A.W. Tozer
[ My favorate work: Knowlege of the Holies.
A.W. Tozer was a preacher of the Word of God. Tozer believed that conformity to the Word of God is is always right, but obedience to religious leaders is good only if those leader prove themselves worthy to lead. Leadership in the church of Christ is a spiritual thing and should be soon understood by everyone. It takes more than a ballot to make a leader, but obedience to religious leaders is good only if those leaders prove themselves worthy to lead. Leadership in the church of Christ is a spiritual thing and should be so understood by everyone. It takes more then an election of ballots to make a leader… Tozer believed that if the church was to prosper spiritually it must have spiritual leadership, not leadership by majority vote. It is highly significant that when the apostle Paul found it necessary to ask for obedience amount the young churches he never appealed to them on the ground that he had been duly elected to office. He asserted his authority as an apostle appointed by the Head of the church. He held his position by right of sheerer spiritual ascendancy, the only earthly right that should be honored amount the children of the new creation.
Tozer once said “I guess my philosophy is this: Everything is wrong until God sets it right.”
This statement from Dr. A.W. Tozer perfectly summarizes what he believed and what he tried to do during his many years of ministry. The entire focus of A.W. Tozer’s preaching and writing was on God. He had no time for religious racketeers who were inventing new ways to promote their gimmicks and inflate their statistics. Like Thoreau, who he read and admired, Tozer marched to a different drummer; and for this reason, he was usually out of step with many of the people in his religious circle.
But it was this evangelical eccentricity that made us love him and appreciate him. He was not afraid to tell us what was wrong. Nor was he hesitant to tell us how God could make it right. If a sermon can be compared to light , then A.W. Tozar released a laser beam from the pulpit, a beam that penetrated your heart, seared your conscience, exposed sin, and left out crying, “ What must I do to be saved?” The answer was always the same: surrender to Christ; get to kow God personally; grow to become like Him.
Aiden Wilson Tozer was born in Newburg (then known s La Jose), Pennsylvania, on April 21, 1897. In 1912 the family moved from the farm to Akron, Ohio; and in 1915 he was converted to Christ. He immediately entered into a life of devotional intensity and personal witness. In 1919 he began pasturing the Alliance Church in Nutter Fort, West Virginia. He also pastured churches in Morgantown, West Virginia; Toledo, Ohio; Indianapolis, Indiana; and in 1928 came to the Southside Alliance Church in Chicago. Here he ministered until November, 1959, when he became pastor of November, 1959, when he became pastor of the Avenue Road Church in Toronto. A sudden heart attach on May 12, 1963, ended that ministry and Tozer was ushered into Glory.
I am sure that Tozer reached more people through his writing than his preaching. Much of his writing was reflected in the preaching of pastors who fed their souls on his words. In May, 1950 he was named editor of the Alliance Weekly now The Alliance Witness, which was probably the only religious magazine purchased primarily for its editorials. I once heard Dr. Tozer at an Evangelical press Association conference taking to task editors who practiced what he called “super-market journalism – two columns of advertising and one aisle of reading material.” He was an exacting writer and was as hard on himself as he was on others.
What is there about A.W. Tozer’s writings that gets hold of us and will not let us go? Tozer did not enjoy the privilege of a university or seminary training, or even Bible School education for that matter; yet he has left us a shelf of books that will be mined for their spiritual wealth until the Lord returns.
For one thing A. W. Tozer wrote with conviction. He was not interested in tickling the ears of the shallow Athenian Christians who were looking for some new thing. Tozer re-dug the old wells and called us back to the old paths, and he passionately believed and practiced the truths that he taught. He once told a friend of mine, I have preached myself off of every Bible Conference platform in the country!” The popular crowds do not rush to hear a man who’s convictions make them uncomfortable. Tozer was a mystic, an evangelical mystic in an age that is pragmatic and materialistic. He still calls us to see that real world of the spiritual that lies beyond the physical world that so ensnares us. He begs us to please God and forget the crowd. He implores us to worship God that we might become more like Him. How desperately we need that message today!
A.W. Tozer had a gift of taking a spiritual truth and holding it up to the light so that, like a diamond, every facet was seen and admired. He was not lost in homiletical swamps; the wind of the Spirit blew and dead bones came to life. His essays are like fine cameos whose value is not determined by their size. His preaching was characterized by an intensity-spiritual intensity-that penetrated one’s heart and helped him to see God. Happy is the Christian who has a Tozer book handy when his soul is parched and he fells God is far away.
This leads to what I think to be the greatest contribution A.W. Tozer makes in his writings; he so excites you about truth that you forget Tozer and reach for your Bible. He himself often said that the best book is the one that makes you want to put it down and think for yourself. Never do I read Tozer without reaching for my notebook to jot down some truth that later can be developed into a message. Tozer is like a prism that gathers the light and then reveals its beauty.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Paul on Spiritual Leadership
Paul
Spiritual Leadership
By: Alfred Gonzalez
“Paul a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God, which he had promised before through his prophets in the holy scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:” Romans 1:1-4
A.W. Tozer called Paul the world’s most successful Christians. It is sheer irony and miracle that God would select one of the most aggressive opponents of the early Christian movement and make him into its most outstanding leader.
Paul had gained a certain amount of notoriety. He was an accomplished linguist, theologian, prosecutor (attorney) whose accomplishments were well known by both the secular realm as well as the Christian circle who feared him. Sanders notes, “Paul was uniquely equipped for the major role to which God called him. A present-day parallel to this amazing man would be someone who could speak in Chinese in Beijing, quoting Confucius and Mencius; write cogent theology, and teach it a Oxford; and defend his cause using flawless Russian before the Soviet Academy of Sciences.” By any standard Paul was one of the most versatile leaders church history has ever known.
Paul’s encounter with Jesus on the Road to Damascus changed His definition of Success from one of a worldly nature and personal perspective to that of a spiritual nature and an eternal perspective. Paul intimately met on that old dusty road the master of his eternity. This encounter with our Lord lit a fire in Paul’s heart that would burn hot contagiously for the rest of his life. The Voice of God entreated him with everything inside of his beating heart, chastened and criticized by everything inside of his mind he believed in the voice of the God who called him by name. Paul heard the Voice and called him Lord. Paul personally knows the master he served. He knew his voice and He obeyed.
Jesus’ first command of Paul was that he “Arise and go into the city and you will be told what you must do”. Jesus taught his son to listen and obey, a lesson Paul would never forget. Paul knew his role as one of a bond-servant. Paul was a great leader because he was fist taught how to follow and he followed a leader that was worth following. Paul submitted himself the authority in which he knew to be true. Paul became a great spiritual leader when his heart and mind were captured by Jesus Christ.
Paul was also a great leader because he believed in the gift of Jesus’ love for him. In Romans chapter 7 Paul describes his struggle with his flesh and begins chapter 8 with There is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Paul as he walked down the road to Damscus thinking on the man he had just had stoned to death met Stephan’s father who basically asks him why did you kill my son. Pauls eyes met the eyes of Jesus which told the story. Paul I love you anyway. So much so that in Romans chapter 8:38-39 Paul’s faith brought him to say “ For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Paul believed in the value of the gift that Jesus had given him. So much so that it lead him to give the gift himself unconditionally. This experience with Jesus allowed Paul a perspective on the cost of ministry that few leaders have today. Paul knew he was but the chief beggar leading other beggars to bread. Paul’s humbleness came from the memory of looking into Jesus’ eyes while still having Stephan’s blood on his hands. He remembered clearly his lowly state before he met the master. He knew his guilt uncovered and his penalty at hand Jesus not only showed him mercy by with holding what he deserves but issued grace to love the unlovable. Paul knew the cost of following Jesus because prior to his conversion he was the cost for being a Christian. He knew that what ever he received for following the lord he had dished out several times and as with Stephan he saw that the love of God could not be beaten from a man. He learned to live is Christ and to die is gain. Death had lost its sting when eternity’s light gave glory to God.
Paul was a great leader because he had his master’s heart for the lost. In Romans 9:1 Paul says “I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit,That I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accurse from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh.” Paul’s heart broke for his unsaved countrymen. Paul’s heart was one of self sacrifice for those he was called to serve. John 15:13 Says “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends”. Paul’s heart was for the lost.
Paul was equipped by the Lord. Paul had a brilliant gasp of the Old Testament studying under Rabbi Gamaliel. He was articulate and well versed in culture and politics. All of which the Lord had trained him in his secular life style. God took the wretched man that he was and made him into a spiritual leader. Paul died never knowing that you or I would be reading his writings. He spread Christianity throughout the world and made sure that the Christianity he spread was New Testament grace. As A.W. Tozar says “The popular notion that the first obligation of the church is to spread the gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth is false. The churches first obligation is to be spiritually worthy to spread it.” If the disciples had gone forth as missionaries before the day of Pentecost it would have been a spiritual disaster, for they could have done no more than make converts after their likeness, and this would have altered for the worse the whole history of the Western world and had consequences through out the ages to come. Paul was filled with the spirit. He was sold out for Christ. We would rather die then quit. He stood firm he stood alone when necessary and he stood for Jesus.
As a spiritual leader Paul saw the desire to serve as a leader as a good work which came with qualification. In his first letter to Timothy 3:1-7 “This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach; not given to wine, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence ( for if a man does not know how to rule his won house, how will he take care of the church of God); not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.” Paul cites the qualification of a spiritual lead with clarity and assertively. The tone of Paul’s writing leaves the reader with the impression that he is describing the highest of position. A job description to be taken seriously. Paul starts the qualifications by stating you must first be managed your self by the spirit. You are to be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, ect… Before you can manage others you must first be yielded to the spirit and manage your own choices you must be manageable by the spirit then he says that your household must be in order. Your first ministry is your home. You must be lead by the spirit and you must lead your family to be lead by the spirit. Paul even tells us why he says “for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God? Paul declares with clarity that the Lord will not expand your territory if you cannot handle the ministry he has already given you. As a Christian leader we are to be representatives of our faith for we carry the name of Christ. We are to be above reproach and we are to take the calling seriously. We are to desire the excellence in which God has called us to while walking in the confidence of Grace. It is a fine balance between holiness and Grace. In our obedience to Gods word we strive for holiness but its by His Grace that we are saved. Paul was a great leader because he was great a following. Paul was a man worthy of following but more importantly he was a man who followed the only one worthy of being followed.
NOTES
Spiritual Leadership
By: Alfred Gonzalez
“Paul a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God, which he had promised before through his prophets in the holy scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:” Romans 1:1-4
A.W. Tozer called Paul the world’s most successful Christians. It is sheer irony and miracle that God would select one of the most aggressive opponents of the early Christian movement and make him into its most outstanding leader.
Paul had gained a certain amount of notoriety. He was an accomplished linguist, theologian, prosecutor (attorney) whose accomplishments were well known by both the secular realm as well as the Christian circle who feared him. Sanders notes, “Paul was uniquely equipped for the major role to which God called him. A present-day parallel to this amazing man would be someone who could speak in Chinese in Beijing, quoting Confucius and Mencius; write cogent theology, and teach it a Oxford; and defend his cause using flawless Russian before the Soviet Academy of Sciences.” By any standard Paul was one of the most versatile leaders church history has ever known.
