Ephesians 2:13-16 – “But now in Christ Jesus, you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one, and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, 15 by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, 16 and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity.”  NASB

I love the ‘but now’s in the Bible.  They are always filled with incredible revelations and promises.  Here the apostle is speaking to Gentile Christians who were under fire from the Judaizers in their area.  He informs them that although they were once ‘afar off’ and ‘separated’ from God without hope and without God, BUT NOW… 

But now?  But now, through the Blood of Jesus and His work on the Cross they have been made one with the Jewish Christians.  They were grafted into the Body of Christ and were fellow members of the Family of God.  It was exclusively the work of Jesus that brought about this completion and opened the door for access to God for the Gentiles.

But Now, the barrier or dividing wall between the Jew and Gentile had been abolished through the Blood of Jesus.  His sacrificial death on the Cross abolished the division and made both groups into ‘one new man’ and brought God’s indescribable peace to both groups. 

There are still those in Christianity who erect dividing walls between sects and insist they are the ‘only ones’ with the truth.  They exclude other believers who do not see everything as they see it.  They exclude those who do not embrace the same interpretations as they.  They become separatist and legalists insisting that everyone does, it their way or they are not Christians.  That is not what Jesus came to do.

In the basics or the core foundational principles of God’s Word, we must agree.  I won’t give you a list of the essentials but if we do not believe that God is creator, Jesus is the virgin-born sinless son of God who died for our sins, we have little avenue to God’s grace.  Jesus declared, contrary to the opinion of some who want to be overly inclusive, “I am THE way, THE truth, and THE life.”  He said in John 14:6 – “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me.”  That is anything but ambiguous.  It is definitive.

I’m sorry if you disagree and believe that there are many roads to God, the Bible disagrees, and I will stake my eternity on God’s Word, not man’s opinion.  We were aliens and sinners separated from God BUT NOW through the finished work of Jesus, we have access to the Father through Jesus. 

The Bible is clear in 1 John 1:9 – “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  The apostle Paul informed us in Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast.” 

We are informed in Acts 4:12 that, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”  Jesus told John in the vision of Revelation, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in with him and eat with him, and he with Me.”  (3:20). 

Paul reminded us in Romans 10:9-10, “…if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.  For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”

You were lost and undone without God or His Son BUT NOW…  Receive the But Now and call upon Him before it is everlastingly too late.  Receive Jesus today!

Have a Great Day!

Matthew 6:9-13 – “Pray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. 10’Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11’Give us this day our daily bread. 12’And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13’And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.]’  NASB

As we opened this discussion in the previous session, we identified Six (6) Topics and Actions or Activities in Prayer.  Today, I would like for us to turn to Four (4) areas of focus and launch into a new journey of prayer.

THE FOUR AREAS OF FOCUS:

• Yourself.

It is important and necessary that we place ourselves on the altar of service daily.  It is important we continually renew our relationship and commitment to God and His purposes.  We must allow the Holy Spirit to establish the will of God and His priorities in our lives and help us to stay focused on the commission and command.

We must determine that we are going to stay before Him in prayer until the course charted before us for that day is clear.  That might mean that we will go throughout the entire day in prayer and meditation.  I understand that you may have to go to work or do other things and cannot stay in the prayer closet all day, but you can remain in a consciousness of His Word, Purpose, and Presence.  (Pray without ceasing).

• Your Family.

I believe that it is important that we make it a daily practice to pray for your mate, their needs not our wants for or from them.  We need to bring our children before the throne of heaven and dedicate them to God, daily.  We must pray specific prayers and ask for God’s guidance in their lives, not just a confirmation of what we want for or from them.   We need to pray for other members of the family and allow the Holy Spirit to direct us in our prayers and involvement with them.

• Your Church.

Let’s begin with the Pastor or Pastors.  We should be praying for God’s anointing, guidance, leadership, wisdom, and strength to be infused into their hearts and minds.  We should be praying that God would develop a shepherd’s heart in them.  We are not going before the LORD to tell on them but ask His help in their lives.  We should pray that God would anoint them with the Spirit of God and allow the gifts to flow through them and enable them to become vessels of healing to the community.

