2002-01-01
Good Morning Fellow Believers,
As the Spirit gives me these messages to share with you, I realize that we have seen how Satan works and what the significance of Christ’s role as our Kinsman-Redeemer is. We have also been given important information about the power that God has given each of us to battle Satan. All of these things are very crucial to us and offer us encouragement as we work our way through the challenges that exist to our faith. However, I am led this morning to speak about prayer, using a very special prayer that God inspired Paul to offer to the early church and also to all believers throughout mankind’s history. If my experience in coordinating our 137-person prayer chain is any indicator, we often underestimate the power of prayer in our lives. I watch God at work responding to our prayer requests, and through the follow-ups I receive, get a bird’s eye view of His “dunamis” [power], “kratos” [strength], and “ischus” [might]. It is awesome to see! Let’s not forget those key Greek words found in EPH 1: 19 that are pronounced “doo-na-mis,” “kra-tos” with a soft a, and “is-koos.” It’s inevitable that all believers are going to have to engage in spiritual warfare. While Paul has made it clear that we can’t win our battles with Satan on our own, he emphasizes repeatedly that when we have faith in God, trust Him, and obey His commands, we are on His team-the team that wins!
Now, let’s look at Paul’s prayer for us in EPH 1: 15-23. “For this reason, ever since I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all of God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks to God for you. I remember you in my prayers and ask the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, to give you the Spirit, Who will make you wise and reveal God to you, so that you will know Him. I ask that your minds may be opened to see His light, so that you will know what is the hope to which He has called you, how rich are the wonderful blessings He promises His people, and how very great is His power at work in us who believe. This power working in us is the same as the mighty strength which He used when He raised Christ from death and seated Him at His right side in the heavenly world. Christ rules there above all heavenly rulers, authorities, powers, and lords; He has a title superior to all titles of authority in this world and in the next. God put all things under Christ’s feet and gave Him to the church as Supreme Lord over all things. The church is Christ’s body, the completion of Him Who Himself completes all things everywhere.” Every time I go over these words, I realize that other authors in the Scriptures have fleshed out for us exactly what they mean. The consistency of God’s messages through these writers is nothing short of amazing, both in its content and in its divine nature.
How does it feel to know that other believer’s, like Paul, are thanking God for you coming to faith and being one of us? Oooh, so good! That’s how this concept of “koininea” that I’ve written about so often really operates. Remember “koininea” is the Greek word to describe the supernatural bond that exists between a believer, other believers, and God. Of course, that includes all of God’s three personalities. Paul prays that each of us will come to know the Lord, God, allowing Him to reveal His wisdom to us. How can we get through our lives, particularly our battles with Satan, without it? See what Christ has to say about this in MT 5: 14-16. “You are like light for the whole world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl; instead he puts it on the lampstand, where it gives light for everyone in the house. In the same way your light must shine before people, so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.”
Can there be any question about Christ’s position as Lord or His power to bring an end to Satan and his evil followers? I think not! REV 19: 11-16, “Then I saw heaven open, and there was a white horse. It’s Rider is called Faithful and True; it is with justice that He judges and fights His battles. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and He wore many crowns on His head. He had a name written on Him, but no one except Himself knows what it is. The robe He wore was covered with blood. His name is ‘The Word of God.’ The armies of heaven followed Him, riding on white horses and dressed in clean white linen. Out of His mouth came a sharp sword, with which He will defeat the nations. He will rule over them with a rod of iron, and He will trample out the wine in the winepress of the furious wrath of the Almighty God. On His robe and on His thigh was written the name: ‘King of Kings and Lord of Lords.’” These, of course, are John’s words inspired by God. Now, see King David’s words, written long before Christ came to earth. PS 110: 1, “The Lord said to my Lord, the King, ‘Sit here at My right side until I put Your enemies under You feet.’” Daniel revealed the truth to us in DN 2: 34-35, which I hope you will consult. We can take comfort in these words and should never forget them when we feel discouraged because of Satan’s meanness. The message is clear, and the time is now to endure in our faith and know that when we obey God, we will defeat Satan.
PRAYER: O Lord, how blessed we are to have the prayers of our fellow believers being sent up to You! How blessed we are that Christ stands before You in heaven as our Advocate and Intercessor [HE 8: 1-2]! You encourage us to pray for all our fellow believers continuously as the Spirit leads. We accept that command with joy, as we are being allowed to know through the circumstances of our lives Your power, wisdom, and compassion in answering them. We recognize how important it is for us to keep looking for You in our own lives and those of others around us. How blessed You make us, because You want us to know You! All over Your word, we find messages that not only tell us what to do, but reveal Your magnificent attributes. Paul has told us how You feel about prayer in 1 THESS 5: 16-22. “Be joyful always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus. Do not restrain the Holy Spirit; do not despise inspired messages. Put all things to the test: keep what is good and avoid every kind of evil.” We have been told that our main occupation in heaven will be to worship You. That is a privilege which we can do right now while we are still living our earthly lives. PS 105: 1-4 expresses the content of our hearts. “Give thanks to the Lord, proclaim His greatness; tell the nations what he has done. Be glad that we belong to Him; let all who worship Him rejoice. Go to the Lord for help; and worship Him continually.” That is what we want to do and what You deserve. David and many others in the Scriptures have set an example for us to follow in praying for each other and in worshipping You. We dedicate ourselves to following the most faithful of these people. You are the center of our lives in Christ. We humbly confess our sins and offer You the adoration, worship, loyalty, diligence, trust, obedience, glory, honor, praise, and thanks that are Yours by divine right. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, I am led to write about standing firm and our position in Christ. I often write about God’s love at the end of my messages. I don’t apologize for continuing to discuss that, because it is such a powerful and crucial force in our lives of faith. However, there is one more aspect to this that bears mentioning. It is our willingness to accept that love and recognize it for what it is. No matter how much love that the Lord surrounds us with, it does us no good unless we open our hearts to it. Amazingly, if we do this, it can take a miserable, rainy day in our lives and turn it to the most brilliant sunshine we can imagine. That’s God’s power to watch over us and answer our prayers. He may not answer them in the way we expect or at the time we want, but He will answer our prayers in the way and time which is best for us. I pray that the Lord will bring His light into each of your lives today, and that you will accept that light with joy and obedience to Him. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn