Luke 11:1-4, Matthew 6:9-13
When I think on the countless graces that our Lord has poured upon us I cannot help but to think and rejoice in His glorious grace of prayer. Prayer is simply communion with the God of Creation, the God of Redemption. To understand the beauty of this grace one must understand the significance and the realization that the God of Creation desires communion with man. He wants relationship and fellowship with His people on an individual level. He is concerned about our every need and has made provision through the grace and the privilege of prayer that we may communicate with Him at a very personal and intimate level. He knows us and wants to know Him.
Yet, many never tap into and experience this sweet and powerful grace. Even his disciples did not fully comprehend the grace and the practice of prayer as they asked, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples (Luke 11:1). What sweeter words could have been asked to Jesus, our Lord and Savior, than “teach me to pray.” Jesus responded immediately by giving them an incredible outline to pray. Therefore, for anyone who desires to learn to pray or to strengthen his/her prayer life then there is no better place to start than with the instructions of Jesus Himself. Let’s us break down this model prayer that we may grow in the grace of prayer and develop deeper communion with our Lord and Redeemer.
“PRAY LIKE THIS” ----Jesus (Matthew 6:9-13)
PRAISE HIS HOLY NAME -Pray the names of God
Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Jesus teaches us to begin our prayer by focusing first on God Himself and not on ourselves. We do this through spending time on praising His holy name. Notice that we are to present our prayer to “our Father” who dwells in heaven. We must understand and accept that as a child of God He wants to be addressed as “Father”. This reminds us of the role He works in our lives. Only those who have been born unto Him can make this claim, and for those who do we can be assured that He is the perfect Father who only desires that which is best for His children. Jesus explained this, If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” (Mat 7:11). Again, begin your prayer meditating on the fact that you have a Father in heaven that wants the best for you.
Then we are to praise Him for the holiness and the glory of His Name. Take time to meditate and then rejoice in the wonderful names that are attributed to God in the Scriptures. Each of these reveal attributes of our Father in Heaven that deserve praise and can bring great encouragement to our souls. I have included many of the names of our Lord below. Study them, meditate on them and praise Him for the great God that He is. If the list seems too overwhelming then just focus on one or a few of His names each prayer time and rejoice in Him
NAMES OF GOD “Hallowed be Thy Name”
Elohim: the Creator, Preserver, Transcendent Gen. 1
El Shaddai: The All Sufficient God, Gen 17:1-2
Adonai: the Lord,Master Gen. 15:2
Jehovah: the Self-Existent One I AM WHO I AM Ex. 3
Jehovah Jireh: The Lord Will Provide Gen. 22:14
Jehovah Rapha: The Lord that Heals Ex. 15:22-26
Jehovah Tsidkenu: the Lord our Righteousness Jer. 23:5,6; 33:16
Jehovah Mekoddishk: the Lord Sanctifies You Lev. 20:7-8
Jehovah Nissi: the Lord is My Banner Ex. 17:15
Jehovah Shalom: the Lord is Peace Judges 6:24
Jehovah Saboath: the Lord of Hosts Isa. 1:24, Ps. 46:7,11; 2Kings 3:9-12
Jehovah Shammah: the Lord is There Ex. 48:35
Jehovah Ra’ah: the Lord is My Shepherd Ps 23
Jehoshua “Jesus” the Lord is My Salvation
If you spend time focusing on the person of our Father through meditating and praising His names, then your heart will be prepared to experience true communion with your Lord as you continue to pray.
PRAY FOR HIS PERFECT WILL
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
We are then to focus on God’s will for our lives and not our own. Remember, He is our Father in heaven who desires that which is best for us. We are to seek for His kingdom to be accomplished in our lives and not our own. Again, remember the words of Jesus when He was warning us about worrying about the cares of this world, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (Mat 6:33). This requires humility and a daily dying to self and by praying for His will to be done will turn our eyes off of ourselves and onto Him.
