SUPPLICATION

Posted by

0

CHRISTIAN

[Because we are Christians and live in the world we will always need prayer for our walk and for witnessing to others about CHRIST. Here’s an opportunity to pray for others or even ourselves. Fill their name or your name in the blanks.]

SEPARATING THE SHEEP FROM THE GOATS

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-1-23-56-pm

…FATHER, hold ____ back from ever saying to an unbeliever, “GOD loves you.” A. W. Pink (ref#152, p160). Allow (him/her) a lesson from the words of Your Son. CHRIST spoke in such a way that His followers were drawn to Him but unbelievers were repelled. Nothing in His words or actions caused an unbeliever to feel secure in his sins—nothing to “cauterize his conscience” A.W. Pink (ref#152, p160). Entreat ____ to not speak in such a way that (he/she) inoculates the unsaved with encouraging words that do not save.

CHRIST came to “cleanse His threshing floor” (Matt 3:12)—gathering the grain and burning the chaff. Place in ____’s mouth truthful words that will cause (his/her) listeners to be for or against CHRIST.

“’Always preach,’ said Luther, ‘in a way that if the people do not come to hate their sin, they will instead hate you’” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#159, p43).

Urge ____ to use words that will trigger rejoicing or disgruntlement. The truth will always cause CHRIST-rejecters to find something that they disapprove of hindering them from acknowledging CHRIST’s authority (Matt 15:12).

Give ____ a burden to show the unregenerated their need for CHRIST. Provide the words to tell them of their absolute ruin and lost condition—“their imminent and awful danger of suffering the wrath to come, the fearful guilt resting upon them in the sight of God” Thayer’s Greek Lexicon (ref#150, p161).

“That which sinners need to have brought before them is, the ineffable holiness, the exacting righteousness, the inflexible justice and the terrible wrath of God” A.W. Pink (ref#152, p160).

THANKSGIVING

Posted by

0

THE SPIRIT’S WORK

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-1-07-40-pm“That [Spirit] is the guarantee of our inheritance [the firstfruits, the pledge and foretaste, the down payment on our heritage], in anticipation of its full redemption and our acquiring [complete] possession of it…” (Eph 1:14 AMP).

“The work of the cross creates a position and achieves a salvation by which sinners can be saved; the task of the Holy Spirit is to reveal to sinners what the cross has created and achieved so that they may in fact receive it and be saved” Watchman Nee (ref#101, p11).

FATHER, I thank You for providing the condition that led me to believe in CHRIST so that I am now “…stamped with the seal of the long-promised Holy Spirit” (Eph 1:13 AMP). This was just Your laying the groundwork for Your indwelling in me (ref#101, p13).

I thank You, SPIRIT, for energizing my personal spirit so that CHRIST is formed in me (Gal 4:19). You give me “the essential nature of God” and the “quickening life of the Son of God” Oswald Chambers (ref#83, p89). Praise to You for I am “lifted to the domain where Jesus lives” Oswald Chambers (ref#83, p89). You SPIRIT, reorient my affections and renew my will. You transform me so profoundly that I no longer live, but CHRIST lives in me (Gal 2:20).

CONFESSION

Posted by

0

DAILY RENDERING FLESH INEFFECTIVE BY FAITH

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-12-59-48-pm“Give me to view a discovered sinfulness, to know that though my sins are crucified they are never wholly mortified. Hatred, malice, ill-will, vain-glory that hungers for and hunts after man’s approval and applause, all are crucified, forgiven, but they rise again in my sinful heart” The Valley of Vision (ref#76, p71)

FATHER, sensitize me of the truth about myself so that I might, by faith, deal with myself correctly. The consequence of the fall is that I am wicked, corrupt, and fleshly. I have indwelling sin, which is the infection of my nature (ref#15, [Rom 6:6]). Correctly I am as truly slain as CHRIST was crucified in order that I am as truly raised from a death of sin to a life of righteousness as the body of CHRIST was raised from the grave (ref#15, [Rom 6:6]).

