Life Hangs on the Word of God

 

He said to them, “Take to heart all the words by which I am warning you today, that you may command them to your children, that they may be careful to do all the words of this law. For it is no empty word for you, but your very life, and by this word you shall live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.” (Deuteronomy 32:46–47)

The word of God is not a trifle; it is a matter of life and death. If you treat the Scriptures as a trifle or as empty words, you forfeit life.

Even our physical life depends on God’s word, because by his word we were created (Psalm 33:6; Hebrews 11:3), and “he upholds the universe by the word of his power” (Hebrews 1:3).

And our spiritual life begins by the word of God: “Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth” (James 1:18). “You have been born again . . . through the living and abiding word of God” (1 Peter 1:23).

Not only do we begin to live by God’s word, but we also go on living by God’s word: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3).

So our physical life is created and upheld by the word of God, and our spiritual life is quickened and sustained by the word of God. How many stories could be gathered to bear witness to the life-giving power of the word of God!

Indeed, the Bible is “no empty word for you” — it is your life! The foundation of all joy is life. Nothing is more fundamental than sheer existence — our creation and our preservation.

All this is owing to the word of God’s power. By that same power, he has spoken in Scripture for the creation and sustenance of our spiritual life. Therefore, the Bible is no empty word, but is your very life — the foundation and kindling of your joy!

Jesus’s Pursuit of Joy

 

Look] to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:2)

Does the example of Jesus contradict the principle of Christian Hedonism? Namely, that love is the way of joy and that one should choose it for that very reason, lest one be found begrudging obedience to the Almighty or chafing under the privilege of being a channel of grace or belittling the promised reward.

Hebrews 12:2 seems to say fairly clearly that Jesus did not contradict this principle.

The greatest labor of love that ever happened was possible because Jesus pursued the greatest imaginable joy, namely, the joy of being exalted to God’s right hand in the assembly of a redeemed people: “For the joy that was set before him [he] endured the cross!”

In saying this, the writer means to give Jesus as another example, along with the saints of Hebrews 11, of those who are so eager for and confident in the joy God offers that they reject the “fleeting pleasures of sin” (Hebrews 11:25) and choose ill-treatment in order to be aligned with God’s will.

It is not unbiblical, therefore, to say that at least part of what sustained Christ in the dark hours of Gethsemane was the hope of joy beyond the cross. This does not diminish the reality and greatness of his love for us, because the joy in which he hoped was the joy of leading many sons to glory (Hebrews 2:10).

His joy is in our redemption, which redounds to God’s glory. We share the joy with Jesus and God gets the glory.

BE PERSISTENT IN PRAYER!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 24, 2022.

SUBJECT : BE PERSISTENT IN PRAYER!

Memory verse: “Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And I do not send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” (Matthew 15 vs 32.)

READ: Luke 18 vs 35 - 43:

18:35:Then it happened, as He was coming near Jericho, that a certain blind man sat by the road begging:

18:36: And hearing a multitude passing by, he asked what it meant.

18:37: So they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.

18:38: And he cried out, saying, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

18:39: Then those who went before him warned him that he should be quiet; but he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

18:40: And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought to Him. And when he had come near, He asked him,

18:41: saying, “What do want Me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, that I may receive my sight.”

18:42: Then Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.

18:43: And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people when they saw it, gave praise to God.

INTIMATION:

Persistence means not giving up. Some of the dictionary definition are: (1) To go on resolutely or stubbornly in spite of opposition, importunity, or warning. (2) To remain unchanged or fixed in a specified character, condition, or position. (3) To be insistent in the repetition or pressing of an utterance (as a question or opinion). (4) To continue to exist especially past a usual, expected, or normal time. Synonyms for persist include to carry on, dig in, hang on, keep up, follow through with, endure, hold on, hold up, last, remain, linger, tarry, carry through, prevail, and so on.

Persistence reveals an earnest desire to receive. Ernest means showing deep sincerity or seriousness, being determined. Godly determination will be the force that drives people to pray without ceasing and be steadfast until the answer comes. Sometimes once is not enough, and one prayer hasn’t said it all or broken through. You find yourself praying again and again until you see the lines in the spirit begin to line up in your favor. People who are not persistent lack the intensity that should be in the heart of righteous people. 

