Tag Archives: pray

THE GOSPEL OF LUKE – IT HAD TO COME OUT!

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IT HAD TO COME OUT!

“About eight days after saying this, He climbed the mountain to pray, taking Peter, John and James along. While He was in prayer, the appearance of His face changed and His clothes became blazing white. At once two men were there talking with Him. They turned out to be Moses and Elijah – and what a glorious appearance they made! They talked over His exodus, the one Jesus was about to complete in Jerusalem.” Luke 9:28-31.

Exodus – a strange and unusual word to describe what Jesus was soon to accomplish in Jerusalem. This was obviously a reference to His death and resurrection, but why “exodus”? Luke is the only one of the gospel writers who used this word. Did he understand something the others hadn’t grasped?

This was a highly significant event. Why did it happen? Of what value would it have been had Jesus been alone on the mountain?

Let’s answer the second question first. Did Jesus need the affirmation of His Father? He had received the Father’s blessing at His baptism and, on the strength of that, He had launched into His public ministry, having passed the test of true son-ship during His forty days in the wilderness. He had lived in close union with the Father and learned the lessons of obedience by obeying Him in every detail of His life. He knew He was loved and He lived out of that assurance. No, He did not need another affirmation of his identity as the Son.

It would seem that this was about the disciples; they needed this revelation of Jesus to cement two things in their minds, His identity and His mission. The appearance of Moses and Elijah and Peter’s reaction would help to put Him in perspective. Two of Israel’s most important and revered historical figures in company with Jesus?

It is clear that the disciples overheard the conversation – His exodus in Jerusalem. The exodus from Egypt, of course, was inseparably linked to Moses. Moses had led the children of Israel out of Egypt and into a covenant relationship with God. Elijah’s ministry was a powerful attempt to lead the people of the northern kingdom of Israel back to God out of their slavery to idols.

What was the meaning of Jesus’ exodus? Did it refer only to His departure from the world of humans back to the Father? The exodus from Egypt was a type of a greater deliverance – from slavery to sin and into a new covenant, sealed in His own blood, that was be a better covenant, based on better promises and sealed with a better sacrifice, guaranteeing a better hope.

This was an experience Peter and John never forgot and which helped to shape their conviction that Jesus was God’s Son and the promised Messiah. Peter wrote of this revelation: “For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. He received honour and glory from the Father when the voice came from the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with Him on the sacred mountain.” 2 Peter 1:16-18 (NIV).

John’s testimony is similar: “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14 (NIV).

It was imperative that these men, who were to testify to the world that Jesus was God’s Son, be so convinced in their hearts that they would be willing to give their lives for the truth they would proclaim. And they became eyewitnesses of something that no one else had ever seen.

We may not see the glory of Jesus in His visible form but with the eye of faith we have seen and believed. Have you?

Boundaries

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BOUNDARIES

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place where He prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for Him, and when they found Him, they exclaimed, ‘Everyone is looking for you!’ Jesus replied, ‘Let us go somewhere else – to the nearby villages- so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.’ So He travelled throughout Galilee, preaching in the synagogues and driving out demons (Mark 1: 35-39).

‘Let us go somewhere else – to the nearby villages- so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.’ What a remarkable man! A lesser person may have been so excited about his popularity and the success of his ministry that he would have found an office and set up his headquarters right there in Capernaum.

Not Jesus! He wasn’t out to build a ministry and set up a data base of supporters so He could send out His newsletter every month and garner “partners” for His ministry. He had a twofold mission to accomplish – to reveal the Father to His people and to train disciples who would be replicas of Himself so that they would carry on His ministry when He was no longer there. It was a hands-on, on-the-job training programme.

His power came, not from the support He could build based on His popularity and His “seeker friendly” methods. His source of power was simple – prayer, much prayer, early-morning prayer when there was no one around to clamour for His attention. He was in partnership with His heavenly Father, energised by the Holy Spirit.

