WORD OF LIFE, PART 10: <>ACKNOWLEDGE <>ASK <>REST<>

In trying times like these, it is no surprise so many are troubled, tried and tested beyond the max. Many seem to be folding. Many are in the process of thinking about giving up and even giving up on the Lord, Whom they surmised has “abandoned” them. Some find comfort in medicating themselves. The number one selling drug in America are anti-depressants. Some find comfort, after walking away from the one True God in “spirituality”, which is a wide-ranging word for “ I believe in nothing and ….everything”.

The principles and facts of Faith are hard things. The walk of faith is just as difficult and it is called Faith for a reason. It requires an evaluation of evidence presented. It requires acknowledgement of certain facts: from creation to salvation and how one gets there from here. It requires critical thinking, if you’re a westerner and sheer belief in a better way, if you’re persecuted by the religions of Asia and the Middle East, where grace and love are non-existent.

This is why God presents Himself to humanity as the confirmed God of the intellect and as One simple in Grace and Truth. When He says "Come now, and let us reason together," Says the LORD, "Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool. (Isaiah 1:18)”, He has offering men, women and children a free way out of their troubles and the pit of despair. This way is still available free and open to all – everywhere….in every part of the world. 

Today's problem is multi-fold, just from this statement alone (i.e. Isaiah 1:18). God, in His Loving manner of Grace, Mercy and Compassion is opening Himself up to be questioned, quizzed and even doubted, when He confronted by a potential believer. Here is the ONLY one of any so-called religions which offers both relationship and love. Yet, even this is not acceptable to mortal mankind who is basically unreasonable in both word and deed. 

We think we are good even though, there is nothing good in us except the sin with which we were born. However, we deny we are sinners, because we are “good” people. This statement could only be true in the horizontal sense. Some of us are most definitely and obviously better human beings than not just bad guys here and abroad but even those sitting in pews next to us, who are Sunday “Christians” only. So how, does one handle horizontal relationships with not so good people, compared to what God demands in the “Love Chapter” of 1 Corinthians chapter 13? Well, Psalm 119:78 gives us the answer here: 

Psalm 119:73-80
Yodh.
73   Your hands made me and fashioned me; give me understanding, that I may learn Your commandments.
74   May those who fear You see me and be glad, because I wait for Your word.
75   I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are righteous, and that in faithfulness You have afflicted me.
76   O may Your loving-kindness comfort me, according to Your word to Your servant.
77   May Your compassion come to me that I may live, for Your law is my delight.
78   May the arrogant be ashamed, for they subvert me with a lie; but I shall meditate on Your precepts.
79   May those who fear You turn to me, even those who know Your testimonies.
80   May my heart be blameless in Your statutes, so that I will not be ashamed.

This answer can only emerge from the heart, mind, body and soul of the believer who has the correct view of God and a dynamic fluid vertical relationship. The complete man, woman  and child of God are the ones who can maintain both vertical and horizontal relationships, in the proper order. This is what we see in Verses 73-77! We see the following in rapid fire:

- Acknowledgement that God is our Creator, Sustainer and Provider

- Because He is all this and more, He can also give us wisdom (Verse 73 and James 1:5)

- Because of this ability to right ask and receive wisdom from the God Who made unknown galaxies and more, the sheer JOY leads to the burning urge to share with everyone who will listen! (verses 73-74)

- God’s Word/Commands/Statutes are perfect so we need to accept and learn from them, even if it hurts (verse 75)

- The natural flow of KNOWING from Whom all life, wisdom and joy flows births the ensuing knowledge that only God Himself can comfort us! (Verse 76). Therefore we need no other man-made placebo or substitute, when we, who are His, possess something which is SO real!

- Because we know there is no fake replacement for Abba Father, the loving God of heaven, and He surrounds us with His goodness, we can rest  COMPLETELY in this and “let God be God”! (verses 77-78).

- The proof that God is built us for relationship and fellowship with like-minded believers, with whom we will spend eternity is the inspired plea for us to be around only those who will inspire us to greater heights in the Faith. 

PRAY FOR.....WISDOM

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him (James 1:5).

