When we pray, we ask God for many things. God is ready and willing to answer the honest prayer of faith. Unfortunately, most of our requests are material driven, when most of what is really wrong in our life is spiritual in nature. There is absolutely nothing wrong with asking God for help procuring a new car, or to help you do well on an upcoming test. He is a Father who is very active in our lives. So those prayers are legit. But I think we should probably spend more time talking about the larger needs in our lives. The spiritual realm dwarfs the natural in both its content and its impact. The Psalms are a collection of songs, including prayers and praises. The writers really knew how to honestly get ahold of God. They asked God for various kinds of help. But one common thread was the desire for protection from their enemies… but physical and spiritual. Here is an example of one of David’s Psalms… “Lord, I call on You; hurry to help me. Listen to my voice when I call on You. May my prayer be set before You as incense, the raising of my hands as the evening offering. Lord, set up a guard for my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips. Do not let my heart turn to any evil thing or perform wicked acts with men who commit sin. Do not let me feast on their delicacies. Let the righteous one strike me— it is an act of faithful love; let him rebuke me— it is oil for my head; let me not refuse it. Even now my prayer is against the evil acts of the wicked. When their rulers will be thrown off the sides of a cliff, the people will listen to my words, for they are pleasing. As when one plows and breaks up the soil, turning up rocks, so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of Sheol (the grave). But my eyes look to You, Lord God. I seek refuge in You; do not let me die. Protect me from the trap they have set for me, and from the snares of evildoers. Let the wicked fall into their own nets, while I pass by safely.” (Psalm 141) Perhaps you have need of God’s protection from sin and the enemy today. This is a holistic approach to protection. God, protect us from ourselves, and those who would do us harm. [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. The world is a very broken place. Just turning the news on can be dangerous to your well-being. Your first words and last words are remembered by those who love you. So I thought I would start your day with the last words we have in our Bible. Then he showed me the river of living water, sparkling like crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the broad street of the city. The tree of life was on both sides of the river, bearing 12 kinds of fruit, producing its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree are for healing the nations, and there will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and His slaves will serve Him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads Night will no longer exist, and people will not need lamplight or sunlight, because the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign forever and ever. Then he said to me, “These words are faithful and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent His angel to show His slaves what must quickly take place.” “Look, I am coming quickly! The one who keeps the prophetic words of this book is blessed.” I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. When I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had shown them to me. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow slave with you, your brothers the prophets, and those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” He also said to me, “Don’t seal the prophetic words of this book, because the time is near. Let the unrighteous go on in unrighteousness; let the filthy go on being made filthy; let the righteous go on in righteousness; and let the holy go on being made holy.” “Look! I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me to repay each person according to what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. “Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying. “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to attest these things to you for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright Morning Star.” Both the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” Anyone who hears should say, “Come!” And the one who is thirsty should come. Whoever desires should take the living water as a gift. I testify to everyone who hears the prophetic words of this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book. And if anyone takes away from the words of this prophetic book, God will take away his share of the tree of life and the holy city, written in this book. He who testifies about these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints. Amen. (Revelation 22) There is hope… wonderful, powerful, transformational hope. It is found in Christ. [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. We are in a process right now where the candidates for President of the United States are making themselves known. The Democrats are in control of the White House. So the Republican field of candidates is very full, and busy, and vocal. They are separating themselves from the opposition, which right now is the President, the two or three candidates from the other party, and also those in their own party. Each person has their own style, but there is a common theme among the main contenders. They are pressing the idea that they are speaking truth. When most of the government is dealing in lies, it is incredibly refreshing to hear someone actually say what is real. It is so rare, that people even love to hear crazy stuff if it is delivered in a way that opposes the lies being cranked out by the ‘establishment’. Truth has become a phenomenon. We are engaged by it. Some are enamored with it. Many are even entertained by it. Regardless of how truth is received, in this day the truth will set you apart. It is sad that there is such a dividing line, but perhaps that is the way it should be. When we mingle lies with truth the lies end up taking over. Truth doesn’t mingle… it divides. Jesus, when praying for His disciples actually dealt with the idea that they should be different… that they should stand out in the culture. And He knew that truth would be the element that would cause them to stand apart. Here is what He said… “I have given them Your word. The world hated them because they are not of the world, as I am not of the world. I am not praying that You take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. I sanctify Myself for them, so they also may be sanctified by the truth.” (John 17:14-19) Jesus is the Truth. He claimed that about Himself, and He proved that through His life. He knew the power of truth and lies. He actually had to sacrifice Himself because His creation had forsaken the truth and gone after a lie. So when He prays here that His disciples, who are hated by the world would be “sanctified by the truth”, He was saying that the Father should fill them with reality to the point that they stand out from the culture because they are obvious carriers of what is true. The truth will ‘sanctify’ us, or set us apart. The truth may not be popular, but it is revolutionary. While it may be resisted by those who enjoy their wickedness, it is refreshing to those who are weary of the lies. It is rewarding to those who are seeking a better way. It is relevant to those who just don’t believe that alternate realities. Sometimes we do crazy stuff to set ourselves apart. There is no reason to do that when we have the truth. Let it do what it does. It will cause people to engage, be enamored… and yes, even entertain them. We don’t have to turn our lives and ministries into a circus. We just have to let the truth pour out of us. Trust it. Let it do its work. The story is told of the town atheist who would go to church every Sunday and sit quietly in the back row of the church. The preacher preached the Gospel every week. After the sermon the well-known atheist would get up and slip out. One Sunday sister Gladys caught him before he made it to the door. She told him she was glad he always came, but wondered, “Why do you come? It is known that you do not believe in God. Why do you attend church? You don’t believe a word the pastor says.” He nodded and smiled, “No… I don’t believe a word he says. But he does. And once a week I want to hear someone say what they really believe.” Today you will have a chance to parrot the lie and fit in, or you can choose to speak the truth and be relevant… weird, but relevant. One of the things that separates God’s people is that they are truth-bearers. The truth purifies and sets Christians apart. That is rare and wonderful. [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. It is a really cool thing to be able to tell someone good news. I think most of us enjoy the feeling we get when we deliver a message that someone wants to hear. As Christians we know the best news… that Jesus has come to forgive us of our sins, giving us eternal life, and providing transformation in this current life. We call this the ‘Gospel’… or the ‘good news’. The word ‘Gospel’ literally means ‘good news’, or ‘good message’. This word has a long history, even before it primarily referred to the message of Jesus Christ. In the Old Testament times the word that we would translate ‘Gospel’ referred to the news brought back to a community that a battle had been won. So a war would take place, and everyone would wonder what was happening. Sometimes they would updates about how it was going. But then when the war or battle was over, someone would be given the job of going back and spreading the word that the victory was theirs. This was the ‘good news’… the gospel. Someone had brought them the gospel that they had won the battle. Then the king would give them a reward for bringing the good news. It may be a feast, or a financial blessing. In some cultures the reward was called the ‘gospel’. But eventually the news itself was simply known as the gospel. For the believer, the most important thing we can do in this world is share the good news. Everyone is facing or in some sort of battle today. Many people enter into their battle worried about how it will go. Most people have no hope, or misplaced partial hope because they do not know Jesus has already won the victory of life. It is a great privilege and responsibility to be able to go throughout the world and tell people the Gospel of Jesus Christ to people who don’t know how the battle ends. The apostle Paul spent the last half of his life running around telling people the good news. Here is what he told a group of early Christians… “I am obligated both to Greeks and barbarians, both to the wise and the foolish. So I am eager to preach the good news to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek. For in it God’s righteousness is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: The righteous will live by faith.” (Romans 1:14-17) The war has been won. Jesus conquered sin and death. We know that because we have experienced it. But there are many in our lives who don’t know that truth. We have been given the task of telling people that the war is over. Victory is secured. They won’t know if we don’t tell them. Think about it… you only know because someone told you. You must tell someone else. Do not be ashamed of the good news. It is power. There is no one who doesn’t need to hear it. It affects everyone. The Gospel is not