He had to touch base every day to ensure that He maintained His unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit and did exactly what He was instructed to do. This was, after all, the Father’s business and He was the Son. Only through submission and obedience to the Father would Jesus succeed. The success of His enterprise would come, not from His methods but from the Holy Spirit who came upon Him at His baptism and who put Him through His paces in the wilderness. The principles were hammered out there and He would stick to them, no matter what.

This meant that He had to set boundaries. He was not driven by people’s need. He was led by the Holy Spirit. The fact that people were up and out at the crack of dawn looking for Him was not His motivation. He had a much wider mission to accomplish than healing all the sick people in one town. He had a message to deliver to the whole nation. He was not deterred or held up by people in need in one locality.

Jesus had not come from heaven on a healing campaign, as urgent and necessary as that was in Israel. Healing and casting out demons was not an end in itself but a demonstration of what God’s reign would be like when He came in His fullness. Satan’s rule had brought misery and suffering to the human race because people allowed him to deceive them into thinking he was in charge. It was time for the people to know the truth.

When God is in charge, everything that is contrary to God will be defeated and destroyed. Love and all the ramifications of love, will be the ruling principle. There will be no place in His kingdom for any imperfection. Attitudes and behaviour that represent the dominion of darkness will be gone forever. That’s what Jesus came to show His people. He would conquer disease, death and demons and with them all the ugly emotions and attitudes that mess people up and destroy relationships.

He would not allow anyone or anything to deter or distract Him from His purpose. He walked away from Capernaum because He had a message to deliver everywhere. Not His disciples, not the clamouring crowd, not the promise of success or popularity, nothing would stop Him from following the Father’s directions. He knew His boundaries. He drew His boundaries. His disciples would just have to get used to Him if they were to learn His ways.

What if those of us who think we are His disciples were to take a leaf out of His book? What if we were to get our directions daily from the Holy Spirit and not from our plans and strategies? What If we were to draw boundaries around our times of interaction with the Father and His directives and allow nothing to distract us and pull us off course?

What if we were to spend more time seeking the kingdom of God than we do building our own kingdoms?

What if we were to understand the heart of Jesus and do what He did – bring heaven to earth where we are by being like Him? How effective would that be?

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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Live For Others

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LIVE FOR OTHERS

The end of all things is near, Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.   (1 Peter 4: 7-10)

Peter and Paul must have shared many hours together and many thoughts about their understanding of what the Christian journey was all about. Peter echoed Paul’s instructions about prayer which we have already studied in Col. 4. In fact, what he wrote is almost word-for-word Paul’s words.

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. (Col. 4: 2)

Prayer is a pivotal part of our lives as followers of Jesus. Prayer is the unique activity of a son. Jesus’s role on earth was to take us to the Father so that we can interact with Him as His sons and daughters. For what purpose? To get to know the Father, to listen to Him and to submit to His authority and His will. Our task is to reproduce Jesus on earth so that His will and purposes will overtake and replace the rebellious designs of mankind. We are here for Him, not Him for us. To listen to Him is our greatest privilege and responsibility and that happens, among other things, through prayer.

And for the rest, our lives are to be lived for others. Jesus came to earth both as a son and a servant. By serving people He served the Father. Strange as it may seem, a child’s primary responsibility is to learn submission and obedience and in so doing to serve his father. How else will the family unit be established? Unless God’s authority structures are followed, the unity He envisages in the family cannot happen.

The pattern for unity is the Godhead; each one serving the other for the mutual benefit of all. When unity is disturbed, the entire universe descends into chaos and disintegration. The way to establish and maintain unity is through mutual submission and loving service.

That brings me to another thought. Power in the kingdoms of men and in the kingdom of God are in direct opposition. In the world, power is exerted by one person over another. Power is about controlling other people for one’s own ends. If people do not reciprocate, the next step is force. Make them do what I want by whatever means works – intimidation, manipulation, domination. That is Satan’s way.

Power God’s way is through self-control. Part of the miracle of the new birth is the infusion of God’s nature into the believer. He has given us His nature – mirrored in Jesus so that real power begins to operate when we respond as Jesus did to sin. Jesus showed us how it is done. Submission to the Father motivated Him to take everything that was thrown at Him without retaliating. By not participating in the sin of those who crucified Him (and that includes you and me), Jesus put an end to it right there, in His body, when they nailed Him to the cross.

