Prayer Today, Prayer Always
Jesus prayed a lot. His desire to do Our Father's will is stated time and again in Scripture. Trish and I were very blessed when we met Jesus; the people who introduced us to Him were all praying people, indeed the first places they took us, even before we became believing Christians or were born again, were prayer meetings.
Jesus prayed a lot. His desire to do Our Father's will is stated time and again in Scripture. Trish and I were very blessed when we met Jesus; the people who introduced us to Him were all praying people, indeed the first places they took us, even before we became believing Christians or were born again, were prayer meetings.
Now I'm finding prayer to be a great refuge; prayer often
seems to be the only sensible or practical thing for me to do, really, after
trying everything else .. "Don't
fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your
worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns" (Philippians 4:6
Message1).
Until
a few months ago I was politically active (because I believe that our lovely Jesus
is vitally interested in all the
affairs of all humankind and all the nations); I served as a
volunteer for two politicians; one governing in our Western Australian
Parliament (who, after doing great work, sadly lost his seat in the last State
election) and one a junior Cabinet Minister in our Federal Parliament.
But. And it's a big "but". So many things now
happening here and abroad seem to be beyond rational discussion, beyond the
framework of democracy and fair dealing, and beyond the moral and cultural
values which for more than 200 years have formed the very fabric of our nation
and our world, (though some people often speak as though nothing has changed).
Our
customary response of talking or writing to politicians to help them clarify
their thinking, (and keep our Governments in line with the policies which gave
them their electoral mandate), no longer make any real difference.
Today our media seem to have much more influence and almost exclusively show the case for their favourite minority opinions which are clothed in the un-truths of political correctness and self-titled "progressive" ideology. "The spirit of this world" (1 Corinthians 2:12; Ephesians 2:2) is having a profound impact in our time.
Today our media seem to have much more influence and almost exclusively show the case for their favourite minority opinions which are clothed in the un-truths of political correctness and self-titled "progressive" ideology. "The spirit of this world" (1 Corinthians 2:12; Ephesians 2:2) is having a profound impact in our time.
So, prayer. Prayer is now becoming my favoured "political"
activity.
I've been to a number of
prayer schools in recent years; they have proven to be a treasure of
understanding about God's nature and character, His plans and purposes, and
about how the entire cosmos works and where humankind fits in. I found the
schools to be a fabulous source of testimonies of God's care for the World, and
His love and faithfulness towards all humankind.
While
pondering all this I keep coming back to the Creation. Comedians often talk
about "why are we here?" Even Stephen Hawking, (a famous atheist), asks similar questions
and freely admits that science gives no answers (though he does
"appreciate" the "grand design" of the universe). I'm
asking the same kinds of thing from the perspective of a committed Christian.
As
I read about the Universe in the Bible, I see God displaying great joy and
satisfaction with it. It's like when we need something and figure we can make
it our self; we think about it and plan, then design, and finally build.
Sometimes our end results are really quite good, and when this happens with my projects I'm tickled pink; I see the
results as "very good". I think I got this from Jesus, because I'm in
His image and likeness!
The
final element of the Creation was the people, Adam and Eve (Genesis 1:26-27).
This creative act lifted the whole work from being "good", to
"very good" (Genesis 1:31), surely an exciting and satisfying moment
in history.
Our
Creator God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, must have been very sure to have
added people to what had been just their perfect and loving triune
relationship. Before the Creation there was nothing else, only God existed.
After the Universe was spoken into being, we were created, in God's own image
and likeness, as spiritual and physical beings who are also creative and have
free will; it is these attributes which enable us to either follow God or cause
trouble! Because we are made so similar to God it is clear that He loves and
cares for us very much! “God is love" (1 John 4:8,16).
Question;
if the people of this world (with our free will) are going to spiral further
and further into mean-ness, division and violence until utter devastation, then
why, O why, did our loving and creative God establish everything so beautifully
and so symbiotically all those centuries ago? Well, God has a plan and is, in
His mysterious way (Romans 11:33), working it out with the help of His
participating people, despite the wilfulness of humanity. Prayer is part of
this.
Our History
The Creation account in the
Bible gives a true picture of how everything came into being. We get to the
sixth day and find that human beings were the final element and were not simply
spoken into existence (like everything else), but "made in the image and
likeness" of Elohim; Father God, His eternal Son, Jesus, and Holy Spirit.
We are the crown of the Creation.
God's intention was clear; He
wanted humankind to be added to His family as His children, and to be a
glorious bride for His Son Jesus, and to rule over and to manage and steward
the entire physical world; He gave "dominion over all the earth and ..
over every creeping thing" He also commanded: "Be fruitful and
multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over .. every
living thing that moves on the earth and in the heavens" (Genesis
1:26-28).
We call these first two
people Adam and Eve (Adam is Hebrew for "man", and Eve "would become the mother of all the
living" (Genesis 3:20)). They will have had an awesome life as they were fully included in God's family and living
in an abundant and lovely place with unlimited resources and a fulfilling and
assured future.