Wisdom and common sense are at such a premium these days that they shine out loud when deployed in plain view of this foolish era. The wisdom of God is a  whole lot different from the wisdom of man and most times, the two shall never meet. We can buy all the self-help books in Barnes and Noble or even a Christian bookstore. We can study the false doctrine of eastern mysticism from the Chopras and the Oprahs, but if your wisdom and worldview are not based on the Word and Oracles of God as found in the bible, they are all meaningless and a chasing after the wind.

The lost nature of man equals no true and biblical wisdom.  True wisdom comes from God and we see from the half-brother of Jesus that all we have to do is ask of God and He gives freely! The first thing we should note when asking God for Wisdom is how it begins to manifest itself in us.  That is, the fear/reverence/living-in-awe of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom.  Without the proper concept of WHO God really is and the awe and respect He is due, we are no matter than the majority of this rebellious world which shakes its collective fists at Him.

So knowing that the Fear of the Lord IS the doorway to being wise in the Ways of God, we must endeavor to know why!  The Scriptures  itself gives us the reason for needing wisdom: 

- To perceive the words of understanding (Proverbs 1:2) 

-  To learn Godly self-discipline, so we can daily do what is right (Proverbs 1:3) 

-  To acquire insight into the things that mean the most in life: the basics; knowledge to provide for oneself and then to teach the next generation (Proverbs 1:4) 

-  To receive guidance from the Holy One, (via the Holy Spirit Who lives in those who are reborn in Christ),  in order to handle life’s challenges. (Proverbs 1:5)

Godly wisdom is the true knowledge of Heaven. He Who knew us from the Foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4) is almost pleading with us to acquire His Wisdom. It is free and available to all who asks – in abundance! The Lord said in Proverbs 2:20-23 that His wisdom is clamoring for a home in His people. In fact, it shouts from the mountaintop of our hearts that “here I am, use me”! In Proverbs 2:23 God pleads “come listen to My counsel. I will share my heart with you and make you wise”.

LET US PRAY:  Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Kindness, Love and Compassion to us in that You found us in our sin and wandering in the wilderness of ignorance without a clue, yet in Your great mercy and long suffering, You have so freely offered the riches of Heaven – the knowledge of the Holy, the light of Eternity, the wellspring of Goodness – that we may be more like You. Lord, thank You. We cannot repay for this love You have given in the Oracles of God which You have shared with us. May we never lose sight of what we are yet to fully attain to, knowing that in this life, we will never come close to knowing the depths and heights and widths and lengths of the Ancient of Days and His great wisdom. Grant us the resolve to serve You, to remain humble and submitted before You and to never take our eyes of You – our Great God of Heaven, Who has given us life. We love, adore, worship, praise and obey You, to the Glory of Your Sovereign Name- the Name above all names – Jesus the Messiah. Amen.

PRAYERS OF THE BIBLE SERIES - THE BOOK OF JAMES, #1

James is the half- brother of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was born of the marriage of Joseph and Mary after the Lord Himself was born of a virgin. Jude is the other well known half-brother of Jesus (as in the Book of Jude). The Savior also had another half brother and three sisters. None of the Messiah's half-sisters are mentioned by name. The Word of God (the Bible) tells us that none of these brothers and sisters believed in Him. So God made a point to say in 1 Corinthians 15:7 to point out that after the Resurrected Christ appeared to 500 people at one time, He appeared to JAMES! This confirmed the Lordship of Jesus to His half-brother. Here is the relevant passage, written by the Apostle Paul: "After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep;then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles." (1 Corinthians 15:6-7)

James became such a prayer warrior that he spent a vast majority of time on his knees praying to God. His prayer life overflows in his writing in the Book of James which reads, in total, like an extension (and exposition) of Jesus' Sermon the Mount! When James died and they were about to place him in his coffin, it is recorded that his knees were so calloused and covered with rough skin, that it "resembled a Camel's knees". 
(Read my post on "OLD CAMEL KNEES HERE).
His focus on prayer are not actual prayers themselves, but INSTRUCTION about how to pray and to Whom we should go. When James speaks, he is "E.F. Hutton" - we listen, as it is direct from God. In presenting this instruction, the goal is to point to other prayers in the Bible or unpack the instruction themselves (as in Chapter 5), in order to derive the knowledge and benefit which God wishes us to have.