Our way is to react, retaliate, take revenge or allow our anger and hatred to fester inside. Sooner or later we will take it out on someone close to us, and so the sin of others is perpetuated in us and through us. The good news is that God is the just judge. We can leave it to Him to fight for us. How much better to let it go when we have been wronged, knowing full well that we can, like Jesus, entrust ourselves to Him who judges justly (1 Peter. 2: 23)

So, Peter said, instead of spending your time fighting your own cause, let God do it for you. It is better to spend your time serving others because, in this way you’ll be spreading goodwill around you instead of fomenting hatred and bitterness. This is the way of the kingdom. By serving others, we confirm our relationship to God as His children. We resemble Jesus, our elder brother, by acting the way He did and we, in the end, earn the right to have authority in God’s kingdom.

By investing our time and abilities in the wellbeing of others, at our own expense, we will grow in the likeness of God, whose nature is in us, and we will put to death the old selfish nature that leads to death.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 

The Key To A Godly Life

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THE KEY TO A GODLY LIFE 

“For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way; bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to His glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and giving joyful thanks to the Father who qualified you to share in the inheritance of His holy people in the kingdom of light.” Colossians 1:9-12.

What a prayer! In order to understand what Paul was asking for, we need to take his prayer apart and examine it piece by piece. Once we have done that, we will see that he made only one request which he qualified with outcomes and explanations.

What was his request? That God would give the Colossian believers wisdom and understanding through the Holy Spirit to know His will. Knowledge of God’s will would, of course, imply that they would also do His will. But it is much more than that. His will does not only imply doing but being. Understanding the will of God brings us into the freedom of experiencing His fatherly love and having the confidence to approach Him as His dearly loved children instead of living in the fear of punishment like slaves.

In Romans 12:1, 2, Paul gives us the key to knowing and understanding the will of God. Present your bodies to Him as a living sacrifice – in other words, give Him charge of your life – and fill your mind with the truth so that your life will be transformed – two simple instructions, but life changing if we carry them out. God is delighted when this process begins to happen because we are on track for the end result – sons and daughters who resemble Jesus.

When we understand what God has done for us and what He wants for us and from us, there will be changes in us that will indicate what is happening inside. Paul highlights three important results of active participation in what God has both said about us and is doing in us.

1. We will bear fruit in every good work.

What are the good works that Paul often talked about?

With his Hebrew upbringing and knowledge of the Torah – God’s instructions on how to live the best life recorded in the Books of Moses – Paul would have understood that God’s people have a duty to take care of four groups of people: their spiritual authority first – to whom they gave the firstfuits of their crops and animals; the temple and those who worked there; their family’s future, and the widow, the orphan, the poor and the alien who lived among them. They were to give prescribed percentages of their increase to each group which was called tsidaqah or acts of righteousness.

Some argue that we are no longer bound by Old Testament laws. True, if we think that we can buy our way to God through them, but not true if we think that the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament are two different Gods. The principles of God’s teaching in the Torah have never changed. What God instructed in the Torah represents His wisdom because He knows what brings the most peace to our hearts – doing the right thing in every circumstance.

2. We will grow in the knowledge of God.

How important is that? It’s more that knowing about God. It’s about knowing His heart – what brings Him joy when we act like Him. He wants us to be one with Him in who we are and what we do. The more we understand the love, mercy and generosity of God towards all people, the more we will really know Him. When we growing in knowing Him, we will grow in trusting Him even when we cannot see the way ahead.

3. We will be joyfully thankful to Him about everything because He has qualified us to be a part of His kingdom which is coming on earth and is already here in part. No more darkness – sin, evil, wickedness, and everything that goes with it. We will see life from His perspective and recognise that every circumstance, good or bad, is moving us towards maturity. That in itself is enough to fill our hearts with gratitude and joy.

What a prayer! Not a grocery list of needs and wants, but a declaration of intent; a desire that these new believers would fully participate in what God has done and what He is yet to do to complete what He began at creation.

SCRIPTURE TAKEN FROM THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.