PRAYERS OF THE BIBLE SERIES - THE BOOK OF JAMES, #2

THE METHODOLOGY OF ANTI-TEMPTATION PRAYER

12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. (James 1:12-15)

The second important prayer of the Book of James follows immediately after the directive to pray for Wisdom. If any more evidence is needed of James’ concern for the sanctification of the believer, look no further than his Prayer Directives. First, the Lord’s half-brother exhorts us to “ask our generous God” if we are in need of Wisdom.  This need will cover 100% of all Christians. However, immediately following that, James moves from the foundation of Wisdom to the Perseverance of the Saints.

His teaching on patiently enduring “testing and temptation”  illumines us on the sources of both while driving us to our knees. Indirectly, James shows us God’s plan for us to be able to successfully maneuver through these treacherous times in the Christian life. We can grasp this truth easily.  It is based on the knowledge that everything James, the head of the Christian church in ground zero of Judeo-Christianity – Jerusalem- taught, pointed us to a closer relationship with God. He accomplished that in what the English translators put as five chapters of the Book of James.

There is no doubt that testing is from the Lord and temptation from the devil. Please do not confuse both by thinking they have the same sources, when Biblical Truth says otherwise. If it were not for the testing and discipline of the Lord, none of His Elect – true Christians – would grow in maturity and sanctification to be more like Christ.  How we respond to this testing leads to either more and intense radical testing of our faith and commitment to Christ, or a higher level of knowledge of the Holy. Either scenario depends, in full measure, on our positional relationship to prayer.

Testing leads to perseverance which leads to spiritual maturity and the reward of the Christian life well lived. Temptation had better lead us to prayer or we will fall, as too many Godly people have, in human history. Temptation should lead us to pray Scripture immediately while RUNNING AWAY from it.

Jesus Himself gave the order in Matthew 26:41 ~~“Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak!"

Sometimes we cannot see the tempter or the temptress and are blindsided. As far as humanly possible, flee and depart from it, her or him – IMMEDIATELY. Reject it as from the devil and pray the situation at once into the Hands of the Lord, knowing that we are mortal flesh under demonic attack. The Lord will honor that and deliver from all evil.

Knowing Scripture is a powerful weapon against temptation as Jesus Himself demonstrated three times when the devil tempted the hungry and thirsty Messiah in the desert. Three statements dismissed the evil one as Jesus responded “IT IS WRITTEN” to every single temptation. The great Martin Luther wrote in “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” that “one little word shall fell him (the devil”). That Word is the Name of JESUS. Sometimes our prayers are simply the confident recitation of God’s Word back at the tempting situation or person and the command to “be gone, in the Name of Jesus”. When possible, speak it out loud! That will not only preach, but will pray!

Psalm 119:11 says “Thy Word have I hidden in my heart that I may not sin against thee”.  A follower of Christ who is read up, prayed up and stayed up on Jehovah is absolutely less likely to fall if the Word of God richly dwells and abides in such a one! 2 Peter 2:9 (the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment)is therefore what we stand on as our promise and the REASON we have to pray or say the Word for victory over Temptation. It says:”

This is unorthodox in method, but it is a level of prayer which the man or woman of God has to mature into, if we wish to live in the victory which is promised the believer. What an exciting thing James has led us to, as we blow open the Word, from his inspired words, to expand our universe of how indeed, we grow deeper in relationship with our Lord!

(Graphic Source Here)

TEN DAYS OF PRAYER FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH: OCTOBER 24-NOVEMBER 2, 2014, Day 2

SO WHY PRAY AT ALL?  - Part 1

This is a valid question from many who are non-believers/professing and/or Cultural Christians. While this demographic is usually the same group of folks, even committed disciples of Jesus Christ have become seemingly helpless enough to inquire and ask "why doesn't God do something? He sees the pain of the persecuted by the religion of "peace" and various other atheists" in the countries of yesterday's World Watch List (from Open Doors). The shrinking numbers of those who care in the west, about these things, may even ask why the Lord has not intervened as this brutality increases? Can we discern the Mind of God and His thinking about this?