Paul’s encounter with Jesus on the Road to Damascus changed His definition of Success from one of a worldly nature and personal perspective to that of a spiritual nature and an eternal perspective. Paul intimately met on that old dusty road the master of his eternity. This encounter with our Lord lit a fire in Paul’s heart that would burn hot contagiously for the rest of his life. The Voice of God entreated him with everything inside of his beating heart, chastened and criticized by everything inside of his mind he believed in the voice of the God who called him by name. Paul heard the Voice and called him Lord. Paul personally knows the master he served. He knew his voice and He obeyed.
Jesus’ first command of Paul was that he “Arise and go into the city and you will be told what you must do”. Jesus taught his son to listen and obey, a lesson Paul would never forget. Paul knew his role as one of a bond-servant. Paul was a great leader because he was fist taught how to follow and he followed a leader that was worth following. Paul submitted himself the authority in which he knew to be true. Paul became a great spiritual leader when his heart and mind were captured by Jesus Christ.
Paul was also a great leader because he believed in the gift of Jesus’ love for him. In Romans chapter 7 Paul describes his struggle with his flesh and begins chapter 8 with There is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Paul as he walked down the road to Damscus thinking on the man he had just had stoned to death met Stephan’s father who basically asks him why did you kill my son. Pauls eyes met the eyes of Jesus which told the story. Paul I love you anyway. So much so that in Romans chapter 8:38-39 Paul’s faith brought him to say “ For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Paul believed in the value of the gift that Jesus had given him. So much so that it lead him to give the gift himself unconditionally. This experience with Jesus allowed Paul a perspective on the cost of ministry that few leaders have today. Paul knew he was but the chief beggar leading other beggars to bread. Paul’s humbleness came from the memory of looking into Jesus’ eyes while still having Stephan’s blood on his hands. He remembered clearly his lowly state before he met the master. He knew his guilt uncovered and his penalty at hand Jesus not only showed him mercy by with holding what he deserves but issued grace to love the unlovable. Paul knew the cost of following Jesus because prior to his conversion he was the cost for being a Christian. He knew that what ever he received for following the lord he had dished out several times and as with Stephan he saw that the love of God could not be beaten from a man. He learned to live is Christ and to die is gain. Death had lost its sting when eternity’s light gave glory to God.
Paul was a great leader because he had his master’s heart for the lost. In Romans 9:1 Paul says “I tell the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Spirit,That I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accurse from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh.” Paul’s heart broke for his unsaved countrymen. Paul’s heart was one of self sacrifice for those he was called to serve. John 15:13 Says “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends”. Paul’s heart was for the lost.
Paul was equipped by the Lord. Paul had a brilliant gasp of the Old Testament studying under Rabbi Gamaliel. He was articulate and well versed in culture and politics. All of which the Lord had trained him in his secular life style. God took the wretched man that he was and made him into a spiritual leader. Paul died never knowing that you or I would be reading his writings. He spread Christianity throughout the world and made sure that the Christianity he spread was New Testament grace. As A.W. Tozar says “The popular notion that the first obligation of the church is to spread the gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth is false. The churches first obligation is to be spiritually worthy to spread it.” If the disciples had gone forth as missionaries before the day of Pentecost it would have been a spiritual disaster, for they could have done no more than make converts after their likeness, and this would have altered for the worse the whole history of the Western world and had consequences through out the ages to come. Paul was filled with the spirit. He was sold out for Christ. We would rather die then quit. He stood firm he stood alone when necessary and he stood for Jesus.
As a spiritual leader Paul saw the desire to serve as a leader as a good work which came with qualification. In his first letter to Timothy 3:1-7 “This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach; not given to wine, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence ( for if a man does not know how to rule his won house, how will he take care of the church of God); not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.” Paul cites the qualification of a spiritual lead with clarity and assertively. The tone of Paul’s writing leaves the reader with the impression that he is describing the highest of position. A job description to be taken seriously. Paul starts the qualifications by stating you must first be managed your self by the spirit. You are to be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, ect… Before you can manage others you must first be yielded to the spirit and manage your own choices you must be manageable by the spirit then he says that your household must be in order. Your first ministry is your home. You must be lead by the spirit and you must lead your family to be lead by the spirit. Paul even tells us why he says “for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God? Paul declares with clarity that the Lord will not expand your territory if you cannot handle the ministry he has already given you. As a Christian leader we are to be representatives of our faith for we carry the name of Christ. We are to be above reproach and we are to take the calling seriously. We are to desire the excellence in which God has called us to while walking in the confidence of Grace. It is a fine balance between holiness and Grace. In our obedience to Gods word we strive for holiness but its by His Grace that we are saved. Paul was a great leader because he was great a following. Paul was a man worthy of following but more importantly he was a man who followed the only one worthy of being followed.
NOTES
The Reasons for the failure of King Saul
The Reasons for the failure of king Saul
A Good Start
Saul, Israel’s first King, the King of the people’s choosing. In all of Israel there was not a more perfect Icon for the Nation to be found. “from the shoulders and up he was higher than any of the people” (1 Samuel 9:1-2). He started well, He was the son of a might man of valor, he was called out by God, anointed with oil, and befriended by Gods spokesmen. He was equipped by God for the task at hand. The Spirit of the lord came upon him mightily and he was changed into a new man [ 1 Samuel 10:6] and God changed his heart [ V.9]. He began to deliver the children of Israel from the dominion of the Philistines in Chapter 11.
Something Went Wrong
But he went wrong, seriously wrong It’s important that we see where he went wrong. A clear word was delivered to him by “Lord of hosts” from the mouth of Samuel the prophet his friend, (1 Samuel 15:2-9).
“Thus says the Lord of Host, I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he set himself against him on the way while he was coming up from Egypt. ‘Now go and strike Amalek and utterly destroy all that he has, and do not spare him; but put to death both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’” Then Saul summoned the people and numbered them in Telaim 200,000 foot soldiers and 10,000 men of Judah. And Saul came to the city of Amalek, and set an ambush in the valley. And Saul said to the Akenites, “Go, depart, go down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them; for you showed kindness to all the sons of Israel when they came up from Egypt.” So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites. So Saul defeated the Amalekites, from Havilah as you got to Shur, which is east of Egypt. And he captured Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were not willing to destroy them utterly; but everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed.
“Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me, and has not carried out My commands.” And Samuel was distressed and cried out to the Lord all night. And Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul; and it was told Samuel, saying “Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, then turned and proceeded on down the Gilgal.” And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the Lord! I have carried out the command of the Lord.”
But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?” [The noise of His failure] And Saul said, “They have brought them fro mthe Amalekites, for the people [The First scape Goat] spared the best of the sheep and oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God; but the rest we have utterly destroyed.”
The Samuel said to Saul, “Wait, and let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” And he said to him, Speak!”
He did not take the Word of the Lord Seriously
A clear word was delivered to him by the Lord of Hosts from the mouth of Samuel the Prophet. But (v:9) Saul and the people spared Agag and the best …and were not willing to destroy.
If someone wants something badly enough for themselves he will often twist the truth or our right lie to get it. God told Saul to totally destroy the Amalekites (1 Samuel 15:3). Saul disobeyed God; “But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were not willing to destroy them utterly; but everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed.” (1 Samuel 15:9) Saul evidently saved the best for himself and exploited gods will to benefit himself and he convinced himself that taking for himself Israel’s enemies valuable plunder and destroying all that he did not want and was worthless somehow was obeying Gods command. Its amazing how sin deludes us into thinking that by rationalizing our own behavior, God’s will is being done! But the dilution is ours not Gods He sees perfectly clear into the hearts of man and he remembers every word he has said to us. The desire for worldly gain pushes mans fingers into his ears as God speaks his perfect will and unless we remove the flesh from our ears we do not hear the Lord. As a matter of fact we even fool ourselves into thinking that because we can see Gods speaking we are listening to his will but as Saul found out that when our ears are plugged you can only hear yourself better.
He loved the world so much he failed to take the necessary steps to cut himself off from it.
Saul in his rebellion against God spared Agag because he made a value judgment. He destroyed “everything despised and worthless.” He surveyed the situation and decided what to keep and what to destroy. It is ironic that the verse Quoted at the beginning of this paper I stated that God has chosen things that are despised by the world to participate in His glorious purpose. The things Saul ooved are those things hated by God.
The things of the world are all under Gods judgment. Saul wanted to spare the “good” ones. This shows that nothing less than death can remedy our sin problem and make us right with God. Jesus embraced death on the cross to bring eternal life to those who deserved eternal damnation. Death on the cross was a cure (Galatians 3:13) and exposed the one so sentenced to ridicule and shame. When Jesus endured death on a cross as a common criminal (thought He was sinless and innocent) He insured all people would not become His disciples for the wrong reasons. Embracing the cross will not mean honor, prestige, and accolades from the world. Paul told what happened to him and the other apostles because of the message of the cross: “we have become as the scum of the world, the dregs of all things, even until now” (1 Corinthians 4:13b) We live in a society that puts gold and silver on crosses and wears them as ornaments around their necks. This is not the executioner’s device of the fist century.
The Cross symbolizes that everything in my old life, not just the despised and worthless things must die. The “good things” that Saul decided to spare from the worldly enemies of God turned out to be his cause of death. Christianity is not a self-betterment religion. It is a way of life that is symbolized by death to the world and everything it stands for. It is embracing the crucified and resurrected Messiah and willingly confessing Him before a cocking world. Jesus said “For whoever is ashamed of Me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:38 NASB page 1632) The context of this teaching of His approaching death on the cross (Mark 8:31) AND THE RAMIFICATIONS OF THE FOLLWING IN THE PATHS OF HIS SUFFERING. In a day when so-called “Christianity” is paraded before us as a religion of money, power prestige, privilege, and worldly accolades, it is no wonder that Jesus’ statement in Mark 8:38 makes little sense to many people. Why would anyone be ashamed of something that promises to make us rich and famous?
However, the temptation to be ashamed becomes clear when the claims of the cross are considered: “ And He summoned the multitudes with His disciples, and said to them, If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake and he gospel’s shall save it.” ( Mark 8:34,35 NASB page 1632) This type of a statement is not meant to maximize the number of “seekers”. It is quite clear that one must pick up and carry the executioner’s device. The reason one would do this in the first century, was because he had been condemned to Death. His life in the world was effectively over. He has “lost” his life in this world the Christian, this means that we have died to everything for the sake of Christ.
This means that Christ is our Lord and everything belongs to Him. This is the very relationship rejected. He decided what stayed and what went. Saul loved the “good things of the world. Converted true disciples of Jesus have died to this world and come alive to God through the Cross. There is in congruity in Christians falling all over each other trying to gain the power prestige, money, and accolades of the world. Sadly, the great irony of the 80’s and 90’s is that some who have done the “best” at this are considered the greatest leaders. Like the ancient Israelites, we have wanted so to be like the pagans that we end up with “leaders” who emulate the pagans. Far to often we have Saul’s rather than Paul’s for leaders.
