Thank God for Our Mediator!

“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; ⁶ who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.” 1 Timothy 2.5-6

I’m thankful we have a mediator. Are you thankful that we have a go-between us and God? We should rejoice in that truth every day. Jesus Christ, the only One qualified to represent us before the Father, willingly represents us every time we come to Him for cleansing. What does that mean to us? I hope you can somehow visualize this simple truth. Every time we sin, Jesus goes to His Father and says, “I paid for that sin. He’s still perfect.” Not just ONCE, but EVERY TIME we sin. That means God the Father sees us through the eyes of His Son and He sees us as perfect.

These two verses in 1 John 2.1-2 encourage us in our daily walk: “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: ² and he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” None of us should be proud of our sin, no matter what it is. But all of us should be thankful for our mediator – our advocate – who willingly stands before the Father on our behalf to plead our case. And why would the Father listen to Him? Because He “gave himself a ransom for all … ” Just my thoughts …

When You Pray …

“But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.” Matthew 6.6

I am wondering if we like to talk about prayer more than we like to pray. Generally speaking, people who are prayer warriors don’t spend a lot of time talking to other people about how much they pray. They just pray. It is my opinion that those who talk a lot ABOUT prayer don’t spend as much time as they want you to think they do in prayer.

Jesus is clear in this verse that prayer is a private or secret part of our lives: “ … when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret … ” I realize that we can literally pray anywhere, but it sounds like Jesus is telling us there ought to be a private place for us to go to so we can pray in secret. If there is not such a place in your prayer life, let me suggest that you pursue that.

Here is the part of the verse that should speak volumes to us: “ … thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.” We may have prayed secretly, but God says He will reward us in such a way that others will know we have prayed. Recently my neighbor had a medical procedure done. When he told me about it, I told him I would pray for him. After the procedure, I saw him out in the yard and went over to ask him how it went. He said it couldn’t have gone any better. I told him I had prayed for him that morning. He said, “I wondered if you had prayed for me.” I was blown away by his statement. God is so good to hear and answer our prayers. Just my thoughts …

Real Confidence!

“And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:” 1 John 5.14

How much confidence do you have in God? We ought to have ultimate confidence in God, knowing that He can do all things and wants to meet every need that we have. John writes: “this is the confidence that we have in him … ” What is that confidence John? “ … if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:” There are two significant issues here: (1) if we ask anything … (2) according to his will.

We need to feel comfortable bringing our needs to God, no matter what they are. That is the “asl anything” part. But the second part is crucial: “according to his will …” How do we know if we are praying according to God’s will? That doesn’t have to be an impossible question. We can know the will of God with the help of two elements: (1) the Word of God, and (2) the Spirit of God. The written Word of God tells us what God wants us to know about Himself and about how to live our lives for Him. If we don’t read His Word regularly, we put ourselves at a distinct disadvantage in knowing all we need to know. The Spirit of God is given to us to help us know how to live for God on a moment-by-moment basis. When we fail to yield ourselves to Him, or fail to respond to His leadership in our lives, we again put ourselves at a distinct disadvantage because we have shut down God’s supply line to us. So, let’s be mindful of His Word and His Spirit, so we can be mindful of His will. Just my thoughts …

When We Wait, He Hears!

“I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. ² He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.” Psalm 40.1-2

When was the last time you waited patiently for anything? I was talking today with a business manager and asked if there was anything I could pray with them about. Her reply was, “Patience.!” I think we all struggle with issues of patience at one time or another. This is a psalm written by David, and as a shepherd he would have plenty of time to learn patience. So, we must let his words speak to us: “I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me …” If I can visualize this scene for a moment, I see the Lord bending His head toward David and turning His ear to hear him a little more clearly. David continues and affirms: “ … he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.” David had confidence that God heard him when he prayed. You and I can have that same confidence when we pray.

Then David seems to describe God’s answer to his prayer: “He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.” David’s circumstances sound serious. But nothing that God couldn’t handle. When you face what seem to be insurmountable circumstances, do you pray with the confidence that God can handle them? The truth of the matter is this. You cannot encounter a circumstance that God cannot handle. But you must invoke His help. You must reach out in faith as David did here. When you do, God will surely “establish (your) goings.” Just my thoughts …

Specific Praying!

“Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” James 5.16

Can I suggest that this first phrase is dealing with someone who has wronged another person? “Confess your faults one to another … ” If I have offended another believer, I need to go to that one and confess my fault and seek their forgiveness. James is quick to remind us that if we want emotional and spiritual healing, this healing involves praying for one another. Seems simple enough, but you and I know that it is difficult, if not impossible, to pray for someone with whom we are angry. So, we need to be willing to follow these steps to keep our fellowship where it ought to be with other believers.

This last phrase should catch our attention: “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” Verse 17 gives us an example of a righteous man: “Elias (Elijah) was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.” What is the obvious lesson here? When Elijah prayed, he got results. He prayed for NO rain and it didn’t rain. Verse 18 says he prayed and it rained. I believe this is an example of the “effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man”. I pray the Lord will help each of us learn to pray like this righteous man and see specific answers to specific prayers. Just my thoughts …

That this people may know …

“Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.” 1 Kings 18.37

The prophet Elijah here is asking the Lord to hear his prayer, “ … that this people may know that thou art the Lord God … ” How important is it for people to see when God answers prayer? Elijah had already confronted King Ahab and the false prophets of Baal. Now Elijah wanted God to answer his prayer to show all those who were watching who was the REAL God.

