PRAYERS OF THE BIBLE SERIES: THE BOOK OF EXODUS #3

STANDING ON THE PROMISES....IN THE GAP

"11 Then Moses pleaded with the Lord his God, and said: “Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, ‘He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and relent from this harm to Your people. 13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven; and all this land that I have spoken of I give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’” 14 So the Lord relented from the harm which He said He would do to His people. (Exodus 32:11-14)

If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? This is more than a Scripture verse from the Book of Psalms (Psalm 11:3).  It is the question of our time, where true believers and even nominal ones, see the social and moral order crumble right before our eyes. Mankind has always rebelled against God, since the Fall in the Garden (Genesis 3) all the way to present time. Mankind as always ignored the lessons of history, thereby dooming itself to results of those historical lessons.

Still, even given the total depravity of humankind, there have always been a remnant whom God calls His own. Today this is known as the true church – the Body of Christ. Moses was such a man to the rebellious Israelites who were wandering in the deserts for 40 years, due to their rebellion.  Their blasphemy; idol worship; constant grumbling against the God Who freed them and more, compounded their sin as worse than a foul order in front of Holy God. He was prepared to wipe them out.  But Moses, he stepped up and then stepped in.

This would not be the first time Moses had to stand in the gap for over two million people whom the Lord wanted to judge and take out right there and there.  This prayer is one of those times where his heart for God and the Name of the Lord showed in a personally powerful way. Oh, that you and I would have such a closely guarded relationship with Almighty God that we can speak freely with Him (in prayer) and He answers.

Now, just as in the case of America and the world today, God had more and ample justification to destroy any and everything at any time. The same people of Israel whom He had freed from 400 years of bondage in Egypt were conducting pagan orgies and "worship" in front of a massive golden calf, made by Moses' brother himself - Aaron! God had done all the miracles - the Ten Plagues; Passover; the Red Sea Crossing....and more....and here were these people blaspheming Him in the absolute worse sense. He was more than justified.

Moses, on the other hand, what that would mean - the mission would fail and Egypt would have the last laugh. Word of the miraculous escape from Egypt had already spread throughout the region before and after the Red Sea. The Egyptians lost all their top chariot warriors when the waters returned to normal and word of 3-4 million people wandering in the desert heading for Canaan had to have not just alerted the pagan peoples from the Sinai to the Canaan valley and beyond, but put fear into them. There were some wars coming to this region very soon.  Moses was an all in for the struggle, and as disgusted as he was by the pagan display below, he had the heart and will to see the mission through. Most of all, Moses cared deeply about Yahweh - the Great I am.
LESSON#1:
This is confirmed in Hebrews 11:26 where Moses knew to Whom He had been speaking - Jesus Christ! There is a significant lesson to take away from what Moses prayed, and it is the essence of our Christian walk. We must do NOTHING in this world to bring dishonor to God, NOTHING. When we trip, stumble and fall and cause others to defame Christianity (and thus Christ). At all costs, we have to guard the Name of the Lord, more than we do our own names.

In essence, this is what Moses prayed in verses 11 and 12 (Exodus 32): 11 Then Moses pleaded with the Lord his God, and said: “Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians speak, and say, ‘He brought them out to harm them, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and relent from this harm to Your people. 