He Lusted for the Glory of Man
(1 Samual 15:11) He turned back from following Me, and has not carried out My commands.” … and set up a monument for himself.
God had previously predicted his abusive behavior, had revealed that the peoples demand for a king was in fact a request of God, and had told Samuel to listen to them anyway. The appointment of Saul was a judgment of God upon a carnal minded people who wanted to be like the world.
When carnal minded people want to be like the world, God may give them what they want as judgment upon themselves. Saul ended up behaving just as the Lord had predicted. 1-Samuel 15 tells the story of Saul’s rebellion and God’s rejections of him. Even after being repeatedly warned and called to repentance, Saul’s attitude never changed: Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, then turned and proceeded on down to Gilgal” (1 Samuel 15:12b). When faced with his sin he still longed for the glory of man: Then he said, I have sinned; but please honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and go back with me, that I may worship the Lord your God” (1 Samuel 15:30a). Notice that he said to Samuel, “the Lord your God,” not my God. Saul was satisfied with second hand knowledge of God and was filled with the motives of the world. He wanted the accolades of man but refused to submit to the revealed will of God. He could not bring himself to destroy Agag the King of the Amalekites because he was too much like him. Ironically, it was an Amalekite that would kill Saul in the end (2 Samuel 1:6-16). The Flesh we fail to kill will surely kill us in the end.
Saul stands as an illustration of what happens when god’s people start longing for the things of the world. Eventually they want all the power, prestige and status the world has to offer. They tire of the scandal of the cross, and hate being considered lesser people by the unregenerate who looked down on their lowly status. Popularity, glory and honor in the eyes of other is not a worthy goal for God’s people. Jesus said “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” (Luke 16:15b NASB page 1689)
Saul epitomized the kind of person the carnally minded would look for in a king. In a sense, once could say that God “shoes” Saul, but only to make him an object lesion to a rebellious people who did not want God to be their king. They wanted a king so they could be like the other nations, like the pagans, like the world. Since the people wanted a king in order to be like the world , God gave them a king that was like the world, an abusive, self-centered, egomaniac who nevertheless looked like the national Icon on world news today. A choice and handsome lad and there was none like him in all the land. But he was a rotten cake with choice frosting on top of it.
Perhaps God allows “Saul’s” to exist in leadership today for the same reason Saul was king in the Old Testament to separate those who truly will follow the Lord and those who profess to be God’s people but love the world. The carnally minded will flock to those who follow in Saul’s footsteps.
He covered His sins with Lies instead of the Mercy Seat of Jesus.
(v: 13) He lied to himself and to Samuel and he tried to cover his sin (v:15) He tried to blame the others.
God Spoke to Samuel, “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not carried out My commands.” And Samuel was distressed and cried out to the Lord all night. (1 Samuel 15:11). However, Saul did not even understand what the problem was. When confronted by Samuel, he claimed obedience, blamed the people, and rationalized his behavior.
Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the Lord! I have carried out the command of the Lord.” But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? “ (v:13) It was the sound of Saul’s failure to obey Gods word. When we do not seek God and love His word we lose sight of his convicting power. David also sinned against God, but when he was confronted, with his sin his heartfelt repentance was recorded forever in Psalm 51. This stands in stark contrast to Saul’s response.
Samuel goes on to reminded Saul of something he had apparently forgotten: “and Samuel said, Is it not true, thought you were little in your own eyes, you were made the head of the tribes of Israel? And the Lord anointed you king over Israel, and the Lord sent you on a mission … (1 Samuel 15:17-18a). The Lord had made him king when he was small in his own eyes but now he was great in his own eyes and God rejected him. Samuels’s words to Saul are often repeated and familiar: “Samuel said, Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. Fro rebellion is as the sin of divination, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king,” (1 Samuel 22,23 NASB page 472). To twist and manipulate the word of God and rationalize rebelling against it, is as blatantly sinful as pagan idol worship. Yet many today feel justified as Saul in doing so. Perhaps because we fail to see that the biggest Idol in the room is typically ourselves.
A Man After God’s Heart
Saul was rejected by god; but that is not the end of the story. “ But now your kingdom shall not endure. The Lord has sought out for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has appointed him as ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.” (1 Samuel 13:14 NASB page 467) David was chosen by God. Through suffering sorrow, rejection, tragedy, failure, David loved God and became the one through whom the linage of Messiah would come.
The Psalms of David testify of many difficulties David encountered, but every one of them emanated a note of hope. God has chosen the weak thing of the world to shame the strong. The Messiah came as a suffering servant (Isaiah 53). Philippians 2:3-11 tells us of His selfless attitude that we should emulate. If we are to be His witnesses in these last days, we must embrace the cross and die to the world. We must reject the way of Saul.
Conclusion
Even the “good” things that I thought I had to offer the Lord are but filthy rags in His sight. I need to die to my old life and ask Him to make me a new creature in Christ. The radical call to discipleship seems to me to be biblical and from God. Sadly, I have failed many times to live up to this truth, but it provides a baseline for getting back on track. It is sad how often pride and selfish motives have delayed what God is seeking to do in my life. Salvation is a free gift but there is a great cost to discipleship. As God so loved the world that he gave his own life that we might be saved. Discipleship is a rendering of that saved life into the loving hands in which it has been commended. It is a willing surrender to the one who has purchased us with a great price. It is to deliver possession of this life to his will and his will alone. A love offering is no sacrifice yet it always calls us to be second and in that there is great joy.
Where has today’s church gone wrong? How are we to be changed from self-centered sinners to cross-embracing disciples when all we hear is how great we are and how popular and wealthy we can become now that we have Christ? There is a whole generation that has been fed a worldly version of Christianity that is likely to turn out more Saul’s than anything else. Salvation is the free gift of God but there is a very dear price to pay for true discipleship. It will cost you your life but in return you get an eternity.
Cites:
“SAUL.” LoveToKnow1911 Online Encyclopedia. © 2003,2004LoveToKnow.
http://34.1911encyclopedia.org/s/SA/SAUL.htm
Nelsons New Illustrated Bible Commentary
The Making of Israel’s First King bible.org. © 2005. bible.org
http://www.bible.org/page.asp?oage-id=335
A Good Start
Saul, Israel’s first King, the King of the people’s choosing. In all of Israel there was not a more perfect Icon for the Nation to be found. “from the shoulders and up he was higher than any of the people” (1 Samuel 9:1-2). He started well, He was the son of a might man of valor, he was called out by God, anointed with oil, and befriended by Gods spokesmen. He was equipped by God for the task at hand. The Spirit of the lord came upon him mightily and he was changed into a new man [ 1 Samuel 10:6] and God changed his heart [ V.9]. He began to deliver the children of Israel from the dominion of the Philistines in Chapter 11.
Something Went Wrong
But he went wrong, seriously wrong It’s important that we see where he went wrong. A clear word was delivered to him by “Lord of hosts” from the mouth of Samuel the prophet his friend, (1 Samuel 15:2-9).
“Thus says the Lord of Host, I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he set himself against him on the way while he was coming up from Egypt. ‘Now go and strike Amalek and utterly destroy all that he has, and do not spare him; but put to death both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’” Then Saul summoned the people and numbered them in Telaim 200,000 foot soldiers and 10,000 men of Judah. And Saul came to the city of Amalek, and set an ambush in the valley. And Saul said to the Akenites, “Go, depart, go down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them; for you showed kindness to all the sons of Israel when they came up from Egypt.” So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites. So Saul defeated the Amalekites, from Havilah as you got to Shur, which is east of Egypt. And he captured Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were not willing to destroy them utterly; but everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed.
“Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me, and has not carried out My commands.” And Samuel was distressed and cried out to the Lord all night. And Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul; and it was told Samuel, saying “Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, then turned and proceeded on down the Gilgal.” And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the Lord! I have carried out the command of the Lord.”
But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?” [The noise of His failure] And Saul said, “They have brought them fro mthe Amalekites, for the people [The First scape Goat] spared the best of the sheep and oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God; but the rest we have utterly destroyed.”
The Samuel said to Saul, “Wait, and let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” And he said to him, Speak!”
He did not take the Word of the Lord Seriously
A clear word was delivered to him by the Lord of Hosts from the mouth of Samuel the Prophet. But (v:9) Saul and the people spared Agag and the best …and were not willing to destroy.
If someone wants something badly enough for themselves he will often twist the truth or our right lie to get it. God told Saul to totally destroy the Amalekites (1 Samuel 15:3). Saul disobeyed God; “But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were not willing to destroy them utterly; but everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed.” (1 Samuel 15:9) Saul evidently saved the best for himself and exploited gods will to benefit himself and he convinced himself that taking for himself Israel’s enemies valuable plunder and destroying all that he did not want and was worthless somehow was obeying Gods command. Its amazing how sin deludes us into thinking that by rationalizing our own behavior, God’s will is being done! But the dilution is ours not Gods He sees perfectly clear into the hearts of man and he remembers every word he has said to us. The desire for worldly gain pushes mans fingers into his ears as God speaks his perfect will and unless we remove the flesh from our ears we do not hear the Lord. As a matter of fact we even fool ourselves into thinking that because we can see Gods speaking we are listening to his will but as Saul found out that when our ears are plugged you can only hear yourself better.
He loved the world so much he failed to take the necessary steps to cut himself off from it.
Saul in his rebellion against God spared Agag because he made a value judgment. He destroyed “everything despised and worthless.” He surveyed the situation and decided what to keep and what to destroy. It is ironic that the verse Quoted at the beginning of this paper I stated that God has chosen things that are despised by the world to participate in His glorious purpose. The things Saul ooved are those things hated by God.
The things of the world are all under Gods judgment. Saul wanted to spare the “good” ones. This shows that nothing less than death can remedy our sin problem and make us right with God. Jesus embraced death on the cross to bring eternal life to those who deserved eternal damnation. Death on the cross was a cure (Galatians 3:13) and exposed the one so sentenced to ridicule and shame. When Jesus endured death on a cross as a common criminal (thought He was sinless and innocent) He insured all people would not become His disciples for the wrong reasons. Embracing the cross will not mean honor, prestige, and accolades from the world. Paul told what happened to him and the other apostles because of the message of the cross: “we have become as the scum of the world, the dregs of all things, even until now” (1 Corinthians 4:13b) We live in a society that puts gold and silver on crosses and wears them as ornaments around their necks. This is not the executioner’s device of the fist century.
The Cross symbolizes that everything in my old life, not just the despised and worthless things must die. The “good things” that Saul decided to spare from the worldly enemies of God turned out to be his cause of death. Christianity is not a self-betterment religion. It is a way of life that is symbolized by death to the world and everything it stands for. It is embracing the crucified and resurrected Messiah and willingly confessing Him before a cocking world. Jesus said “For whoever is ashamed of Me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:38 NASB page 1632) The context of this teaching of His approaching death on the cross (Mark 8:31) AND THE RAMIFICATIONS OF THE FOLLWING IN THE PATHS OF HIS SUFFERING. In a day when so-called “Christianity” is paraded before us as a religion of money, power prestige, privilege, and worldly accolades, it is no wonder that Jesus’ statement in Mark 8:38 makes little sense to many people. Why would anyone be ashamed of something that promises to make us rich and famous?
