2024-03-15
Good Morning Dear Ones,
I’m commanded by the Holy Spirit to continue the discussion of the Five Levels of Faith with Level Three: Prayer is Powerful. King David knew he could pray day or night and that God was listening. PS 42:8 Through each night I sing his songs, praying to God, Who gives me life.” He knew this from God’s answer to his prayers. When Isaiah was commissioned as a prophet in IS 6, he saw God and God spoke to him (after Isaiah confessed humbly, in IS 6:5), saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And then I said, “Here I am. Send me!” [IS 6: 8]. Jesus was in the habit of going off alone and praying to the Father, as in LK 5: 16 and LK 6: 12. Christ’s words, in JN 14: 26, reveal Hs attitude. “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything I’ve said to you.” EPH 3: 12, “In Christ and through faith in Him, we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” All three personalities of God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) hear our prayers. We must be available to God, and He makes Himself available to us. Once again, this didn’t begin in the NT, but is found in the OT as well. PS 18: 6, “In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From His temple He heard my voice, my cry came before Him, into His ears.” 1 THESS 5:16-18, is also revealing, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” [See also: EPH 6: 18] Theophrastus, a Greek philosopher, prayed directly to the Holy Spirit. Doing this is called Theophrastic prayer. JUDE 20-21 prayed to build faith. “But you, Dear Friends, by building yourselves up in the most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves up as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.” Like James, son of Joseph, Jude was Christ’s earthly half-brother. He is clearly distinguished from Judas Iscariot (who betrayed Jesus).
We learn in HE 11: 6, “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” God’s attitude about believers is seen in JER 29: 11-13 [God’s words to Jeremiah for him to share], “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to bring disaster, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and you will find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.’” Long before it was recognized that Jesus was on the scene, Abraham was justified, deemed acceptable to God [GN 15: 6]. HE 11: 8-9, “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would receive as his inheritance obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the Promised Land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of that same promise.” Just as Jude writes above, their faith and many others after them was built up by prayer—two- way communication with God and a reminder of the hope God gives us through the Scriptures.
When we engage in Theophrastic prayer directly with the Holy Spirit, understanding that at times one’s faith is tested, we release the mysteries of God that are hidden from those who don’t have the Holy Spirit. COL 1: 26-27 and COL 2: 2-3, “…The mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations but is now disclosed to God’s people. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory…My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, in Whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” It is the understanding that Christ has to teach us is so much greater than anything coming from mankind, that it’s like tapping into a superlative library of wisdom any time we meet with God through prayer, study, and our quiet time with Him. When we meet with the Lord, He gives us the discernment we need to recognize what is truth and what isn’t. Take great comfort in knowing this: PS 32: 7, “You are my Hiding Place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.”
PRAYER: Dearest Lord, You alone are the God we adore and go to in prayer. In showing us the levels of faith, You allow us to see that faith and trust in You is meant to grow and mature over the course of our lives on earth. Rewards of heaven are to be earned through ever growing faith in You. By the love You have for us, You make Yourself available to us in prayer and teach us the importance of studying, time alone with You, and listening. Without that kind of help, we are like grapes cut from the Vine and will die spiritually. You set us free from that kind of worry [GA 5: 1] by teaching us to live in the Spirit. We acknowledge that You limit what the evil one can do to us, and that must be no small feat. You deserve and we send You our love, thanks, and praise, in the holy/mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: I’m commanded by the Holy Spirit to continue with levels 4 and 5 (as space permits) next week. We sometimes struggle to exercise our faith due to circumstances in our lives. But a man like Daniel, who in exile, prayed looking toward Jerusalem three times a day [DN 6: 10]. He had also been ordered to worship a statue of Nebuchadnezzar and refused [DN 3: 1-7]. He and his friends were tossed into the blazing furnace, and yet a fourth man was seen with them [vs 25] described as “looking like a Son of gods”—all unharmed. Our faith tells us it was the Son of God, Jesus Christ! The faith of all mentioned here is the same strong faith we can all have. Praise and thanks be to Him!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn, JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2024. All Rights Reserved.
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