Tag Archives: partnership

PARTNERSHIP THROUGH PRAYER

Christian life, ,

I have copied and posted this article in total, gladly acknowledging its source because I believe that this is the recovery of a powerful “tool” in the hands of the church today.
“We often think about the relationship between the Apostle Paul and the New Testament churches as a one-way street. Paul’s impact on the churches is obvious, as his letters instruct them about God’s truths. But we don’t think the other way round, about how the churches impacted Paul’s life and ministry.

“Recently, I had an opportunity to study Philippians. As I studied the core message and the context of this letter, I realized how much Paul’s success in ministry was dependent on the churches that he wrote to. I can see that these churches impacted his ministry greatly. That’s why, in all his letters, he commended them for such great support. In Philippians, he called that a partnership in the gospel. What does a true partnership look like? There are two elements— material support and prayer—and they go both ways.

“Paul wrote the letter to the church in Philippi while he was in prison in Rome. He started by saying, “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now” (1:3-5). This partnership they had with Paul was “both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel” (1:7-8).

“He appreciated them so much that at the end of his letter he repeated with an emphasis, “And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only.” By the way, the core message of Philippians is about partnership, not joy as I used to think.

“This church not only partnered with him by sending gifts to meet his need but also in prayer. When they knew that Paul was in prison for the sake of the gospel, they prayed earnestly for his deliverance. Paul knew about this through Epaphroditus, whom they sent to help Paul (4:18). And now Paul sent him back with the letter (2:25). In verse 19 of chapter 2, he said, “Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance.”

“Often, we think that material support is more important than prayer. We are happy to cut a check every month for a ministry, but spending time to pray for them is more difficult for us. We can see immediate result of our material support, while prayer takes time. Often we are not patient enough, so we focus on the first one.

“In all Paul’s mission trips, everywhere he went, he faced a lot of hardship and persecution, especially from the Jews, even believing Jews. Paul knew the importance of prayer, as he urged believers to pray for his deliverance, acceptance, and fruitful result. “I appeal to you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf, that I may be delivered from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service for Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints, so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and be refreshed in your company. May the God of peace be with you all. Amen” (Romans 15:30-32). Interestingly, he used the word strive to describe prayer, which means struggle or fight vigorously. Partnership through prayer requires hard work and humility.

“The call for prayer and intercession for ministry is so clear in Paul’s letters. To the Corinthians, who had problems with Paul because they listened to false teachers, he said, “Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and He will deliver us. On Him we have set our hope that, He will deliver us again. You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many” (2 Corinthians 1:10-11). Prayer heals relationships and brings hope; it shows our dependence on God’s power.

“To the Hebrews, Paul wrote, “Pray for us. We are sure that we have a clear conscience and desire to live honorably in every way. I particularly urge you to pray so that I may be restored to you soon” (Hebrews 13:18-19). Prayer is one way for us to connect with God and be cleansed.

“And there are many more verses like these throughout the New Testament.

” Our organization is working in many countries with unique challenges and needs, and they are not often material. In those circumstances, your prayers are what we need, more than anything else. I believe that our faith will increase as we see God’s power and glory revealed through your prayers in tough situations. I believe whether we are in the mission field or staying at home, we are all together for the Kingdom of God and that we can partner in the way God showed us in His Word.”

Acknowledgement

https://reconciledworld.com
Article: Parnership Through Prayer

About the Author: Nam
Avatar
Nam is the International Director of the Truth Centered Transformation program which keeps him moving. He spends 40 weeks a year on the road! Beyond seeing the world, his great passions are coffee and photography.

The Disposition Of A Man Of God

Bible Study, , , ,

THE DISPOSITION OF A MAN OF GOD

“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:3-6.

Don’t you just love Paul! God could not have chosen a better way to record His word for us than in stories and letters about real people, people we can relate to because they were just as ordinary as we are. With all his accomplishments, Paul reflects sanctified humanness in his letters.

 

Thankfulness, joy, confidence – these are the attitudes and emotions of a man who had walked a long and difficult road with Jesus. Even more telling was the fact that he was penning this letter from inside the royal palace guard in Rome, probably shackled to a Roman soldier, or at least under heavy guard as a dangerous criminal.

 

Why would Paul be regarded as a dangerous criminal? Because of his influence. It would have been well known that this one man had traversed a large section of the Roman Empire, sowing seeds of subversion against Nero Caesar, undermining his claim to be Lord, Saviour, the Son of God and the Prince of Peace. These were all false and arrogant claims, of course, because he was no god at all, only a deranged and ruthless despot. He murdered at will, including his own mother and innocent believers in Jesus because they would not honour him, Caesar, as Lord.

Was this really what Paul was doing? Was it his intention to undermine Rome’s authority and destabilise the empire? Of course not! Paul was preaching the message of another kingdom, superimposed upon Rome that would bring people under God’s authority once again, and transform them into model citizens of Rome. Yes, he stood against cruelty, injustice and lawlessness, but not to undermine Caesar’s rule. His aim was to reconnect people to the living God through the cross of Christ so that society would be transformed by people who lived righteously and at peace with one another.