This was the planned role of
humankind, to have dominion and to care for the universe. But then came the
Fall when Adam and Eve desired to "be
like God and know good and evil" (Genesis 3:5) and chose to eat of the
forbidden fruit. Humankind immediately lost its "glory and majesty". Adam and Eve had given their "rule and authority" to the
serpent, to Satan, who immediately became "the
prince of this world" (John 14:30). Sin had entered the world, and sin
separates humankind from God (John 15:6)
Jesus Came To Redeem Us
Centuries passed. God made
Himself known to people and covenants were established, He chose Israel
Then our loving Abba Father
sent His Son Jesus to rescue us. It is so good that God gave us four Gospels in
the Bible, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. We can read and study the accounts of
Jesus' life and works and the events of those days, the years that Jesus lived as
a human baby, boy and man (Luke 1:1-4).
"You know that
[Jesus] appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin" (1
John 3:5).
"Whoever makes a
practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the
beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the
devil" (1 John 3:8).
When Jesus was crucified on
the Cross at Calvary , He, the only sinless
person (Hebrews 4:15), paid the price for all
our sin. All! Sin and death were
defeated, as was Satan. Every Christian can now live in the righteousness of
Christ (Romans 3:22; 5:17), for eternity (Romans 5:21). Hallelujah!
"And you [He made alive], when you were dead
(slain) by [your] trespasses and sins in
which at one time you walked [habitually]. You were following the course and
fashion of this world [were under the sway of the tendency of this present age],
following the prince of the power of the air. [You were obedient to and under
the control of] the [demon] spirit that still constantly works in the sons of
disobedience [the careless, the rebellious, and the unbelieving, who go against
the purposes of God]" (Ephesians
2:1-2 Amplified).
When Jesus returns to the
earth our present era, (of victory, but also sin and trouble), will end.
Already Satan is defeated; Jesus took back the rule and authority the first
Adam had given away (1 Corinthians 15:45, Matthew 28:18, John 10:18, Ephesians
1:18-23). He then gave it to us, His disciples through the ages: [Jesus] replied "I saw Satan fall like
lightning from heaven. I have given you
authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of
the enemy; nothing will harm you" (Luke 10:18-19).
Now Jesus is seated next to
Father God in heaven where He intercedes (Mark 14:62) for every one of the
7½ billion people on the earth!
Intercession
To "intercede" is
to stand in the gap for someone or for a situation, to mediate, to represent.
Jesus constantly intercedes between each one of us and God (1 Timothy 2:5).
Each Christian has been
accepted as a child in God's family (John 1:12, Romans 8:14, Romans 8:19,
Romans 8:21). We are given Jesus' righteousness (Romans 10:4) and have direct
access into God's throne room (Ephesians 2:6). Jesus is no longer here on earth
to do His work for the Father, so He asks us to pray for people and situations
on earth so that His redeeming work of 2000 years ago can be applied to those
people and situations today (John 14:12, 2 Corinthians 5:18-21). He asks that
we be His hands and voice and feet as we participate in His work:
"Very truly I tell you, whoever
believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even
greater things than these, because I am going to the Father" (John
14:12).
This is why prayer is so
precious and so satisfying. It unleashes what Jesus has already accomplished!
"Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share
in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our
apostle and high priest"
(Hebrews 3:1).
What Does The Bible Say?
I'm not sure I've ever studied prayer as a whole-Bible1
subject before; it's really exciting as I see afresh the scope and depth of our
Lord's desire for us to pray, and the level of participation He desires from us
in the care of all 7½ billion of us now living on planet Earth, and the nations and the natural environment.
My study showed a great many verses from across the whole
history of the Bible times, many biblical authors, and all the activities of humankind. Here are a few
that I find particularly insightful and inspirational:
Prayer Makes God's Power, Wisdom And Healing Available
Everywhere:-
"Our God is near
us whenever we pray to him" (Deuteronomy 4:7).
"If my people,
who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and
turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive
their sin and will heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7:14).
[Job to the Lord] "I
know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted" ..
[The Lord to Job's friends] "My
servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with
you according to your folly .." (Job 42:2,8).
"You who answer
prayer, to you all people will come" (Psalm 65:2).
"In [Jesus] and
through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence"
(Ephesians 3:12).
The Spiritual World Has Precedence Over The Physical:-
"For though we walk (live) in the flesh, we are not carrying on our warfare according to the flesh and using mere human weapons. For the weapons
of our warfare are not physical [weapons of flesh and blood], but they are
mighty before God for the overthrow and destruction of strongholds, [Inasmuch as we] refute arguments and
theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up
against the [true] knowledge of God; and we lead every thought and purpose away
captive into the obedience of Christ [the Messiah]" (2 Corinthians
10:3-5 Amplified).
"Put on the full
armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's
schemes. For we do not wrestle against
flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the
cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil
in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:11-12).
"In the same way
the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we
should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for
words" (Romans 8:26).
