How to Develop Your Prayer Life

this message is by:

Donald Grey Barnhouse

How to Develop Your Prayer Life
I remember a poem in the Ladies Home Journal where a group of men argued around the cracker barrel about the best way to pray. Some said the best way to pray was standing up with eyes open to heaven. Others argued that it was best to pray with head bowed; others said prostrate, or kneeling, and so on. But then Jeff Brown, the well driller, spoke up. He told how he had been drilling a well over at the widow Jones' property, and it had caved in, and he had fallen down the shaft. And he said, "The prayinest prayer I ever made, I was standing on my head."
Now there is no doubt that God is not interested in the physical attitude of prayer. How did they pray in the Bible? I believe you can find nine different physical positions in the Bible. Jesus prayed with His eyes lifted to heaven; He prayed prostrate on the ground. Hezekiah prayed in bed with his face turned to the wall. But it doesn't make any difference in what horizontal, vertical, or oblong direction your carcass happens to be; if your soul is not down before God, you are not praying. Your body can be in any condition, but if your soul is bold, upright, defiant against God, you know nothing about prayer.
Prayer is the growth of a soul as we come in contact with God. As the soul grows, the prayer life deepens.
First of all, chronologically, a prayer is nothing more than petition. When you were first taught to pray as children, your prayers were primarily to ask God for things. "Bless Papa and Mama, and make me a good little boy." And then, "I pray the Lord my soul to keep."
Some time ago, a school teacher in New York taught the Lord's Prayer to her class, and they all learned it. Then one time she called up her pupils one by one and asked each one to repeat the Lord's Prayer. One of the boys said, "Harold be Thy name" instead of "Hallowed be Thy name." Another said, "Give us this day our jelly bread." Another said, "Lead us not into Penn Station." Another said, "Deliver us from eagles."
Now this is understandable because little children do not know these words. And I'm quite sure that God is able, if the heart is right, to give us this day our jelly bread. It is possible to say things that are theologically wrong, and yet if the heart is right toward God, He can sort out the difficulties.
But this is baby prayer. When you're asking for something, your praying is the lowest form of prayer. As your prayer life develops, it should go beyond this.
Now secondly, as a child develops a little, he's taught to say "thank you," and he's taught not only to say it to his parents, but he's taught to say to God, "Father, we thank Thee for this food."
The child then learns about Thanksgiving Day in school. It's associated with the image of a pumpkin with a cut-out face, or the picture of the Puritans hunting turkeys in the fields, or the Puritans bowing their heads in thanksgiving.
Third comes intercession. Intercession is where we stop asking for something just for ourselves and our little circle and begin to plead with God for blessings for others.
Many people have been taught that prayer is a cheap way to get anything. When they find themselves in desperate need they pray, and they do not get an answer. A boy prays, "Oh God, I want to pass that examination," or a girl prays, "Oh God, don't let me be the only girl who doesn't get asked by a boy to the basketball game." And if she happens to be the only one who doesn't get the invitation, she may say in despair, "Oh, I don't believe in prayer; it just doesn't work." As a result, her whole spiritual life may become a mess because she has not been taught the true nature of prayer. Prayer is not saying to a distant God, "Do this and that," but prayer is basically getting to know God.
Much of the difficulty of spiritually growing up is the shifting of gears that takes a child out of spiritual childhood into a spiritual maturity. When we are children, we live largely on our parents' faith. We say what they say; we have what they have, and we do what they do. But then comes the time when we have to shift gears, and we have to know God alone. For it is only when we know God that we begin to develop into the higher brackets, the higher attitudes of prayer.
The first three steps that I have spoken of — petition, thanksgiving, and intercession — can be entered into by almost anybody. In fact, even among the heathen there is this much knowledge about prayer.
When Mrs. Barnhouse and I were in Japan, we went to the great shrine of Ise, one of the most beautiful places in the world. And when we came to the inner sacred precincts we saw the specially robed priests. But what saddened us most of all was to see these people, with such agony and emptiness in their faces, bow in front of the shrine and then clap their hands as if to say, "God, wake up! Can't you hear us?"
Well, much of our prayer is like this, too. There must come a time in our spiritual development when, beyond recognizing that God is the One Who can give us what we want, we learn to pray for the purpose of knowing Him better. In fact, there is no real prayer until we get beyond petition and pray for the purpose of knowing the Lord.
So the fourth step in prayer is worship. Worship, of course, comes from the old English word for worth-ship — the recognition of the worth of God, to look upon Him in wonder and see Who He really is. That is worship. To say with the men of the Old Testament, "There is none like unto thee, thou alone art our God" — that is worship (see Psalms 86:8; Jeremiah 10:6-7). To recognize His sovereignty and His majesty, to long to know Him and to reach out to Him — that is worship. Jesus says in John 4:24-25, "The Father seeketh such to worship him." There is no true prayer unless we worship Him in spirit, in the Holy Spirit, and in truth, and that means we must come through Him Who is truth, the Lord Jesus Christ.
I remember hearing a hymn in England written by Frederick Faber that brings out this meaning.¹
My God, how wonderful Thou art, Thy majesty how bright!
How beautiful Thy mercy-seat, in depths of burning light!
Oh, how I fear Thee, living God, with deepest tenderest fears;
And worship Thee with trembling hope, and penitential tears.
Yet I may love Thee too, O Lord, Almighty as Thou art;
For Thou has stooped to ask of me the love of my poor heart.
No earthly father loves like Thee, no mother half so mild
Bears and forbears, as Thou hast done with me, Thy sinful child.
Father of Jesus, love's Reward! What rapture will it be,
Prostrate before Thy throne to lie, and gaze and gaze on Thee.
When Faber wrote that, I think he was spiritually coming to that place that a young man comes to when he's fallen in love with a girl. No matter where he is, in what company, he just sits and gazes at her. Well, there is a phase in the Christian life when we begin to get to know the Lord that way.