The message of Jesus had first of all changed him. He himself had been a ruthless killer – hunting down Christians and dragging them off to Jerusalem to be condemned and executed by the Jewish high court for their faith in Jesus. But the risen Christ had intervened, and one encounter with Him had changed his life forever. His walk of faith in this Jesus, “through many dangers, toils and snares” as the hymn describes it, had taught him to trust Him and to rejoice in every good thing and in the worst of circumstances.

So now, incarcerated in a top-security prison in Rome, Paul was full of gratitude and joy, because he had left a trail of Jesus-followers who would perpetuate his work where he was no longer free to go. He was delighted with the transformation in their lives, from pagan idolatry to faith in the living God, and from lawless and ungodly living to chaste and upright lives because his message was powerful, able to change men’s hearts.

He was confident that the change in them because of their faith would continue and be completed when Jesus came to receive them home. Why? Because it was not about a one-sided effort. They were in partnership with the God of the universe and the Holy Spirit who resided in them. This was the guarantee that what God started in them He would finish.

Unfortunately, Jewish and Gentile unbelievers didn’t see it that way. Believers in Jesus were counter-culture traitors who should be hounded and exterminated as vermin. However, the very torrent of persecution they unleashed against them produced even stronger faith, courage and hope in the followers of Jesus because they looked beyond this life to a life to come in the very presence of God. The hotter the hatred against them, the more secure they became in God.

Paul was able to revel in these beloved believers in Philippi, and to praise them for their faith and loyalty through difficult times. He encouraged them with his persistent prayers and expression of confidence that they would persevere, not matter what, until God completed what He had begun because they were not alone in their struggle.

We can also take heart from Paul’s declaration of confidence in God. We may not be in the same circumstances as these Philippian believers but we have our own adversities to contend with, and our own tests and temptations to endure. Will we give up in the struggle or will we hold on to the hope that, when it’s all over, we’ll still be on the winning side, purified in our faith and full of thanksgiving and joy because we made it to the end?

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.

 

A Man From Tarsus

Christian Life, ,

A MAN FROM TARSUS

“There was a disciple in Damascus by the name of Ananias. The Master spoke to him in a vision: ‘Ananias.’

“‘Yes, Master?’ he answered.

“‘Get up and go over to Straight Avenue. Ask at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus. His name is Saul. He’s there praying. He has just had a dream in which he saw a man named Ananias enter his house and lay hands on him so he could see again.'” Acts 9:10-12 (The Message).

Strange, isn’t it, that Jesus didn’t speak directly to Saul and heal him without going through another human being! He could have, but He didn’t. Why? Could it be that He takes His partnership with human beings seriously?

When God assigned the management of the earth to people, He really meant it. He also meant us to live together as a unit, interacting with each other in the oneness that reflects His oneness in the Trinity. Since Jesus not only reconciled us to God but also to one another in Himself, it is always His way to foster unity between fellow believers by ministering His grace to one another through us by the Spirit.

Saul was isolated and disorientated by his shocking encounter with Jesus. He never dreamed that his mission to destroy the church in Damascus would turn out this way. On top of it, he was blind! Was this his punishment for what he had been doing? Then he dreamt that a man named Ananias came and prayed for him and his sight was restored. Was that wishful thinking? He did not know what to make of any of these things.

Jesus enlisted the help of a seasoned believer. Ananias was obviously comfortable with personal communication with Jesus. He was not thrown by this vision. His response was spontaneous. He knew who was talking to him.

“Ananias protested.’Master, you can’t be serious. Everyone’s talking about this man and the terrible things he’s been doing, his reign of terror against your people in Jerusalem! And now he’s shown up here with papers from the Chief Priest that gave him licence to do the same to us.'” Acts 9:13-14 (The Message).

Ananias’ reaction was quite understandable if the news of Saul’s conversion had not yet reached him. Even if it had, he might have been suspicious. Was it a ploy to get in among the believers and then carry out his wicked plan to decimate them? Only a divine revelation would convince him that the change in Saul was real.

Saul needed the reassurance that the church would forgive and accept him. Because of the hostility that surrounded them, the believers stuck together and supported one another. How could Saul ever break through into the fellowship of a group of people he had come to destroy? Jesus’ solution? Ananias!

So He recruited Ananias to be Saul’s passport into the family circle in Damascus. From there he would find entrance into the wider church family when he could prove that he was no longer a persecutor but one of them.

Ananias needed convincing before he took on this assignment. Only reassurance from Jesus would set him on course to visit this man and welcome him into the fellowship of the church. He was not afraid to question His instructions and Jesus was not offended by his protest.

This story is a beautiful example of the vibrancy of a believer’s relationship to Jesus. This is no religious rigmarole but intimate fellowship with Jesus and the joy of doing life with Him. This is what He wants and this is how it should be.

Old Wineskins

Christian Life, ,

OLD WINESKINS

“‘Judas must now be replaced. The replacement must come from the company of men who stayed together with us from the time Jesus was baptised by John up to the day of His ascension, designated along with us as a witness to His resurrection.’

