Drawing Conversation Back to JESUS

“And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (I Cor 2:1-5 ESV).

FATHER, I pray for ____ as (he/she) has opportunity to speak of Christianity. Restrain (him/her) from thinking and speaking in a worldly manner. There is no spiritual strength using words that put pressure on the will of the listener or to make an effort to engage emotions (#123, p116). “Paul does not threaten or merely exhort, nor does he lift up some shining example to emulate” (ref# 123, p117). Prod ____ to make (his/her) message only be about “the limitless significance of Jesus Christ as the propitiation for our sins,…” (ref#7, Oct 15th).

FATHER, also keep ____ from toting a specific program of Christianity. This, too, is the world’s way to persuade, for it is easier to be part of a cause than to be an obedient CHRIST-follower. “It is easier to belong to a coterie which tells what Jesus Christ has done for me, easier to become a devotee to Divine healing, or to a special type of sanctification, or to the baptism of the Holy Ghost” (ref#7, Oct 15th).

Again, prod ____ to proclaim the Gospel, testifying “to the matchless worth of the person and work of Christ” (ref#152, p 167)—no sales pitch—no witnessing for CHRIST, but witnessing about CHRIST.

Who is Doing the Doing?

“Not all deeds done for God are His deeds. Doing for Him is not enough; the question is, who is doing the doing? God will not recognize any labor as His if it simply reflects the believer’s activity and is carried out in his strength” (ref#101, p44).

When the Apostle Paul says I am to work out my own salvation (Phil 2:12-13), he is not saying to me to get busy and convince You, FATHER, that I love You. If I have any thought of impressing You it signals my activities are birthed from ruling myself. Working out my salvation is not choosing Christian activities that I want to do.

FATHER, instead of permitting my perverse nature to work out my salvation, bequeath me that I may, with concentration and care work out the nature You have put in me when You changed my nature (ref#7, June 6th). I want You to dominate more and more of my life (ref#7, June 7th); I want to be more and more acquainted with Your good work, not my own good work—Your rule, not my rule.

“The moment we begin to feel satisfied that we are making some progress
along the road of sanctification, it is all the more necessary to repent and confess that all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags….God alone knows our good works, all we know is his good work. We can do no more than…carry on and rely on his grace,…and—sin” (ref#10, p297).

Going to the Cross

FATHER, what would happen if I willed myself to look into the face of JESUS on the cross? Could the SPIRIT reveal something in my heart that I’m unaware of and have been avoiding?

Can I let CHRIST’s self-forgetful love—His longsuffering and forbearance flow into my self-remembering heart? I see His wounded hands and feet—His face crowned with thorns (ref#97, p48)—“the bruised body, the dying cries” (ref#76, p41). I remember how He lived—what He did—what He didn’t do. This

cross scene is not something in the past; the Cross still stands! His precious blood still flows for my sin (ref#97, p29)! Do I comprehend the magnitude of that?

“…let us go…in all our rags and poverty and defilement of our natural condition. Let us clasp that cross and look into His eyes. Let us bathe in that fountain filled with blood. Then we will have our first love restored to us. Once again we will experience the simplicity of our faith and the tenderness of our hearts” (ref#34, March 30th PM).

“We should love God because He is God” (ref#103, p38).

Blessed Is GOD Forever

“Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth” (Ps 57:5 ESV)!
Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.
The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of uprightness;…” (Ps 45:6 ESV).

“In the greatness of Your majesty
you overthrow Your adversaries;
you send out your fury;
it consumes them like stubble” (Ex 15:7 ESV).

“’Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods?

Who is like you, majestic in holiness,

awesome in glorious deeds,
doing wonders” (Ex 15:11 ESV)?

“…’Blessed are you, O Lord,…forever and ever.

Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power

and the glory and the victory and the majesty,

for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours….” (1 Chron 29:10-11 ESV).

Scripture and the SPIRIT

FATHER, the words You have set in Your Bible are encased in human language but they are not limited to what the human mind can perceive (ref#79, p150). I recognize biblical writings as informative, intriguing, or entertaining but my mind can do nothing to connect me with the words—nothing to change the condition of my heart. Only by the SPIRIT does the words become personal.

“God’s language in his book is alive and full of power. Sharper than a two-edged sword, it cuts open the very thought life of people. It exposes and interprets what they think and feel” (ref#79, p150).

The SPIRIT’s witness to Scripture is not revealing new information but shedding light on what is already written. With the SPIRIT present to interpret the precious words for me my whole being is impressed upon. I am able to react to the words in the same way I sense taste and color (ref#56, p1677, “The Authentication of Scripture”). “As I saturate my life with the Word, I give the Spirit a vocabulary to personalize the Word to me” (ref#62, p246). Surely the inward work of the HOLY SPIRIT persuades and assures me that what I’m reading is written for me.

“We read the Scriptures in vain unless we come to them earnestly desiring a better knowledge of God’s will for us…” (ref#152, p173).

