In Deuteronomy God says that His laws are not too hard for us.(Deut. 30:11-15)
"For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. It
is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to
heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? Neither
is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the
sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it. See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;"
Why does He say this?
Because He wants us to see that there is something wrong with us. We have a corrupted nature from Adam. God did not create us this way. We have fallen. (Gen. Chapter 3, Romans 1:16-32, Romans 3:10-31)
He tells us truth. "It is not hidden from you or far off."
God says we can keep His law. It's not hard. He knows our capabilities. He created us. He did not make His law impossible.
But we do not do it.
Why?
Because after the Fall, we became corrupt, and NOW His law is impossible for us. Because we are fallen.
We changed. Not His law. His law is eternal, it changes not. Just like God doesn't change.
The Apostle Paul cries out "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" (Romans Chapter 7)
We have to come to the conclusion on our own that we cannot obey God's Law. We cannot please Him. We can't do it. This is us realizing we are sinners, and need God.
We try to do right. We fail. Our lives are in shambles and we cannot please God or anyone. Then, we say "I can't do it! I quit!" Then the Holy Spirit comes and speaks to our heart. "Maybe God can help? Maybe God can save you and fix you?"
That is when we have that "Aha!" moment and realize the truth of the Word given to us, and turn to God for His salvation and help. This is Grace and Faith. We put our trust in Him, and He accepts us because we received it in Faith and Truth.
We must come to this conclusion. This helps us to realize that we need
Him. We have three choices. We can keep trying to obey the laws and rules under our
own power, even though we can't. (Religion) Or we can throw in the towel, and
quit. Turning away from God. (Rebellion) Or we can turn to Him and let Him save us
and grow us. (Submission and Relationship)
We hear His call and turn to Him. We must awaken in Him. We come to life in Him. We die to sin and come to life in Christ. (Romans Chapter 6-7)
God knew we would fail to keep His laws. That's why He set up a sacrificial system to take care of us, when we fail. Why say "It's not too hard..." but yet give us a means to fix it when we fail?
Because
He knows we will fail. It's part of the law He designed. The entire
thing is designed to cause us to fail, wake up, turn to Him, and let Him
save us, cleanse us and grow us. This is the relationship. This is knowing Him,
and being known of Him.
The sacrifices in the law are a picture of Jesus Christ, coming to save us and cleanse us of all sin. He is our savior.
The law shows us that we fail, and need a savior.
We turn to Him and He saves us and grows us.
The law becomes dead to us because we die with Christ, then come to life again in Him. The eternal consequences of sin do not impact us. Notice I said "Eternal". We are often impacted in this life by the things we do. But, it is not held against us in eternity, we are saved.
We now live to love God and others. But, we do this by His Holy Spirit. Not our own. Our flesh cannot do it.
It's not too hard for us, because God Himself does it for us. It's not too far from us, because Jesus Christ brought it down for us.
That's His Grace and Love. We just need to abide and have a relationship with Him.
If we are saved, the laws and rules, now exist to help us have a better life and to know what to confess to the Lord for cleansing. We are free from the eternal consequences of the law.
If you followed me around everyday with a camera. You’d be like,
“What’s wrong with this guy?”
God saves us despite our sinfulness. He works to change us.
Trust me. I’m better than I used to be.
I say this because I don’t want you to think I’m some perfect person. I’m not.
No one is. But, God uses us in our sin and failure anyway.
I say this again because I want you to realize that if we wait till we are perfect, we will never get busy serving God.
We are perfect because God washed us in the Blood of Christ, if you are saved. Not because we act perfect.
We grow in the Lord by serving Him. By working with Him. By confessing our sins to Him and building the relationship with Him.
Henry Blackaby used to say, “Find where God is working and join Him.”
A burden is a call from God to join Him.
So, what is a “burden”?
A burden is when you can’t get rid of a feeling or thought. It has weight. It burdens you. You perceive that there’s more to it than just some passing thought. Because it doesn’t pass. It stays with you. It keeps coming to your mind.
Now, a burden can be for anything, but let’s start with simple things.
You’re laying in bed and you wake up and someone is on your mind.
Pray for them.
Usually a burden will not leave you alone. It just keeps bugging you until you take care of it. Keep praying. As your mind runs wild, keep praying for what comes, or about what comes.
Sometimes, it’s a burden to pray. Sometimes it’s a burden to contact this person and just say “hi” and see what’s up. (Of course not at 2am)
You’ve been thinking about Uncle Joe all day. That’s a burden. Pray for him. Reach out.
You saw the woman sitting by the road with a sign. You’ve thought about her the whole time you’re in the store. That’s a burden. Pray for her and help her.
Sometimes a burden can be something you know about. You have no excuse.
Your friend’s spouse just died, and you feel a burden to reach out.
Do it.
You hear someone in need and feel a burden to help.
Do it.
Let’s get back to prayer, because no matter what the burden is, it needs to be answered firstly, by talking with God.
Nehemiah used to say short quick prayers under his breath when needed. (The Book of Nehemiah)
It doesn’t have to be anything elaborate. Just pray until the burden is lifted or you know what to do. Just talk to God.
I will often whisper prayers to God that no one sees. Even while I’m surrounded by people. God hears. You do not need to make a big show of prayer. Actually it’s best you don’t.
Sometimes, you won’t know what the burden is about. Just go. God will be there.
Sometimes you won’t know what to pray for. Pray what I call “Blanket Prayers”
You are throwing a blanket of prayer power over a person, place or situation.
