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The Full Extent of Our Love

Philemon 1:1  Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker…

How do we express our love for our Lord?  Many today Love God because of what He gives, for the blessings that He brings to us.  But how many of us are willing to show the full extent of our love, no matter what the circumstances?

I bring our attention to Paul’s introduction in his letter to Philemon.  He began his letter by introducing himself as “Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus”.  This was literally true, for at the time that Paul wrote this letter to Philemon, together with his letter to the Colossians, he was in prison because of who he was – a Christian, an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.

But there are a number of commentaries that will claim that the term “prisoner” in English weakly translates what the word actually means.  The Greek word used here – “desmios”, literally means “a person bound in chains”.  It makes it more demeaning, doesn’t it?  Paul wasn’t just a prisoner – he was a person that was bound with chains.  These chains were heavy, painful, and literally symbolized the hardship and lack of freedom that a prisoner has.

So Paul, literally, was “bound in chains” for Jesus Christ.  That’s the utmost that Paul was willing to undergo for his Lord.  In fact it would eventually lead to his death.  Are we willing to express, to the utmost, the same love for our Lord as Paul did?

Paul describes the love of a Christian beautifully in this verse:

Ephesians 6:24  Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.

He was so filled with this love for God, and so convinced that it should be found in every Christian, that he also wrote:

1 Corinthians 16:22  If anyone does not love the Lord--a curse be on him. Come, O Lord !

He loved the Lord even to the point of disregarding his own life.

Acts 20:24  However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.

Oh, it’s so easy to proclaim, or to sing, that we love the Lord.  But up to what extent does our love for God bring us to?  We may not have present day martyrs in our society today, but does our love for God lead us to considering our life worth nothing, or the things or other people in this life worth nothing, compared to our love for God? 

Are we willing to be bound in chains for our Lord Jesus Christ?

Called to Wash Feet

No one wants to be a servant.  And yet this was one of the last teachings that the Lord left His disciples before His death on the cross.

John 13:1  It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.

In John 13 – 17 the apostle John shares with us the last 36 hours of our Lord before His death.  The last moments, beginning with what we know as the “last supper”, and ending in Gethsemane.  I would like to assume that to most people the final hours or days before their death are important.  Final things they want to do, amends they need to make, and last advice or instructions.  In this final moment of our Lord He gave His disciples one more lesson, one that He taught not just with words, but with action.

John 13:3-5  Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; 4  so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

All the apostles were probably surprised at what Jesus did.  He was sitting in the place usually reserved for the Master, and then He stands up and takes the place of a servant.  Our Lord did everything related to a servant – He dressed the part, and did what probably none of His disciples ever thought of doing to one another – He washed the disciples’ feet.

Washing feet was the role of a servant, not the master of the house.  And yet we see here our Lord taking the form of a servant.  This wasn’t new to Him.  From the start this was the heart of our Lord.  The moment our Lord was being formed in the womb of Mary He had already taken the form of a servant.  And it would extend all the way up to the cross.

Philippians 2:5-8  Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6  Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7  but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
8  And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross!

Why did Jesus do this? 

John 13:12-14  When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. "Do you understand what I have done for you?" he asked them.
13  "You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and rightly so, for that is what I am.
14  Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet.

The lesson was simple – Now that I have washed your feet, you should wash one another’s feet.  This is what the Lord wanted them to do for each other – to serve one another, to wash one another’s feet.  This was, and is, supposed to be what described the Church that He was going to build.  And it was going to start with His own disciples, and eventually passed on to each one of us today.  Our example is our Lord Himself.

It’s not easy being a servant.  We are born crying to be served, and we grow up with that same attitude hidden in our heart.  When Christ regenerates a heart, this is one of the first things that He works out in our life – that we be servants – servants of the Most High God, and servants of one another.

Have we been washing one another’s feet – or have we been busy making sure that our own feet are clean?  The world has taught us that we deserve to be served, to be pampered, to be recipients of good.  But our Lord teaches us to dress up for service, not expecting others to serve us, but for us to stoop down and wash the dirtiest of feet!  And if others don’t appreciate it, that’s fine, for we are not doing it for praise or acknowledgment, but because we are servants.

And this is not just in action, but in heart.  When our Lord was washing His disciples feet He was not playing a part.  He was showing them what it meant to love, what it meant to serve.

John 13:15-16 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.

Even those of us who claim to be serving the Lord need to check if we are truly being servants to one another.  We may be preaching, leading in worship, playing instruments all for ourselves rather than for the church.  Is our heart, our burden, all for the benefit of the church, or are we just serving for ourselves, for self-satisfaction?  Do we preach or teach just because we love doing it?  Do we sing, or play an instrument because we love doing it, or are we really serving the Lord and our brethren?

When we are corrected or given constructive criticism, are we offended, or do we take their advice and improve ourselves for their sake?  We are servants of the Lord, but we are also servants of the Church.  We are to wash one another’s feet.

John 13:17  Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

Are we ready to wash feet and be blessed?

Lightening the Burden of Work

Ecclesiastes 3:9-13  What does the worker gain from his toil?      10  I have seen the burden God has laid on men. 11  He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 12  I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. 13  That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil--this is the gift of God.

What does the worker gain from his toil?  Have you ever asked yourself this question?  Maybe while you were on your way home from work or your business, or after an exhausting and busy week.  And maybe after you notice that your take home pay is either just right or not enough to make ends meet.  What do we gain from all this toil?

Solomon was aware of the hard work, and also of the futility of all these toil that we do on earth.  He said in verse 10 that he saw the burden that God has laid on men.  The word used in the King James bible for burden is “travail”, which means “hard work”.

But Solomon also added:  vs11 He has made everything beautiful in its time.  Yes, God may have laid these burdens, these hard work in our lives, but eventually He will make all things beautiful in it’s time.  This reminds me of the old song we used to sing:  “In His time, in His time, He makes all things beautiful in His time”.  Here we see Solomon proclaiming to us the same thing.  Right now we may be burdened with hard work, but eventually we will see the blessing of the Lord – if our lives are truly in His hands.

We may be going through toil and hardship now, earning money through our blood, sweat and tears, but we need to have faith, that God will make all things beautiful in His time.  It’s all in God’s hand.

Romans 8:28  And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

But Solomon also reminds us of another important aspect in our life:

11 ...He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

He has set eternity in our hearts.  Deep in the heart of men we know eternity is there.  We may not understand or comprehend it, but it’s there.  We must be careful not to just work for today, but to set our hearts for eternity.  Our hope in Christ is not just to bless us today, but also to prepare us for the day when we will be seeing Him face to face.

People who sin, who do wrong at work, who do things illegally just to get a quick buck – they live only for today.  There are some Christians who compromise their faith, their righteousness, for the same reason – they live only for today.  But someone who live for eternity lives preparing Himself to stand face to face before God.

As we live for eternity, for our Lord, this serves as the foundation for our work.  Why be honest?  Why deal with others righteously?  Why do we give a fair price, or not compromise our faith?  We live for eternity. 

Jesus Himself said:

Matthew 6:19-21  "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Of course we work for money, for we need it to take care of our needs.  But as to how we earn that money, and how and where we spend it, is founded on our storing up treasures in heaven.  When we live for eternity as a foundation of our life everything we do is in preparation for the time we will stand before God face to face.

So what should we be working for?

Ecclesiastes 3:12-13  I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. 13  That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil--this is the gift of God.

Solomon said there is nothing better than:

1.  To be happy.  This sounds like a famous line of a politician – “gusto ko happy ka”.  But this is God telling us that He wants us to be happy.  But where does true happiness come from?  Material things?  Possessions?  Position? No.  True Happiness comes from God Himself.  It is our pursuit of God, our devotion to Him, our worship and fellowship with Him, that gives us true happiness.

2.  To do good.  There is nothing else that gives joy to a Christian than doing good.  If doing good is a burden for us, then we’re probably not Christian at all.  Doing good for us should not be an option, but a life that God wants us to be living – always.