However, the temptation to be ashamed becomes clear when the claims of the cross are considered: “ And He summoned the multitudes with His disciples, and said to them, If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake and he gospel’s shall save it.” ( Mark 8:34,35 NASB page 1632) This type of a statement is not meant to maximize the number of “seekers”. It is quite clear that one must pick up and carry the executioner’s device. The reason one would do this in the first century, was because he had been condemned to Death. His life in the world was effectively over. He has “lost” his life in this world the Christian, this means that we have died to everything for the sake of Christ.
This means that Christ is our Lord and everything belongs to Him. This is the very relationship rejected. He decided what stayed and what went. Saul loved the “good things of the world. Converted true disciples of Jesus have died to this world and come alive to God through the Cross. There is in congruity in Christians falling all over each other trying to gain the power prestige, money, and accolades of the world. Sadly, the great irony of the 80’s and 90’s is that some who have done the “best” at this are considered the greatest leaders. Like the ancient Israelites, we have wanted so to be like the pagans that we end up with “leaders” who emulate the pagans. Far to often we have Saul’s rather than Paul’s for leaders.
He Lusted for the Glory of Man
(1 Samual 15:11) He turned back from following Me, and has not carried out My commands.” … and set up a monument for himself.
God had previously predicted his abusive behavior, had revealed that the peoples demand for a king was in fact a request of God, and had told Samuel to listen to them anyway. The appointment of Saul was a judgment of God upon a carnal minded people who wanted to be like the world.
When carnal minded people want to be like the world, God may give them what they want as judgment upon themselves. Saul ended up behaving just as the Lord had predicted. 1-Samuel 15 tells the story of Saul’s rebellion and God’s rejections of him. Even after being repeatedly warned and called to repentance, Saul’s attitude never changed: Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, then turned and proceeded on down to Gilgal” (1 Samuel 15:12b). When faced with his sin he still longed for the glory of man: Then he said, I have sinned; but please honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and go back with me, that I may worship the Lord your God” (1 Samuel 15:30a). Notice that he said to Samuel, “the Lord your God,” not my God. Saul was satisfied with second hand knowledge of God and was filled with the motives of the world. He wanted the accolades of man but refused to submit to the revealed will of God. He could not bring himself to destroy Agag the King of the Amalekites because he was too much like him. Ironically, it was an Amalekite that would kill Saul in the end (2 Samuel 1:6-16). The Flesh we fail to kill will surely kill us in the end.
Saul stands as an illustration of what happens when god’s people start longing for the things of the world. Eventually they want all the power, prestige and status the world has to offer. They tire of the scandal of the cross, and hate being considered lesser people by the unregenerate who looked down on their lowly status. Popularity, glory and honor in the eyes of other is not a worthy goal for God’s people. Jesus said “You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.” (Luke 16:15b NASB page 1689)
Saul epitomized the kind of person the carnally minded would look for in a king. In a sense, once could say that God “shoes” Saul, but only to make him an object lesion to a rebellious people who did not want God to be their king. They wanted a king so they could be like the other nations, like the pagans, like the world. Since the people wanted a king in order to be like the world , God gave them a king that was like the world, an abusive, self-centered, egomaniac who nevertheless looked like the national Icon on world news today. A choice and handsome lad and there was none like him in all the land. But he was a rotten cake with choice frosting on top of it.
Perhaps God allows “Saul’s” to exist in leadership today for the same reason Saul was king in the Old Testament to separate those who truly will follow the Lord and those who profess to be God’s people but love the world. The carnally minded will flock to those who follow in Saul’s footsteps.
He covered His sins with Lies instead of the Mercy Seat of Jesus.
(v: 13) He lied to himself and to Samuel and he tried to cover his sin (v:15) He tried to blame the others.
God Spoke to Samuel, “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not carried out My commands.” And Samuel was distressed and cried out to the Lord all night. (1 Samuel 15:11). However, Saul did not even understand what the problem was. When confronted by Samuel, he claimed obedience, blamed the people, and rationalized his behavior.
Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the Lord! I have carried out the command of the Lord.” But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? “ (v:13) It was the sound of Saul’s failure to obey Gods word. When we do not seek God and love His word we lose sight of his convicting power. David also sinned against God, but when he was confronted, with his sin his heartfelt repentance was recorded forever in Psalm 51. This stands in stark contrast to Saul’s response.
Samuel goes on to reminded Saul of something he had apparently forgotten: “and Samuel said, Is it not true, thought you were little in your own eyes, you were made the head of the tribes of Israel? And the Lord anointed you king over Israel, and the Lord sent you on a mission … (1 Samuel 15:17-18a). The Lord had made him king when he was small in his own eyes but now he was great in his own eyes and God rejected him. Samuels’s words to Saul are often repeated and familiar: “Samuel said, Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. Fro rebellion is as the sin of divination, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king,” (1 Samuel 22,23 NASB page 472). To twist and manipulate the word of God and rationalize rebelling against it, is as blatantly sinful as pagan idol worship. Yet many today feel justified as Saul in doing so. Perhaps because we fail to see that the biggest Idol in the room is typically ourselves.
A Man After God’s Heart
Saul was rejected by god; but that is not the end of the story. “ But now your kingdom shall not endure. The Lord has sought out for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has appointed him as ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.” (1 Samuel 13:14 NASB page 467) David was chosen by God. Through suffering sorrow, rejection, tragedy, failure, David loved God and became the one through whom the linage of Messiah would come.
The Psalms of David testify of many difficulties David encountered, but every one of them emanated a note of hope. God has chosen the weak thing of the world to shame the strong. The Messiah came as a suffering servant (Isaiah 53). Philippians 2:3-11 tells us of His selfless attitude that we should emulate. If we are to be His witnesses in these last days, we must embrace the cross and die to the world. We must reject the way of Saul.
Conclusion
Even the “good” things that I thought I had to offer the Lord are but filthy rags in His sight. I need to die to my old life and ask Him to make me a new creature in Christ. The radical call to discipleship seems to me to be biblical and from God. Sadly, I have failed many times to live up to this truth, but it provides a baseline for getting back on track. It is sad how often pride and selfish motives have delayed what God is seeking to do in my life. Salvation is a free gift but there is a great cost to discipleship. As God so loved the world that he gave his own life that we might be saved. Discipleship is a rendering of that saved life into the loving hands in which it has been commended. It is a willing surrender to the one who has purchased us with a great price. It is to deliver possession of this life to his will and his will alone. A love offering is no sacrifice yet it always calls us to be second and in that there is great joy.
Where has today’s church gone wrong? How are we to be changed from self-centered sinners to cross-embracing disciples when all we hear is how great we are and how popular and wealthy we can become now that we have Christ? There is a whole generation that has been fed a worldly version of Christianity that is likely to turn out more Saul’s than anything else. Salvation is the free gift of God but there is a very dear price to pay for true discipleship. It will cost you your life but in return you get an eternity.
Cites:
“SAUL.” LoveToKnow1911 Online Encyclopedia. © 2003,2004LoveToKnow.
http://34.1911encyclopedia.org/s/SA/SAUL.htm
Nelsons New Illustrated Bible Commentary
The Making of Israel’s First King bible.org. © 2005. bible.org
http://www.bible.org/page.asp?oage-id=335
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Salvation by Grace Alone
Salvation by Grace Alone
The Condition of Man
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man's offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous.” Rom 5:12-19
As a young father I remember taking my kindergarten son to McDonalds to eat lunch and to enjoy the play structure they had there with slides, climbing toys and other children. As I sat watching the kids play I noticed that children at a very young age were defiant, self centered bullies that were highly capable of hating parents who loved them enough to bring them to a play ground knowing full well they would get tired and rebel their way into rottenness. I smiled as I realized that adults are just older kids and that we are no different. Descendents of Adam we are all cut of the same cloth.
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God…” Rom: 3:23-24
Even a casual look at the world quickly reveals man’s sinful condition and the ruin in which this fallen condition has left behind. Furthermore; it is a condition in which mankind is completely helpless in rectifying this condition when left to their own human resources. Despite a magnanimous effort with rows and rows of self-help isles at Barns and Nobel, yoga pads and Feng shui the world tends to miss to root of the emptiness they feel; the void that was left when our relationship with God was shattered because we self-helped ourselves in the Garden of Eden.
In spite of all man’s efforts to bring about a new society in which man is able to bring about peace and prosperity, the world remains shattered and torn by the ravages of sin locally, nationally, and internationally.
God did not leave us without hope. The Bible speaks of God’s gracious plan to provide a solution to man’s problem. We call it salvation
Salvation
According to the broadest meaning as used in Scripture, the term salvation encompasses the total work of God by which He seeks to rescue man from the perilous ruins and power of sin and bestows upon man the wealth of His grace encompassing eternal life, provision for abundant life now, and eternal glory (Eph. 1:3-8; 2:4-10)
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, *both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him. 11 Eph1:3-8
The word “salvation” is the translation of the Greek word soteria which is derived from the word soter meaning “savior.” The word “salvation” depicts deliverance, safety, preservation, soundness, restoration, and healing. On the one hand, salvation is described as the work of God rescuing man from his lost estate. On the other hand salvation describes the estate of a man who has been saved and who is vitally renewed and made a partaker of the inheritance of the saints.
Salvation by Grace Alone
But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?" This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.
So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?"
She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more." Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." John 8:1-12
As the condemned is presented to our Lord he sees the heart of man. He sees the convicted bringing the convicted for their death sentence. Still in their sin they are blind to the eyes of our Lord. How the religious need grace as much as the world. We all fall short yet his love and compassion is for us. His heart holds back his hand of wrath while his finger prescribes the dose of reality that allows us to see the cancerous sin that consumes us. Yes, God is gracious in his view of man. His love has covered mans sinful past with the blood of His son. As we can never understand the depth of Gods sovereignty we can never fully understand the Grace that looks beyond what we have done to the man whom God has created in his own image. So deep is Gods love for us that it is rivaled only by that portion of Grace in which he bestows upon us that we as his sons and daughters might be reunited with him.
“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them”. Eph 2:4-10
Gods Motivation for Salvation
When we look at the stubbornness and rebellion of man, we ask ourselves, why should God want to save sinners? Why would God want to save a sinner like me? Why would God want to send His beloved Son as a spotless lamb to suffer Gods righteous and Holy judgment for our sins on a cross meant for us?
God’s word says that it is “…according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praises of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved ( Eph. 1:5b-6). Salvation brings glory to God and it does so because it manifests the very nature and character of His person. It’s not something God does it’s who God is. It’s a part of Gods character that is gifted to mankind that when received and accepted brings the Lord insurmountable pleasure. So much so that that it brings glory to him. It is His will that we are accepted in the Beloved.