Pray for salvation. Pray for protection. Pray that the people will draw closer to God. Pray for healing. Pray for help.
You are covering them in prayer.
You don’t need to know specifics. God will reveal those as He sees fit. Sometimes, it comes by contacting the person to see how they are doing.
The Holy Spirit guides us, and He can take our generic prayer and translate it into something specific. Even if we have no clue and are in agony, groaning for someone or ourselves, the Holy Spirit can understand. (Romans 8:26-27)
That brings us back to trying to be perfect. You can’t be. You already are perfect, in Christ.
The devil will get you to wallow in your own doubt and fear in order to keep you from serving. Just get up and do it.
Go, and let God guide you. it’s hard. You might fail. But, you went. And that’s really all we are called to do. (Eze. 3:17-22)
As we go, we listen for God’s guidance. The more we do it, the better we are at hearing Him.
As Saints, we are called to fight the enemy, help people, and spread the Gospel. We gather together in churches to do that work and help each other. This life is hard and we are often under attack. Our fellow Christians are supposed to pray for us and help us with our burdens and our troubles so we can fight the good fight of faith, and help them as well.
It all starts with prayer and often a burden to pray.
I had no idea what that actually meant. But, God did. And that’s all that matters. I turned to Him and He came running.
No one who gets saved, knows the Bible. They do not know anything. We
cannot say “I won’t sin anymore”, because we do not even know what that
is.
We just hear His call and turn to Him.
That’s it, and that’s all that’s needed. If we really heard and turned.
It’s all on Him. He takes care of it.
According to some people, when you get saved you instantly become this person who never sins. That was not my experience.
I turned into a violent drunk who destroyed everyone and everything.
But, God was with me. I know He was.
And as I sowed evil into my life and into the world, all of it worked together to break me.
Because God and His promises are not based upon my ability but on His.
I’m a failure. He is not.
When we read in Deuteronomy Chapter 28, we see the blessings that come when we obey God, and the curses that come when we don’t.
This is not about eternal salvation. That’s settled when you turn to Christ.
This is about reaping what we sow in this world. It’s is about being blessed or corrected. It is about being broken.
God designed His creation to respond to reaping and sowing and harvest. Whether physically or spiritually. (Galatians 6:7-9)
He created it this way when we were still in the Garden, before the
Fall. So, we were not doing evil. We were not corrupted. We sowed and
reaped goodness. But, when we fell, evil came and now we sow and reap
evil.
So as I lived my evil life. The harvest of my evil actions was
growing, and God was merciful. He gave me grace and protected me. But,
eventually that harvest came upon me.
I was cursed and destroyed in every way. I lost everything.
Just like it says in Deuteronomy Chapter 28. That is “Rock Bottom”. That is reaping what we sow.
Now, I had a choice. I could have gotten mad at God and rejected Him.
I could have become bitter. And I would continued to face “Rock Bottom”
and correction, in various ways.
Or I could let it break me, and turn to Him, and learn from Him and grow in Him.
I chose Him, because He chose me. (1 John 4:19)
People forget brokenness as a spiritual discipline. The act of utter destruction in order to be rebuilt by God.
So many churches are built on a false belief of perfect obedience,
because they have never been broken. They have never experienced God
destroying their life, in order to rebuild it. They grew up in church
and never left. They have never been corrected, because they have never
really known Him. They just obey the rules.
But, ALL things work together for our good, when He calls us, and we love Him. (Romans 8:28)
I can look back at my life and see His movements and know that He was
with me in my destruction. His hand was on the temperature gauge of my
burning. And it’s ok. I trust Him. I trust Him because He has brought me
through.
This is my testimony. It is between Him and me. By our testimony we
shall over come the enemy. Because we can see and say the great things
God has done for us. (Rev. 12:11, Luke 8:39)
I no longer care about peoples religion or their dead beliefs. I know the Lord. I have a relationship with Him.
It came because of my failure and my brokenness. All things work together. His grace is sufficient for me.
When we sin we turn to Him, and confess to Him and He is faithful and
just to forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If
we pretend like we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and Jesus is
not in us. When we say we don’t sin, we make God out to be a liar.
Because He came to die for our sins, not our failures. Not our mistakes.
Not our misunderstandings. But, for our sin. (1 John 1)
All things in this life work together for our goodness when we are
with Him. Good or bad. If we do good we get blessed. We reap goodness
because we sow goodness.
And when we sow evil we reap correction into our lives. We reap
destruction and brokenness into our lives. And it works to grow us. It
changes us, if we turn to Him. The trouble and brokenness works as
fertilizer for growth.
And as we confess our sin and turn to Him, and grow. As we are broken
and corrected through our life. As we face tribulation, and sin and
failure, and turn to Him over and over and over again.
We change. We grow. We bear fruit.
I have changed.
My mind has been renewed to what God created it to be before it was
ruined by my corrupted nature and my own sinful deeds. (Romans 12:2)
Not by my works or efforts but by Him, breaking me and saving me.
That is how the Holy Spirit develops the Fruit in us. Patience comes
by a life time of trusting and waiting upon the Lord, as He molds you
and shapes you. Love comes by facing the unlovable. Peace comes by
facing chaos. Joy comes by misery. Self-control comes through correction
and brokenness. That is meekness. All of it comes by constantly turning
to Him, confessing, praying, and letting Him work.
That is the relationship.
I no longer struggle to obey God.
I just obey, or get corrected and both are fine. Because I trust Him.
He fixes it. He changes me.
I find myself, sinning less.
I’m not perfect in myself. In my flesh.