His prayer here was more than just a request for God to spare the people for God's Reputation to be spared from ridicule by the surrounding heathen peoples. Actually, had God destroyed the majority of the millions who sold out (instead of the selected ring leaders who actually paid the price), His Name would have been feared even more throughout the Middle East! Moses also prayed for God to "relent"! He wanted God to more than just change His Mind about killing the perps of this outrage. Moses wanted Him to have compassion once He had gotten over His righteous anger.
LESSON #2:
This is the other lesson for us as intercessors for the nation - let us pray, even though the foundations of society have been removed by evil men and women - let us pray for God to have mercy on our communities and country, that our people may live in peace. National prayer means a nation of prayer warriors on our knees pleading for God's mercy, grace and compassion even as He suffers through the indignity of it all. He will get justice, as we know, when the roll is called up yonder. So this current paradigm is for life as we know it on this planet, as we co-exist with others.
ACTION POINT: BELIEVE THE PROMISES
The next part of this particular prayer is an important one for those who have been saved by Christ and thus have the ability to have our prayers heard by Him. The Lord made many promises to us all through Scripture. The most significant one is when Jesus said "I will never leave nor forsake you". God Himself told His generals like Joshua to be strong and courageous. He never abandons His own. He gives provision, protection and affirmation of our eternally secure position in Him. So when we are especially burdened enough to stand in the gap for a person or our nation, or even our own circumstances, Moses gave us the example here in Exodus 32:13 of how to stand, occupy and live completely submitted to the Power and Promises of God.

He prays thus: "13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven; and all this land that I have spoken of I give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’”  He claimed the Promises of God because he BELIEVED those Promises.  He had absolute Faith in the absolute Authority and Ability of God to do what He said He will do. 
THE RESULT:
Do we have this strong measure of Faith? Moses spoke regularly with God and thus his faith was the strongest among all of the people of the world at that time. We have the ability to have such amazing faith, all we have to do is draw close to Him; pray, believe and study His Word and surrender all. When we do this and believe in His Word and His promises, look at what happens. Moses believed the Word of God and Exodus 32:14a tells us "So the Lord relented"!!

(Photo credit here)

PRAYERS OF THE BIBLE SERIES - THE BOOK OF JAMES, #11

                      METHODOLOGY CONCERNING: INTERCESSION

Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much (James 5:16a).

There is no greater gift you can give a friend than to pray for them, after you have told them about Jesus and what He has done for you. This makes you and each Christian who follows the teaching of the Scriptures (through James here) - an intercessor.

An intercessor is one who stands in the gap for someone else in prayer and supplication to the Father in Heaven. 
An intercessor is one who has such an intimate relationship with God that when this Christian man or woman approaches the Throne Room of heaven - day or night - our Heavenly Father listens. 
An intercessor is one who is prayed up, stayed up and weighed up in the Scales of Heaven and found wanted by the LORD as one of His dearest saints.
An intercessor is a prayer warrior who lays a hold of the need of another or many others and does not let go, even after the result has been achieved because that desired result only leads to more and more praise to the Most High God.

Many of us have prayed for the closest of our loved ones to the most distant of emailed prayer requests and do so willingly, because a willing heart is near and dear to God. So is a repentant heart and one that is willing to forgive someone else, even if we are the party who has been wronged.

So, we know what the attributes of someone who "stands in the gap" for another - an intercessor looks like. But how does that look in practice? First things first, unless it is absolutely impossible to do so immediately, we never tell someone in dire straights "you are in my thoughts and prayers"! That is an easy way out to do nothing but sounds like the rest of the world.

Secondly, even if it is very quietly off to the side of a room or the street, on a sidewalk, ask permission to pray for the person right there and there.

Third, pray to the point, in brief, with power and immediately transport yourself into His Presence, in the Power of the Holy Ghost like this - "Father, in the Mighty Strong and Powerful Name that is above every name, the Name of Jesus, the Great and Mighty Physician Who heals our diseases and rescues us from the domain of darkness, I come to You right now on behalf of my friend........(fill in the name of the person being prayed over) and humbly as Thee for Thy tender mercies, grace and compassion for her healing (or his restoration) to full and complete health. Lord, we know that You are more than able and capable of reaching down from heaven and ask that You intervene with the Healing Touch of Your Powerful and Awesome Hand into this situation and restore from this (virus, tumor, ....fill in the blank) right now, right now and heal every fiber of his/her being....that You remove every affliction....that You restore life into that which was formerly non-functional and that You bring hope, joy, peace, contentment and gratitude at this miracle, which we are asking for, believing in and trusting in right now, right now Father, from the top of her/his head to the soles of her/his feet and believe, receive and thank You right now for intervening, in the Mighty Name of Jesus, Amen and amen and amen.