“They nominated two, Joseph Barsabbas, nicknamed Justus and Matthias. Then they prayed,’ You, O G0d, know every one of us inside and out. Make plain which of these two men you choose to take the place in this ministry and leadership that Judas threw away in order to go his own way.’ Then they drew straws. Matthias won and was counted in with the eleven apostles.” Acts 1:22-26 (The Message).

These men had a long way to go. It is not difficult to see how they were still functioning under the old Jewish religious system of “drawing lots” and assuming that God would direct them by this method as He had done in the past. At this point they knew no better and we cannot blame them for doing what they knew.

From this interlude it seems that there were more than just the twelve disciples that accompanied Jesus as He traversed the Holy Land. There were the women who came with Him from Galilee (Luke 23:55), and there were these two men who were hangers-on from the start of His public ministry right up to His ascension, although their names are not mentioned until now. They were chosen from a group who had travelled with Jesus and His disciples.

We have to ask the question, ‘If Jesus wanted to replace Judas, why didn’t He do it Himself during the forty days He was with them?’ Joseph Barsabbas and Matthias must still have been with them right up to where they were in the upper room, doing their voting.

A second question puzzles me. If they selected two men, and they did the voting, how did they know that they had selected the right man? They prayed, yes, but God had not indicated to them that this was the way He had chosen to replace Judas. They simply went ahead, assuming that they would have His leading.

Compare this process with the one recorded in Acts 13:1-3: “In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers:…while they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.”

We have two examples of the way in which the believers chose men for the ministry, the one before and the other one after the day of Pentecost. We are living in the dispensation of the Holy Spirit and yet many of our practices resemble pre-Pentecost ways – voting and “casting lots” to choose leaders; having cake sales and bazaars to garner finances for the church when the instruction of God’s Word is clear – give, share, sow; going to court against fellow believers instead of bringing it to the church and so on.

The Christian life is a partnership with God – we act and He responds to our obedience. Yet in practice we are often no different from the world. It should not be a surprise that the world takes the church with a pinch of salt, most of the time, because we wear our title but we are just like them.

Jesus’ parting words were, ”…when the Holy Spirit comes on you…'” Acts 1:8 (NIV). Let’s remember that He has come and that He makes all the difference to the way we do life now.

Drunk….On The Holy Spirit

Christian Life, , ,

DRUNK…ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

“Parthians, Medes…..even Cretans and Arabs!

“‘They’re speaking our languages, describing God’s mighty works.’

“Their heads were spinning. They couldn’t make head or tail of any of it. They talked back and forth, confused. ‘What’s going on here?’

“‘Others joked, ‘They’re drunk on cheap wine.'” Acts 2:9-13 (The Message).

Confusion again! But the disciples were not confused – they had it all together for the first time. They had finally got it and were focussed on the right thing – the mighty works of God. No doubt they were telling the startled bystanders about Jesus, about His death and resurrection and about the forgiveness of sins and the kingdom of God.

As usual, there was a mixed reaction from the crowd. Some of them had no clue what was happening. They watched and listened with open mouths to these crazy people, mostly uneducated Galileans, who were now speaking their languages fluently and eloquently.

As usual, there were the sceptics and mockers among them who could not see beyond the end of their cynical noses. ‘Drunk!’ was their diagnosis, ‘and so early in the morning.’ They neither heard what they were saying, did they process it for their own benefit. They simply wrote them off as drunk and laughed at them.

Did the disciples know what they were saying? Probably not at first. They were simply celebrating this unique experience in the best way they knew how, by shouting out their joy, not realising that in it was a message and a sign for all the people around them. No longer would they secrete themselves behind closed doors. They had a story to tell to the world and the energy of the Holy Spirit to tell it in power and truth.

By sending the Holy Spirit to be in them forever, God had initiated a partnership which guaranteed the effectiveness of their mission no matter where they went or what barriers and obstacles they met on the way. The same power that saturated Jesus was now saturating them and all those who would follow after them.

Why do we see so little of the evidence of Jesus’ presence in many parts of the church today? I guess there are many reasons why the church had slipped from being an exuberant organism to a sterile organization. Hosea’s diagnosis for Israel’s dismal failure to represent God to the world still holds: “My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.” Hosea 4:6 (NIV)

Some groups, still believing that they are part of the church, have become nothing more than followers of a religion, practising rituals and keeping rules which have twisted the simple message and mission of Jesus so out of shape that it is no longer recognisable. Others have gone off the track, chasing the rabbits of theology, prosperity, titles and authority, and even mystical experiences, or majoring on minors to the extent that Jesus is buried under a thousand additions.

The early church experienced the undiluted power of the Holy Spirit working in and through them because they were in partnership with Him. They said what He said, did what He did and went where He sent them just like Jesus had done. Their eyes were on Jesus, their ears listened for His voice and their hearts were for Him.

Why have we lost the plot? Lack of knowledge! We have relied on others to tell us how to live and what to do instead of soaking ourselves in God’s Word and sticking to the simplicity of what Jesus taught and modelled. We have the same Spirit as He had, and we have the Written Word to guide us – therefore we have no excuse for being so far from the truth.

It is imperative for the church to get back to Jesus’ command, ‘Follow me.’ Imagine what could happen in the world it we did!