We can, to a certain extent. His Arm is not short and He is timing is flawless, whether we like it or not. Just as in the Days of Noah (Genesis 6) when the earth was so corrupt and evil with sin abounding, thus it is the same now before the Second Coming of the Son of Man. God will not act before His time. However, but He HAS done something. He has commanded us to pray. He has commanded us through His word. Here is the proof:

Luke 18:1 Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart (speaking about Jesus).
Matthew 26:41 "Keep watching and praying, that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." (some final instructions from the Commander in Chief).
Colossians 4:2-4 "Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak. (The Apostle Paul, who spoke for Jesus).

These are the Commands and Exhortations from the verses above:
- Pray and do NOT lose heart.
- Keep watch (be vigilant) and pray, 
- Prayer will keep us from physical and emotional sin so our prayers will be effective.
- Not just pray once, but be DEVOTED to a lifestyle of prayer.
- Pray for those in bondage (like Paul was in Philippi), who opened up prison ministries and even led the Philippians prison guard and his family to the Lord. Pastor Saeed has led over 30 people to Christ in the Iranian prison which the muslims are keeping him in, just to torture him for being a Christian.
- There are more passages which will be explored and prayed over on Day 3/10. The key is -we pray!

SO FATHER, IN THE POWERFUL AND MIGHTY NAME OF JESUS, WE REST ON YOUR WORD AS OUR COMMAND AND DIRECTION TO PRAY. LORD, UNLIKE THE WORLD AND THOSE WITH RELIGIOUS TITLES WHO REJECT THE VERTICAL RELATIONSHIP WITH YOU TO SERVE THEMSELVES AND WALK AROUND IN LABYRINTHS AND OTHER CREATIONS OF THE SINFUL CORRUPT MINDS OF MAN, WE COME DIRECTLY TO YOU, IN HUMILITY, GRATITUDE AND AN ALERT MIND TO THE THINGS YOU HAVE CALLED US TO,

FATHER, YOU TOLD US TO BE ALERT AND VIGILANT MORE THAN ONCE THROUGHOUT YOUR WORDS TO US, BECAUSE THIS IS THE PRICE OF FREEDOM TO WORSHIP YOU. LORD WE ALSO KNOW THAT THE SPIRITS OF THOSE UNDER PERSECUTION ARE WILLING BUT UNDER SUCH STRESS AND DURESS AND BRUTALITY FROM THE SONS OF THE DEVIL, THEIR FLESH FAILS AS OUR BRETHREN AS MORTAL MEN, SUCH AS WE ARE. THEREFORE, YOU HAVE COMMANDED US TO PRAY FOR THEM AS ONES WHO ARE PART OF THIS SAME BODY OF CHRIST - THE CHURCH.

THEREFORE FATHER, WE PRAY FOR OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS AND THEIR BEAUTIFUL CHILDREN TO NOT LOSE HEART. WE PRAY, RESTING ON THE SCRIPTURES (BECAUSE WE BELIEVE THEM WITH ALL OUR HEART) FOR THEIR COURAGE TODAY. LORD EVEN AS THEIR FLESH FAILS, EVEN IF YOUR ENEMIES STARVE THEM, EVEN IF THE REST OF THE WORLD AND ITS POMPOUS LEADERS IGNORE THEM, WE KNOW THAT YOU HAVE NOT. WHILE YOUR SPIRIT WILL NOT CONTEND WITH MAN FOREVER, YOUR HEART IS FULL OF LOVE FOR ALL YOUR ELECT, AS YOU SEE THE BEGINNING FROM THE END, AND YOU SEE THESE PERSECUTED SAINTS WILL BE GREATER IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN THAN THOSE WHO ARE ENJOYING THEIR REWARDS NOW, ON THIS SIDE OF GLORY.

FINALLY FATHER, WE BELIEVE THAT EVEN IN THIS STATE, YOUR PEOPLE CAN TESTIFY TO THE HOPE THAT IS IN THEM, EVEN TO THEIR CAPTORS - LIKE PAUL IN THE PHILIPPIAN JAIL & LIKE SAEED IN IRAN RIGHT NOW. SO WE PRAY THE SCRIPTURES, WE PRAY LIKE PAUL THAT A DOOR WILL BE OPEN FOR THESE UNNAMED SAINTS TO REACH EVEN ONE OR TWO OF THEIR PERSECUTORS TO SPEAK THE GOSPEL OF LOVE AND SALVATION CLEARLY TO THEM, LIKE GRACIA BURNHAM DOES, TO PRAISE AND GLORY OF YOUR NAME, AND ETERNAL SALVATION OF THEIR SOULS, THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD, AMEN.