3.  That everyone may eat and drink.  It should be as simple as that – that we are eating and drinking. It’s not really about what we are eating and drinking, but that God is providing for our every need, no matter how simple or extravagant it may be.

4.  That we may find satisfaction in all our toil.  Yes, we will still toil.  But it is God who will give us the satisfaction from our work.  There are many who live in the TGIF world (Thank God It’s Friday), when we should be thankful that we have work, and that it is God who has blessed us with the work.  And that our workplace becomes the venue where our trust and faith in God is expressed, and also seen by others.

Yes we may toil, and our work may be burdensome. But if we see God’s hand in our work we will be blessed.  When we know that He will make all things beautiful in His time, when we see that all happiness and satisfaction comes from Him, it lightens the burden and gives us joy and peace in our hearts.  That’s God’s hand in our work.

TWEAKING JEREMIAH 29:11

Jeremiah 29:11  For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

This is one of the most loved, often quoted and memorized by many Christians today, but also one that has been misunderstood and misapplied by some.  For some reason, when some believers read this verse, they “claim” it to mean that God will meet the desires that they have in their hearts.  And so, when God does not work according to their plans they end up frustrated, unwillingly accepting what God has prepared for them, or even turn away from God.

We need to read the promise carefully.  The Lord did not declare that He knows the plans that we have for ourselves.  It says that God knows the plans that HE HAS FOR US!  And this should make our hearts jump for joy!  Why?

First, God actually has plans for His children.  Yes.  He doesn’t work in our life by chance. He doesn’t move in our life according to the moment.  He doesn’t just work in our lives according to our prayer.  Our holy, righteous, sovereign and loving God actually has plans for us.

Psalm 139:15  My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, 16  your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

He is the author of our life.  He has already made plans for us.  They’re already written in a book.  We just have to trust.  This is why we don’t believe in luck, or in fate.  We believe in a God who knows what His plans are for us.  And they are plans, as He Himself said, “to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”.

This is where faith comes in.  Because this promise doesn’t mean that it will be all good.  There will be some storms, some bumps on the road, sharp curves even.  But because our lives are in His hands, we trust that they will all work out for good (Romans 8:28).

Jer 29:11  For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
12  Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13  You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

It’s when we take that step of faith, knowing that He knows the plans He has for us, that we begin to express the fruit of that faith through prayer, seeking Him with all our hearts, and listening to Him.

Prayer is not just meant to get what we want, but it’s to get what God wants for us.  Faith is not about moving God to do what we want. Faith seeks God with all our heart.  Faith listens to what God has to say about our life.

His plans may not coincide with our own plans.  They might even be the complete opposite!  The point is, are we willing to put our faith in the plans that our Sovereign and Loving King has already made for us?  Or we will still insist on what we want, what we believe is good, for ourselves?

Jeremiah 29:11.  Amen.

THE HIDDEN IDOL – OUR SELF

1 John 5:21  Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.

The apostle John ends his first epistle with a simple warning – dear children, keep yourselves from idols.  The NASB translates it “guard yourselves from idols”.  The early New Testament church was surrounded by idolatry in many forms.  Indeed, many of them were converts from the worship of idols.  The apostle Paul, when he wrote to the church in Thessalonica, commended the Christians there and said:

1 Thessalonians 1:9  for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,

Idolatry has been man’s folly since time in memorial.  It’s human nature actually.  It is hard to worship a God that we cannot see, without form.  And so we make up forms of God, and in return begin to worship a false God.  God warned the Israelites not to make any idol of Him, for they did not see any form of God at all:

Deuteronomy 4:15-18 NIV84 15 You saw no form of any kind the day the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the fire. Therefore watch yourselves very carefully, 16 so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol, an image of any shape, whether formed like a man or a woman, 17 or like any animal on earth or any bird that flies in the air, 18 or like any creature that moves along the ground or any fish in the waters below.

Even the Israelites had the tendency to make an idol to represent Jehovah their God, a practice being done today in Christianity.  Though the Son of God did become man, when He rose again from the dead and ascended into heaven He ceased to have His human form, and is now the God without any human form.  We should not misrepresent God by thinking that up to now He still is in human form.