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THIRTY ONE DAYS OF BIBLE TRUTHS - DAY 28 (REJECT PASSIVITY)

BIBLE VERSE: “I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one.” Ezekiel 22:30.

TRUTH: There is a shortage of real men these days...in fact - real anything. Authenticity is at a premium. Everywhere you look, from the corner house to the state house, from the people's house to the church house, fake is in, good is out. Folks are just going through the motions, trying to make it from one day to the next. Some just mail it in and allow themselves, their children and their communities to be run over. We see it right now in Europe which is being overrun by a Stone Age religion while the few people of God there remain silent. We see it in the rest of western civilization where passivity - laying low and hoping all this evil will go away - is the norm, and righteousness is scoffed at. 

God is still looking for a few good men and women. He is desirous of those fixed on Him and will never waver. What the times demand, what the future of our families and the next generation requires is for the true people of Yahweh to take a stand for the Truth, be bold and courageous for our God is with us. Greater is He Who is in us is not a cliché but Bible Truth. The same Spirit Who raised Jesus from the dead lives in every born-again Christian. He/she who has the Spirit has life, he/she who does NOT have the Spirit does not have (eternal) life. NOW, this same indwelling Holy Spirit does NOT live in cowards. He abides, empowers, directs and affirms those who belong to Christ (John 1:12). Knowing all of this, why would an authentic Christian not pray, not dig into the Scriptures, not praise our God, not seek the assembly of the saints but just run out the clock and sit on the most minuscule of leads? God is looking for a person in all levels of society to “stand in the gap”, to renounce laziness, to rebuke sloth, to reject passivity. Would we step up now or would we rather answer to Him one day, for not doing a thing about anything?

(Image Credit here)#1

(Image Credits here) #2

THIRTY ONE DAYS OF PRAYER AND THE WORD:JANUARY 1-31, 2015 THEME: "ABIDE"

DAY SEVEN:
VERSE:
Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus...(Romans 8:1)
PRAYER:
HEAVENLY FATHER, HERE WE STOOD, ACCUSED BY THE ACCUSER OF THE BRETHREN, FOUND GUILTY BY THE GOD OF HEAVEN AND DESTINED FOR DARKNESS FOREVER MORE, BUT YOU, YOU OH GOD, FATHER OF HEAVEN AND EARTH, STOOD IN THE GAP BECAUSE THERE WAS NO ONE ELSE, AND PAID THE ULTIMATE COST, AS THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE POURED HIMSELF OUT FROM THE THRONE, THE ETERNAL THRONE TO BECOME A MAN.

THERE IS SOMETHING ABOUT THAT ABBA FATHER, WHICH WE COULD NEVER COMPREHEND, AT LEAST ON THIS SIDE OF HEAVEN- THE VERY FACT THAT HE WHO HELD THE WORLD ON ITS FOOTINGS, WHO SPOKE THE UNIVERSE INTO CREATION, WHO FORMED ADAM FROM THE DUST AND WALKED WITH ENOCH, ABRAHAM AND MOSES - HE WOULD BE BORN UNDER THE SAME LAW HE GAVE US, THEN LIVE WITH PURPOSE AND CLARITY UNDER IT, WHILE NOT VIOLATING ONE JOT OR TITTLE OF IT. WHAT MANNER OF GOD IS HE, THE ANCIENT OF DAYS, OH MERCIFUL FATHER? WHO IS THIS KING OF GLORY, THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY? 