PETITION FOR YOUR NEEDS:
After we have given our Father the recognition that He deserves and submit ourselves to His will, then our hearts are ready to bring to Him our personal needs which He desires to meet
Needs of Daily Provision
Give us this day our daily bread
Our Father knows of our needs even before we ask but petitioning Him for our needs is a practice in humility whereby we are saying, “God, I need you.” When we pray we need to ask specifically for those things pressing upon our hearts and never be afraid to ask for something that you may think is “too small” or “too big.” Your Father is concerned for the smallest of your needs as well as the greatest. These requests can be for your daily substance, physical or relational healing. God wants to know your heart and has an open ear. Remember, He is your heavenly Father.
Needs of Forgiveness
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
An extremely important part of our time with the Lord is the seeking of forgiveness. Christ paid our sin debt on the cross of Calvary, but our unconfessed sins affect our relationship with God. Unconfessed sin keeps our prayers from being answered (Isaiah 59:2).
We must spend time searching our heart for anything not pleasing to our Lord and confess the sin by name. John writes, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). There is nothing sweeter and more refreshing than to experiencing the cleansing of our sins and being restored to full relationship with the Father.
A key point to asking God for our own forgiveness is how well do we forgive those who have sinned against us. Jesus clearly addresses this issue at the close of Matthew’s recording of the Lord’s prayer by stating, “"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Mat 6:14-15). Unforgiveness of others clearly affects our relationship with God, but also our relationship with the person who offended us and is a cancer that eats away at our own lives. Therefore, Jesus teaches us to address this very important matter in our time with Him.
Needs of Protection
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
We are taught also the need to pray for our protection. We must understand our weakness in standing against the temptations of this world and our spiritual adversary, the devil, alone. We need to identify those areas in ours lives in which we struggle and ask the Father to protect us even from temptation in those areas. Do you struggle with anger, or lust, or covetousness, or ……? Then, call upon God in your prayer to protect you from temptation, from the evil one and from yourself.
CLOSE IN PRAISE AND REMEMBRANCE:
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
We are to close our time of prayer by reminding ourselves that all things are His and that He is to receive all glory. Think about it: we are to begin our prayer focusing on God and we are to end our prayer in the same manner.
Again, prayer is one of the great privileges offered to us as the children of God. This grace is available to the each Christ whether new in the faith or a seasoned believer in Christ. Jesus has given each of us a powerful and effective model to pray and the more we exercise this privilege of prayer the more comfortable and natural we become in our time with God.
Prayer is a discipline and is expected by God. Therefore, you must set aside time each day and guard it diligently. I can promise you that this will be the most important, refreshing and fulfilling time of your day.
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Glory in This
Jeremiah 9:23-24 Thus says the LORD: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; 24 But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight," says the LORD.
The chief purpose of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. Man’s very existence and reason for being is to bring glory to His Creator. Yet, to understand man’s struggle in fulfilling his purpose is the need to understand man’s chief sin and that is pride which is simply self-glory. Paul addresses this in the first chapter of Romans by explaining “…although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were they thankful….who exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator…”
From the beginning man has desired to rob God of His glory. This was the core of the serpent’s temptation to Eve as he cunningly pricked her desire by saying, “For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God knowing good and evil.” Eve desired to be “like God” and thus obtain the glory due only to Him. Since the fall man has sought glory for himself through his wisdom, his might and his riches as well as many other idols that simply are an attempt to reflect glory back to himself.
Again, selfish pride is the basis for all sin and it strikes against the very purpose for which man was created: to glorify God. If I struggle to find fulfillment in life and thus peace and joy, then I should first honestly ask myself, "What does my life glorify, me or my Creator?" True life will only be found and experienced when man repents of his self glory and then gives His Creator and Redeemer the glory that He alone is due.
---To God be the glory!