But, I am perfect in Him. He no longer sees my sin. According to Him, I am in Christ and do not sin at all. (1 John)
I am washed in the Blood. I am clean. I am white as snow. My sins are
as far from me as the East is from the West. They are in the deepest
sea, and I am hid in the cleft of the Rock of Christ. I am on the Ark. I
might be a termite on the Ark. But, I’m there because of what Jesus
did, not what I do.
When you hear Him call and turn to Him. His Holy Spirit comes into
you and teaches you to love Him and know Him. And you realize that God
is with you and will never leave you, nor forsake you. (Heb. 13:5)
And you will see that ALL things work together for your good.
Because of Him and His promises. Not you and your obedience or failure.
He does it because of who He is, not because of who you are, or what you do.
Jesus said that the thief or Satan has come to steal, kill and destroy. What does this mean? (John 10:9-10, John 8:43-44)
Well the very first thing. Is our soul. The enemy does everything in his power to keep people from salvation. He fights to keep people from hearing the call. From knowing God. From having a relationship with Him. ( Matt. Chapter 13, verses 4, 19)
But, once God has broken through into our lives and we have heard Him, believed Him and accepted Him. He saves us.
Even after salvation, the enemy still attacks us. He still seeks to steal, kill and destroy.
He gets us to waste our money on things that won’t bless others, or survive the fire.
He gets us to focus on things that don’t matter, stealing our time and our life, and our finances.
He gets us to see only this world, instead of storing up treasures for the next.
Because where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. (Matt 6:19-21)
Overcome evil with good. Turn everything over to God. Surrender it all and use all of it for His glory. That redeems our waste. That turns uselessness into value. (Romans 12:21)
That enemy seeks to destroy our health, and to murder us. He gets us to worry about the belly. What we shall eat and what we shall wear. He gets us addicted to this life, and the filth of it. Feeding us garbage to make us sick, to destroy our health and make us doubt God. Our sickness from the garbage of this world, gets us to focus on our bodies, instead of the things of the Spirit. (Matthew 6:24-34, )
We eat like kings, and gain all the diseases that come with it. And the enemy uses it to turn our minds from the things that matter.
He sends us to early graves, because we seek the things of the flesh.
All things are lawful, but not all things bring us closer to God. (1 Cor. 6:10, 10:23)
Our spirit matters more than the body, but the body can be used to distract us from the spirit. We need to try to prevent that. Like a soldier shoring up a weak position. Our health, both spiritual and physical matters.
That enemy wants to destroy our service to God, and others. He distracts us into things that doesn’t matter. He does things to make us look evil to others. He throws monkeywrenches into our work, and leads us to do things that cause people to not listen to us, when we preach the Gospel or share truth.
He destroys our families. Our lives. Our hopes and dreams. He gets us to blame God and run from Him. Which allows more destruction, death and loss.
Like a lion going around seeking whom he may devour, he makes a loud roar. And the fear, causes the weak, young, foolish, and sick to run. And the lion can find you away from the shepherd. (1 Peter 5:8)
The enemy destroys us by getting us to leave the presence of the shepherd.
He makes us feel that God is mad at us. That God is hurting us. That God is deceiving us or tricking us. He tells us that we are too far gone. That we have lost our salvation, or given it away. (Gen. Chapter 3)
He does everything in his power to keep us from our only savior, Jesus Christ, the Lord Almighty. (Matthew Chapter 13)
The Parable of the Sower shows that the enemy tries to steal the Word from our heart, while trouble and temptations come to draw us into the distractions of this life and get us to ignore God or hate God. These troubles cause us to fear, and doubt and forget. (Matt. Chapter 13)
The soil of the heart can only become good when we turn to God, get saved and let Him work in our lives. Even then we have attacks of the enemy. The heart never fully turns good. It is deceitful and wicked. Do not trust it. Trust God. (Jer. 17:7-12)
The answer for everything is to turn to God. Confess to Him. Grow in Him. Trust Him.
No matter what it is. Turn to God, and let Him work. Have faith that he loves you. Have faith that He is working, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Heb. 11:6)
Turn to God. Always.
Our protection stands in God. When we get saved we are in Christ.
But, the question must be. If trouble comes, where do you turn? A person who knows God and trusts God and has put everything in God turns to Him. We trust His promises in His Word. We trust the relationship He has shown us that we have with Him.
A person who never really knew God or never really accepted Him does not turn to Him.
People do not lose their salvation. They never had it.
Of course we question things. That is the enemy putting doubt into our hearts. That is a temptation.
But, what do we do with it?
Do we reject Satan and turn to God? Or do we reject God, who is our only Hope?
God wants us to seek Him and question Him in these times. It helps build the relationship. He shows us His love and power and we grow in Faith. Even Jesus in the Garden had questions and concerns. (Matt. 26:36-46)
A person who really knows God, turns to God. This is abiding. (John 14:6, John Chapter 15)
Some believers, will act as though we should not concern ourselves with the enemy. But, that is the exact opposite of what the Word teaches.
We have an enemy. We are at war. We need to understand his devices and wage war. Our protection lies in Christ, not our own works. But, we are called to serve in this war. (2 Cor, 2:10-11)
We are called to abide in Him. We are called to endure. (2 Tim. 2:3, Matt. 24:13)
We endure and abide by knowing Him and trusting Him. By turning to Him always, confessing to Him, and building that relationship.
Not by works. But, by His Grace in Him.
Tough times are coming. The Flood is coming.
Is your faith in Him built on the Rock of Christ?