As much as this is true, remind me, LORD that this “destroyed” flesh still resides in me (ref#33, p103).

“The flesh with its fleshly nature abides perpetually in the believer. Whenever opportunity is provided for its operation, it at once will spring into action” Watchman Nee (ref#33, p103).

Flesh is forever flesh even though CHRIST delivered me from it. The moment I cease believing that in faith and fail to let the HOLY SPIRIT lead me, I do not walk by the SPIRIT as Romans 8 talks about. As soon as I make a decision without consulting the SPIRIT I am immediately engulfed in the experience of Romans 7 (ref#33, p102) and not able to triumph. Only by constantly appropriating the cross will I be liberated from the power of the flesh (ref#33, p101).

If I am to be freed from the oppression of the flesh, I must ‘put to death the wicked deeds of the body and walk according to the Holy Spirit” (ref#33, p102). FATHER, provide the faith I need to believe CHRIST’s deathblow to my flesh for I desire to take on the responsibly to give my flesh no further attention.

“…loved one…be constantly holding yourselves back from the passionate cravings which are fleshly by nature [fleshly in that they come from the totally depraved nature], cravings of such a nature that, like an army carrying on a military campaign, they are waging war, hurling themselves down upon your soul” (ref#37, p552, [1 Peter 2:11]).

ADORATION

Posted by

0

THE POWER OF THE BLOOD

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-12-54-58-pm…FATHER, by His blood, CHRIST ransomed people for You from every nation on earth (Rev 5:9). The precious blood of JESUS has ransomed me from the futile ways inherited from my forefathers (1 Pet 1:18-19). And He purified me by His blood in His suffering (Heb 13:12).

I was once far off but now brought near by the blood of JESUS (Eph 2:13). The precious blood of JESUS frees me to confidently enter the Holy of Holies (Heb 10:19) of Your presence and live there all the day (ref#97, p92).

By the power of His blood there is peace between You and me (Col 1:20). By the power of His blood, I have fellowship with You (1 John 1:7). CHRIST’s blood is true drink and if I abide in Him He abides in me (John 6:55-56).

FATHER, I have been justified by His blood and saved from Your wrath (Rom 5:9). By its power I have eternal life and CHRIST will raise me up on the last day (John 6:54). By the blood CHRIST shed, satan is overcome (Rev 12:11).

FATHER, This blood of JESUS cleanses me from all sin (1 John 1:7).   In Him I have redemption and forgiveness of my trespasses through His blood (Eph 1:7). His blood sets me free from the tyranny of an evil conscience (ref#97, p92). His blood purifies my conscience from dead works and lifeless observances to serve You (Heb 9:14). FATHER, I desire to wash my robe and made it white in the blood of the Lamb (Rev 7:14).

VALLEYS TO MOUNTAINTOPS

Posted by

0

SITTING WITH CHRIST

7/23/2016

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-12-52-18-pmWhile researching “the Sabbath,” I came upon a writer who, after presenting many facts, began to wax eloquently about spending time with CHRIST. It was as if his heart took over his pen.

I’ve heard the phrase, “swimming in the ocean of GOD’s love” as a description for fellowship with GOD, but since I’m afraid of water, it’s not a word-picture that calms my soul.

I am always searching for word-pictures to help my mind grasp a concept and William Law’s words have done that for me. This is the quote that carried me back to a serene scene in my past:

“Heaven is one ocean of repose. No billow heaves. No storm affrights. No foe can enter. No change can cloud the calm expanse of the unruffled sky. But what is heaven, but to see Christ, as He is—to gaze forever on His unveiled beauty—to sit with Him—…Heaven is heaven, because it is an eternal Sabbath by the side of Jesus” Henry Law (ref#214).

How often I have attempted to find a simile that describes a get together with CHRIST—some thought of a scene that would place me in His presence. This quote has reminded me of one and it is one that is real; it comes out of my past.