Salvation reveals a number of things about God that bring glory to Him and tell us something of the reasons for salvation.
Salvation reveals His love. That God would reach out to sinful man by sending His only begotten Son is the greatest manifestation of His love. It declares God provided salvation because He is a loving God and His love is directed toward us (John 3:16; 1 John 4:7-10, 16).
Salvation through the person and work of Christ is also a manifestation of God’s grace, the un-meritorious favor of God (Eph. 2:7-9). Only Christianity offers a salvation based on grace rather than works. All the other religions of the world have man working to acquire a certain level of goodness to achieve some goal that they can never obtain. The standard is perfection and unobtainable by any fallen man but, God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son as a spotless lamb a perfect sacrifice on our behalf.
The salvation of the Bible manifests the holiness of God. God provided salvation through the person and work of His Son because He is a holy God. In His love and grace God desired fellowship with man, but man’s rebellion and sin created a barrier between God and man that hindered any fellowship with man whatsoever because of God’s infinite holiness. Both God’s holiness and His love are satisfied, however, by the person and work of God’s Son so that man can be reconciled to God and fellowship restored.
Lastly, thought Adam and Eve were created in the image of God and visibly displayed the character of God as they walked in fellowship with Him. When the human race fell through Adam’s sin, the image was not only marred, but man lost the capacity for fellowship with God. Through Gods gift of salvation, the capacity for fellowship is restored and so also is man’s ability to have Christ shine through there life once again. Gods unfathomable grace allows us to be Christ like, to be imitators of Him. Who can know the depths of Gods Grace and His mercy upon the condemned?
Gods Grace not only saves us but it calls us to an abundant life in him. His desire is that we come as we are and he accepts us in that broken condition. Yet he requires that we be changed. Jesus said in John 3:3 “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God Jesus never desired his beloved to live as a dead corps, he commands the dead to rise to new life. The old man is dead and the new [born again believer] lives in Him. Jesus says in John 8:31 …” If you abide in My word, your are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make your free.” Yes the Truth shall make you free. Jesus explains this further in John 14:6 when he says“ I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” As we discover the truth through revelation of the Holy Spirit we are changed. Paul puts it like this in Philippians 2:12 “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presents only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” As we abide in Him and He in us our salvation is worked out through our love inspired servitude to the master who has saved us and who has always loved us. God not only desires to save us, to free us to empower us to know him and therefore love him back. As I started with an analogy of sin describing for you my experience with my son on the McDonalds play equipment denoting that all have sinned and have fallen Short. I end this paper with the thought that as believers there comes a spot in our walk were we will experience Gods tremendous grace and depth of it and we will stand in awe of the mighty display of his Glory. It was a couple of years ago that I realized that my son, the same son I took to the playground as a small boy had grown up he is now twenty six as he searches the world with his own walk in life he will experience God in a very personal way. He will experience Gods grace for him and the power of his salvation in his life. And as the light bulbs go on it will bring Joy to my face as the foundation in which the Lord had laid for him through me is fortified. So it will be to Gods glory as you and I encounter to power of Gods grace though salvation in our lives. May we always bring Glory to King Jesus.
The Condition of Man
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man's offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification. For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous.” Rom 5:12-19
As a young father I remember taking my kindergarten son to McDonalds to eat lunch and to enjoy the play structure they had there with slides, climbing toys and other children. As I sat watching the kids play I noticed that children at a very young age were defiant, self centered bullies that were highly capable of hating parents who loved them enough to bring them to a play ground knowing full well they would get tired and rebel their way into rottenness. I smiled as I realized that adults are just older kids and that we are no different. Descendents of Adam we are all cut of the same cloth.
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God…” Rom: 3:23-24
Even a casual look at the world quickly reveals man’s sinful condition and the ruin in which this fallen condition has left behind. Furthermore; it is a condition in which mankind is completely helpless in rectifying this condition when left to their own human resources. Despite a magnanimous effort with rows and rows of self-help isles at Barns and Nobel, yoga pads and Feng shui the world tends to miss to root of the emptiness they feel; the void that was left when our relationship with God was shattered because we self-helped ourselves in the Garden of Eden.
In spite of all man’s efforts to bring about a new society in which man is able to bring about peace and prosperity, the world remains shattered and torn by the ravages of sin locally, nationally, and internationally.
God did not leave us without hope. The Bible speaks of God’s gracious plan to provide a solution to man’s problem. We call it salvation
Salvation
According to the broadest meaning as used in Scripture, the term salvation encompasses the total work of God by which He seeks to rescue man from the perilous ruins and power of sin and bestows upon man the wealth of His grace encompassing eternal life, provision for abundant life now, and eternal glory (Eph. 1:3-8; 2:4-10)
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, *both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him. 11 Eph1:3-8
The word “salvation” is the translation of the Greek word soteria which is derived from the word soter meaning “savior.” The word “salvation” depicts deliverance, safety, preservation, soundness, restoration, and healing. On the one hand, salvation is described as the work of God rescuing man from his lost estate. On the other hand salvation describes the estate of a man who has been saved and who is vitally renewed and made a partaker of the inheritance of the saints.
Salvation by Grace Alone
But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?" This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.
So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?"
She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more." Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." John 8:1-12
As the condemned is presented to our Lord he sees the heart of man. He sees the convicted bringing the convicted for their death sentence. Still in their sin they are blind to the eyes of our Lord. How the religious need grace as much as the world. We all fall short yet his love and compassion is for us. His heart holds back his hand of wrath while his finger prescribes the dose of reality that allows us to see the cancerous sin that consumes us. Yes, God is gracious in his view of man. His love has covered mans sinful past with the blood of His son. As we can never understand the depth of Gods sovereignty we can never fully understand the Grace that looks beyond what we have done to the man whom God has created in his own image. So deep is Gods love for us that it is rivaled only by that portion of Grace in which he bestows upon us that we as his sons and daughters might be reunited with him.
“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them”. Eph 2:4-10
Gods Motivation for Salvation
When we look at the stubbornness and rebellion of man, we ask ourselves, why should God want to save sinners? Why would God want to save a sinner like me? Why would God want to send His beloved Son as a spotless lamb to suffer Gods righteous and Holy judgment for our sins on a cross meant for us?
God’s word says that it is “…according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praises of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved ( Eph. 1:5b-6). Salvation brings glory to God and it does so because it manifests the very nature and character of His person. It’s not something God does it’s who God is. It’s a part of Gods character that is gifted to mankind that when received and accepted brings the Lord insurmountable pleasure. So much so that that it brings glory to him. It is His will that we are accepted in the Beloved.
Salvation reveals a number of things about God that bring glory to Him and tell us something of the reasons for salvation.
Salvation reveals His love. That God would reach out to sinful man by sending His only begotten Son is the greatest manifestation of His love. It declares God provided salvation because He is a loving God and His love is directed toward us (John 3:16; 1 John 4:7-10, 16).
Salvation through the person and work of Christ is also a manifestation of God’s grace, the un-meritorious favor of God (Eph. 2:7-9). Only Christianity offers a salvation based on grace rather than works. All the other religions of the world have man working to acquire a certain level of goodness to achieve some goal that they can never obtain. The standard is perfection and unobtainable by any fallen man but, God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son as a spotless lamb a perfect sacrifice on our behalf.
The salvation of the Bible manifests the holiness of God. God provided salvation through the person and work of His Son because He is a holy God. In His love and grace God desired fellowship with man, but man’s rebellion and sin created a barrier between God and man that hindered any fellowship with man whatsoever because of God’s infinite holiness. Both God’s holiness and His love are satisfied, however, by the person and work of God’s Son so that man can be reconciled to God and fellowship restored.
Lastly, thought Adam and Eve were created in the image of God and visibly displayed the character of God as they walked in fellowship with Him. When the human race fell through Adam’s sin, the image was not only marred, but man lost the capacity for fellowship with God. Through Gods gift of salvation, the capacity for fellowship is restored and so also is man’s ability to have Christ shine through there life once again. Gods unfathomable grace allows us to be Christ like, to be imitators of Him. Who can know the depths of Gods Grace and His mercy upon the condemned?
Gods Grace not only saves us but it calls us to an abundant life in him. His desire is that we come as we are and he accepts us in that broken condition. Yet he requires that we be changed. Jesus said in John 3:3 “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God Jesus never desired his beloved to live as a dead corps, he commands the dead to rise to new life. The old man is dead and the new [born again believer] lives in Him. Jesus says in John 8:31 …” If you abide in My word, your are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make your free.” Yes the Truth shall make you free. Jesus explains this further in John 14:6 when he says“ I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” As we discover the truth through revelation of the Holy Spirit we are changed. Paul puts it like this in Philippians 2:12 “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presents only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” As we abide in Him and He in us our salvation is worked out through our love inspired servitude to the master who has saved us and who has always loved us. God not only desires to save us, to free us to empower us to know him and therefore love him back. As I started with an analogy of sin describing for you my experience with my son on the McDonalds play equipment denoting that all have sinned and have fallen Short. I end this paper with the thought that as believers there comes a spot in our walk were we will experience Gods tremendous grace and depth of it and we will stand in awe of the mighty display of his Glory. It was a couple of years ago that I realized that my son, the same son I took to the playground as a small boy had grown up he is now twenty six as he searches the world with his own walk in life he will experience God in a very personal way. He will experience Gods grace for him and the power of his salvation in his life. And as the light bulbs go on it will bring Joy to my face as the foundation in which the Lord had laid for him through me is fortified. So it will be to Gods glory as you and I encounter to power of Gods grace though salvation in our lives. May we always bring Glory to King Jesus.
Are You Going To heaven
That is a question that almost 90% of the people in America answer "Yes"! But yet, Jesus said that the road to destruction is wide and many go that way. That means that you will be on the road that the majority of the rest of the world is on. It will be crowded. The bible says the road to life is narrow and few find it. This means that you may find yourself alone on this path at times with out a multitude around you. But Jesus says I will never leave you or forsake you. You will never really be alone. Oh and what great company He keeps. So the Question remains, Are you one of the few on that narrow road? How do you know?
Let me tell you. Sin (which is selfish thoughts, not worshipping God, evil actions) separates you from God. And thee is only one way back to God. Jesus said, "I am the Way the Truth and the Life. No One comes to the Father except through Me." He also said, "unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God."
God will forgive you of all your sin, all of all your guilt and he promised to come into your life if you would accept His free gift of grace. Simply pray: "God, forgive me for my sins.I believe that you died fro my sins. I accept you Jesus as my Lord (master of my life) and Savior (my deliverer from my current state). You are God and I want to live for you. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit." It is not the formula of words but the condition of your heart that the Lord hears.
If you have just made this decision, please tell us me about it. so I can pray for you. Also find yourself a Jesus centered, bibles based church that has a fire in its guts for the Lord Jesus Christ. How when you know you have found this Home. Well my brother/Sister you will know them by their love for one another and their love for the Lost. God Bless you and Hope to hear from you.