There are, of course, the idols of other gods.  It is interesting how almost all religions have idols of their God to worship.  As I mentioned earlier it is the folly of man to replace God with a form.  Look what Paul says:

Romans 1:21-23  For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.
22  Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools
23  and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

And so, throughout the world, we have gods in human form, animal form, in the form of heavenly bodies, etc.

But the more dangerous idols, that many Christians are guilty of, are those that we cannot see, those that are not connected to any religion.  They are the “gods” in our hearts that take the place of the Lord.  There are two passages of Scripture that warn us of this kind of idolatry:

Colossians 3:5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.

Greed is idolatry.  Material things, money, and whatever else our greed focuses on, are idols of our hearts.  They take the place of God.  When material things, money and others become the source of joy, peace, security and identity of a Christian, then these have become our idols, and we are guilty of idolatry.  We have set them up in the throne of our hearts, and without realizing it we begin to worship them.  When this happens we usually focus on what God gives, rather than on God Himself.  God becomes a means to an end, an instrument we use to worship the real gods in us. No wonder our Lord taught us this:

Matthew 6:24 "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

But there is another idol that many of us don’t realize we still keep and worship in our hearts.

1Samuel 15:23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD , he has rejected you as king."

The NASB bible translates it – “For rebellion is as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry.”

Divination is seeking guidance from another spiritual source, and not from God.  When a person is rebellious, against God or man, it is as if he is seeking guidance from another source – our self.  Instead of seeking wisdom from God and following His ways, we follow our own ways.  This is why rebellion is like the sin of divination.

Why is arrogance, or insubordination, like idolatry?  Because when a person is arrogant, when he is insubordinate, he sets himself above others, above God even.  That’s why it is idolatry – it’s a worship of self.  Submission is an attitude that God expects, that God works, in the heart of every believer.  When we are arrogant or insubordinate, we go against what God is working in our hearts.  We don’t realize we have set up an idol in our hearts that we worship – our SELF.

Our SELF.  Many Christians don’t realize that the throne we have set up for our self needs to be destroyed, and the throne of God must stand uncontested.  And yet how many of us rebel against God when we commit sin, or live without submission to authority, or to the teachings of our Lord?  When we willingly do not follow the ways of God, we are arrogant and rebellious.  Is this the state of heart that is worthy of our holy and righteous God?

When we are rebellious and unsubmissive to human authority, or authority in the church, this is also idolatry, for we have set our self higher than others, and even higher than our Lord.  Submission and humility are attitudes of heart that God purposely works in us.  To go against His working is both disobedience and idolatry.

No wonder dying to our self is a pre-requisite for being a disciple of Christ.  No wonder He asks us to carry our cross daily, and hate even our own lives, to follow Him.  No wonder our Lord stood as our ultimate example of humility, that we too, by His grace, may walk in humility before Him and with other men.

Dear children, guard yourselves from idols.  We are to guard ourselves from greed.  We are to guard ourselves from our self.  All by His grace.

BREAKING OUR SELF-RELIANCE

2 Corinthians 1:8-9  We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life.
9  Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.

When you read a passage like this it is good to know that even someone as “great” and accomplished as the apostle Paul also went through hard times.  Sometimes while going through trials and tribulations in life we wonder if God is still with us, or if there was something wrong with us, if we lacked faith or some other reason that caused the problem to come.  But Paul’s explanation was simple – “…this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead”.

Self reliance is one of the major workings of God in our hearts, if not THE major thing He wants worked out of our hearts.  God doesn’t want us trusting in our strength, our wisdom, our understanding.  He wants us relying totally, 100%, on Him.  This is why we struggle, because we naturally lean on ourselves, on our education, what we have learned through life and experience.  But if God is not the One we totally depend on, then He is not God…He is not our God.

