Professional Prayers Not Needed

We started up a Teen Church last week at our church. It meets in our Fellowship Hall during our main worship service in the church. The service is being structured to be led by teens. We will have teen musicians, ushers, leaders, speakers, etc. Today during the prayer time one of the preteens volunteered to take prayer requests and lead the prayer. The leader told me that the young man got several requests from kids whose grandmothers needed prayer. When he started to pray it was obvious he could not remember all whose grandmothers needed prayer so he stopped and said, “Lord . . . ., just bless all the grandmothers in general.”

Jesus said, “And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words” (Matthew 6:7 NKJV). That is sure not the case for this young man! Prayer is the Christian privilege to converse with God. I think sometimes we take it for granted and at other times we really do not understand its impact upon our lives. It could be because it seems that prayer is not the same as a verbal conversation. Prayer sometimes gets mixed in with other thoughts; or maybe mine just do. Then there are the public prayers. Some are long and drawn out and are eloquently spoken. Others are loud and animated. Some are whispered and some are just thoughts directed to God. However one chooses to pray the aspect we must keep in mind is that the only rule Christ gave us was in regards to how many words we use. Don’t waste words and don’t try to impress Him with words; He knows what we are going to pray before we ever initiate it (Matthew 6:8). The Apostle Paul urged us to pray without ceasing! That simply means never quit and not continually praying a particular prayer. I believe the Lord would say that we do not need to be professional prayers.

One of the most powerful prayers ever prayed was spoken by a condemned criminal directly to Jesus as they both hang on Roman crosses. “Remember me when You come into Your kingdom” (Luke 23:42). He only used eight words and they gained him eternal life! He got right to the point because his breath was limited. It was enough for Christ. The next time you decide to pray; just do it. You do not have to be in a special place, at a special time, on a special occasion, or in a special pose. Make your petitions known to God. Prayer is a Christian privilege; do not abuse it but use it. My prayer is that all who read this will pray; in general.

Reconciled To God

For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.  (Romans 5:10 NKJV)

I told the church of Draper Valley on Sunday that until we are able to fully grasp that we have a personal relationship with the Father by way of the Son we will never fully experience the benefits of such a relationship. I went on to explain that once we are able to lead someone to Christ we must ensure that they understand they have now entered into a personal relationship with their Creator.

At one time in our life we were actually an enemy of God. Some may think that because they have nothing against God they are not His enemy. Unless we have placed our belief in Christ and opened up our heart and invited Him in, we are enemies by Gods standards. Once we make the decision to accept Christ, God will accept us into the family and will no longer count us His enemy. Only God could offer to reconcile. You and I had nothing acceptable to offer God in order to gain salvation. God would only drop His enmity toward us when our sin was forgiven. Christ’s death for our sin was acceptable to God on our behalf. Therefore the Apostle says, “Having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” It was the life of Christ that saved us; the life He gave up on the Cross.

For God to take such a drastic step as to sacrifice His Son in order that I would no longer be His enemy speaks volumes of how much He loves me. It is obvious that He does not want us to be apart from Him. If we are His enemy it is by our choice and not His.

Don't Be Fooled: The Devil Does Not Play

Psalm 14:1 (New King James Version, NKJV).

The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none who does good.

April Fool’s Day started a long time ago and has become a nationally recognized day in America, even though it is not a national holiday. People play pranks and hoaxes on each other in the name of fun. Some who are pranked or fooled laugh, others get angry. Everyone that is fooled is not necessarily a fool. The Bible defines a fool as one who says in their heart, “There is no God.”

Why would anyone say that? Because they have been fooled into believing there is no God. Jesus said a person that would build their house on sandy soil is foolish. The Apostle Paul wanted to know who it was that fooled the Galatian church. A fool is not just one who has a trick played on him but rather one who refuses to believe it was just a trick. If someone says your shoe is untied and you look and it is not, you were just tricked. If your shoe is untied and you look at it and refuse to tie it believing in your heart it is not really untied it just looks like it is, is a fool. Can you imagine anyone being that way? Not if they are in their right mind.

The same principle applies to the one who says there is no God in their heart. They see His creation; they see His works all around them and yet still believe in their hearts that He does not exist. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Romans that because there were those who did not like to retain God in their knowledge, which means to think about Him and give Him serious consideration, that God would “give them over” to their thoughts. Simply put; if you do not believe there is a God then you do not believe you will be judged one day.