The definition of persist also mirrors godly attributes. God persists and continues with us in our humanity. Jesus never ceases to make intercession for us (Isaiah 53 vs 12; Romans 8 vs 34). God is faithful. He sticks with us. He carries us through. When we pray persistent prayers, we are praying in the character of God. Many believers get weary in prayer. They pray a little while and get discouraged because the answer didn’t come. You must never cease in praying because the enemy never ceases to make war with the saints. He will never give up because his time is short. 

Persistence also means continuing in prayer. In our memory verse, Jesus was moved by the people who came to Him and continued with Him for days. He had compassion on the multitude who had “continued” with Him for three days without food. Jesus was moved by the people’s hunger for spiritual food that He miraculously provided physical food for their bodies. They were seeking the things of the kingdom, and Jesus added “all these things.” (Matthew 6 vs 33.) Their persistence in seeking the Savior gave them the physical things they needed, and they weren’t even praying for food.

In the passage we read today, the people told the blind man to keep quiet and not bother Jesus. But this man was desperate. He was insistent on being heard so that Jesus could minister to him. His persistence resulted in his sight being restored. Also in Acts of the apostles chapter 1 and 2, and throughout the forming of the early church the phrases “continued in prayer, “continued in prayer and supplication,” “continued in faith, love, and holiness” are used to describe the apostles, who turned the world upside down with the gospel.

Some of the mountains in our lives are so stubborn that they require us to PUSH—‘Pray Until Something Happens.’ Do not be discouraged. Press in. Don’t stop praying. Your breakthrough is near. Praying consistent, earnest prayers is part of the life of a believer who is doing something right. Continue in your position of prayer despite all apparent opposition. The enemy is only on the heels of those who recognize their strength and potential in God. Never give up praying about that lost loved one, that job, your finances, your health, your marriage, your church or ministry. Whatever it is, God is persisting with you. He has compassion on those who continue with Him.

Prayer: Abba Father, endue me with the spirit of persistence in my prayer altar, that I may pray through and receive my petitions as testimonies of answered prayers, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD! 

THE NEED TO CULTIVATE A PRAYER HABIT!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 23, 2022.

SUBJECT : THE NEED TO CULTIVATE A PRAYER HABIT!

Memory verse: "Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray, and not lose heart." (Luke 18 vs 1.)

READ: Psalm 5 vs 1 - 3: 

1 Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation.

2 Give need to the voice of my cry, my King, and my God, for to You I will pray.

3 My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD. In the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.

INTIMATION:

Prayer is communing with the Lord, and it is the most powerful resource of a Christian. Communion with God through prayer is the most essential armor of God available to the Christian, and is for constant use. The results are often greater than we thought were possible. There is no denying the fact that the lack of prayer is the bane of the individual members of the body of Christ. Prayer should be as natural as breathing and as enjoyable as eating. It should be as unconscious as our communication with each other. While doing all these we must not lose the fact that we are communicating in fellowship with Someone superior to us but has given us the privilege to come to Him. 

Jesus was a man of prayer. He taught prayer, not as a slavish duty, but as a glorious privilege. In our memory verse, He said that “men ought to pray and not faint,” that is to say that we need to form the prayer habit, and maintain constant communication with the Lord. If prayer was Important to Jesus, then it must be important to His followers. Constant prayer means keeping our requests continually before God with Whom there are no impossibilities or difficulties. Therefore, it is imperative we should be in constant communion with Him as we live for Him day by day, believing He will answer. As we persist in prayer, we grow in character, faith, and hope. When we live by faith, we are not to give up. God may delay answering, but His delays always have good reasons. 

Our persistence is an expression of our faith that God answers our prayers. Our faith shouldn’t die if the answers come slowly, for the delay may be God’s way of working His will in your life. When we feel tired of praying, know that God is present, always listening, always answering—maybe not in ways you had hoped, but in ways that He knows are best.