In another passage in 2 Corinthians Paul said:

2 Corinthians 4:7  But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

God purposely shows us, through our circumstances, that our bodies, our lives, are “jars of clay” – breakable, fragile, things we cannot fully depend on – that we may realize that the power sustaining us through life does not come from us, but from God.

God wants us depending, trusting, and holding on to Him and Him alone.  Not to words, not to teachings, not to principles, but holding on to Him, His presence in our lives.

Psalm 3:3  But you are a shield around me, O LORD; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.

God does not give us a shield to hold on to…He Himself is our shield.  In the midst of hardship and trouble it is nice to know that He Himself is there with us, and that He will never leave us or forsake us.  He Himself is our shield.

Whatever we are going through, through the tears and cries of our hearts, may we seek Him, and lay all our trust and hope in Him.

Explaining Life…Explaining God

Luke 24:13-18 NIV84  Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem.  14  They were talking with each other about everything that had happened.  15  As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them;  16  but they were kept from recognizing him.  17  He asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk along?"  18  They stood still, their faces downcast. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, "Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?"

Have you ever tried explaining life?  You can’t.  It’s unexplainable.  Sure there are some circumstances that are nice, enjoyable and beneficial – that we can explain.  But when things go wrong, against our will, and are hurtful, we try to understand them but we can’t.

It is equally hard to explain God through our circumstances.  If we just base our understanding of God through what we experience, I don’t think any of us can claim to know or understand Him.  Sure, it’s easy to say “God is good, all the time…and all the time God is good” when things are going well.  But the moment trials and hardship come, do we have the same view of our Lord?

This is what happened with the two disciples walking on the road to Emmaus, a few days after the Lord had died, and reports of Him rising from the dead were being spread.  Jesus comes alongside them, unrecognizable, and asks “what are you discussing together?”

Jesus’ death was the talk of the town.  And these two disciples were wondering why this man did not even have a hint of what they were discussing.

Luke 24:18 NIV84  They stood still, their faces downcast. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, "Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?"

When Jesus asked them “what things?”, they started to share with him what had happened.

Luke 24:20-21 NIV84  "About Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him;  21  but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.

Do you sense how their bubble burst through the circumstances?  Te two disciples were trying to explain everything that had happened.  He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed!  But they crucified Him, and we had hoped he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.  We had hoped.  Their hopes were crushed, because of what they had seen – He was crucified and died.  Then they heard news that they were confused about:

Luke 24:22-24 NIV84  In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning  23  but didn't find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive.  24  Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see."

They were hopeless and confused because of the events that they had witnessed, that they had seen, concerning our Lord Jesus.  And why not?  Who would not be hopeless, seeing a person you thought was going to redeem Israel nailed to the cross and die?  Who would not be confused if someone said that He had risen from the dead?  These two disciples, and probably the rest of them, just could not explain, could not understand, what was happening.

This is what happens when we try to explain life through our circumstances.  When things are going right, we are filled with hope, because things are falling our way, and we hope and pray that they continue to do so.  But the moment circumstances go wrong, and bad things happen, it is so hard to understand and complain.  Our bubble is burst, and we become hopeless.  We try to explain our way out, and we just can’t.

Many walk with God like that.  Which is why there are some who end up walking away from Him, blaming Him for all the bad circumstances.  Others continue in their trek of faith, but sadly they base their knowledge of God on their experiences and circumstances, which eventually leaves us confused.

When there are blessings, promotions, abundance and prosperity we thank God and praise Him for them.  But when sickness, pain and hardship come our way we almost always ask “why?”.

Take a look at how our Lord explained all that was happening to these two disciples:

Luke 24:25-27 NIV84  He said to them, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!  26  Did not the Christ[2] have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?"  27  And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.

When the Lord began to explain to them all that had happened He did not bring them back to the circumstances that lead to His death.  He brought them to His Word.  Beginning with Moses and the Prophets… in our present Bible that’s Genesis to Malachi, the whole Old Testament.  Let’s start from the very beginning (as the classic Sound of Music song goes), Jesus said, and let me explain to you about Me.  Our Lord used every book of the Old Testament, even the books that we don’t even give a moment’s time to read, and explained to them concerning Himself.

