promise of eternal life. Abraham chose wisely. Read his story again and pray for his kind of wisdom.
"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers---most of which are never even seen---don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting , so you can respond to God's giving . People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met." Matthew 6:30-33 (MSG)
After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and his allied kings, the king of Sodom came out to greet him in the Valley of Shaveh, the King's Valley. Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine---he was priest of The High God---and blessed him: Blessed be Abram by The High God, Creator of Heaven and Earth. And blessed be The High God, who handed your enemies over to you. Abram gave him a tenth of all the recovered plunder.
Today's reading in Matthew 6 and yesterday's reading in Genesis 14 correlate with each other. Jesus teaches us not to be so preoccupied with getting that we miss all that God is giving. Abraham illustrates this principle. Following the battle in which he rescues his nephew Lot, Abraham is visited by two kings. The King of Sodom represents a world-view all about getting. The King of Salem is about giving. One offers Abraham material riches. The other offers him spiritual blessing. One offers him what he wanted. The other offers him what he needed. Abraham wisely chooses the latter and gets both!
There is no disconnect between spiritual and financial blessing. They are not mutually exclusive. When you prioritize the spiritual you are not forfeiting the material. However, when you prioritize the material, you do forfeit the spiritual.
Every day two hands are extended to each of us. Both are full. One contains the promise of momentary profit and pleasure. The other contains the promise of eternal life. Abraham chose wisely. Read his story again and pray for his kind of wisdom.
"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers---most of which are never even seen---don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting , so you can respond to God's giving . People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met." Matthew 6:30-33 (MSG)
Friday, December 31, 2010
A MAN TREASURED BY GOD - PART 4
"Lord, hear! Lord, forgive! Lord, listen and act! My God, for Your own sake, do not delay, because Your city and Your people are called by Your name." Daniel 9:19
Why was Daniel called "a man treasured by God"? Having already established that his prayer life was a key to this, let me point up the final and most important aspect of his prayer life that made him so special: Daniel's praying was God-centered and Kingdom-focused. This is abundantly clear in the verse above, as Daniel is concluding his prayer beseeching the Lord to fulfill His promise to restore the Jews to their ancient homeland. Daniel is concerned, not just about himself and his people, but also about the Lord's interests in this matter. "For Your own sake...because Your city and Your people are called by Your name." Daniel's praying is God-centered.
By contrast, much of the praying we do today is man-centered and need-focused. It concerns our interests -- our needs -- our desires. God should do this or that because of how it will affect us. "Heal me because I'm in pain. Meet my financial need so I won't suffer lack. Help our marriage so we can be a happy couple." Seldom do we pray about a matter from God's perspective, and for His sake. It's mostly for our sake.
Please don't misunderstand. I am not saying that we shouldn't pray about our personal problems and needs. On the contrary, in the Lord's Prayer, Jesus instructed us to pray, "Give us this day, our daily bread..." Instead of worrying about our problems, we are to lay them before our Father in confident prayer (Matthew 6:25-34). In fact, Jesus urged that we persist in praying until our needs are met: "Keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep searching and you will find. Keep knocking and the door will be opened to you" (Matthew 7:7-11).
BUT, Jesus also taught us to pray FIRST about God's kingdom interests, before we pray about our personal needs: "Therefore you should pray like this: 'Our Father in heaven, Your name be honored as holy. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven...[Then pray] ...Give us this day our daily bread...'" (Matthew 6:9-11).
Again, don't misunderstand. This is not a cumbersome "formula" to be followed at all times. Obviously if we are in crisis, we should just cry out to God for help. If a pit bull is attacking me, I'm not going to work through some religious protocol. I'm going to scream, "Jesus, help me!"
But what about other times, when our needs are not so urgent? And even when praying for our needs, shouldn't we consider them from God's perspective? Why not pray, "Father, heal me because my healing will bring honor to You. Your Son bore the stripes for my healing -- do it for His sake." Regardless of the issue, when we pray from God's perspective, our praying will be more faith-filled, and therefore, more powerful.