Or is it built on the shifting sands of your own efforts, and worldly things? (Matt. 7:24-29)
As
believers we are called to share each other’s burdens. (Romans 12:1-21) Yet, I
have seen where churches fail miserably in this department. They will search
high and low for someone to save, and then once they are “saved”, they will
leave them to their own devices.
Often times, we will blanket an area
that is low income with flyers, asking them to come to church, or to some
event. But, churches are really not prepared or often willing to help with the
needs of the people they are reaching out to. People of lower income, who are not
“Well Churched” will often come to a church and get saved or start attending
regularly. Then the members of the church start finding out the vast amount of
needs the person or family has. They see the huge differences between someone
who has never been to church, and some who grew up in the church. This often
causes church going people to judge, and drive people away, because they cannot
figure out why the person or family can’t get right, or do what church people
think they should do. Poor folks often don’t have cars, or
they have broken down vehicles. They don’t have licenses. They can’t pay bills.
They have been to jail, or prison. They have no child care. They often have no
real income, or they work jobs that are considered servile. They do not always
have internet or cable. They don’t have access to things we take for granted.
When people fall on tough times, or are the products of generational poverty,
the hurdles that must be overcome are often beyond the understanding of your
average church member. It’s not always so easy to just pull
yourself up by the boot straps. There are things that must be overcome. There
are rules that must be followed, that often lead to more rules and more
hurdles. There are generational curses, and personal curses. There are mental
issues, and demonic entities to overcome. There is often sin that a person must
conquer before they can start advancing. Not to mention addictions. Just saying
“Go get a job” is not always as simple as we might think, nor is it the easy
answer. I have lived through this mess, and it takes time, and God to overcome.
It also takes help from people who are willing to share the burdens. First off, is the person able to
fill out an application well enough to get hired? Does the person have a
criminal record that could keep them from work? Do they have a valid Driver’s
license? Do they have health or mental issues? When you consider these things,
the difficult task of living life in this society becomes unreal. How can a
poor person take a driver’s test without a decent reliable vehicle to take the
test in? Every person they know has a junker car. The DMV refuses such
vehicles. What if they can’t read or have no real work history? What if their
only real personal reference, that is not family, is Jimmy the crack dealer? Does the person have an address?
Applications of all kinds require an address. Do they have a phone? Do they
have internet access? Most applications are online anymore. Can they get to a
place where there is internet access? These are things that are needed to “get
a job’. Who will give the rides to
interviews? Do they have clean clothes? Can they afford the work clothes required?
Do they have child care? Can the person behave in a manner that will help them
convince an employer to hire them? Oftentimes people from rough backgrounds
have rough manners. It’s often things they do not even see in themselves. If they get the job, how do they get
back and forth to work? How do they get food, clothes, hygiene items, or pay
bills until the first pay check comes in? Then, remember that businesses often
keep the first paycheck. So, you are talking about 2 weeks to a month before the
first payday. What I have said here does not even
begin to cover what a person could need to get up on their feet, or be an
average member of society. There might be legal issues, like court dates or fines
that must be resolved or paid. There might be health or mental issues. There
could be family troubles, like divorce, teen pregnancy, or families practicing
“tough love” and refusing to help other members because they are tired of them.
But, this person still needs help. The point is that churches must take
these things into consideration with their outreach programs. We bring people
to get saved, but do nothing to help their needs, or do just enough to feel
good about it. This leads to failure, and driving the person away from Christ
even more. The Bible tells us how to do it. We
share burdens. The Holy Spirit comes along side us and helps us. He teaches us,
and he grows us. We should do the same with those around us in our churches that
have needs. There should be no one in your church who has to go around every
week begging for assistance. There should be no one in your church who pulls up
on Sunday in an old beater car, while the entire church family drives
Cadillac’s or new cars. Often, at church we do things we do not realize. We
have youth events where all the kids must buy a $25.00 dollar t-shirt. Or we
send kids to camp for $300 or more. We go out to eat, and the cost of the meal
is $20 a person. To a poor family, these costs are insurmountable, and it’s
insulting to them when the church members offer to pay these costs. Why not
help these families get on their feet so they can pay it themselves. Wouldn’t it be better, and more
Christian, to talk to people? To get to know the people in our churches, and to
come along side them, like the Holy Spirit does us. To help the people get up
on their feet, no matter how hard, or how much they fail. Doesn’t God do the
same for us? This isn’t charity that is insulting, this is helping people to
stand up, and be free. This is showing people real love, not telling them to
come kneel at my footstool. (James 2:1-26) We need to make friends, and tell
them about Jesus. We need to be honest with them and get to know them. Not as
our latest charity cause, or another notch on our spiritual belt, but as
someone of value. Sharing burdens is part of this. Give rides. Pay bills. Watch
kids. Over look failures. Be the person they come to when they have a need. We
are called to burn ourselves out for Christ. We are to die for others. (John
15:13) We have our jobs and our incomes for the purpose of helping others.
Often times, the cost of a meal at the local restaurant would pay bills, for a
family in need. Yet, we won’t give it to them. These people come to our
churches, and become our brothers and sisters in Christ, while we watch them
struggle with things that we could easily help them resolve; if we would just
share the burden.
Jesus plainly states in Matthew 25, " Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
Churches are full of people who are not saved.
They tend to run churches and do nothing for the Kingdom. They waste
money and efforts on worldly things. When the Lord returns we will be
judged on what we did for the poor, and downtrodden, because our efforts
of love could lead them to Christ.
When
you read Matthew 25, the Lord says nothing about attending church, or
fixing buildings or worship services, or bible studies, or whether you
said cuss words, or even committed sexual immorality.