Prayer Facts:

“There is nothing secret about communion with God. If we live a holy life before God, broken of our pride and self-will, crying out for grace, then we will be in communion with God. It is really that simple” (ref#62, p247)

Reasons for Waiting for GOD:

Because You do not forsake those who seek You (Ps 9:10), I will wait for You.

Because You make a covering over those who take refuge in You and defend them (Ps 5:11), I will wait for You.
Because You will cause Your ear to hear the desires and the longing of the humble and oppressed, and will prepare and strengthen and direct their hearts (Ps 10:17), I will wait for You.

The FATHER and SON Is Revealed Through the SPIRIT

“By working beyond all our weaknesses, the Holy Spirit attests how great is the heavenly Father’s love for us. The privileges of prayer demonstrate that God treats us as his children, with love as great as he lavishes on his own Son (1 John 3:1)” (ref#66, p82).

FATHER, JESUS exercises His autonomy through the HOLY SPIRIT by daily bringing me to a willing bondage under His easy yoke where I find His commands not difficult to follow (ref#79, p73).

JESUS is gladly one with You, FATHER, and He desires I would enter in to the fellowship (John 17:21). I thank You for the SPIRIT, who endears me to You. He takes every opportunity to glorify JESUS so that I am able to “blaze and glow with devotion to Jesus Christ” (ref#7, July 2nd). The SPIRIT is the only Lover of the Lord JESUS and He transfers that love to me (ref#7, July 2nd).

“The one and only characteristic of the Holy Ghost in a man is a strong family likeness to Jesus Christ, and freedom from everything that is unlike Him” (ref#7, Feb 8th).

Praise You, FATHER, for commanding love from me. Praise You, SPIRIT, for enabling me to give that love to You, FATHER.

Embracing Self-made Religion in Ignorance

FATHER, “Let not those…who are amiable, moral, attractive, fall short of heaven at last;…” (ref#76, p113). Good is the enemy of the best. Sin can produce death through what is good (Rom 7:13).

I know ____, for like (him/her) I have, in times past, suppressed the truth as (he/she) is presently doing (Rom 1:18). I knew about You but choose to conduct my life the way I thought to be satisfying to You. And, in so doing worshipped and served me, the creature, rather than the Creator (Rom 1:25). And, in so doing did not honor You or give You thanks (Rom 1:21). It made sense to choose how to show my support, but yet my conscience caused suffering; I felt Your accountability for the wrongs I had done (ref#56, p1613 [Mankind’s Guilty Knowledge of God]).

I pray ____ not smother or quench (his/her) awareness of You. I pray You lead (him/her) to a broad place where (he/she) can see (his/her) ignorance—that is the ignorance of (his/her) own choosing of how to be a Christian.

FATHER, suppress (his/her) human wisdom and give (him/her) enough faith to long for, above all else, a relationship with You. Draw ____ right out of (himself/herself) and (his/her) thinking. Give (him/her) a peaceful conscience that (he/she) may know You have forgiven (him/her) and desire close fellowship with (him/her).

“Grant that the promising appearances of a tender conscience, soft heart, the alarms and delights of thy Word, be not finally blotted out, but bring forth judgment unto victory in all whom I love” (ref#76, p113).

Shattering a Person’s Hope of Salvation

FATHER, You have redeemed ____ and given (him/her) opportunities to speak to others the Gospel summary which is “‘The Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world’” (1 John 2:2) (ref#7, Oct 15th)! Help ____, FATHER, to first think and speak of CHRIST.

The hope of being accepted by You interests most everyone. Therefore there are diverse ways to convince one’s conscience that You will accept them. Below is a list of some false hopes that people put their trust in. Prompt ____ to use the mention of these hopes as a starting point to convey true scriptural hope:

“…going forward in a meeting, praying a suggested prayer, imitating the experience of others, joining a church, attending many Christian meetings, being baptized, studying the Bible regularly, helping others, feeling good in a religious service or having a strong conviction that they are right with God…” (ref#79, p80).

FATHER, I intercede for ____ that (he/she) be bold enough to speak against all ideas that are without scriptural grounds. Reasoning about situations like the above will do nothing.

Empower (him/her) to always guide the conversation to JESUS. Give (him/her) the incentive to give “a strong dose of teaching on justification by faith. Unmerited mercy softens cold hearts” (ref#79, p173). People must hear that nothing but comparing their life with the standards of JESUS and submitting to Him alone will please You (ref#7, May 6th).

The Divine Weapons of Warfare – The Breastplate of Righteousness

“I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you…” (Isa 42:6 ESV).

FATHER, motivate ____ to consciously put on the breastplate of righteousness. Empower (him/her) to review all the principles of righteousness, for it is the means You, LORD, keep (him/her).

(His/Her) righteousness comes ONLY through CHRIST’s blood shed on the cross; (his/her) righteousness comes ONLY through the regeneration of (his/her) heart where You, LORD, implant true holiness which is a life able to be regulated according to Your testimonies.

You have put Your life into ____’s soul. It is all Your doing, and in so doing engrain it into ____ that there is no one who can make (his/her) spiritual and eternal life insecure (ref#15, [Eph 6:14]).