God-centered and Kingdom-focused praying is biblical praying. We see it all over the Word. Jesus said, "Seek first the Kingdom of God...and all these things will be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33). In other words, we should pray first about God's kingdom interests, while also trusting Him to take care of our personal interests. When the Apostles were arrested and threatened by the religious authorities, as soon as they were released, they gathered the church for a prayer meeting. What did they pray for? Relief from persecution? Protection for themselves? No. "And Now Lord, consider their threats, and grant Your that servants may speak Your message with complete boldness, while you stretch forth Your hand to heal and perfome miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant, Jesus" (Acts 4:29-31). That's God-centered and kingdom-focused praying and it is powerful! Read the prayers of Paul in his epistles and pray them, inserting your name and the names of your dear ones. You will find yourself praying some powerful, God-centered prayers -- prayers that get results.
Not long ago the Lord laid it on my heart to create a little booklet that contains seven prayer topics -- one for each day of the week. Each topic is a matter dear to the heart of God. In the booklet each topic has several bullet points (I call them "prayer prompts") as well as scriptures that pertain to that particular topic. The booklet is titled "Come Boldly", and is available free of charge to anyone who requests it. It is a great tool to prompt us toward God-centered, Kindgom-focused praying. I commend it to you for your praying in 2011.
Why was Daniel called "a man treasured by God"? Having already established that his prayer life was a key to this, let me point up the final and most important aspect of his prayer life that made him so special: Daniel's praying was God-centered and Kingdom-focused. This is abundantly clear in the verse above, as Daniel is concluding his prayer beseeching the Lord to fulfill His promise to restore the Jews to their ancient homeland. Daniel is concerned, not just about himself and his people, but also about the Lord's interests in this matter. "For Your own sake...because Your city and Your people are called by Your name." Daniel's praying is God-centered.
By contrast, much of the praying we do today is man-centered and need-focused. It concerns our interests -- our needs -- our desires. God should do this or that because of how it will affect us. "Heal me because I'm in pain. Meet my financial need so I won't suffer lack. Help our marriage so we can be a happy couple." Seldom do we pray about a matter from God's perspective, and for His sake. It's mostly for our sake.
Please don't misunderstand. I am not saying that we shouldn't pray about our personal problems and needs. On the contrary, in the Lord's Prayer, Jesus instructed us to pray, "Give us this day, our daily bread..." Instead of worrying about our problems, we are to lay them before our Father in confident prayer (Matthew 6:25-34). In fact, Jesus urged that we persist in praying until our needs are met: "Keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep searching and you will find. Keep knocking and the door will be opened to you" (Matthew 7:7-11).
BUT, Jesus also taught us to pray FIRST about God's kingdom interests, before we pray about our personal needs: "Therefore you should pray like this: 'Our Father in heaven, Your name be honored as holy. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven...[Then pray] ...Give us this day our daily bread...'" (Matthew 6:9-11).
Again, don't misunderstand. This is not a cumbersome "formula" to be followed at all times. Obviously if we are in crisis, we should just cry out to God for help. If a pit bull is attacking me, I'm not going to work through some religious protocol. I'm going to scream, "Jesus, help me!"
But what about other times, when our needs are not so urgent? And even when praying for our needs, shouldn't we consider them from God's perspective? Why not pray, "Father, heal me because my healing will bring honor to You. Your Son bore the stripes for my healing -- do it for His sake." Regardless of the issue, when we pray from God's perspective, our praying will be more faith-filled, and therefore, more powerful.
God-centered and Kingdom-focused praying is biblical praying. We see it all over the Word. Jesus said, "Seek first the Kingdom of God...and all these things will be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33). In other words, we should pray first about God's kingdom interests, while also trusting Him to take care of our personal interests. When the Apostles were arrested and threatened by the religious authorities, as soon as they were released, they gathered the church for a prayer meeting. What did they pray for? Relief from persecution? Protection for themselves? No. "And Now Lord, consider their threats, and grant Your that servants may speak Your message with complete boldness, while you stretch forth Your hand to heal and perfome miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant, Jesus" (Acts 4:29-31). That's God-centered and kingdom-focused praying and it is powerful! Read the prayers of Paul in his epistles and pray them, inserting your name and the names of your dear ones. You will find yourself praying some powerful, God-centered prayers -- prayers that get results.
Not long ago the Lord laid it on my heart to create a little booklet that contains seven prayer topics -- one for each day of the week. Each topic is a matter dear to the heart of God. In the booklet each topic has several bullet points (I call them "prayer prompts") as well as scriptures that pertain to that particular topic. The booklet is titled "Come Boldly", and is available free of charge to anyone who requests it. It is a great tool to prompt us toward God-centered, Kindgom-focused praying. I commend it to you for your praying in 2011.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
A MAN TREASURED BY GOD - PART 3
"...in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the Lord given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes." Daniel 9:2-3
Daniel, the man "treasured by God" was distinguished because of -- among other things -- his prayer life. The first thing I noticed about Daniel's prayer life (in chapter 6) was the priority place it occupied in his life. Prayer was not occasional or crisis-driven. It was not based in his feelings or lack thereof. Daniel made prayer a part of his daily routine -- he had a set time and place for it every day.