Let me tell you. Sin (which is selfish thoughts, not worshipping God, evil actions) separates you from God. And thee is only one way back to God. Jesus said, "I am the Way the Truth and the Life. No One comes to the Father except through Me." He also said, "unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God."
God will forgive you of all your sin, all of all your guilt and he promised to come into your life if you would accept His free gift of grace. Simply pray: "God, forgive me for my sins.I believe that you died fro my sins. I accept you Jesus as my Lord (master of my life) and Savior (my deliverer from my current state). You are God and I want to live for you. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit." It is not the formula of words but the condition of your heart that the Lord hears.
If you have just made this decision, please tell us me about it. so I can pray for you. Also find yourself a Jesus centered, bibles based church that has a fire in its guts for the Lord Jesus Christ. How when you know you have found this Home. Well my brother/Sister you will know them by their love for one another and their love for the Lost. God Bless you and Hope to hear from you.
The Model Prayer
The Model Prayer
“Model Prayer”
Matthew 6:9-15 and Luke 11:1-4
Significant and Application
"Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9 In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
“Therefore do not be like them, for your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.”
In order to understand the context of what Jesus is saying we really need to start at verse 5 were Jesus says "When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have their reward in full. "But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees {what is done} in secret will reward you. "And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. (Matthew 6:5-8 NASB translation)
Jesus lays out the foundation for prayer by pointing to some of the common eras of the prayer life of the religious of the day. He says do not be like the hypocrites (the scribes and the Pharisees) who pray for the sake of others adorned in their priestly robs and bellowing like a clanging cymbal before God. He says of them “they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men.” Jesus says of these sort of men and women that they love to pray on stage. They love their prayers to be high profile so that others will come and say Oh how beautiful you pray. Oh if only I could pray like you. If only I could be that close to God. Of that, God says I am not impressed. Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the true heart of the believer. Jesus goes on to says "And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.” He says here and do not chant over and over again heartless words that mean nothing in your heart. A sort of penitent prayer hoping to bore your father with shallow words into giving you what you want,for this is how the pagans pray chanting mantras to a piece of wood that they cannot know. The Lords desire is for you to know your fathers heart. How will you know your fathers heart if you don’t talk to him. How will you know your Fathers voice if you do not learn to hear his voice. So the lord teaches us how to come to Him. “In this manner, therefore, pray:”
"Our Father in heaven"
Growing up as a child my father taught us that when ever we entered his house we were to find him no matter where he was in the house and say hello to him to great him. We were to say hello before we did anything else in the house before we had conversations with anyone else we were to find him and greet him. Today after some 30 years, it’s still the same. My children and all my extended family all know when we go to grandpa’s house and we enter his home the fist thing we do is find him and greet him. It is a sign of respect for my father. It is his wish that we address him in this fashion and it is the way we show him respect for his domicile his domain and our love for him. Here in the text Jesus teaches us much the same lesson about our father in Heaven. He teaches us that when ever we approach the father we are to approach him in this matter. We need to always acknowledge first and foremost who we are talking to. He (God) is our heavenly Father. We address Him with respect just as we should address our earthly father with respect.
In Matthew 5:9 Jesus says blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God. Blessed are those who lead men and women back to the feet of the savior for they shall be called the sons and daughters of God. You will have your fathers heart.
Jesus said “our Father” " W. E. Vine remarks of "Father" (pater) as follows: "From the root signifying a nourisher, protector, upholder" (Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words). God is our Father in that He is the Creator of all men (Gen. 1, 2). God is our father he is our protector, our provider our nourisher.” Here Jesus shows us how to address our father corporately. He is also a caring Father in that he as God provides both physically and spiritually for his beloved children and he is concerned as a loving father for the needs of his children. Matthew 6:32b says “…For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.” It is natural for a father to provide for his children and it is natural for children to approach there father with great love adoration and respect. When we approach the thrown of God we address Him with respect just as we should address our earthly father with respect and adoration even more so should we approach our heavenly father with reverence and respect. He is the only true God who created all things in this universe, including us. He loves us and when we approach him with the right heart we will be moved by our affection and lover for him. Our father should move us to look for our fathers attributes in our lives. Matthew 5:44b,45 says “…do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” We are the son’s and daughters of our father and we should love like our father. Seeing our Father should cause us to aspire through the power of the Holy spirit to be like Him. It should cause us to seek his kingdom and his rightousness. That we would be more like Him.
The Lord not only tells us who He is but where he is. God is "in heaven" which is reflective of God's regal authority and superiority over man
“in Heaven”
The statement “Our Father who art in heaven” is a statement that gives us not only who He is but also where He is. It’s a statement of faith that claims that our father is in His rightful place. He is enthroned in heavenly places. It is a statement that says I believe in the Father, I believe because of my relationship with Jesus and the Holy Spirit that God resides in heaven, and I will someday be united with Him. He is who he says he is.
God gave us signs to show us that there is something existing beyond what we can see. For centuries, astrologers have wanted to see further and further into space. What we see around us is called the first heaven and was created in Genesis 1:8. The second heaven is the expanse beyond what we can see with our eyes, but can examine with powerful telescopes. The third heaven is where God the Father resides.
We can be assured that our Father is in heaven because that is what the Bible teaches (2 Corinthians 12:2). Matthew 5:34 says, " But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; "
Another proof is the Lord Jesus Christ. In John 8:23, Jesus said, "You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world." Jesus came down from heaven to be our perfect sacrifice for sin. Only one person has died, gone to heaven, and then returned and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. After the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, He descended into Heaven. Earlier, Jesus had said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"
The fact that we can approach the father in heavenly places means that Jesus was victorious and that by faith we who proclaim Jesus Christ as our lord and savior can now approach the father with confidence that we to are children of our father and our home is heaven. The mortality of this world will end and we will begin immortality with our Lord. This physical life will end and we will continue a spiritual life with God in the place He has prepared for us with Him.
If you have a personal relationship with God, you can call God your Father. You can look forward to spending eternity with Him!
"Hallowed be your name"
Right after Jesus tells us to call God “Our Father” He adds “Hallow be Your name”. In many Christian circles today the Idea of God being more like our big buddy in the sky is passed around. Jesus says to moderate this idea. Hollow is his name.
The expression, "hallowed be thy name" is indicative of the respect and reverence that is due the Father. "Hallowed: (hagiazo, Greek) simply means to make holy. The American Heritage Dictionary defines hallowed as, "sanctified; consecrated; highly venerated; sacrosanct," like the hallowed halls of a great university. To hallow is "to make or set apart as holy. To respect or honor greatly; revere." In simpler terms, we often use hallowed to refer to someone whom we should treat with awe and respect because they deserve it.
Man tends to forget the lofty position God occupies in relation to man. Hence, regarding some, there is "no fear of God before their eyes" (Rom. 3: 18). However, the teaching of the scriptures is: "…whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: for our God is a consuming fire" (Heb. 12: 28).
In the Lord's prayer, the phrase, "Hallowed be Your name" is appropriate, because not only is God holy, but His name is holy too. We should never treat God's name with disrespect as some do when they curse and use God's name in vain. We should give the same respect and honor to God's name that we give to God because He and His name are one in the same. You see, in the Hebrew Old Testament the Jewish people had about 16 different names for God. Each name reflected a different aspect of God’s Character.
“ In Jewish thought, a name is not merely an arbitrary designation, a random combination of sounds. The name conveys the nature and essence of the thing named. It represents the history and reputation of the being named. In addition, Jews customarily do not pronounce any of God's many Names except in pryaer or study. The usual practice is to substitute letters or syllables, so that Adonai becomes Adoshem or Ha-Shem, Elohaynu and Elohim become Elokaynu and Elokim,” or God becomes G-d etc.”
How do we hollow His name? “hallow” means to make holy, it is the opposite, according to Vines, of common. “ God is our Father, but He is not common or our buddy, he is God and as such he should be approached with a comfortable reverence that is unprecedented to any other adoration or show of respect in your life. He is set apart as The Father and not another father.
"Your kingdom come" –
We acknowledge His coming kingdom. We pray that Christ will soon return and establish His earthly kingdom where we will reign with Him for eternity.
God's Kingdom (basileia) is essentially his reign, His kingship. In Luke 19:12-14 we see that the kingdom" and "church" (ekklesia) are used interchangeably by the Lord
Therefore He said: "A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten [minas, and said to them, 'Do business till I come.' But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We will not have this man to reign over us.'
In Matthew 16: 18, 19 the church or those who are called saved are those over whom God reins, His territory if you will. How have we become heirs to the kingdom? Colossians 1:13 says “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in which we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” Jesus explains how the kingdom comes when he further stated, ""Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" Man is to obey God . In Luke 6: 46 Jesus asked, "But why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do the things which I say? Jesus will only save the obedient “though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. 9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,…” (Heb. 5: 8, 9). We need to be praying for His will to be done in our lives, so that we might bring glory to Him here on earth as He is also glorified in heaven. We need to do things His way, instead of selfishly doing our own things to satisfy our own desires.
The desire of the Christian is to live in the perfect will of God. Because of what Christ has done for us the desire of every believer is that the Father's will be immediately and whole heartedly done in our lives here on the earth in this life.
There is nothing in heaven to hinder God's perfect will from being done. Jesus tells us to pray for the same to occur in the hearts of man here on the earth today. Jesus tells us to pray that He as lord would possess the strongs hold of mans heart here on earth. What a change would take place in our daily lives, in our communities, our nations and the world if only His will would be done on earth un hindered as it is in heaven. Only the transforming grace of God can bring a person to change the desires of his heart from “my kingdom come,” to “Your kingdom come.”
But the prayer of every sincere believer should be that God will rule increasingly in our lives, and that His final messianic kingdom will come soon, Our responsibility is to make ourselves available to Him at all times to rule in and over our lives so as to bring honor and glory to Him alone.
“Lord, Your will be done in my life daily, moment by moment. I give this day to you. You be my Lord and Master. Here is my life. You live in and through me.”
"Give us today our daily bread" signifies our dependence upon God
"Bread" here stands for the necessities of life we should ask our heavenly Father each day to provide for our needs, just as He promised in His Holy Word. His Word says that we don't have, because we don't ask. Of course, we must first know God through His Son, our personal Lord and Savior. If we do not know Christ, God will not acknowledge this request for daily provision.
When Jesus says "bread", He is referring to every basic essential of life that are needed for our earthly existence. Our prayers should show our understanding and belief that God is our master provider, and that He cares about even our smallest daily needs. We should be constantly aware of how utterly dependent we are on our Father to provide for our daily physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. It is the father’s primary role to provide and it is the Childs primary role to ask of his father when he is hungry. No Loving father would deny his son the necessities of life nor does our father in heaven. If man is faithful to ask, God has always been faithful to give us our daily bread. It is important that we understand that God often provides for man through man's own efforts. We are commanded to work and provide for our own (I Tim. 5: 8) that the lord might bless our efforts and labor in Him. God's spiritual provisions are similarly viewed. God provides salvation, but man must participate in his salvation (this is salvation "by grace through faith," Eph. 2: 8-10). God will not provide for those unwilling to work; neither will he save those unwilling to obey (see 2 Thes. 3: 10; I Cor. 15: 2). However, man cannot claim to have earned either the physical or the spiritual blessings (Tit. 3: 5). All my hope is in the Lords miracles today. The great work he will do in my heart. He is our daily bread, our bread of life to which we pray to receive.