He asks what you did for those in need. Because when we show love, we can tell them about Jesus.
I'm
not talking about being saved by works. I'm saying that when we know
Jesus and have a relationship with Him, we cannot help but do what we
can for the downtrodden.
Jesus tells us a story about a young man who left home and went to make a name for himself. (Luke 15:11-32)
It could be a kid going to college with his parents credit card.
Or a kid chasing a dream with his fathers support and blessing.
We know this guy. We have seen him or her in our families or neighbors. We have seen them in ourselves.
We are free. We don’t have to answer to anyone.
We are trying to make it. We are chasing a dream or forced to take care of ourselves.
But we get pulled off the path.
Like the man in Jesus’ story.
He started riotous living. He started making friends in low places.
He was meeting all the best guys or best girls. He was getting drunk and
using drugs of all kinds. He was down at the club, or local bar. He
woke up next to all kinds of people.
And all the dreams died.
We’ve been there, or seen people there. We can smell the smells,
taste the tastes and hear the sound of the music thumping. We’ve done
the beer runs, and smoked the things that make us wanna go get some
more.
They are living for the party. Living for friends. Maybe living the
dream. But, it’s not the real dream. It’s not real hopes and dreams.
Jesus says that trouble comes. A famine in the land.
And trouble always comes. The party always ends.
It could be an accident that causes it. Maybe a divorce or break up. The loss of income and friends. Illness.
But, the party ends.
This causes us to get desperate. These times of trouble can lead us
to draw more into the party life, trying to hold on. Drinking and
drugging more to try to numb the fear and pain. Chasing things that is
not good for us. Trusting people we should not trust. Waking up in
places we do not want to wake up in. As our friends abandon us.
And we break. We have no choice. We are ruined.
Jesus said, the man went and got the worst job possible. The lowest of the low, just to keep himself from starving.
But, even that wasn’t working. He wanted to eat the pigs food.
We might end up homeless, digging in the dumpsters. We might even
consider a life of crime. Stealing, selling drugs, stripping and
prostitution to survive.
We hit rock bottom. We are as low as we think we can go.
Do not be deceived. There are always worst things that can happen. Rock bottom has a basement.
Jesus said, that the man woke up. He was willing to be a slave in His fathers house.
How desperate are you? Are you desperate enough to turn to God and
say “I can’t do it! I don’t know what to do! But, I need you! Do
whatever you want but please save me and help me.”
Are you so desperate to be free from your troubles and addictions and
life, that you just give it all to God, and even if He kills you or
throws you in prison or cripples you, it’s ok.
How desperate are you?
Jesus said the man went to see his father. He was desperate. He had ruined his life and was not worthy for anything good.
But, the father saw his child a long way off, and ran to him. And hugged him and held him.
That’s God.
He sees our broken and desperate heart, long before we even get to
Him. And He comes running. He comes running to save us and help us.
He wraps His arms around us and makes us His child. He brings us a robe and a ring and we are with the father forever.
And our life changes. We see things happening. Good or bad, but it’s
ok because the Father is with us. He shakes it out and gives us hope. He
grows our faith as we draw closer to Him. And we see him move. And more
faith grows.
The dreams come back to life and we see them growing in Him. We see
good things coming into our life, and it comes even more abundantly.
God himself is working in our life and everything is fine.
He blesses us where we are because we are His. We are His child and we turn to Him and know Him.
And He always comes running when we turn to Him. He always moves to
help us, even when we can’t see it. He is working and it will work out.
He is with us.
For me, I just talk to the Lord. Jesus says that God is our father.
The Apostles tell us that God is our father as well, if we know Him.
When we believe Him, He calls us friend.
Abraham believed what God told him, and it was counted to him for
righteousness, and he was called the friend of God. (Romans 4:3)
So I just talk to God. And when I pour my true self into prayer with God, I know He hears.
I go for a walk and talk with him alone. I rant and rave around my
home or where ever, when things are crazy. I give Him my real self. Just
like a friend or father.
When you give your real self to God, you are showing belief. You
believe the Word, which says he is our friend. He is our father. He is
our physician. You trust Him.
Pray the Word to God.
Such as,
“Dearest heavenly father, You are not willing that any should perish
so I pray for my child who is far from you. They are addicted to drugs
and living a life that is harmful to them. By your stripes we are healed
and I pray you will heal them of this addiction and trauma. We have
power over demons and I pray in Jesus name that the you’ll drive the
demons out of them. They are bound and cast out in Jesus name. Thank
you, Lord. For it’s in Jesus name I pray, Amen.”
Praying the Word to God, is not a commanding of God, Although I don’t
think God is offended by it. He is love. He does not respond with
prideful rage. Praying the Word is more like an attorney quoting laws in
court, to make a case. Does the human judge get offended by a
passionate attorney who brings up cases and laws of the past?
But you have to know the Word, and believe the Word to pray the Word.
Why do we pray in Jesus name?
Because the Lord told us to. When we do it we are exercising belief
in His Word, and faith that He is able. We show that it is not by our
authority but by His. We are weak, but He is strong. (John 14:13)
The disciples asked Jesus how to pray, and He gave them the Lord’s prayer. (Luke 11, Matt. 6)
“Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom
come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day
our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is
the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”
You can pray this prayer, word for word. There is power in it. You
are praying the Word. You are believing and following the directions of
Jesus, and the prayer covers everything.
It praises God. It acknowledges Him as Lord. It places trust in Him
and His decisions. It covers our daily needs. It covers forgiveness for
our sins, as we forgive others. It covers protection and guidance.