Praying morning, afternoon and night is certainly an excellent way to maintain correct priorities throughout the whole day. Daniel followed this pattern (Daniel 6 vs 10), as did Peter (Acts 10 vs 9 - 10). The prayers of God’s people are effective against the overwhelming evil in the world. David knew this secret of constant communion with the Lord, and He said, ”Evening, morning and at noon, I will pray, and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice.” (Psalm 55 vs 17.) 

How can one pray at all times? One way is to make quick, brief prayer your habitual response to every situation you meet throughout the day. Another way is to order your life around God’s desires and teachings so that your very life becomes a prayer. You don’t have to isolate yourself from other people and from daily work in order to pray constantly. You can make prayer your life and your life a prayer while living in a world that needs God’s powerful influence. 

Regular communication helps any friendship and is certainly necessary for a strong relationship with God. We need to communicate with Him daily. Do you have a regular time to pray and read God’s Word? The secret of a close relationship with God is to pray to Him earnestly each morning. In the morning, our minds are more free from problems, and then we can commit the whole day to God. Every Christian should form the habit of continuing earnestly in prayer and be vigilant in it. Prayer quiets our thoughts and emotions and prepares us to listen. Some people see prayer as a last resort to be tried when all else fails. This approach is backward. Prayer should come first. Because God’s power is infinitely greater than ours, it only makes sense to rely on it—especially because God encourages us to do so.

Prayer: Abba Father, endue me with the spirit of prayer and supplication that I may habitually remain in constant communication with You—the source of all powers, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed. Amen.

PRAISE THE LORD!  

Hope for the Worst of Sinners

 

I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.” (Exodus 33:19)

Moses needed hope that God really could have mercy on a stiff-necked people who had just committed idolatry and scorned the God who brought them out of Egypt.

To give Moses the hope and confidence he needed, God said, “I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious.” In other words, “My choices do not depend on the degree of evil or good in man but solely upon my free, sovereign will. Therefore no one can say he is too evil to be shown grace.” That would imply God is not free, and election is not unconditional.

The doctrine of unconditional election is the great doctrine of hope for the worst of sinners. It means that when it comes to being a candidate for grace, your background has nothing to do with God’s choice. That’s good news.

If you have not been born again and brought to saving faith in Jesus Christ, do not sink into hopelessness thinking that the excessive rottenness or hardness of your past life is an insurmountable obstacle to God’s gracious work in your life. God loves to magnify the freedom of his grace by saving the worst of sinners.

Turn from your sin; call upon the Lord. Even in this daily devotion, that you are reading or hearing, he is being gracious to you, and giving you strong encouragement to come to him for mercy.

“Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool” (Isaiah 1:18).

SOME ENEMIES OF PRAYER!

 EVERYDAY IN THE WORD!

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 22, 2022.

SUBJECT : SOME ENEMIES OF PRAYER! 

Memory verse: "And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive." (Matthew 21 vs 22.)

READ: Mark 11 vs 22 - 24: 

11:22: So Jesus answering said to them, “Have faith in God.”

11:23: For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, “Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does  not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 

11:24: Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

11:25: And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.

11:26: But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”

INTIMATION: 

Prayer we already know is fellowshipping with the Father, and the Master. There are known enemies of prayer. Some of these enemies are very dear 'friends.' We have associated with them for many years, and it will be hard for us to give them up.

The most outstanding enemy is a lack of knowledge of whom we are in Christ, and what He is in us, what He did for us, and of our standing and legal rights before the Throne. All these are embedded in the Scriptures. And the lack of this knowledge is the bane of the believer. The Scripture says,  "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge...." (Hosea 4 vs 6). It is in studying and meditation that God’s inheritance to you in Christ is revealed.  And until you do, you will never have a prayer life beyond the baby experience.

Another enemy is ignorance of what "Believing" is. The word "Believe" is a verb. It is an action word—it means to act upon the Word. Then believing the Word is simply acting on it. We act upon it as we act upon the word of our governments on taxes. Act on it the way you expect your children to act on your word of right morals to them. There is no believing without acting, and believing means having possession. I possess what the Word has promised. 