AND NOW,  BECAUSE HE GAVE HIS LIFE FREELY FOR OUR SAKE, FOR MY SAKE, I WORSHIP HIM IN SPIRIT AND IN TRUTH, FOR THIS IS WHAT THE FATHER IS LOOKING FOR IN THESE LAST DAYS. I ACCEPT THE FORGIVENESS HE OFFERS ME. I ACCEPT THE REMOVAL OF THE CHARGE OF GUILTY AND THE SENTENCE OF ETERNAL DEATH.  I ACCEPT THE REMOVAL OF ALL MY GUILTY STAINS AND SINS THAT ARE NOW AS FAR AS THE EAST IS FROM THE WEST. I NOT ONLY FREE ACCEPT THE OFFER OF THAT FORGIVENESS BUT RECEIVE IT INTO MY SPIRIT, KNOWING YOU HAVE REMOVED ME FROM THE MAJORITY OF THE CONDEMNED, YOU HAVE TAKEN ME FROM THE DOMINION OF DARKNESS INTO THE MARVELOUS LIGHT OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. THIS IS NOT JUST A PIPE DREAM OR A PROMISE YOU HAVE MADE, HEAVENLY FATHER, BUT A REALITY I LIVE RIGHT NOW, THAT WE WHO ARE CALLED BY YOUR NAME AND HAVE BEEN ADOPTED AS SONS AND DAUGHTERS ARE CURRENTLY INTEGRATED INTO!

AT THE POINT OF CONVERSION, OH GOD, YOU TOOK US FROM THE PIT INTO THE ETERNAL REALM THAT WE MAY EXPERIENCE KINGDOM LIVING, KINGDOM AUTHORITY AND KINGDOM BLESSINGS, NOT IN THE FUTURE, BUT RIGHT NOW. I LIVE IN THIS MOMENT, KNOWING THAT MY CURRENT LIFE IS BUT A PHYSICAL BREATH AWAY FROM THE REALITY OF MY ALREADY ESTABLISHED RESIDENCE AND GUARANTEED HOME IN THE ETERNAL WITH THE ANCIENT OF DAYS. THANK YOU FOR REDEEMING MY SOUL, FOR RESCUING YOUR SERVANT AND FOR RESTORING THROUGH YOUR SALVATION, SANCTIFICATION AND SOVEREIGN WILL. OH WHAT A GLORIOUS THING TO REST IN YOU, RELY IN YOU AND RESIDE IN YOUR PRESENCE, KNOWING THERE IS NO MORE CONDEMNATION FROM US WHO WERE BOUGHT AT THE CROSS, IN THE MIGHTY NAME OF THE KING OF GLORY – JESUS CHRIST, AMEN.

A FORTNIGHT OF PRAYER

DAY 6

ARE YOU A PRAYER WARRIOR?

In the past five days if deep personal searching of the Soul, we have come to recognize our shortcomings as humans as well as children of God. In Repentance and Humility, rejecting our pride and sinful selves, we have identified with the people of God of old. We parallel those who saw themselves coming up short, when Ezra the Man of God (Ezra Chapters 9 and 10), called the entire Remnant out. Ezra not only cried out in repentance and Godly sorrow, but he sought forgiveness, healing and restoration - personal and corporate. The Lord granted his request after the   Remnant purged their iniquity and found cleansing.


So it is with us, in this Fortnight of Prayer as we have prepared our hearts, according to Biblical Standards and Principles, to be able to not just live our lives each day with effective purpose. We have also positioned a collective spirit of freedom and dunamis - dynamic power - to pray as we ought for our families; our extended families; our communities and the unholy mess in these United States.

When Christ saved us, He did not say "now you're gonna be fine...no hassles...just sit there and I will come and take you away, like Calgon, in a Rapture to live and we will watch all those pagans running around down there!!" NO! Jesus did not say THAT. He said "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8 ESV). This is what the LORD actually said in His Last statement before going back up into Heaven!

Now, here is the most important part. In this verse - Acts 1:8, the Original Word Jesus used for "WITNESSES" is "martyres" in the Greek language! Yes, Jesus actually said " YOU WILL BE MY MARTYRS IN JERUSALEM (or your home town) all Judea and Samaria (your country) and to the end of the earth (worldwide missions)! Did Jesus mean all Christians will be martyred for the Cause of Christ? No. When a teacher tells a five year old that he can't sing a Christmas song about Jesus' birth....when this same kid is told he cannot wear a Tshirt with a Cross on it....when the public school system indoctrinates 11 year olds in filth and actual dysfunctional sexual conduct - this is martyrdom. The examples are endless, countless, too many to describe!