We cannot explain God through circumstances in this world.  That just won’t work.  The only way to know and explain God is through His Word.  What does His Word reveal about Him?  Our circumstances and experiences change, some for the better and some for the worse – but this does not change who God is.  And where do we get this understanding of who God is?  From His Word.

It’s easy to explain who God is when things are going right.  But when things go wrong, how do we explain God?  His Word, His revelation of who He is and what His plans are, are what He uses to explain to us who He is.  Are you blessed?  God is good.  Are you sick, dying, or losing money?  God is good.  It doesn’t change who He is.  His Word tells us that.

So don’t let circumstances tell you who God is.  Don’t use circumstances to try to explain to yourself, and to others, who God is.  Let God tell you what those circumstances mean in your life.  And it shouldn’t be circumstances that dictate your life, but God Himself.

Proverbs 3:5 NIV84  Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding…

Whose Prayer will God Answer?

Joshua 5:13-14 NIV84  Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, "Are you for us or for our enemies?"  14  "Neither," he replied, "but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come." Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, "What message does my Lord [4] have for his servant?"

It’s a historical day today for our nation, because today, for the first time, a Supreme Court Chief Justice will be on trial.  As I was watching the news, the Chief Justice began his day with a speech, and held Mass obviously for God to hear his prayer that he would win.  And undoubtedly, though not seen on television (at least I did not see it), the prosecution panel most probably offered prayers, maybe also a Mass, so that they would win.  And not just them, but many in both sides will be praying, offering Masses, pleading with God that the person they are siding with will win.  It makes you wonder – whose prayer will God answer?  Whose prayer, or sacrifice, will be more influential to God for Him to side with them.

It’s like two people praying to God for two different basketball teams in a game.  For example, someone in the La Salle side will be praying for his team to win, and another in the Ateneo side will be praying for his team to win.  Who does God side with?  Whose prayer will eventually have the strongest influence towards God?

This is what many believe prayer is.  It’s about making the right sacrifice, reciting the right prayer, or praying hard enough so that God may eventually work according to His favor.  Sadly, the picture they are painting of God is a God who can be bribed, or influenced by the number of sacrifices given to Him, so that He will side with the person more influential.  Is this the picture of God, or of prayer, that the Bible gives us concerning our Lord?

In our passage above, Joshua was leader of the Israelites, the people of God.  You would think that automatically God would side with His people as they marched to fight against the people of Jericho.  But when Joshua asked "Are you for us or for our enemies?", what was the answer of the angel:

NEITHER, he replied.  He was commander of the army of the Lord.  He was not in the side of the Israelites, nor was he in the side of the gentiles.  He was commander of the army of the Lord.  In other words, he was for the Lord.  What a reminder this must have been for Joshua!  He probably assumed that God would be on his side.  It was Joshua who had to be on God’s side for him to win the battle.

What an important truth to understand.  God does not take sides.  God does not play favorites, or practice favoritism.  God’s will is not biased or influenced by prayers or sacrifices.  God’s plan and God’s will is for His glory, honor and praise.

Isaiah 46:9-10  Remember the former things, those of long ago;
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.
10  I make known the end from the beginning,
from ancient times, what is still to come.
I say: My purpose will stand,
and I will do all that I please.

So what is prayer for?  Surely it is not for God to take sides, or to side with us.  What many don’t realize is that prayer is not just about asking.  And surely it is not just about asking God to give us what we want.

Prayer is about worship.  “Our Father in heaven, holy be Your name…”

Prayer is about living in His kingdom, not the earthly kingdom we live in or our own kingdom.  “Your kingdom come…”.

Prayer is not about our will, but His.  “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”.  Notice that we’re not asking God to just decide at that moment how He will answer our prayer.  In heaven, where He reigns, His will is already existent.  Prayer moves us to bow down and seek His will.

Father in heaven, holy be your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  The first part of the prayer the Lord taught us.  Notice it’s all “godward”, or leading towards God and not to ourselves.  This is what prayer is primarily for – not for us to get what we want, but for us to get more of who God is.  In fact, when it comes to asking in the Lord’s prayer all we are to ask for is our “daily bread”.  No butter, no fillings…just daily bread.