The chief purpose of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. Man’s very existence and reason for being is to bring glory to His Creator. Yet, to understand man’s struggle in fulfilling his purpose is the need to understand man’s chief sin and that is pride which is simply self-glory. Paul addresses this in the first chapter of Romans by explaining “…although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were they thankful….who exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator…”
From the beginning man has desired to rob God of His glory. This was the core of the serpent’s temptation to Eve as he cunningly pricked her desire by saying, “For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God knowing good and evil.” Eve desired to be “like God” and thus obtain the glory due only to Him. Since the fall man has sought glory for himself through his wisdom, his might and his riches as well as many other idols that simply are an attempt to reflect glory back to himself.
Again, selfish pride is the basis for all sin and it strikes against the very purpose for which man was created: to glorify God. If I struggle to find fulfillment in life and thus peace and joy, then I should first honestly ask myself, "What does my life glorify, me or my Creator?" True life will only be found and experienced when man repents of his self glory and then gives His Creator and Redeemer the glory that He alone is due.
---To God be the glory!
His Thoughts are Upon You
Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Jeremiah 29:11 is one of the great comfort passages in all of Scripture. Many have made it their life verse. But to understand the true meaning and the impact of such a verse one must grasp the context of the passage itself. Specific questions must be asked such as” To whom is the Lord speaking?” and “What were the circumstances of the times?” Only then can one see the beauty and the power of the words spoken.
God’s people were in turbulent times as destruction was upon them. God was using the kingdom of Babylon to bring discipline against His people who had forsaken Him for other gods, made mockery of the Jewish faith and polluted God’s land with pagan idols and corruption. A large contingent of Jews had already been taken captive to Babylon during the initial invasion while Jewish false prophets were prophesizing peace and victory while the worse was yet to come.
These comforting words from God did not come to those still living in Judah, but to those already taken captive. The words were part of a letter God wrote through Jeremiah to a people whom apparently had lost everything: their homeland, their families, their dignity, their religion, and their hope. Surely, they longed to return home from this pagan land and they must have understood themselves as the “unlucky” ones. Surely, they had cried out to God passionately for their deliverance, but instead of words promising immediately deliverance from their trials God instead instructed them to “build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat of their fruit. Take wives and begat sons and daughters…and seek peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive.” God was simply telling these captives to settle in and make themselves productive until He completes His purpose of which He was working in and through them, a purpose which would keep them sojourning another seventy years.
It was to these people, people living under captive circumstances and a people to whom God was telling to wait on Him that He gave these great words of encouragement, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you…thoughts of peace and not evil, to give you a future and a hope.” God was reminding them that His thoughts were on them and His plans included them. Also, even in their captivity they were not the ones to be pitied as those who remained in Judah would soon face destruction.
God spoke these words to encourage people who were experiencing difficult trials so they would trust Him and wait upon Him. He had them exactly where He wanted them in order to fulfill His purpose and plan through them.
You may be in a very difficult place today, a place not of your own making, a place from where you long to be freed, but God does not seem to even hear your prayers. This is no different from the Israelites held captive in Babylon. Maybe God has you right where He wants you so He can fulfill a greater purpose through you. Remember, His thoughts are upon you and He has plan for your life.
Jeremiah 29:11 is one of the great comfort passages in all of Scripture. Many have made it their life verse. But to understand the true meaning and the impact of such a verse one must grasp the context of the passage itself. Specific questions must be asked such as” To whom is the Lord speaking?” and “What were the circumstances of the times?” Only then can one see the beauty and the power of the words spoken.
God’s people were in turbulent times as destruction was upon them. God was using the kingdom of Babylon to bring discipline against His people who had forsaken Him for other gods, made mockery of the Jewish faith and polluted God’s land with pagan idols and corruption. A large contingent of Jews had already been taken captive to Babylon during the initial invasion while Jewish false prophets were prophesizing peace and victory while the worse was yet to come.