When you read Matthew 6, Jesus speaks a lot about prayer before He
gets to the Lord’s Prayer. All of it matters. Our repetitions do not
move God. Praying in front of people to be seen by them or ‘As a good
witness” to them, is wrong.
We should seek alone time with God. Not that corporate prayer is
wrong. We should pray with others who also believe. But we need alone
time with God.
Now, look at how simple the Lord’s prayer is.
Why?
Because God is omnipresent. He is omniscient and eternal. He can read your heart and mind. Past, present and future.
When you consider this, it brings some of our notions about prayer into question.
He already knows what you are going to pray. He already knows what
you need. He has probably already put the wheels into motion to bring
about what you need.
That’s why our prayer time is really more about spending time in His
presence. Our words and desires are about coming into alignment with His
character and will.
We are finite. We are not omnipresent. Which means, present everywhere at all times in all times.
But, we can be present with Him right now.
And when we are present with Him we can pray the things He brings to
our heart. We can be aligned with His will, asking for good things for
people. Praying for protections. Praying against the enemy. Praying for
peace, love, joy and salvation. Forgiving others. Praying for healing.
Often our faith in prayer and speaking the Word, will move mountains
and drive out the enemy who opposes us. The one who seeks to deceive and
to steal, kill and destroy everything in our lives.
God uses our faith. He recognizes it because it is based in Him. All
humans have natural faith. But, not all humans have faith in God and His
Word.
The most powerful prayer you can pray, is simply praising and thanking the Lord.
Every morning, when I wake up, I try to let my first words and
thoughts be, “Praise Jesus, thank you Lord for all you’ve done, and are
doing.”
I trust Him. He’s got me. He knows what I need, and want. Like Job said, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him.” (Job 13)
We agonize over our lives. We feel that we should get more. I do it too.
But, this life is but a breath. It is a moment in eternity. Our
desire should be to know Him and spend time with Him. The relationship
is all important.
Our prayer is time with God.
“Dearest heavenly Father, please forgive me for my sins and help me
to overcome. I thank you for everything you have done and are doing in
my life. I praise you and ask you to help me with the things I need.
Please help me to serve in the manner you desire. I ask that you will
drive out the enemy, from my life. I trust in you, for it’s in Jesus
name I pray, thank you Lord, amen”
The words, do not have power. The power rests in Faith, the relationship and the Lord who is over all.
Paul says that the Holy Spirit can take even our groaning and
translate it into a faith filled message that God receives. He knows our
heart. He hears us. Our weaknesses is not a hindrance to His ability to
know us. (Rom.8:26-28)
Again, after all is said and done. Just talk to God. Let Him teach
you and guide you. Be real with Him. Not putting on airs. Not trying to
be more than you are.
“I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.”—Rom. 7:21
Romans chapter 7 explains to us the purpose of God’s Law.
It’s purpose is to reveal sin in us, so that it can be dealt with.
Paul describes the struggle between law and flesh. He says that when
he saw the law “Though shalt not covet” it was revealed that he had
covetousness in his life.
He sinfully wanted what others had. The law revealed this and since
he realized he had broken the law, he was slain by it. The law killed
him, because the punishment for sin is death. He died in God’s eyes the
moment he knew He had sinned. That’s the law.
But, he did not want to commit the sin. You can plug any sin into
this box. Paul used covetousness, but it could apply to any sin. It was
revealed to him that he sinned, and he was slain by it. He agreed with
the law, because it is good. So, he did not want this sin in his life
any more.
But, he discovered that he could not quit. The evil thoughts
continued. The lusting or fear or doubt or whatever sins continued in
his mind and heart; even though he did not want it anymore because he
saw it was wrong in the Word of God.
Now, God revealed to Him a massive truth that opened his eyes. A truth that many people miss.
If he did not want to do it any more, then it was not really him
doing it. He hated the sin, but yet still did it. He still thought the
thoughts and did the deeds. He could not escape.
This showed him that there was something wrong with him. That he had a
corrupted nature, beyond his control. Something in himself that he did
not want or desire. He hated the sin, but still did it anyway. Therefore
it was not him, but SIN in him.
This is important because when we think about obeying God’s law and
put burdens on ourselves and others; we ignore the truth that we cannot
obey it ourselves because of our corrupted nature. We are fallen. We are
plagued with sin from Adam.
Our sins we commit are like symptoms of a deeper plague in us.
We don’t see how wicked we are until the light of God’s Word reveals
it to us. Our flesh is totally corrupt and we are incapable of stopping
it, in such a way that is true. If we stop one thing, we sin somewhere
else. Trying to quit sinning is a torturous never ending hell, full of
fear that God is watching and wants to destroy you.
When we have a works based doctrine, that’s where we are. We believe
we must quit sinning, but we cannot. We want to please God, but fail
constantly.
But, the law actually is supposed to reveal that you cannot quit and
that it is not even really you committing the sins, it is something in
you. The corrupted nature.
God’s law is far more than just the ten commandments. We can’t even
obey the ten, let alone the rest. And don’t even start on the sins of
thoughts. The sins of omission. or sins of Pride, Doubt, Fear, and other
things we do, that we do not even realize we are doing.
The law reveals it. This is why the law is good, as Paul says.
It is like a mirror.
But, our response is to change. We cannot. It won’t work. A sinful being cannot change his sinful nature, he needs God to do it.
Now, ask yourself, why would God provide a means to have your sins covered through the sacrificial system?