merely that God will do something for us at some point in the future. The Gospel is that the battle has already been won. Today, make it your mission to tell someone that the battle is over. They can be free from the power of sin because Christ has broken the chains that bind us. There is more to this life than just waiting for death. We can have life and have it abundantly. If your friend’s child had a terrible disease and you found a cure, you would be extremely glad to tell them the good news that there is a cure… a solution… a victory over the disease. You wouldn’t ‘wait for the best time’. You wouldn’t wait until they brought the subject up. You wouldn’t try to figure out the most inoffensive way to share it. You wouldn’t take them somewhere so they could hear the news from a doctor. You would call them up and just tell them what you heard. If you had experienced the deliverance from the disease, you would tell them your story. You actually get to share a greater news than that. Do it. Do it today. Some day in the future, the King will reward you for sharing the good news with other people, but in that moment you will discover that the reward is in the news itself. [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. Sometimes we have plenty. When we do, we may be generous with that. But other times we have only a little. We tend to be much more careful and conservative with that. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. We are to be good stewards of what God has given us. Saving and rationing can be a good practice. But I think we need to be careful to not try and over-think the goodness of God or the desperate nature of our circumstances. There is a story in the Bible that gives us some insight into how to view our situation when the occasion for fear meets the opportunity for faith. Because of the idolatry and sin of Israel, the prophet Elijah had announced that their would be a drought for three years. The drought had been going on for some time and rivers had dried up when Elijah was directed by God to a small town… “Elijah got up and went to Zarephath. When he arrived at the city gate, there was a widow woman gathering wood. Elijah called to her and said, ‘Please bring me a little water in a cup and let me drink.’ As she went to get it, he called to her and said, ‘Please bring me a piece of bread in your hand.’ But she said, ‘As the Lord your God lives, I don’t have anything baked—only a handful of flour in the jar and a bit of oil in the jug. Just now, I am gathering a couple of sticks in order to go prepare it for myself and my son so we can eat it and die.’ Then Elijah said to her, ‘Don’t be afraid; go and do as you have said. But first make me a small loaf from it and bring it out to me. Afterward, you may make some for yourself and your son, for this is what the Lord God of Israel says, “The flour jar will not become empty and the oil jug will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the surface of the land.”’ So she proceeded to do according to the word of Elijah. Then the woman, Elijah, and her household ate for many days. The flour jar did not become empty, and the oil jug did not run dry, according to the word of the Lord He had spoken through Elijah.” (1 Kings 17:10-18) The woman was at the end of her food. It was her harvest. She had no expectation that she would eat another meal. She and her boy would eat their last supper and wait for death from starvation. This was obvious to her. She had no reason to think otherwise. But the prophet came in and challenged her to act like this meal was her first instead of her last. He suggested she treat her last meal like seed instead of harvest. To her, this was the Winter of her life when things would die and all of the fruit of her labors would be gone. This was not Spring, or Summer, or Fall. This was the end, not the beginning. No one would have blamed her for making a final meal for herself and her boy. But she believed the word of the prophet. She had a change of mind and heart. Nothing in the natural realm was different, but something in the supernatural began to move her from a place of defeat to a place of deliverance. She believed the promise of the prophet. She began thinking of her shrinking pantry as seed instead of harvest. It was the beginning, not the end. It was life, not death. She changed her mind. She changed what she believed about things. The circumstances were clear. But faith made it possible to circumvent the natural consequences of using the last of her flour and oil. There was nothing wrong with her being wise with her available resources. We are to care for our family. But we need to realize that the wisest thing we can do is obey God. Her obedience to the word of the Lord changed everything. It changed her season. It changed her future. Had she declined the prophet’s request for food, that would have been her last meal. But her faith-driven obedience turned it into the birth of a new chapter in her life. Today you will have the chance to panic with fear or proceed with faith. Look at what you have in your hand. Will you see it as the end of what God has done, or the beginning of what God will do? This isn’t simply a formula for financial prosperity. It is a principle of the transformed life. Your obedience will unlock doors for God to work just as your disobedience will unlock doors for the enemy to work. Unlocking doors for God will lock doors on the enemy. Is God’s blessing in your life harvest, or seed? [Bible quotes are from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.] Find more of David’s work at Heart Of Ministry. |
AuthorMy name is David, and I want to know God more, and help other people find Him. Archives
March 2019
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