When you and I pray, what is our purpose? Is it simply a to-do list for the God of heaven to take care of for us? Or, do we want people to know who the real God of heaven is? I think that so often we get consumed with God answering our prayers to meet our needs and forget that there is a lost world watching who also needs to know something of the power of this great God. Interestingly enough, Elijah had done everything humanly possible to keep his prayer from being answered. He wanted everyone watching to know that it was God who had answered his prayer and not some kind of mystical something that he had done to make it happen himself.

I think it is also important that believers see God answer our prayers. It may be that they are struggling with things they don’t know how to handle. When they see God responding to the prayers we offer up to Him, that may encourage them to want to do the same. We never know how our example will encourage someone else to seek God and see Him work through the prayers they have prayed. Just my thoughts …

Go Ahead – Knock!

“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:” Matthew 7.7

Prayer should be such an important part of our daily walk with God. Here in this verse Jesus gives us some insight into some of the elements of prayer. He gives us three specific elements that you and I need to incorporate into our prayer lives.

The first element is to ask. most of us don’t have any problem asking God for the things we think we need. The next phrase tells us “ ,,, and it shall be given you … ” I’m sure the next question is this: “Does that mean that God will give me anything/everything I ask for?” I think you know the answer to that question. God will give us that which is consistent with His will for us. That means that we need to spend enough time with God to know what the boundaries of His will are for us.

The second element of prayer is to seek. What is it that we are to be seeking? We often need direction in making wise decisions. We may need specific help in knowing what God’s will is for us in a given situation. There may be several options open before us and we are struggling with which one is the right one for us. I believe that it is at this point that we must “seek, and ye shall find … ”

Finally, Jesus tells us to “knock, and it shall be opened unto you:” I had great respect for the pastor under whose ministry I grew up. He told me a great bit of wisdom once when he and I were talking about where God was taking him in his life. He was preaching at a church in a different state and that church was searching for a pastor. I asked him how he determined what God wanted him to do. He said, “I try every door that is before me. If God opens the door, I go through it. If God closes the door, I stay where I am.” Go through every open door God places before you. Just my thoughts …

How Is My Soul Prospering?

“Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.” 3 John 1.2

This is certainly a powerful prayer from the lips of John for the ones reading this letter. Perhaps we should ask ourselves how do we pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ – especially those who worship with us every week.

John mentions two particular things here: (1) that they would prosper, and (2) that they would be in (good) health. I believe those are two significant things that we can pray for everyone of God’s children. I believe God wants His children to prosper. Many times, some don’t prosper because of poor choices. Perhaps our prayers for them will encourage them to learn to make good choices. I also agree with John that praying for the health of our fellow believer is important. We may never know that someone is having an issue with their health because they choose to remain silent about it. But if we pray for each of our friends that God would help them prosper and be in good health, we will address their need anyway.

The last phrase is one for consideration: “even as thy soul prospereth.” John is asking for them to be blessed to the same degree that their spiritual life is being blessed. Wow! If someone prayed that prayer for you, what would be the expected outcome? I certainly want my spiritual life to be healthy and prospering. That is up to me – not God or anyone else. So if someone is struggling with prospering spiritually, now is the time to get alone with God and clean the slate. Let’s take time today to pray for our friends and ask God to help them prosper and be in health and that their spiritual life would be growing dynamically. Just my thoughts …

Able to Save! Amen!

“Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.” Hebrews 7.25

There are two powerful truths in this verse: (1) He (Christ) is able to save to the uttermost those who come to God by Him, and (2) He ever lives to make intercession for those whom He saves. None can come to Him who do not know that He exists and that He died for their sins. So, in order for this first part of the verse to have meaning, we as believers need to be in the business of evangelizing the world so that all the world may know that God has a Son and His name is Jesus. And this Jesus died for the sins of the world. I believe that gives value to the concept that He is able to same them to the uttermost (completely) once they come to God through Him.

For those who have already been saved, this matter of intercession is critical. I don’t know of anyone who gets up every morning and asks himself the question, “How can I sin today?” But it is a matter of great comfort to know that when we do sin, we have One who is interceding for us. It sounds like his singular purpose, once we are saved, is to intercede for us. That means that He is attentive to what is happening in our lives and He wants us to be able to maintain a healthy spiritual relationship with our Heavenly Father. If there was ever any doubt about how much Jesus care for you, this should settle it once and for all. Just my thoughts …

When Not If!

“But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. (8) Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.” Matthew 6.7-8

“But when ye pray … ” The Lord assumes we pray. Since we are God’s child, regular conversation with Him in prayer ought not be something out of the ordinary. But we are given some guidelines for prayer. “Vain repetitions …” When you are praying, how many times do you use God’s name in your prayer? Do you think you had His ear when you first called His name? If so, why is it necessary to use His name in every phrase? That would be like speaking to your spouse or friend and using their name in every other phrase. They would wonder, “Why is he/she calling my name so often? I am already listening.” Remember when you pray, you don’t need vain repetitions. He’s already listening. It is not the volume of words that we use, but rather it is the honesty of our hearts that matters to God.

“ … for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.” You may be thinking, “If He already knows what I need, why do I have to ask?” I believe the answer here is related to our faith. James 4.2 tells us: “ … ye have not because ye ask not.” When I was a student in Bible college, there was a time when I was not working and had no money to buy a meal. One of the students told me, “See that guy over there? He’ll pay for your meal if you ask him.” I said, “Really?” So I went over to the man and said, “That student over there told me you would buy meal if I asked. Is that correct?” To which he replied, “Absolutely, son!” And he did. If I had not asked, I would not have eaten that night. It was dependent upon my faith to ask. God knows what you need. Just ask Him … Just my thoughts …