These comforting words from God did not come to those still living in Judah, but to those already taken captive. The words were part of a letter God wrote through Jeremiah to a people whom apparently had lost everything: their homeland, their families, their dignity, their religion, and their hope. Surely, they longed to return home from this pagan land and they must have understood themselves as the “unlucky” ones. Surely, they had cried out to God passionately for their deliverance, but instead of words promising immediately deliverance from their trials God instead instructed them to “build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat of their fruit. Take wives and begat sons and daughters…and seek peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive.” God was simply telling these captives to settle in and make themselves productive until He completes His purpose of which He was working in and through them, a purpose which would keep them sojourning another seventy years.
It was to these people, people living under captive circumstances and a people to whom God was telling to wait on Him that He gave these great words of encouragement, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you…thoughts of peace and not evil, to give you a future and a hope.” God was reminding them that His thoughts were on them and His plans included them. Also, even in their captivity they were not the ones to be pitied as those who remained in Judah would soon face destruction.
God spoke these words to encourage people who were experiencing difficult trials so they would trust Him and wait upon Him. He had them exactly where He wanted them in order to fulfill His purpose and plan through them.
You may be in a very difficult place today, a place not of your own making, a place from where you long to be freed, but God does not seem to even hear your prayers. This is no different from the Israelites held captive in Babylon. Maybe God has you right where He wants you so He can fulfill a greater purpose through you. Remember, His thoughts are upon you and He has plan for your life.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Living in Readiness
Mark 13:35-37 Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming--in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning-- 36 lest, coming suddenly, he find you sleeping. 37 And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!"
When being asked by His disciples about the timing of the last days, Jesus made three matters perfectly clear: 1- The Son of Man is coming again to judge the world, 2- No one knows the exact time of His return other than the Father, 3- All must watch and be ready for His imminent return. In the most basic terms Jesus was telling His followers not to be so concerned about laboring over the minor details of His return, but instead, simply live each day with the readiness and anticipation of that He may arrive today.
The problem with most of us is that either we do not honestly believe Jesus is coming again to judge the living and the dead, or we do not truly believe that His return is could be at anytime. Otherwise, we would live our lives in marked difference. These are the same issues of the unfaithful steward (Matt. 24) and the five foolish virgins (Matt. 25) of whom were each condemned for the lack of readiness. Jesus addresses this readiness issue time and again in direct teaching and in parables.
This “living in readiness” would radically change most of our lives. Think for a moment; just how different would my daily plans, daily routines and daily actions be if I truly anticipated the return of Christ sometime today? Obviously, if I truly believed that Jesus was the Righteous Judge and would come at a time unexpected then I would be certain my life, my affairs and my house would be in order. As a host preparing for a special guest I would meticulously examine every room to ensure my guest would be pleased and to avoid embarrassment to myself. For some this task would be overwhelming and in anxiousness since no prior preparation had been made, and therefore much cleaning and rearranging would have to be done. For others, those who live daily in expectation of a special guest, the announcement of arrival would be met with joy since preparations had already been made and their house is already in order.
I must then ask myself, “Do I live in readiness?” And, “How must preparation would I require if I knew Jesus was coming today?” Let us not be caught unprepared and not ready. Oh, the joy of living daily in the anticipation and readiness of Christ’s return! Oh, the peace of knowing that when He knocks at the door my house is already in order!
When being asked by His disciples about the timing of the last days, Jesus made three matters perfectly clear: 1- The Son of Man is coming again to judge the world, 2- No one knows the exact time of His return other than the Father, 3- All must watch and be ready for His imminent return. In the most basic terms Jesus was telling His followers not to be so concerned about laboring over the minor details of His return, but instead, simply live each day with the readiness and anticipation of that He may arrive today.