"For God has not
given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind"
(2 Timothy 1:7 KJV).
We Are To Emulate Jesus Who Prayed Often:-
"This, then, is
how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on
earth as it is in heaven .. '" (Matthew 6:9-13, Jesus' words).
"But I say to
you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew
5:44, Jesus' words).
"At that time
Jesus said, 'I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have
hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little
children'" (Matthew 11:25).
"Jesus went up on
the mountain by Himself to pray" (Matthew 14:23).
"Then Jesus said
'Sit here while I go over there and pray'" (Matthew 26:36).
"Jesus said,
'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing'"
(Luke 23:34).
"So they took
away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, 'Father, I thank you that you
have heard me'" (John 11:41).
"Jesus .. looked
toward heaven and prayed: 'Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that
your Son may glorify you'" (John 17:1).
"Jesus said, 'My
kingdom is .. from another place'" (John 18:36).
(We are now citizens of Heaven! (Philippians 3:20)).
It Is God's Will That We Pray:-
"As for me, far
be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you ..
" (1 Samuel 12:23).
"His intent was
that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known
to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms" (Ephesians
3:10).
"Rejoice
always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is
God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).
Jesus asks Us To Pray As Participation In His Life On The
Earth:-
"Never be lacking
in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervour, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction,
faithful in prayer. Share with the
Lord's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do
not curse" (Romans 12:11-14).
"I urge, then,
first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made
for all people - for kings and all those in authority, that we may live
peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness" (1 Timothy
2:1-2).
Prayer Is A Primary Weapon In The War Against The Spirit
Of This World:-
"But I say to
you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew
5:44, Jesus' words).
"What we have
received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so
that we may understand what God has freely given us" (1 Corinthians
2:12).
"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).
Prayer Is Integral To Our New Life In Jesus:-
"And pray in the
Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in
mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people" (Ephesians
6:18).
“Devote yourselves to
prayer, being watchful and thankful” (Colossians 4:2).
"Don't fret or
worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries
into prayers, letting God know your concerns" (Philippians 4:6
Message).
"First of all,
then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made
on behalf of all" (1 Timothy 2:1).
Prayer Awakens Spiritual Awareness In Those Prayed For:-
"You who answer
prayer, to you all people will come" (Psalm 65:2).
"I have revealed
you to those whom you gave me out of the world .. I in them and you in me, so
that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you
sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me" (John 17:6,23).
"They said to the
woman, 'We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard
for ourselves, and we know that this man [Jesus] really is the Saviour of the
world'" (John 4:42).
Happily, I'm again full of hope. It's good to know that our
identity is in Jesus, and that He and Abba Father are constantly working (John
5:17), they have a goal. We are all inexorably moving towards the glory shown
on the last page of the Bible:
"He who testifies
to these things says, 'Yes, I am coming soon'. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's
people. Amen" (Revelation 22:20-21).
We don't know how long this will take. Right now it looks as
though it will be a long time, but nobody forecast the very sudden fall of the
Berlin Wall or the, also sudden, break-up of the Soviet Union, or, more
recently, the murderous aggression of Islam against the whole world. Christian
history shows that the first two of these events were preceded and precipitated by much prayer by
united and obedient Christian believers. So our God gives us hope for all the
current world threats and problems:
"And now these
three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love" (1
Corinthians 13:13).
"Faith and love
spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven and about which you have
already heard in the true message of the gospel" (Colossians 1:5).
"Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from
God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father's Son, in truth and love" (2 John 1:3).
Bless us all. Come Lord Jesus. Amen.
Footnote 1- Bible Translations
We have many Bibles in our house including:
New International Version (which I use most often)
New American Standard Version (which Trish uses most often)
Amplified Bible
New English Bible
English Standard Version - a free copy is on my phone
Good News Bible
The Message Paraphrase
King James Version
J B Phillips New Testament (mine is a signed Revised Edition
1972!)
I also refer to a recent edition of the Nestle Greek
language bible which uses the Greek from the Ancient Near East (rather than
modern Greece), and a number of great student’s tools to help me wrestle with
passages in this original New Testament language that I’m really chewing hard
on.
I’ve found that every English Bible version contains errors,
so (I hope) I am always ready to be corrected in my understanding. Some things
which I’ve heard in dozens of sermons over the past 30+ years are just not in the Bible! At Bible college we
were taught to ask: “What does the text say? What does the whole of the Bible say? What would readers and listeners make of this text in Bible times?”
There are also a myriad of other teachings and teaching aids
available, many of which are freely available on the Internet. I try to always
read these in the light of Scripture.
The Bible is the living
Word of God (1 Peter 1:23), and the Word is
Jesus (John 1:1-5), so we can faithfully expect Him to speak directly to us
from His written word. This is the prophetic working in us, and is to be
expected and encouraged (1 Corinthians 14:1,3).
Bless you. Amen.
Permalink
https://www.psalmsofjohn.com/2015/11/in-their-image-prayer.html
Praise Jesus.
No comments:
Post a Comment