Because He knows we cannot obey. He wants it. He demands it. But we
cannot, because of the corrupted nature in us from Adam. He knows this.
God is not ignorant of our sins and failures. We try to hide these
things and try to quit or deal with it ourselves but it doesn’t work. It
gets worse.
Have you ever seen a child who plays with magic markers? They color
themselves, they color the walls, they color everything. But, there
often comes a point where they realize they messed up. Sometimes they
realize it on their own (Spirit or Conscience), or sometimes it’s when
the parent reveals it to them (law).
The child tries to fix it and might get a wet rag to wash it with.
But it just smears it on themselves and the wall. They cannot fix it,
and it’s there before them all the time. They need an adult to help
them.
That is what happens with us. Even if a person doesn’t believe in God
or has some other belief system, it doesn’t matter. God created us and
this is what happens. This is what ALL religions deal with. This is why
people go to therapy or drink to escape.
This thing in us torments us, because we know we are wrong and cannot
get right. We try to fix it by fleshly means because that is all we
know. But, it won’t work for eternity. It is a fleshly band aid at best,
or makes things worse.
Look at Adam and Eve. When they fell from God, they saw they were
naked and tried to cover themselves with fig leaves. That is religion,
and every other thing we do to fix our problem in us. It’s nothing but
fig leaves.
But, God showed up and revealed the sin in them and fixed it Himself. That’s Jesus.
We cannot fix it ourselves.
Paul says “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?”—Rom. 7:24.
In the very next verse He thanks God.
“I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I
myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.”
He thanks God that the law has revealed to him that there is
something wrong, and it is not him doing it. He serves God, but there is
also the corrupted nature and he realizes that it is not him that does
it but sin in him.
The very next verse is Romans 8:1, a new chapter and he reveals why he is thankful.
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”
He reveals the solution. God came in the flesh to die for us, because
of our sins and corrupted nature. He washes us clean in the Blood of
Jesus when we turn to Him.
Our eyes are opened to the truth and we believe it. We turn to God,
and ask Him to save us, confessing Jesus is the Lord, and we make Him
our Lord.
God washes us clean of all sin. Past, present and future. He fills us
with His Holy Spirit, and we grow in relationship with Him. We are no
longer condemned. We are friends of God. We are righteous. Not because
of what we do or don’t do. But, because of what Jesus did for us.
Our growth in Christ works to reveal and purge the things that we do
in the flesh, as we confess our sins to Him. But, it is Him that does
the work in us, not us. Even in our saved state, if we get in the habit
of living a life trying to not sin, we are not really living in faith
that Jesus has washed us. We think we must obey and do it ourselves. We
forget that we cannot. This is why Paul says there is power in weakness.
We admit our failure and give it to God and let Him do it.
If we go a few verses more in Romans chapter 8 we see this struggle
continues in us even though we are saved. The flesh battles with the
Spirit. We walk in the Spirit, by abiding in Christ, growing the
relationship, turning to Him and confessing our sins, being in prayer,
loving God and others. We realize that the sinful nature is not us
anymore. We are dead to it. We died with Christ and rose with Him to new
life. Those fleshly things no longer impact our spirit or salvation.
They can cause trouble in this world, by opening the doors for demonic
forces to attack us, but not our souls. Not our eternal spirits.
Here’s the verses
“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free
from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it
was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of
sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the
righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after
the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do
mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the
things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be
spiritually minded is life and peace.”
It’s about knowing Him, and He works to heal us and change us.
Walking in the Spirit is walking with Him. It is letting Him take
care of it. because if we try to do it ourselves, or ignore it, we are
walking in the flesh, and that leads to death.
What is death? Death is separation. It is not an end, as we suppose.
When someone dies, they do not end, they are separated from us and from
this fleshly world, and that body of flesh stays behind.
Eternal death is also separation. Nothing really dies or ends. it
just changes form and continues on. We will all get a spiritual body
that can never die. A vessel for our souls and spirits to dwell forever.
But, if we are not washed, that spiritual body will become corrupted
by the corrupted soul, and dead spirit. It must then be separated to
another place where nothing good dwells, because all good things are
wrapped up in God. God is love. There is no love in separation. There is
not love in that quarantine place of separation called Hell and the
Lake of Fire. It is darkness and no light. It is separation from God.
If God allowed the corrupted nature into Paradise or Heaven, then all
of eternity would be full of pain and evil just like this world.
Separation occurs to protect God’s eternal kingdom and creation.
If we know Him we shall be with Him forever in Paradise. That’s the promise. Just like He told the thief on the cross.
All we have to do is turn to Him and ask, and believe. He will take
care of the rest. We cannot change ourselves, He will do it, if we trust
Him. And that is the difficulty of walking in the Spirit. Trusting and
believing He’s got you. It builds patience. It builds meekness. We
submit to Him and grow. Not by works, lest any should boast.
“Be careful for nothing; but in
every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your
requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all
understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ
Jesus.”—Phil. 4:6-7
You’ve seen the slogan
“Know Jesus. Know Peace. No Jesus. No Peace.”
But, what does it really mean and how do you obtain it?
It’s about having a relationship with Him.
It’s not about Faith, or Trust or Believing.
These things matter and are the first steps needed. They are important.
But, you can put your faith, trust and belief in a rock, and it won’t save you. It won’t bring you real peace.
You must have a relationship with Him. A relationship is give and take.
Faith, Belief and Trust is not. It is one way.
“O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.”—Psalm 34:8
You
are “Blessed” when you trust, believe and have faith in Him. That
blessing is the relationship that comes from it. All the treasures in
the world is nothing compared to the relationship.