The devil will fool you if you let him. He will convince you, as he did Eve, that God is not who He says He is. The devil will fool you into believing that the Bible is not true, that Christ does not exist, and that this life is all there is. Don’t fall for it. Take a serious look at the Bible and give serious thought to what it teaches. Take a moment to pray about it; God will hear you. The devil is not playing April Fools; he is not playing at all.

Not Just Forgiven, But Cleansed Also!

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 New King James Version, NKJV)

Having written these letters several years after the others had written the gospels, I tend to think that John believed people were in need of being reminded of the complete work of Christ on the Cross. Have you ever thought about what John may have envisioned when he was inspired by the Holy Spirit to pen these words on the parchment?

He may have been thinking about the time Jesus met the woman at the well in Samaria. Remember her? She was the one who was living with a man and had lived with others even before him. John may have remembered how that Jesus dealt with her.

Perhaps the time came to mind when Jesus was teaching in the temple and the religious guys brought in a woman caught in adultery and threw her down in front of Him; wanting to see if He would follow the Law and call for her to be stoned. Only to be surprised when He told them in a roundabout way they could be stoned for sins they had committed as well. Jesus then told her He forgave her and did not condemn her. Or it may have been what he remembered Jesus saying as He was dying on the Cross; “Forgive them Father, for they do not know what they are doing.”

I think you believe that Jesus will forgive sins; the sins of others. The hardest thing it seems for any of us to do is to believe in that forgiveness for ourselves. That is why I believe that John went a sentence further and added the words, “and cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness.” John wanted us to know that the work of redemption was not just for a moment in history. Forgiving and cleansing go hand in hand. There cannot be forgiveness if there is no absolution of sin by the High Priest of Heaven. Sin that is present in one’s life is not absolved. Jesus cleansed (absolved) us of sin with His Blood. Today when we stand or kneel and ask God to forgive us for our sins we are also agreeing to allow Him to cleanse us from it. As the song Jesus Paid It All says, “Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.”

The reason many feel they are beyond forgiveness is because of the residue left behind in their heart from sin and unrighteousness. With their minds they attempt to put the sin behind them but in their hearts the stains remain. That is why the Apostle Paul told us to be “transformed by the renewing of our minds.” If you have asked God to forgive you He has; and Christ has cleansed you. Your sin stains have been bleached out by the Blood of Jesus!

The Lad that Had

John 6: 9 (New King James Version, NKJV).

“There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?”

Was this a little boy’s lunch or a food vendor in the right place at the right time? Scholars differ on why the boy was there.  I am not a scholar, but a student of the Bible, but I know He was there because this was set up by our Lord. Jesus is famous for doing the impossible; things which are not possible with men but are possible with God. To emphasize just how big a miracle this was Jesus gets testimony from His disciples. “Phillip, is there a market in the area that we can order food from to feed these folk?” Phillip, with a look of astonishment on his face and a bit of excitement in his voice said, “Are you kidding Jesus? Even if there was a market close by, there are thousands of people here; a year’s wages could not buy enough food to feed them! We don’t have the money to feed all these people!” Jesus asked them if they had any food at all and Andrew, Peter’s brother, saw the kid. “Here is a lad with some food. Two little fish and five barley loaves, but they will not go far in feeding this group.” This was an impossible task given to them by Christ. They wanted to please Him but this would be literally impossible.

Now it is easy for you and me to say to them, “Why do you doubt Christ? Don’t you believe He can do anything?” If you and I had of been there and Jesus said it to us, we would have said the same thing. We know what happened, after it happened. The Apostle Paul wrote that hope which is seen is not hope at all (Romans 8:24). Our belief is only affirmed when we see it confirmed. That which we believe that God can do is proven to us after He does it. Faith is made up of hope and belief that we will have that which we do not yet see. It would not be until Jesus began multiplying the fish and the bread that the disciples would experience His power. Had they only seen the lad that had differently. Jesus wanted bread, the lad had it. Andrew said it is not enough, Jesus said, “Bring it to Me.”