It was the summer I signed up for a graduate class from a university far away from my residence. It required rising at 4:30AM but I felt it doable until I was thrust into an interim position as a YWCA camp director that required evening meetings with camp counselors until as late at midnight.

Our cabins sat high on a bluff above Lake Eire. And I knew the responsibility of camp director plus the lack of sleep was wearing me out when the white noise of the waves interrupted my sleep.

When the camp’s swimming classes for the day ended and I had a moment free I would walk down the makeshift stairs to the water’s edge. It was the only place I knew that offered solitude. The most exhilarating time there came when the lake was calm. How no noise soothed my fragmented, frazzled mind.

“Heaven if one ocean of repose. No billow heaves” Henry Law (ref#214). This is my word-picture safe-place! This is the vision I will bring to my mind when I sit with CHRIST. For me sitting in the arms of CHRIST overlooking an endless calm sea conjures up a snippet of my eternal Sabbath.

SABBATH

Posted by

0

CONCLUSIONS

“Man imitates the pattern of God’s work and rest in the sabbath cycle of days (Ex. 20:8-11) and years (Leviticus 25). The sabbath points forward to the rest that Christ achieved with his resurrection and ascension (Heb. 10:12-13), and which will be fully manifested in the consummation (Rev. 22:4-5)” ESV Study Bible (ref#125, p2635, “History of Salvation in the Old Testament: Preparing the Way for Christ” [Gen. 2:3]).

“So instead of wasting time on that endless quest for life, you have been invited to enter God’s rest for the rest of your life. Rest in your identity as his child. Rest in his eternal love. Rest in his powerful grace. Rest in his constant presence and faithful provision. Rest in his patience and forgiveness. Rest” Paul David Tripp (ref#190, Dec. 8th).

“…the Sabbath is a way of remembering and expressing the truth that God is our creator and deliverer and sanctifier….our work neither creates, nor saves, nor sanctifies….All things are from him and through him and to him. Lest we ever forget this and begin to take our strength and thought and work too seriously, we should keep one day in seven to cease from our labors and focus on God as the source of all blessing” John Piper (ref#169).

“If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land…” (Isa 58:13-14 NIV).

“Is it going too far to say, that if our nation repented of its sin in this matter and returned to the old path of Sabbath observance, we would again become the leading nation of the world? In the light of this promise of Isaiah, I believe that great blessing would follow, blessing far beyond our expectations. But though the nation does not return, let us as individuals, and as a church, put this promise to the test and we shall find the Lord faithful” C.E. Hunter (ref#171).

SUPPLICATION

Posted by

0

NON CHRISTIAN Resisters

[We all have friends and family that do not want anything to do with Christianity so it is up to us to pray for their salvation. Here’s an opportunity to pray for them. Fill their name in the blanks.]

THOMAS – SEEING IS BELIEVING

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-11-59-13-am…FATHER, ones who believe without seeing, JESUS called blessed. But, to Thomas the doubter, CHRIST showed His nail-pierced hands and then asked him to believe (John 20:27-29). This passage makes me conclude that You, FATHER, in Your great abandon love, will show Yourself to ____ who may not believe without seeing.

Let me muse on the heavenly Solomon and how willing He is to show Himself to His bride the church—to ones in His church and ones who have yet to come. “My sister, my spouse, He calls them” (Song 4:12). I pray ____ is a (brother-to-be/sister-to-be) to CHRIST; I pray CHRIST has watched ____ from (his/her) earliest infancy. I pray He understands (his/her) nature and that He knows just how (he/she) feels, and sympathies with (him/her) (Heb 4:15). I pray ____ become His spouse—His sweet companion—part of His own self (Gal 2:20).

FATHER, enlighten ____’s eyes, show (him/her) Your Son’s nail-pierced hands, as You did for Thomas. Give (him/her) a spirit of wisdom—insight into Your mysteries and secrets—an understanding into the deep and intimate knowledge of JESUS (Eph 1:18,17). May Your kindness lead (him/her) to repentance (Rom 2:4).