We should pray for the Leadership of the Church.  Call their names in prayer and as God to give them wisdom and favor so they can lead and help others rise to the place God desires.  (Equipping the saints for the work of ministry.)

We should pray for the other members of the congregation that God would help them overcome difficulties and enable them to live victoriously in every dimension of life. 

We should pray for the Harvest.  God desires to give every church a spiritual harvest.  Pray for the harvest (Isaiah 43:4-6). Pray for the Holy Spirit to draw people into your church from the north, south, east, and west. 

You will discover that the devil will prolifically resist you when you commit to that kind of prayer but if you will persist you will find a new awakening take place in you, your family, your church, and your community.  We can reach our world.  God’s commission is never impossible.

• The Nation.  This goes without saying that it is vital that we pray for the nation because if the nation fails our liberties and freedoms are destroyed.
• Israel – The Bible instructs us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalms 122:6).

We can be more effective in prayer, but we cannot be selfish in our prayers and we must recognize that our commission and directive are to enforce the victory of Jesus.  That is done largely on our knees!

God bless you as you enjoy this day in Him!

Matthew 6:9-13 – “Pray, then, in this way:

‘Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. 10’Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11’Give us this day our daily bread. 12’And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13’And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.]’  NASB

In Jesus’ Prayer Strategy we find six (6) definite Prayer Topics, which, when followed as a guide lead to tremendous spiritual victory for ourselves and others.  Victorious Prayer affects others!  We are dealing with the supernatural in a natural world.  We are engaging in warfare in the heavenlies.  We are pulling down strongholds and demonic fortresses.  We are standing against principalities, powers, rulers of darkness, and spiritual wickedness in high places.  Jesus has given us a plan for Victorious Spiritual Warfare on our knees.

THE SIX TOPICS:

• Praise – – The appropriation of the Promises. “Our Father which art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name.”

• Priorities – – The submission to the will of the Father. “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

• Provision – – The pathway to appropriate God’s Daily Supply. “Give us this day our daily bread.”

• Peace – – The method and means of getting along with others all the time. “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.”

• Power – – How to consistently and effectively defeat the devil. “And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.”

• Praise – – How to obey God’s Word. “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.”

For the believer to become mighty in God, we must learn to pray!  For us to fulfill the commission of our LORD, we must learn how to pray!  Prayer is as vital for spiritual victory as breathing is to natural life.

I see two specific steps involved in this process.  First is Praise.  In praise, we shift our focus from self and circumstances to God.  As we turn our attention to Him and focus on Him, His will, His Kingdom, His glory, power, and purpose we create a place for faith to grow in our hearts.  Confidence begins to flourish, and we become strengthened enabling us to engage in the more difficult aspects of spiritual warfare and enforcing the victory Jesus won at Calvary.

Step two is Submission.  Until we reach the place of total submission to God, we will never discover the true power of prayer and the place that God intends for His body to function.  It is important, to begin with, Praise, and invite God into our time of prayer and intercession. Once we have done that, we need to move to step two and submit ourselves totally to Him.  We make up our minds and set our will to do the will of God.  We make God the first priority in our lives.  We totally surrender ourselves to Him, body, soul, and spirit. 

Then and not until then can we effectively pray.  Effective prayer is praying the will of God and if we pray his will according to 1 John 5:14-15, He hears us and if He hears us, He grants the petition.  We verbalize the will of God with our tongues and allow the tongue to become a rudder to guide us into God’s purposes. We learn to pray in agreement with the Holy Spirit and the Word of God and that charts the course for our lives.

If you are interested in developing a more powerful and effective prayer life, I ask that you join me in the next session as we turn our attention to some specific areas of focus and attempt to make this practical and applicable to daily living.

God bless you as you enjoy this day He has provided.