The second thing I noticed was that Daniel's praying was informed by the Word of God. In the verse quoted above, from chapter 9, Daniel says he was reading in the book of Jeremiah and discovered that the exile of his people was coming to an end. Jeremiah had prophesied it would last seventy years. After a quick calculation, Daniel realized the seventy years were almost up. So he began praying that God would fulfill His promise and restore the fortunes of Jerusalem, his beloved city. Daniel knew he could pray with confidence, because he found the basis for his prayer in God's own Word. When you know what God wants to do -- what He has promised to do -- you can pray with complete confidence and total faith. This is the sentiment expressed in 1 John 5:14-15: "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us — whatever we ask — we know that we have what we asked of him."
Another verse that bears on this principle is Romans 10:17: "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." When you know God's Word on a matter, your faith soars, giving wings to your prayers.
True, there are some things we may not know God's specific will for -- whether to take a particular job, or move to a particular city. On the other hand, God has clearly stated His will about so many things we deal with -- illness, relational problems, financial needs, and so forth. By living in His Word, our praying on these matters will be informed by His will and our faith will be strong.
Live in the Word and let the Word live in you until it saturates your thinking, your values, your desires. Twenty minutes of reading and meditating each day will take you through the Bible in one year. Do that for a few years and you will be amazed at the difference it makes in your prayer life. Memorize God's Word on healing, on finances, on relationships -- and, like Daniel, pray the Word when you pray.
By the way -- the passage Daniel found in Jeremiah -- was in chapter 29. Does that ring a bell? A favorite verse that we all love to quote is Jeremiah 29:11: "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Guess what the very next verse says? Jeremiah 29:12: "Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you."
Wow! God promises to listen to His people when we pray. And as we pray the Word of God, His wonderful plan is fulfilled in our lives -- His plan to prosper us and give us a hope and a future.
More on this in the next post.
Daniel, the man "treasured by God" was distinguished because of -- among other things -- his prayer life. The first thing I noticed about Daniel's prayer life (in chapter 6) was the priority place it occupied in his life. Prayer was not occasional or crisis-driven. It was not based in his feelings or lack thereof. Daniel made prayer a part of his daily routine -- he had a set time and place for it every day.
The second thing I noticed was that Daniel's praying was informed by the Word of God. In the verse quoted above, from chapter 9, Daniel says he was reading in the book of Jeremiah and discovered that the exile of his people was coming to an end. Jeremiah had prophesied it would last seventy years. After a quick calculation, Daniel realized the seventy years were almost up. So he began praying that God would fulfill His promise and restore the fortunes of Jerusalem, his beloved city. Daniel knew he could pray with confidence, because he found the basis for his prayer in God's own Word. When you know what God wants to do -- what He has promised to do -- you can pray with complete confidence and total faith. This is the sentiment expressed in 1 John 5:14-15: "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us — whatever we ask — we know that we have what we asked of him."
Another verse that bears on this principle is Romans 10:17: "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." When you know God's Word on a matter, your faith soars, giving wings to your prayers.
True, there are some things we may not know God's specific will for -- whether to take a particular job, or move to a particular city. On the other hand, God has clearly stated His will about so many things we deal with -- illness, relational problems, financial needs, and so forth. By living in His Word, our praying on these matters will be informed by His will and our faith will be strong.
Live in the Word and let the Word live in you until it saturates your thinking, your values, your desires. Twenty minutes of reading and meditating each day will take you through the Bible in one year. Do that for a few years and you will be amazed at the difference it makes in your prayer life. Memorize God's Word on healing, on finances, on relationships -- and, like Daniel, pray the Word when you pray.
By the way -- the passage Daniel found in Jeremiah -- was in chapter 29. Does that ring a bell? A favorite verse that we all love to quote is Jeremiah 29:11: "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Guess what the very next verse says? Jeremiah 29:12: "Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you."
Wow! God promises to listen to His people when we pray. And as we pray the Word of God, His wonderful plan is fulfilled in our lives -- His plan to prosper us and give us a hope and a future.
More on this in the next post.
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