The very fact that we are inspired to live a "martyred" lifestyle by Christ Himself in Acts 1:8 is evidence that we are NOT in a pillow fight! We are in a war to the end for the very souls of our families and communities! While this war may seem to be against people, it is not really. Those people who oppose us - whether it is a mean manager or supervisor to a bullying co-worker to some too-powerful politician or executive imposing his/her secular will on you - they are representative of the Spiritual Warfare lined up against the TRUE saint/child of the Living God!

The key to combat this array of enemy lined up against us is to become a Prayer Warrior! There is no boot camp for this - all you do is enlist and immediately you are on the battlefield, under heavy "artillery fire"!  Our mortal enemy - the devil - does not play around! He is in this for keeps and wants to take as many of us, from inside the church, down with him before his time is up - for good!

The best definition of WHAT a prayer warrior is, that I could find on the web is from Yahoo Answers - "A prayer warrior is someone who earnestly lifts others in prayer. They ask in the Lord to release the troubles, pain and sorrow from their lives.

Prayer warriors positively pray with all supplication, endlessly and tirelessly to bring strength, endurance, patience, understanding and hope to all others unconditionally. This enables them to find peace, joy, freedom and also be lifted in His Light and Love. 

Therefore, Father God, in the Mighty Name of Jesus, I commit myself to the disciple of Praying without Ceasing as Your Word encourages in 1 Thessalonians 5! Lord I am willing to take the slings and arrows of a the enemy of old, who does not have Your interest at his core, only the destruction of Your saints all over the world.  Jesus take the wheel of my heart, my mind, my soul and all my strength and mold me into the person of prayer and power who will tap into Your Word of Endless Truth and Grace and Power. 

Let me be the intercessor like Christ is for me. 

Let me cry out to Heaven night and day, for as long as  it takes. 

Let me take hold of that which You have desired for me - that I may walk humbly and righteously while standing in the Gap for another...and then another...and then the city and nation until lives are changed and many are healed, physically and emotionally! Thank you my God and my King for Your Love and calling to each of us to be that repairer of the Breach, who is willing to serve as a bridge between You and another who is seeking you....and will be seeking you, yet still does not know it! Father, I am asking right now, that You lead me to that person for that divine appointment, that the healing process can begin. Grant us these, we pray, in Jesus Name, amen.

(images by google)

A NICKEL AIN'T WORTH A DIME ANYMORE

WHO WILL STAND IN THE GAP?

The great and eloquent (!!) "wordsmith" Yogi Berra once said "a nickel ain't worth a dime anymore" when he was at the 1955 opening of a new ice cream shop in the Bronx. The famed New York Yankee catcher from the "Hill" in St. Louis was lamenting, jokingly, the cost of a cone going up to 10 cents!

What else "ain't worth a dime anymore"? When you think about the state of society and the future of our kids, it is enough to make a strong man shudder with fear and trembling. Do we really want our children to face what we know is a completely depraved and apostate society coming down the pike at us? We have no choice, unless End Time events spin out of control at warp speed, the anti-Christ is revealed and Jesus ends it all?

In the meantime, we have to live daily and plan and teach and guide our children. Now, more than ever, we have to teach the ways of the Lord with a more critical emphasis on Perseverance. This is the direction I sense the Lord leading me into. There is a strong Biblical reason for this. Jesus Himself says that "he who stands firm to the end, will be saved" (Matthew 24:13 NIV)!!!

What we're seeing today is the acceleration of the "Falling Away" predicted by the Apostle Paul in 2 Thessalonians....or the Apostasy. An apostate is one who has once believed something of the Truth of God in Christ, but like the parable portion of the seed cast on hard ground, his faith never really took root to become real!