This is why prayer is more than just asking God to give us what we desire, or to get what we want.  Prayer is a lifestyle.  Prayer is a communion.  It’s an intimate moment with the Lord so that we could have more of Him.

Sadly many have shrunk prayer to be just a way of getting what we want, and God reduced to being a supernatural being who can be bribed and coerced to side with us and do according to what we ask.

A Christian prays because he seeks his Lord, desires to worship Him, seeks His kingdom and His will.  This is why a Christian doesn’t just pray to ask.  He prays to be with his Lord.

Prayer is a Christian’s life.  He prays not to get what he wants, but for him to get more of God, so that the life of the Lord, and His will, will be clear, and be seen in our life.

Yes, God answers prayer.  But the prayer He answers is one that stems from worship, one that is in line with His kingdom life, and one that seeks His will.

And we are not just to pray when we need something.  We are to live prayer…we are to live a life of prayer, fellowshipping and communing with our Lord everyday.

The Desire To Delight

Psalm 37:4  Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

A Facebook friend of mine posted this verse in his wall, and I quickly “liked” it, along with many others.  Who doesn’t like that verse?  All of us have desires in our hearts, and there is nothing else that pumps up a Christian as a verse that promises us that God will grant us our desires.  Can you imagine, the very thing, person or achievement that we desire in our hearts will be granted by the Lord, as long as we delight in Him?  What a promise!

But here is where we tend to twist Scripture to make it say what we want, rather than actually reading what the Lord is actually saying.  The moment we read Psalm 37:4 our eyes focus on HE WILL GIVE YOU THE DESIRE OF YOUR HEART!  We don’t see the first part, the pre-requisite of the granting of our desire, which is – DELIGHT YOURSELF IN THE LORD.  What we don’t realize is that our true delight is in the Lord giving us our desires, rather than He being our delight.  This is why there are so many frustrated Christians, who run after other sources of receiving the desires of their heart.  They think that it is the Lord’s responsibility to be giving us what we want, what we desire.  And when He doesn’t give them, we run to other sources. 

The psalm reminds us that a Christians delight is in the Lord.  Period.  The WordWeb dictionary defines delight as “A feeling of extreme pleasure or satisfaction”.  To delight in the Lord is to have the Lord Himself as the source of pleasure and satisfaction.  No one else, nothing else, in the heart of a Christian, can take the place of the Lord as the source of joy, peace, satisfaction and pleasure in this world.  A Christian delights in prayer, in reading God’s Word, in serving Him in ministry, in fellowship with other Christians – because all these bring us to a closer fellowship with our God who we delight in.

The Lord reminds us that true pleasure and satisfaction does not come from love, from romance, from riches, material things, or pleasure.  True pleasure comes from enjoying the life that comes from the Lord Himself, a life that truly satisfies.  When a Christian delights in the Lord he/she realizes that there is no other desire that should rule his/her heart except God Himself.

The thing is this – if we are truly delighting in the Lord, we will most probably forget about every other desire that we have in our heart.  We are so delighted, so satisfied, so full of the Lord that our desires will not be as important as they usually are.

So why does God promise to give us our desires, just like in Psalm 37:4?  That’s just who He is – as our Father He gives us what He knows we will enjoy, what will bring us a little bit of gladness and enjoyment.

1 Timothy 6:17  Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

God wants us to enjoy, and provides us with everything for our enjoyment.  But He does not want what He provides for our enjoyment to be what we delight in.  What God desires is that we delight in Him, that He be the very source of our pleasure and enjoyment in this life.

When a Christian truly delights in the Lord, God knows that He can provide Him with anything in this world – finances, success, a spouse, a family – and yet still delight in the true source of pleasure and enjoyment…God.

So, go ahead, delight yourself in the Lord…and just delight yourself in Him.  Let God take care of bringing your desires to pass.  Sounds like a good New Year’s prayer, doesn’t it?