James 1:5-6 says "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind". 

The instruction here is Wisdom (which begins with the Fear of the Lord), ONLY comes from God. The great and wonderful thing is- we can ask it is given to the point of overflowing! There is a caveat to asking God for wisdom. If we ask in doubt, we remain without. If we ask with the full measure of Faith, it would be great. 

To this end, let us look at King Solomon's prayer at the Dedication of the Greatest Temple in History, almost 2900 years ago and how he prayed. This is Solomon at his best, when he followed the Holy One of Israel and Him alone before easy living corrupted him.  God had offered Solomon ANYTHING he wanted, as He favored David's son. All Solomon had to do was ask. Solomon could have asked for money and fame and fortune. Instead, he asked for "BIYN" (Hebrew for a discerning heart - true Wisdom).

The encouragement here is for us to study how Solomon prayed and then follow the Word of God and do likewise. Praying for Wisdom in any circumstance is something God never refuses those of us who belong to Christians - born again believers.  Read the following passage and meditate on it from 1 Kings 3:5-12a:

 5 At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?”

6 And Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. 7 Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king instead of my father David, but I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. 8 And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted. 9 Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?”

10 The speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. 11 Then God said to him: “Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked long life for yourself, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice, 12 behold, I have done according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and understanding heart.

WORDS OF SOLOMON TO KEY IN ON (T.A.N.)
THANKSGIVING:You have shown great mercy (VERSE 6A)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF OUR OWN HELPLESSNESS: And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted. (VERSE 8)
NEED: Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. (VERSE 9)

Therefore, as the brother of the Lord - James - says...if we lack wisdom, "ask of God"!

DAY 14 - CAN PRAYER SAVE AMERICA?

                                      בִּין 
Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles (Proverbs 1:5-6)

James, the great half-brother of the Lord Jesus said in his epistle (James 1:5) that "if anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, Who gives generously, without reproach!" This is the God of Relationship, to and with Whom (via the Holy Spirit) we pray! He is a generous, loving and merciful God!

Then Proverbs 2:6 says "For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding." Friends, we can't go wrong!  Our covenant relationship enables us to pray with the proper wisdom and complete knowledge of from whom, whence, and to where our prayer focus is going to be! The Lord has given us, His chosen ones, the means to approach His Throne, boldly - yet humbly...and wise, yet submissive.

So Father, in the Name of Jesus, I choose to use the spiritual wisdom and discernment to surrender all of me to all of You, at this time. I surrender all, all to Thee my Precious Savior, I surrender all. I am nothing without You, You Who hath given me of life, eternal life, courage and the Knowledge of the Holy. I chose to use that Knowledge and discernment to plow deeply into Your Holy Scriptures and to study Your ways, as to HOW I should pray. Father, we as Your people in the Family of God, are seeking Your guidance on What we should ask in these perilous times for not just this country and not just for our families, but for the entire body of Christ, which is now under heavy persecution worldwide. Yet, even in the face of all of this, because we are Yours and Your Spirit abides in us, we have the true joy that shines through no matter how dark and grim the circumstances are. So now, today, I pray, on behalf of all who press in today in humility, that You give generously, the words and prayers of the heart, which we should walk in to bless You and others, for the Grace and Glory of Your Name, through Christ our Lord, amen.

Ps...if you are wondering what the Hebrew word is at the start of this article post, it is the word BIYN. This is the same word which Solomon asked for from the Lord, rather than riches or gold. BIYN means the following (according to the Blue Letter Bible). It is used 170 times in the Bible in 162 verses:

1) to discern, understand, consider

a) (Qal)

1) to perceive, discern

2) to understand, know (with the mind)

3) to observe, mark, give heed to, distinguish, consider

4) to have discernment, insight, understanding

b) (Niphal) to be discerning, intelligent, discreet, have understanding

c) (Hiphil)

1) to understand

2) to cause to understand, give understanding, teach

d) (Hithpolel) to show oneself discerning or attentive, consider diligently

e) (Polel) to teach, instruct

2) (TWOT) prudent, regard

(image by google)