The problem with most of us is that either we do not honestly believe Jesus is coming again to judge the living and the dead, or we do not truly believe that His return is could be at anytime. Otherwise, we would live our lives in marked difference. These are the same issues of the unfaithful steward (Matt. 24) and the five foolish virgins (Matt. 25) of whom were each condemned for the lack of readiness. Jesus addresses this readiness issue time and again in direct teaching and in parables.
This “living in readiness” would radically change most of our lives. Think for a moment; just how different would my daily plans, daily routines and daily actions be if I truly anticipated the return of Christ sometime today? Obviously, if I truly believed that Jesus was the Righteous Judge and would come at a time unexpected then I would be certain my life, my affairs and my house would be in order. As a host preparing for a special guest I would meticulously examine every room to ensure my guest would be pleased and to avoid embarrassment to myself. For some this task would be overwhelming and in anxiousness since no prior preparation had been made, and therefore much cleaning and rearranging would have to be done. For others, those who live daily in expectation of a special guest, the announcement of arrival would be met with joy since preparations had already been made and their house is already in order.
I must then ask myself, “Do I live in readiness?” And, “How must preparation would I require if I knew Jesus was coming today?” Let us not be caught unprepared and not ready. Oh, the joy of living daily in the anticipation and readiness of Christ’s return! Oh, the peace of knowing that when He knocks at the door my house is already in order!
Monday, July 18, 2011
Trials of the Race
Jeremiah 12:5 "If you have run with the footmen, and they have wearied you, Then how can you contend with horses? And if in the land of peace, In which you trusted, they wearied you, Then how will you do in the floodplain of the Jordan?
Jeremiah was tired, weary, frustrated and now complaining to God about the persecution he was facing from his own Jewish brothers for preaching God’s Word. He was in the midst a major pity party complaining of God’s injustice for allowing the unrighteous to prosper while the righteous perished.
There will be times that any faithful servant of God will find himself in the very circumstance of Jeremiah. We would like to think that our faithfulness to God and His Word would be rewarded by immediately blessings from God and appreciation of the people, but history proves this is not necessarily the case. God’s prophets who faithfully preached His Word rather than tickling men’s ears were seldom applauded by their contemporaries and in most cases disdained by their listeners. One has to look no further than Jesus Christ who was crucified by the very people He came to save.
In truth, faithful service to our Lord can be at times a treacherous road and a weary task. This can cause the servant to lose sight of the mark and to begin to feel sorry for himself. But God will not allow us to wallow in the mire of our self-indulgent sorrow. In His grace and mercy He will strengthen and encourage us, but in His truth He will remind us of the preparations for task before us. He will remind us just as He did Jeremiah, “If you become weary in the little skirmishes then how will you stand in the major battles ahead?”
God loves us and His work too much to allow us to remain where we are. He is constantly testing and stretching His servants with trials and tribulations for a greater work ahead. Instead of a spirit of complaint which naturally reveals itself through our flesh, may we have a spirit of rejoicing that God would count us worthy to serve and grow in His work. Let us be as the early church who rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for His name (Acts 5:41).
--To God be the Glory
Jeremiah was tired, weary, frustrated and now complaining to God about the persecution he was facing from his own Jewish brothers for preaching God’s Word. He was in the midst a major pity party complaining of God’s injustice for allowing the unrighteous to prosper while the righteous perished.
There will be times that any faithful servant of God will find himself in the very circumstance of Jeremiah. We would like to think that our faithfulness to God and His Word would be rewarded by immediately blessings from God and appreciation of the people, but history proves this is not necessarily the case. God’s prophets who faithfully preached His Word rather than tickling men’s ears were seldom applauded by their contemporaries and in most cases disdained by their listeners. One has to look no further than Jesus Christ who was crucified by the very people He came to save.
In truth, faithful service to our Lord can be at times a treacherous road and a weary task. This can cause the servant to lose sight of the mark and to begin to feel sorry for himself. But God will not allow us to wallow in the mire of our self-indulgent sorrow. In His grace and mercy He will strengthen and encourage us, but in His truth He will remind us of the preparations for task before us. He will remind us just as He did Jeremiah, “If you become weary in the little skirmishes then how will you stand in the major battles ahead?”