More and more, with this happening, the horrible thing is Scandal of the American church slide into oblivion! It is not just the current issue over gay so-called "marriage" which is exposing the weak underbelly of today's so-called Christian leaders, but their entire modus operandi. These guys would rather build empires unto themselves with their mega-churches and programs than take a stand for Jesus and the Truth and then let the chips fall where it may.

This is nothing new. Apostate Jerusalem of 2600 years ago was in the same position we are in today. The rulers and the religious leaders mouthed words to the Holy God of Heaven, but behind closed doors, they bowed down to pagan gods and idols. The only difference in 2012 is this: the pagan gods and idols are pride, power, prosperity and plush pulpits. God sent the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel to warn them, to no effect. The LORD finally said "I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn't have to destroy the land, but I found no one (Ezekiel 22:30 NLT)


WHO WILL STAND IN THE GAP?

Who will stand in the Gap for the Lord? Since the death of the great American preacher/prophet David Wilkerson, no one is. Franklin Graham tries, but is constantly persecuted and put outside the tent. The current situation is a perfect example. The government says religious institutions have to provide free contraception and what we call, the abortion morning-after pill to women, under the new federal health care law. After the initial controversy in February where both Catholics and Evangelicals united against it, a "compromise" was reached and now, only US churches' Employers (like hospitals, nursing homes, christian schools etc) now, will be forced to provide the contraception!

Even though Baptist and other christian hospitals and employers will be affected, only the Roman Catholic church leadership is saying or doing anything about it! When the US president declared he was in support of gay "marriage", only the Roman Catholic Bishops, all single men by their church rules, are taking a stand! Forty three Catholic institutions have filed a Religious Liberty Lawsuit against the Contraception Mandate. Not one Evangelical operation has followed suit - no pun intended!

Instead, what do we have? Well, we have a controversy with the son of one of the pillars of American Christianity and Biblical Teaching (Dr. Charles Stanley). Andy Stanley is the leader of an affluent circuit of multi-campus mega-churches called NorthPoint. His recent sermon on May 3, 2012 has caused such a controversy that the 3rd most influential church leader in America is in danger of being seen as weak on defense of Biblical Integrity and Truth as the first two.

Apparently, Andy Stanley has refused to listen to counsel to explain his seeming glorification of the homosexuality, vis a vis the modern dysfunctional family, in this particular church issue. This occurred during his sermon where, from listening to the clip myself, it sounded as if he had a self restrained view of sin and made light of the entire mess....while correctly addressing the adultery part of that problem. You can watch the part of the Stanley message which caused the controversy here on YOU TUBE. The laughter from his congregation tells a lot of who far from God's Will we have slid away!

THE BOTTOM LINE:

The bottom line is this. God's problem is SIN. In His Courtroom on Judgment Day, the charge against all of us is this - We have sinned against God. That's it! If we do not have the Perfect Son of God as our Advocate and Defense Attorney, as most of us do, the trial will not go well. This compromise and making light of the Word of God, to be in sync with a corrupt and perverted society is what is going to doom the American church on Judgment Day. Unlike what Stanley said in his nice-sounding message (to unsaved secular ears, that is),  Holy God does not care about what pundits and media say. He will have it His Way!

This kind of flim flam teaching is just one of the reasons why most of our youth lose their Christian faith, if they had any, the minute they walk onto a college campus. When over 57% of US evangelicals, who are supposed to be born-again Christians, tell George Barna they believe there are other ways to heaven than belief in Jesus Christ, the future American church is toast! These people are no more Christian than the parking lot of the church they go to and it is the watering down and compromise of hard, strong Biblical Truth which led us there.

The new thing with those in sinful lifestyles is that you not just have to love and welcome them (which is true) but we now have to affirm and accept that and then ignore the Bible and compromise the Word! If it is a choice between Conviction and Compromise, what will it be, my friends?

Who will stand in the gap for the Lord? Is our faith worth more than a dime anymore? To quote a line from the great Christian movie COURAGEOUS "where are you men of courage?!!" Yes, indeed.

(image by google)