For instance, here is a statement of fact, Isaiah 53 vs 4 personalized: "Surely He has born my sicknesses and carried my pains and I have come to esteem Him as the one stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted." You just don't give a mental assent to it, rather you act on the Word; you say it out to yourself and others, as if you are the only person Jesus is talking to. You claim it as your word, and eat it as if you are eaten your favorite meal. Declare it all the time. If you fail to speak and act on the Word, you are self-deceived.  The Believer is a "doer”  of the Word and not a hearer only.

Another enemy is praying for faith. It is a delusion to pray for faith or more faith. You can never get it. I have never heard of anyone getting more faith or having their faith increased by praying for it. Why is it so? Because the prayer for faith is a prayer based on unbelief. If unbelief were not your master, you wouldn't need faith. Praying for faith is because you are in doubt of the Father, His integrity, and His Word, hence you are praying for faith to believe Him. It is an absolute proof that you will not get it.

For instance, if a child should say to the mother, "Mum, I want you to increase my faith in you. I have been trying all morning to believe what you said that my birthday being this Saturday is true." It is noteworthy that the mother gave birth to the child and knows the day she gave birth, but the child is trying to believe the mother on the date of birth. That child is insulting the integrity of the mother. 

So when you pray for faith you are insulting the Author of the Word. You don't intend to, but you are doing that. This is the same as acting on the Word and still not believing on the efficacy of the Word. For instance, when you are divinely healed, you will not confess it because you still want to wait a while to confirm it is done.

Another enemy of prayer is our dependence on other people's faith. We become unconsciously spiritual hitchhikers. To everyone God has given a measure of faith (Romans 12 vs 3); that faith came when you received the Father's nature—you accepted Jesus Christ. That nature is a faith nature. As soon as it came into you and you became His child, you began to develop that faith. Just as you develop your mental strength by certain mental exercises, and develop your physical strength by certain physical exercises, now you are developing your faith by feeding on the Word (John 15 vs 7).

Our Father did give us a measure of faith because He knows that without it, it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11 vs 6). If you have no faith you cannot please Him, even with somebody's faith posturing for you. Many times we have gone to the altar, and to the prayer room to pray for more faith, but to no avail. Your faith is built up when you begin to live in the Word, act on the Word, and take advantage of your inheritance in Christ.

Another enemy is the desire to read about the Bible and about prayer rather than to study the Word, meditate on it, and fit yourself for the highest known and holiest of all vocations. In my considered opinion, it is more than a vocation, it is a privilege, and the rarest of all privileges that have been given to us in grace.

Another known enemy an unforgiving heart. God does not answer the prayer that comes from an unforgiving heart. God will judge without mercy the one who has shown no mercy. Forgiving heart is a condition for answered prayer.

Prayer: Abba Father, my complete trust is in You. You are loving, unfailing and ever faithful. There is none like You in heaven and on earth. In You I live, and move, and have all my being. Blessed be Your holy Name forever. Endue me with the spirit of love that I may have the mind of Christ, in Jesus’ Name I have prayed, Amen.

PRAISR THE LORD!

Let Goods and Kindred Go

 

Recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one. Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. (Hebrews 10:32–35)

The Christians in Hebrews 10:32–35 have earned the right to teach us about costly love.

The situation appears to be this: In the early days of their conversion, some of them were imprisoned for their faith. The others were confronted with a difficult choice: Shall we go underground and stay “safe,” or shall we visit our brothers and sisters in prison and risk our lives and property? They chose the way of love and accepted the cost.

“For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property.”

But were they losers? No. They lost property and gained joy! They joyfully accepted the loss.

In one sense, they denied themselves. It was real and costly. But in another sense, they did not. They chose the way of joy. Evidently, these Christians were motivated for prison ministry the same way the Macedonians (of 2 Corinthians 8:1–9) were motivated to relieve the poor. Their joy in God overflowed in love for others.

They looked at their own lives and said, “The steadfast love of the Lord is better than life” (see Psalm 63:3).

They looked at all their possessions and said, “We have a possession in heaven that is better and lasts longer than any of this” (see Hebrews 10:34).

Then they looked at each other and said — perhaps sang — something like Martin Luther’s great hymn:

Let goods and kindred go
This mortal life also
The body they may kill
God’s truth abideth still
His kingdom is forever