“But without faith it is impossible to
please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that
he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”—Heb. 11:6
When we put our faith in Him He rewards us when we diligently seek Him.
That’s relationship. We don’t stop at
faith. We don’t stop at trust or belief, we move forward into knowing
Him and having a relationship with Him. Our faith must lead to
relationship.
We believe God’s Word, and stand on it in
times of trouble. Then we see God move and we grow in faith and
relationship with Him. This brings peace as we remember how He has been
with us in the past. We have seen Him move.
Remember, the demons of hell believe and
tremble, because they do not confess Him as Lord, they are in rebellion.
They do not have a relationship with Him. Many people pray to receive
Christ, but never really know Him. They never grow in Faith or have a
relationship with Him. (James 2:19)
God calls us. When we hear. When we
believe, and turn to Him. Putting our faith and trust in Him, confessing
Jesus as our Lord. Trusting Him alone for salvation. God places us IN
Christ Jesus. (Romans 10:9-10)
Jesus died for us. When we ask to be saved
and confess Him as Lord, God places us within that salvation. He puts
us on that Ark of protection. He washes us with His Blood. We die with
Christ, and are born again with Him. That’s what it means to be IN
Christ Jesus. Our peace comes by being IN Him. It comes through Him, not
us.
But,
if you do not have a relationship, can you really say you are in Him?
Can you really expect to get anything like peace, through Him?
“For by grace are ye saved through
faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. Not of works,
lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we
should walk in them.”—Eph. 2:8-10
We are saved by God’s Grace. Not works. We
are saved through faith so we can do good works IN Christ Jesus. The
good works are based in our relationship with Him. We are yoked together
with Him in relationship and service to God and others.
Ok, so what about Peace?
Well, when we are saved we receive the Holy Spirit.
God’s Spirit comes to dwell with us and in us. He comforts us and teaches us.
He helps us in our relationship with God (Himself).
He brings us gifts and develops fruit in our life.
If we do not quench His work. (1 Thess. 5:19)
“...the fruit of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness,
temperance: against such there is no law.”—Gal. 5:22-23
When the Holy Spirit works in us He develops this fruit if we do not fight Him, or do things to stop it.
Remember, we are fallen beings. So He must develop the fruit because it is not natural for us.
Think
of an adult who suffers a terrible injury and must go to rehab to
relearn the most basic things. How to walk. How to eat. How to use their
hands.
It’s tough. It’s painful. It takes time.
This is similar to how the Holy Spirit develops His fruit in us. Except
the rehab never ends, at least in this life.
This develops the relationship. We know Him and He knows us through this relationship of sanctification.
Understand that the Fruit is the Fruit of
the Spirit. It’s not ours. It’s not our flesh. It’s Him in us. This is
why we fail at times. We fall back into our old self. Our flesh.
So, if we are really saved, and really
seeking Him. Then, things will come into our lives that will cause us to
turn to Him, and the Holy Spirit will use it to grow fruit in us.
We learn to love because God has shown us that He loves us, and we face the unlovable.
We have peace because God has shown us a thousand times that He is there with us and everything will be fine.
We have joy because we see Him again.
We have patience because we know Him and can wait on Him forever, because he has taught us to.
We know goodness, gentleness and faith
because we have learned it by seeing Him working in our lives, and how
he treats us and others.
We have temperance, because we need nothing but Him.
We learn Meekness through brokenness and being rebuilt by Him.
All of this is the relationship, and because of the relationship.
We confess our sins to Him and trust Him. (1 John 1:9)
We pray to Him and trust Him.
We see Him move, over and over again. And know Him.
Now we look at the verse in Philippians, and rightly divide it based upon relationship.
“Be careful for nothing; “…Because we know Him. We know He is with us and loves us.
“but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”…We
can discuss anything with our Father. He is on our side. He is with us
and knows how best to help us. We give thanksgiving because we believe
His promise “Whatsoever you ask in my name I will do.” (John 14:14) So
we thank Him, knowing He is moving.
“And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”…
We have peace because we know Him and we have his Holy Spirit. That
peace is greater than anything in this world, because God is greater,
and we know Him and are known of Him. He is with us and in us. Remind
yourself of this. But, remember it’s because we are IN Christ Jesus.
It’s because we pray in His name. It’s through Him that we have life,
salvation and everything. This is our peace.
We trust that whatever God does with our prayer to Him will be fine. He loves us, “And
we know that ALL things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called according to his purpose.” —-(Romans 8:28)
If you are saved, then you are called. If you have the Holy Spirit then you have love for God, and it is being developed in you.
So, why do I not have peace? You might ask.
When you exercise or lift weights you come
to a point of muscle failure. A point where you can’t lift anymore. A
point where you strain. But if you keep working you will eventually lift
that weight with ease.
The Holy Spirit is developing fruit in you. It is like exercise. You will be pushed and grow from it.
We turn to God and He helps us, and we see Him moving and our faith grows, our peace grows, our love for Him grows. See?
That’s relationship. He is with us and nothing else matters.
Always turn to God, and He will be there
and comfort you and help you, and you will grow from it. Like a spotter
in the Gym who puts his hands on the bar. He’s got you. He shouts
encouragement. You are ok, just tough it out and trust the one who has
your back.
And you will have more peace.
Remind yourself of His promises as you watch Him move in your life.
We encounter something in our life. We
lean on the promises God has given. We speak them out loud and faith
grows. We see God move and we grow to trust Him more, and this brings
peace.