"Forgive us our debts (or transgressions) as we also have forgiven our debtors (transgressors)"
This speaks about forgiveness among our neighbors, friends, family and loved ones. If we can't forgive others, how can we expect our heavenly Father to forgive us? Because of God's goodness to us, we owe Him perfect obedience, and so, our sins are appropriately called "debts" here. To ask God for forgiveness of sins is an always needful, though often forgotten (especially in public prayer) petition. We are constantly falling into debt to God by our frequent sinning. God, in His great mercy, has provided us a way through confession of sins to be assured that our sins are forgiven. He promised: "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (I John 1:9). Spurgeon rightly notes: "No prayer of mortal men could be complete without confession of sin." We need to establish a continual habit of confession of sin to God.
In order to avoid hypocrisy, Jesus reminds us that, if we are to expect forgive for our sins from God, we must also forgive others for their sins against us. "Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." One who does not forgive others does not really understand full import of the great gift of God's forgiveness. Jesus clearly illustrates this in the parable found in Matt. 18:22-35. Jesus clearly considered this important, because, after He finished this model prayer, He returned to this specific point. He clearly stated: "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins" (vs. 14-15). "To ask God for what we ourselves refuse to give to other men, is to insult to God ... It seems so fitting that our right to ask and expect daily forgiveness of our daily shortcomings, and our final pardon and acceptance into the kingdom, be dependent upon our forgiving disposition towards our fellows man."
"Lead us not into temptation"
The final petition is: "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one" (vs. 13). James states: "When tempted, no one should say, `God is tempting me.' For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed" (James 1:13-14). So, whatever the situation, our temptation to sin comes from our own evil desires. "The evil one", known also as Satan, does what he can to prod our evil desires to lead us into sin. God does test us, but not with a view that we would fall. Rather, God tests us so that we would be strengthened by the success of passing His tests. Growing Christians can understand that circumstances are a means of exposing to us to our true character at any stage of our spiritual growth. The circumstances are not the cause of temptations.
So, in the petition here, "lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one", we are asking that God would order circumstances so that we would not be put into situations in which our own weaknesses would cause us to fall. And if we are to undergo testing (as we certainly will in this life), we are asking that the testings serve to strengthen us and make us grow up in spiritual maturity. In the Bible, we have an example of the importance of this petition. In Gethsemane, Jesus told Peter, John and James to "watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation" (Matt. 26:51). Instead of praying as Jesus exhorted them, they fell asleep. Later, Peter was led into temptation, and failed miserably by denying His Lord three times (see Matt. 26:69-75).
It is also important to remember that we are unable to resist temptation without God's grace. We are called to trust the Lord (not ourselves) for strength to resist temptation before it becomes sin. It is not the temptation itself that leads us to sin, but the lack of resistance and trust in the Lord for deliverance. We need to ask our heavenly Father to help us recognize every evil thing, every temptation before us. We need help to stay focused on our Father and see the evil that we might fall into, for what it really is, a trap set by Satan to bring us down to his level.
"But deliver us from the evil one"
Webster defines deliver as "to set free or liberate; to release or save." Therefore, "deliver us from evil" means quit simply that we are asking the Lord to be freed or saved from evil.
Evil is anything that tempts us to do something which is against God's will. It is anything that damper our relationship with God or would sadden or displease God such as if we were to follow our own desires instead of His will. Some translations say, "deliver me from temptation to do evil" or "deliver us from the evil one."
"When tempted, no one should say, 'God is tempting me.' For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed" (James 1:13-14).
Deliver us from evil simply means, "God, help me because I can't do this on my own. I am weak and vulnerable to temptation. Please, Father, put a hedge of protection around me and keep me safe from the evil one's influence. Father, keep Satan in his place and don't allow him to attack me and bombard me with things that draw me too close to the edge and allow me to fall. Father, keep me strong and focused on you!"
In this life, we will never be free from the presence of evil. Until we arrive in Heaven, we will be tainted by sin and evil. Until God creates the New Heavens and New Earth, this world will be filled with evil. Praying "deliver us from evil" is a plea for protection from evil and victory over sin - not a request to be rescued from the very presence of evil. That will have to wait until Heaven (1 Corinthians 15:55-56).
Help us, Oh Father, to steer clear of that liar and deceiver. Let us see clearly the path that you want each of us to walk. By the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells within us, may we never stray from your will and way...
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Starts with His position and ends with Him and His position in our lives. Your kingdom, Your power and Your Glory.
I relinquish the kingdom
Lord, I relinquish my kingdom to your lordship it is now your kingdom. I will stop trying to run it. I will stop being lord of my own life and Yours is the kingdom of my heart. Lord you will possess the strong hold of my heart. You will establish your reign in my heart even in the midst of rebellion you now possess the kingdom you may rule my life from the inside out.
I relinquish the power,
Father, from this day forward it will be by your power, by your efforts and by your will that all things happen. It is the freeing of the soul to no longer strive to accomplish the impossible and to enlist the efforts of the God who can. It is to remember that all things are possible with the Lord and were God calls he will provide every necessity needed to accomplish His good will.
I relinquish the glory-
Honor, praise, renown, - all are words synonymous with glory. As a manifestation of the work of His hands, all creation brings glory to God. Psalm 19:1 says, "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." God's very work praises Him and brings Him glory. "Glorious and majestic are his deeds, and his righteousness endures forever (Psalm 111:3,)." Lord, "Who among the gods is like you, O LORD? Who is like you - majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders? (Exodus 15:11) " No one can accomplish what God can. He is beyond our comprehension. Father we relinquish the glory
Father its all yours. Father I’m Yours for evermore. Amen!
“Model Prayer”
Matthew 6:9-15 and Luke 11:1-4
Significant and Application
"Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9 In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
“Therefore do not be like them, for your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.”
In order to understand the context of what Jesus is saying we really need to start at verse 5 were Jesus says "When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have their reward in full. "But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees {what is done} in secret will reward you. "And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. (Matthew 6:5-8 NASB translation)
Jesus lays out the foundation for prayer by pointing to some of the common eras of the prayer life of the religious of the day. He says do not be like the hypocrites (the scribes and the Pharisees) who pray for the sake of others adorned in their priestly robs and bellowing like a clanging cymbal before God. He says of them “they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men.” Jesus says of these sort of men and women that they love to pray on stage. They love their prayers to be high profile so that others will come and say Oh how beautiful you pray. Oh if only I could pray like you. If only I could be that close to God. Of that, God says I am not impressed. Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the true heart of the believer. Jesus goes on to says "And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.” He says here and do not chant over and over again heartless words that mean nothing in your heart. A sort of penitent prayer hoping to bore your father with shallow words into giving you what you want,for this is how the pagans pray chanting mantras to a piece of wood that they cannot know. The Lords desire is for you to know your fathers heart. How will you know your fathers heart if you don’t talk to him. How will you know your Fathers voice if you do not learn to hear his voice. So the lord teaches us how to come to Him. “In this manner, therefore, pray:”
"Our Father in heaven"
Growing up as a child my father taught us that when ever we entered his house we were to find him no matter where he was in the house and say hello to him to great him. We were to say hello before we did anything else in the house before we had conversations with anyone else we were to find him and greet him. Today after some 30 years, it’s still the same. My children and all my extended family all know when we go to grandpa’s house and we enter his home the fist thing we do is find him and greet him. It is a sign of respect for my father. It is his wish that we address him in this fashion and it is the way we show him respect for his domicile his domain and our love for him. Here in the text Jesus teaches us much the same lesson about our father in Heaven. He teaches us that when ever we approach the father we are to approach him in this matter. We need to always acknowledge first and foremost who we are talking to. He (God) is our heavenly Father. We address Him with respect just as we should address our earthly father with respect.
In Matthew 5:9 Jesus says blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God. Blessed are those who lead men and women back to the feet of the savior for they shall be called the sons and daughters of God. You will have your fathers heart.
Jesus said “our Father” " W. E. Vine remarks of "Father" (pater) as follows: "From the root signifying a nourisher, protector, upholder" (Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words). God is our Father in that He is the Creator of all men (Gen. 1, 2). God is our father he is our protector, our provider our nourisher.” Here Jesus shows us how to address our father corporately. He is also a caring Father in that he as God provides both physically and spiritually for his beloved children and he is concerned as a loving father for the needs of his children. Matthew 6:32b says “…For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.” It is natural for a father to provide for his children and it is natural for children to approach there father with great love adoration and respect. When we approach the thrown of God we address Him with respect just as we should address our earthly father with respect and adoration even more so should we approach our heavenly father with reverence and respect. He is the only true God who created all things in this universe, including us. He loves us and when we approach him with the right heart we will be moved by our affection and lover for him. Our father should move us to look for our fathers attributes in our lives. Matthew 5:44b,45 says “…do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” We are the son’s and daughters of our father and we should love like our father. Seeing our Father should cause us to aspire through the power of the Holy spirit to be like Him. It should cause us to seek his kingdom and his rightousness. That we would be more like Him.
The Lord not only tells us who He is but where he is. God is "in heaven" which is reflective of God's regal authority and superiority over man
“in Heaven”
The statement “Our Father who art in heaven” is a statement that gives us not only who He is but also where He is. It’s a statement of faith that claims that our father is in His rightful place. He is enthroned in heavenly places. It is a statement that says I believe in the Father, I believe because of my relationship with Jesus and the Holy Spirit that God resides in heaven, and I will someday be united with Him. He is who he says he is.
God gave us signs to show us that there is something existing beyond what we can see. For centuries, astrologers have wanted to see further and further into space. What we see around us is called the first heaven and was created in Genesis 1:8. The second heaven is the expanse beyond what we can see with our eyes, but can examine with powerful telescopes. The third heaven is where God the Father resides.
We can be assured that our Father is in heaven because that is what the Bible teaches (2 Corinthians 12:2). Matthew 5:34 says, " But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; "
Another proof is the Lord Jesus Christ. In John 8:23, Jesus said, "You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world." Jesus came down from heaven to be our perfect sacrifice for sin. Only one person has died, gone to heaven, and then returned and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. After the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, He descended into Heaven. Earlier, Jesus had said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"
The fact that we can approach the father in heavenly places means that Jesus was victorious and that by faith we who proclaim Jesus Christ as our lord and savior can now approach the father with confidence that we to are children of our father and our home is heaven. The mortality of this world will end and we will begin immortality with our Lord. This physical life will end and we will continue a spiritual life with God in the place He has prepared for us with Him.
If you have a personal relationship with God, you can call God your Father. You can look forward to spending eternity with Him!