God loves us and His work too much to allow us to remain where we are. He is constantly testing and stretching His servants with trials and tribulations for a greater work ahead. Instead of a spirit of complaint which naturally reveals itself through our flesh, may we have a spirit of rejoicing that God would count us worthy to serve and grow in His work. Let us be as the early church who rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for His name (Acts 5:41).
--To God be the Glory
The Beauty is Worth the Effort
Romans 11:33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!
I had heard of the Grand Canyon, of its indescribable beauty and its overwhelming vastness, but I never desired to spend the necessary time to see this treasure for myself. I had heard the testimonies from others, believed in its reality, but had no desire to experience it for myself.
Then on a family vacation in the western states my wife insisted we visit the Grand Canyon. Inwardly, I growled as this would take at least two days out of our schedule to see nothing more that a gigantic hole in the ground. My thoughts of displeasure only intensified as we drove through hours of desert to arrive at the stated destination.
Upon arrival my displeasure soon began to flee. As I walked to the edge of the canyon I became immediately overwhelmed with the beauty and the vastness of this treasure of God’s creation. The words and photos of others could not accurately describe the vivid colors, the immensity and the glory of this wonder of God’s handiwork. I was wrong, so very wrong! My regret now was that we did not schedule enough time to truly explore the many hidden wonders of this divine masterpiece.
The taste of standing on the edge and gazing at the beauty before me only made me hungry for more. Thank God for my wife insisting this to be in our plans. The drive back through the desert did not seem as tedious as the images that would not be forgotten continued to flash into my mind.
I am afraid that many view Scripture in the same way I viewed the Grand Canyon: belief in the truth of its reality but not willing to take the time or the effort to experience it for myself. I had heard what others had to say and sadly was satisfied, and was never willing to do what was necessary to taste it for myself. How foolish to eat the crumbs of others when we can indulge in the feast itself.
No one will ever taste the depth, the beauty and the majesty of God’s Word until he makes the commitment and the sacrifice to do whatever it takes to stand at its edge and wonder at its glory. Then and only then will one not be satisfied with simply a taste but desire to explore for even more of God’s indescribable riches. No one else’s explanation will do.
Thank God for those who have challenged me to explore for myself the vastness and beauty of God's majestic Word.
I had heard of the Grand Canyon, of its indescribable beauty and its overwhelming vastness, but I never desired to spend the necessary time to see this treasure for myself. I had heard the testimonies from others, believed in its reality, but had no desire to experience it for myself.
Then on a family vacation in the western states my wife insisted we visit the Grand Canyon. Inwardly, I growled as this would take at least two days out of our schedule to see nothing more that a gigantic hole in the ground. My thoughts of displeasure only intensified as we drove through hours of desert to arrive at the stated destination.
Upon arrival my displeasure soon began to flee. As I walked to the edge of the canyon I became immediately overwhelmed with the beauty and the vastness of this treasure of God’s creation. The words and photos of others could not accurately describe the vivid colors, the immensity and the glory of this wonder of God’s handiwork. I was wrong, so very wrong! My regret now was that we did not schedule enough time to truly explore the many hidden wonders of this divine masterpiece.
The taste of standing on the edge and gazing at the beauty before me only made me hungry for more. Thank God for my wife insisting this to be in our plans. The drive back through the desert did not seem as tedious as the images that would not be forgotten continued to flash into my mind.
I am afraid that many view Scripture in the same way I viewed the Grand Canyon: belief in the truth of its reality but not willing to take the time or the effort to experience it for myself. I had heard what others had to say and sadly was satisfied, and was never willing to do what was necessary to taste it for myself. How foolish to eat the crumbs of others when we can indulge in the feast itself.