How many times have we hoped for a miracle only to miss what Jesus is doing? We have to get down the road a little in order to look back and see how Jesus had a plan the whole time; we just did not see it at the moment. You may be the lad with the fish, or you may be one of the people needing food, or you may be a disciple. Jesus had a purpose and a plan for each. He has a plan for you and me too. Learn to see things as Jesus does; a little is a lot if we bring it to Him! Nothing is impossible with God. Keep the faith; there is a lad in the crowd somewhere!

Discouraged

“I have been a Christian for years and it seems that nothing changes. The more I try, the less I accomplish it seems. I thought it would get better over time, but it seems nothing really changes. What’s your take on this pastor?”

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First of all how long you have been following Christ is irrelevant. You are enveloped by discouragement. Sometimes it takes only one event to discourage us and sometimes it takes a series of little things over a long period of time. I have been discouraged before, just as everyone has. However I have learned, and the key word here is, learned, that discouragement is a frame of mind.

My discouragement came from not being able to do what I wanted to do, and not seeing the results I expected. The day I preached my first sermon I could not believe that people just sit there during the invitation, (altar call). I had told them about Jesus and His sacrifice on the Cross for their forgiveness; all of them should have run to the altar with tears streaming down their faces and praising God for saving them; but they didn’t. It had to be my delivery I thought. It was something I did wrong or did not do. Maybe I was not “spiritual” enough, or maybe the sermon was too shallow. It was several, yes, several years before God called me to pastor. Then taking the helm of Draper Valley after an excellent preacher and loving pastor I once again became discouraged. I tried to be as good as he was but came up short. Then after advice from my loving wife, dear friends, and our Conference Bishop, God was finally able to reach me! “Be who you are,” they all said in different ways. “The Lord called you; He knows you; He wanted you,” they said. It was then I realized that my discouragement was coming from my own ambitions and desires. I had determined in my own mind what I needed, or wanted, to be. I had not thought about what God had wanted. I had not realized He was pleased with me just as I am. Once I learned, (there is that word again), to be content with who I am, then God was able to use me as He wanted to.

Jesus said, “You didn’t choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won’t spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you (John 15:16 The Message MSG).

I am not sure what you are trying to accomplish that has left you discouraged because you have not accomplished it so I would advise you to rethink it. Is it something you have determined to do, or is it something God has asked you to do? If He has asked you to do it, He will help you accomplish it in His time. Remember, we are serving Him, not ourselves.

You Want Me Jesus? REALLY?

 Matthew 9: 9 (New King James Version, NKJV).

As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him.

Maybe he thought, “I have had enough,” one day as he made his way through the streets to his tax office. “My own brothers detest me, the government uses me, and it is getting harder to make a living by having to set my own wages.” He never realized what a bad job it would turn out to be when he took it. The Roman Chief Tax Collector had offered several men the opportunity to collect taxes for him by bidding out his job to them. Matthew won the bidding and ended up getting the job. Since there were no clear documents available to the people in order to know exactly how much tax they had to pay, he had the opportunity to set the price at what he wanted. He knew how much his boss wanted so everything above that was his to keep. Crook, extortioner, thief, and traitor, were all terms used to describe him. It was a lonely life being an IRS agent. Even when he tried to be fair people thought he was still gouging them. If only he had an opportunity to do something else. Being a publican was a black mark on anyone’s résumé so getting another job would be almost impossible so there were not many options.

Sitting there in his office expecting another day of arguing and bashing he saw Jesus coming toward him. He had heard some things about Jesus but did not know a lot about Him. Jesus came to his office and motioned to him and said, “Come. Follow me.” How could He have known? How could Jesus have possibly known how much he hated his job and was sick of his life? Regardless of how He knew it was now decision time. Without hesitation he got up from behind his desk and went with Jesus. He had come at just the right time. Matthew notified all his coworkers and what few friends he had and invited them to his retirement party. His new Boss and fellow disciples would be his guests. Jesus had rescued him and he was grateful and wanted all to know he was going back to school!

Have you ever wondered why Jesus chose people like Matthew to be a disciple and then ordain as an apostle? Why would He not choose those who knew about God like the other teachers or Rabbis? Jesus always knew who to go to. He went to folk as much as they came to Him. He always knew who it was that really needed help. He still knows who to go to. I did not find Jesus; He came to me. He came to me at just the right time and He will come to you too; just watch for Him.