"Hallowed be your name"
Right after Jesus tells us to call God “Our Father” He adds “Hallow be Your name”. In many Christian circles today the Idea of God being more like our big buddy in the sky is passed around. Jesus says to moderate this idea. Hollow is his name.
The expression, "hallowed be thy name" is indicative of the respect and reverence that is due the Father. "Hallowed: (hagiazo, Greek) simply means to make holy. The American Heritage Dictionary defines hallowed as, "sanctified; consecrated; highly venerated; sacrosanct," like the hallowed halls of a great university. To hallow is "to make or set apart as holy. To respect or honor greatly; revere." In simpler terms, we often use hallowed to refer to someone whom we should treat with awe and respect because they deserve it.
Man tends to forget the lofty position God occupies in relation to man. Hence, regarding some, there is "no fear of God before their eyes" (Rom. 3: 18). However, the teaching of the scriptures is: "…whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: for our God is a consuming fire" (Heb. 12: 28).
In the Lord's prayer, the phrase, "Hallowed be Your name" is appropriate, because not only is God holy, but His name is holy too. We should never treat God's name with disrespect as some do when they curse and use God's name in vain. We should give the same respect and honor to God's name that we give to God because He and His name are one in the same. You see, in the Hebrew Old Testament the Jewish people had about 16 different names for God. Each name reflected a different aspect of God’s Character.
“ In Jewish thought, a name is not merely an arbitrary designation, a random combination of sounds. The name conveys the nature and essence of the thing named. It represents the history and reputation of the being named. In addition, Jews customarily do not pronounce any of God's many Names except in pryaer or study. The usual practice is to substitute letters or syllables, so that Adonai becomes Adoshem or Ha-Shem, Elohaynu and Elohim become Elokaynu and Elokim,” or God becomes G-d etc.”
How do we hollow His name? “hallow” means to make holy, it is the opposite, according to Vines, of common. “ God is our Father, but He is not common or our buddy, he is God and as such he should be approached with a comfortable reverence that is unprecedented to any other adoration or show of respect in your life. He is set apart as The Father and not another father.
"Your kingdom come" –
We acknowledge His coming kingdom. We pray that Christ will soon return and establish His earthly kingdom where we will reign with Him for eternity.
God's Kingdom (basileia) is essentially his reign, His kingship. In Luke 19:12-14 we see that the kingdom" and "church" (ekklesia) are used interchangeably by the Lord
Therefore He said: "A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten [minas, and said to them, 'Do business till I come.' But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, 'We will not have this man to reign over us.'
In Matthew 16: 18, 19 the church or those who are called saved are those over whom God reins, His territory if you will. How have we become heirs to the kingdom? Colossians 1:13 says “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in which we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” Jesus explains how the kingdom comes when he further stated, ""Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" Man is to obey God . In Luke 6: 46 Jesus asked, "But why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do the things which I say? Jesus will only save the obedient “though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. 9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,…” (Heb. 5: 8, 9). We need to be praying for His will to be done in our lives, so that we might bring glory to Him here on earth as He is also glorified in heaven. We need to do things His way, instead of selfishly doing our own things to satisfy our own desires.
The desire of the Christian is to live in the perfect will of God. Because of what Christ has done for us the desire of every believer is that the Father's will be immediately and whole heartedly done in our lives here on the earth in this life.
There is nothing in heaven to hinder God's perfect will from being done. Jesus tells us to pray for the same to occur in the hearts of man here on the earth today. Jesus tells us to pray that He as lord would possess the strongs hold of mans heart here on earth. What a change would take place in our daily lives, in our communities, our nations and the world if only His will would be done on earth un hindered as it is in heaven. Only the transforming grace of God can bring a person to change the desires of his heart from “my kingdom come,” to “Your kingdom come.”
But the prayer of every sincere believer should be that God will rule increasingly in our lives, and that His final messianic kingdom will come soon, Our responsibility is to make ourselves available to Him at all times to rule in and over our lives so as to bring honor and glory to Him alone.
“Lord, Your will be done in my life daily, moment by moment. I give this day to you. You be my Lord and Master. Here is my life. You live in and through me.”
"Give us today our daily bread" signifies our dependence upon God
"Bread" here stands for the necessities of life we should ask our heavenly Father each day to provide for our needs, just as He promised in His Holy Word. His Word says that we don't have, because we don't ask. Of course, we must first know God through His Son, our personal Lord and Savior. If we do not know Christ, God will not acknowledge this request for daily provision.
When Jesus says "bread", He is referring to every basic essential of life that are needed for our earthly existence. Our prayers should show our understanding and belief that God is our master provider, and that He cares about even our smallest daily needs. We should be constantly aware of how utterly dependent we are on our Father to provide for our daily physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. It is the father’s primary role to provide and it is the Childs primary role to ask of his father when he is hungry. No Loving father would deny his son the necessities of life nor does our father in heaven. If man is faithful to ask, God has always been faithful to give us our daily bread. It is important that we understand that God often provides for man through man's own efforts. We are commanded to work and provide for our own (I Tim. 5: 8) that the lord might bless our efforts and labor in Him. God's spiritual provisions are similarly viewed. God provides salvation, but man must participate in his salvation (this is salvation "by grace through faith," Eph. 2: 8-10). God will not provide for those unwilling to work; neither will he save those unwilling to obey (see 2 Thes. 3: 10; I Cor. 15: 2). However, man cannot claim to have earned either the physical or the spiritual blessings (Tit. 3: 5). All my hope is in the Lords miracles today. The great work he will do in my heart. He is our daily bread, our bread of life to which we pray to receive.
"Forgive us our debts (or transgressions) as we also have forgiven our debtors (transgressors)"
This speaks about forgiveness among our neighbors, friends, family and loved ones. If we can't forgive others, how can we expect our heavenly Father to forgive us? Because of God's goodness to us, we owe Him perfect obedience, and so, our sins are appropriately called "debts" here. To ask God for forgiveness of sins is an always needful, though often forgotten (especially in public prayer) petition. We are constantly falling into debt to God by our frequent sinning. God, in His great mercy, has provided us a way through confession of sins to be assured that our sins are forgiven. He promised: "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (I John 1:9). Spurgeon rightly notes: "No prayer of mortal men could be complete without confession of sin." We need to establish a continual habit of confession of sin to God.
In order to avoid hypocrisy, Jesus reminds us that, if we are to expect forgive for our sins from God, we must also forgive others for their sins against us. "Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." One who does not forgive others does not really understand full import of the great gift of God's forgiveness. Jesus clearly illustrates this in the parable found in Matt. 18:22-35. Jesus clearly considered this important, because, after He finished this model prayer, He returned to this specific point. He clearly stated: "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins" (vs. 14-15). "To ask God for what we ourselves refuse to give to other men, is to insult to God ... It seems so fitting that our right to ask and expect daily forgiveness of our daily shortcomings, and our final pardon and acceptance into the kingdom, be dependent upon our forgiving disposition towards our fellows man."
"Lead us not into temptation"
The final petition is: "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one" (vs. 13). James states: "When tempted, no one should say, `God is tempting me.' For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed" (James 1:13-14). So, whatever the situation, our temptation to sin comes from our own evil desires. "The evil one", known also as Satan, does what he can to prod our evil desires to lead us into sin. God does test us, but not with a view that we would fall. Rather, God tests us so that we would be strengthened by the success of passing His tests. Growing Christians can understand that circumstances are a means of exposing to us to our true character at any stage of our spiritual growth. The circumstances are not the cause of temptations.
So, in the petition here, "lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one", we are asking that God would order circumstances so that we would not be put into situations in which our own weaknesses would cause us to fall. And if we are to undergo testing (as we certainly will in this life), we are asking that the testings serve to strengthen us and make us grow up in spiritual maturity. In the Bible, we have an example of the importance of this petition. In Gethsemane, Jesus told Peter, John and James to "watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation" (Matt. 26:51). Instead of praying as Jesus exhorted them, they fell asleep. Later, Peter was led into temptation, and failed miserably by denying His Lord three times (see Matt. 26:69-75).
It is also important to remember that we are unable to resist temptation without God's grace. We are called to trust the Lord (not ourselves) for strength to resist temptation before it becomes sin. It is not the temptation itself that leads us to sin, but the lack of resistance and trust in the Lord for deliverance. We need to ask our heavenly Father to help us recognize every evil thing, every temptation before us. We need help to stay focused on our Father and see the evil that we might fall into, for what it really is, a trap set by Satan to bring us down to his level.
"But deliver us from the evil one"
Webster defines deliver as "to set free or liberate; to release or save." Therefore, "deliver us from evil" means quit simply that we are asking the Lord to be freed or saved from evil.
Evil is anything that tempts us to do something which is against God's will. It is anything that damper our relationship with God or would sadden or displease God such as if we were to follow our own desires instead of His will. Some translations say, "deliver me from temptation to do evil" or "deliver us from the evil one."
"When tempted, no one should say, 'God is tempting me.' For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed" (James 1:13-14).
Deliver us from evil simply means, "God, help me because I can't do this on my own. I am weak and vulnerable to temptation. Please, Father, put a hedge of protection around me and keep me safe from the evil one's influence. Father, keep Satan in his place and don't allow him to attack me and bombard me with things that draw me too close to the edge and allow me to fall. Father, keep me strong and focused on you!"
In this life, we will never be free from the presence of evil. Until we arrive in Heaven, we will be tainted by sin and evil. Until God creates the New Heavens and New Earth, this world will be filled with evil. Praying "deliver us from evil" is a plea for protection from evil and victory over sin - not a request to be rescued from the very presence of evil. That will have to wait until Heaven (1 Corinthians 15:55-56).
Help us, Oh Father, to steer clear of that liar and deceiver. Let us see clearly the path that you want each of us to walk. By the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells within us, may we never stray from your will and way...
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Starts with His position and ends with Him and His position in our lives. Your kingdom, Your power and Your Glory.
I relinquish the kingdom
Lord, I relinquish my kingdom to your lordship it is now your kingdom. I will stop trying to run it. I will stop being lord of my own life and Yours is the kingdom of my heart. Lord you will possess the strong hold of my heart. You will establish your reign in my heart even in the midst of rebellion you now possess the kingdom you may rule my life from the inside out.
I relinquish the power,
Father, from this day forward it will be by your power, by your efforts and by your will that all things happen. It is the freeing of the soul to no longer strive to accomplish the impossible and to enlist the efforts of the God who can. It is to remember that all things are possible with the Lord and were God calls he will provide every necessity needed to accomplish His good will.
I relinquish the glory-
Honor, praise, renown, - all are words synonymous with glory. As a manifestation of the work of His hands, all creation brings glory to God. Psalm 19:1 says, "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." God's very work praises Him and brings Him glory. "Glorious and majestic are his deeds, and his righteousness endures forever (Psalm 111:3,)." Lord, "Who among the gods is like you, O LORD? Who is like you - majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders? (Exodus 15:11) " No one can accomplish what God can. He is beyond our comprehension. Father we relinquish the glory
Father its all yours. Father I’m Yours for evermore. Amen!
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