No one will ever taste the depth, the beauty and the majesty of God’s Word until he makes the commitment and the sacrifice to do whatever it takes to stand at its edge and wonder at its glory. Then and only then will one not be satisfied with simply a taste but desire to explore for even more of God’s indescribable riches. No one else’s explanation will do.
Thank God for those who have challenged me to explore for myself the vastness and beauty of God's majestic Word.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Lord, Give Us More Stephens
Acts 6:15 And all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at him (Stephen),
saw his face as the face of an angel.
Lord, give us more Stephens: Men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom; Men who are faithful servants to your people and bold preachers of your word. Men who are full of faith and power; Men of whom when they find themselves in the midst of false accusations and persecutions do not lash out, but have the countenance of an angel; Men whose light shines bright in the darkest of times.
I believe in the heat of persecution the face of Stephen and his final words of compassion for his persecutors were permanently etched in the mind of one of his tormentors, Saul of Tarsus. Could it be that Stephen’s testimony in death was a preparation of Saul’s soon salvation and a prod for his future ministry? If so, Stephen's light continued to burn bright through the powerful ministry of the apostle Paul.
saw his face as the face of an angel.
Lord, give us more Stephens: Men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom; Men who are faithful servants to your people and bold preachers of your word. Men who are full of faith and power; Men of whom when they find themselves in the midst of false accusations and persecutions do not lash out, but have the countenance of an angel; Men whose light shines bright in the darkest of times.
I believe in the heat of persecution the face of Stephen and his final words of compassion for his persecutors were permanently etched in the mind of one of his tormentors, Saul of Tarsus. Could it be that Stephen’s testimony in death was a preparation of Saul’s soon salvation and a prod for his future ministry? If so, Stephen's light continued to burn bright through the powerful ministry of the apostle Paul.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Loved Him
Mark 10:21 "Then Jesus looking at him, loved him, and said to him, 'One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross and follow Me.'"
This young man was so close but yet so far. He came sincerely to Jesus seeking eternal life but was confused on how to obtain it. He had been faithful, in comparison to others, in keeping the law but this was not the way unto salvation. Jesus looked at the young man with eyes of compassion and with a heart of purest love knowing exactly what was keeping him from eternal life. He had made idols of his riches and thus measured himself by his possessions rather than by a Holy God. Jesus understood this idol had to be removed before true worship could be made and true life obtained. Thus, out of a heart of love Jesus addressed this man's need and what needed to be done so he could obtain the eternal life he was seeking. The idol must be destroyed, all had be given away, and then he must selflessly follow Christ. The words were hard but they were true and flowed from the love of the Lord. Sadly, the young man was not willing to give up his idol of riches for true eternal life. He would rather glory in temporal pleasure than in eternal delight. He walked away sorrowful but in love Jesus did not follow him. Jesus had given him riches greater than any he owned: the riches of truth and love. Sadly, he rejected truth wrapped in love and thus eternal life.
This young man was so close but yet so far. He came sincerely to Jesus seeking eternal life but was confused on how to obtain it. He had been faithful, in comparison to others, in keeping the law but this was not the way unto salvation. Jesus looked at the young man with eyes of compassion and with a heart of purest love knowing exactly what was keeping him from eternal life. He had made idols of his riches and thus measured himself by his possessions rather than by a Holy God. Jesus understood this idol had to be removed before true worship could be made and true life obtained. Thus, out of a heart of love Jesus addressed this man's need and what needed to be done so he could obtain the eternal life he was seeking. The idol must be destroyed, all had be given away, and then he must selflessly follow Christ. The words were hard but they were true and flowed from the love of the Lord. Sadly, the young man was not willing to give up his idol of riches for true eternal life. He would rather glory in temporal pleasure than in eternal delight. He walked away sorrowful but in love Jesus did not follow him. Jesus had given him riches greater than any he owned: the riches of truth and love. Sadly, he rejected truth wrapped in love and thus eternal life.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)