You, FATHER, have sent JESUS to proclaim liberty to the captives and to give freedom to the prisoner (Isa 61:1).   LORD, soon, please, reveal JESUS in a way ____ may come to a saving knowledge of Him. Oh, that (he/she) might see clearly the immeasurable and unlimited and surpassing greatness of You, LORD (Eph 1:19).

THANKSGIVING

Posted by

0

PATIENCE IN FULFILLING YOUR PROMISES

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-11-53-13-am“Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.  For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past, or like a watch in the night” (Ps 90:2,4 NRSV). “…with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day” (2 Peter 3:8 NRSV).

FATHER, I, who am stuck in a world of time, marvel at Your patience in bringing Your promises to fulfillment. I thank You, FATHER, for setting in ink Your activities, the things that You will not leave undone (Isa 42:16) so people down through history can read about those activities.

You call forth and guide the destinies of generations from the beginning. You are the first—existing before history began, and continue to be with the last. You are “I AM,” the ever-present, unchanging GOD (Isa 41:4).

You recorded, through Isaiah, prophecies 800 years before You fulfilled them. Your prediction, so long ago, of Your Son coming to set up His kingdom of righteousness, allows me to see how You obligate Yourself to watch over Your children. I feel Your love as I read Your Word.

“…I am God, and there is no one like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My purpose shall stand, and I will fulfill my intention,’ …I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have planned, and I will do it” (Isa 46:9-11 NRSV).

FATHER, I marvel at Your plans that You drop into a time-locked world so I, who live on this earth, may marvel at the revealing and then the summation of Your promises. Thank You for giving me what I need.

SUPPLICATION

Posted by

2

HOW GOD GUIDES

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-11-38-02-am“Many failures and much waste and confusion…are due to men’s coming to work, instead of being sent out to work” Watchman Nee (ref#101, p42).

FATHER, I know what my head says is from You because You have a quiet persistence about Your words of guidance. Keep me from considering pros and cons that bring about debating and doubt. This mental activity does not indicate Your presence (ref#7, March 28th).

“Doubt and reflection take the place of spontaneous obedience…Only the devil has an answer for our moral difficulties, and he says, ‘Keep on posing problems, and you will escape the necessity of obedience’” Dietrich Bonhoeffer (ref#10, p73).

FATHER, when You say it is better to obey than sacrifice, You are addressing my human nature in me. This self-serving, self-glorifying part of me wants to sacrifice itself by doing what it considers great and wonderful acts for You. This sacrificing is the “counterfeit of obedience” Oswald Chambers (ref#7, June 8th).

“Obedience is perfected not in doing something you want to do but in doing the last thing in the world you want to do” Michael Card (ref#137, p152).

ADORATION

Posted by

0

SWEET AND TOUGH LOVE

screen-shot-2016-10-21-at-11-33-05-amI give thanks to You, CARING FATHER, for Your steadfast love endures forever (1 Chron 16:34). Let Your love come to me, for You have promised (Ps 119:41).

FATHER, You loved me before I loved You, but not only that, You showered love on me before I was born—before I took any action toward You one way or another (Rom 9:11). You have saved me not because I have done any good toward You, but You saved me because You are simply infinitely good. And, Your kindness stays true even when I am foolish and disobedient (ref#35, p119). You do not alter Your love for me no matter what I have done, are doing, or will do.

LORD, sometimes You rebuke me, chasten me, hide Your face from me, and smite me. You even will fill me with a sense of Your indignation, yet Your love does not change. These demonstrations proceed from Your love as much as what I call kindnesses from You (ref#35, p121).

I ask, dear FATHER, that You keep me remembering how Your love disciplines me. Has not Your disciplinary events sobered me, put me back in my place, reminded me that above all else, I want a loving relationship with You? Please keep me from falling back into self-love. I need Your love, even the love that doesn’t feel like love, if I’m ever to actually experience Your lovingkindness being better than life (Ps 63:3).

“If you comfort me,

I will bless You;

if You would have me afflicted,

I will bless You just as much” Thomas a’Kempis (ref#147, p154).