There are two things left in the development of a prayer life. There is judgment in prayer, prayer when you know God well enough and know His holiness well enough that you can ask Him to curse something that is evil. One must advance in the Christian experience by a very long step before he has come to the place where he is directed by the Holy Spirit to partake in imprecatory prayer. Now the Psalms hold many such prayers: "Let them be confounded and put to shame who seek after my soul; let them be turned back and brought to confusion who devise my hurt" (see Psalms 35:4; Psalms 40:14; Psalms 83:17). The more that you know of the holiness of God the more you can enter into this judgment and hatred of sin, and ask the Lord to confound those that are misleading the children of God.
As I know God better and as I come close to Him, there wells in my heart a great desire that that day will come when God Almighty will crush all of the things that would lead people into false doctrines, that would take them away from the simplicity that is in Jesus Christ. I believe that when you read of some great evil that has been done, you must take sides with God and say, "Oh, God, I'm not going to take the matter into my own hands. I don't want to destroy the man who has done evil. I pray for him, and I leave this in Your hands, but, Oh God, I do thank You that the day will come when You will send out the angels, and they will pluck out of Your kingdom the things that offend and all people that offend." Paul said to the Corinthians, regarding the fornicator among their membership, "Deliver such as one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus" (1 Corinthians 5:5).
And now the last and most delightful part of prayer is what I call conversation. Mrs. Barnhouse and I probably have as abnormal a life as anybody in America. One summer we traveled for three months of preaching engagements all across the country. For three months, Mrs. Barnhouse and I were together no more than 25 feet apart at any moment day and night. We were together at night and in the morning as we went down to the church. She sat there while I preached, and then we went back to the coffee shop and then back in a motel room where I sat at my typewriter. I realize that such a life is abnormal, humanly speaking, and yet, it may be applied spiritually. With God this is normal. We live in closer contact with Him than being cooped up together in a motel room. When Mrs. Barnhouse and I are both concentrating on something, I may begin to say something, and if she is busy, she will respond, "Wait a minute." When she's through with what she's doing, she then will ask, "What is it?" But with God things are quite different; He is never interrupted. God is always leaning toward us with both ears. He's always intent for us; He's ready to listen to us.
Now recently I was asked how much time a day I spent in prayer. So I began to analyze it. I would jot down on a memo pad the moments at the beginning of the day, the family worship, the times definitely spent in prayer. The times I pray for missions, for all the radio listeners, and for all the readers of my books and magazine. Then I realize that if you add up all of this time, it might not make too great a show in point of time spent in prayer. But yet to me the greatest amount of time spent with God is conversation.
Now this is the highest part of prayer, when you delight yourself in the Lord. You see, He's always with you. Your body is His temple; your whole life is His. Any time you say, "Lord," He's there. Even when you hear a good joke, you laugh, and say, "Thank you, Lord, for a good sense of humor." And all of these glories are joys.
When my sons were growing up, I first knew them as babies, and they knew me as their father who came and played with them. They got to know me better as they grew up, and there were times of struggles when their will was set against my will. This is the way I was in my growth with the Lord. As time went on and these boys grew into men and began to enter into maturity, a new relationship developed, so that I would rather sit down and talk with them on serious problems of theology, the Christian life, and the Bible than I would with even my closest friends. We have now come over the hump of all stresses and tensions that we knew when they were in their teens and have become the closest of friends.
This, you see, is the way we grow with God. God likes for us to come to Him and be chatty with Him, to talk over everything and look to Him and rejoice in Him. And when you begin to know God like this, you are going to discover that you are living a life of prayer that fulfills what the New Testament teaches: "Pray without ceasing."
When you come to the place where you can know the Lord in an intimacy that He creates, you begin to really know how to pray. Soon you discover that your heart is so yielded to His that you want nothing but what He wants. And you learn to delight yourself in the Lord; then He gives you the desires of your heart. And as you talk with Him, your purpose is to know Him better. Then you will realize the true purpose of prayer: not that you get something at a discount but that you might know Him.
How to Pray
Most Christians put fences around their prayers to save face. Many Christians have offered so many prayers through a sense of duty, and without any thought of being answered, that they are astonished when an answer truly comes from God. Consider, as an example of this, an incident that occurred in the early church as recorded in the book of the Acts. It was the time of the fifth persecution recorded in that early history of the church. Herod was king and began a persecution in which James, the brother of John, was killed, and Peter was put in prison.
We read, "Peter, therefore, was kept in prison; but prayer was made without ceasing by the church unto God for him" (Acts 12:5). The whole story gives us the picture of Peter in prison in one part of the town and a group of believers gathered together elsewhere praying for Peter. Then, suddenly, God intervened. Though Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and with guards in front of the prison door, an angel came and cast a sleep upon the guards and delivered Peter, who suddenly found himself in the street, alone.
Peter soon realized that he had been delivered by the power of God and made his way through the streets to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many were gathered together, praying. Peter knocked at the door of the gate, and a young woman, named Rhoda, came to the door to listen. Peter announced himself, and she was so confused with joy at the sound of his voice that she left him standing on the outside of the unopened gate and ran back into the house with the news of his deliverance. Now, if they had had any faith, they would have thanked God for the answer and taken it as a gift from God. But we read, "They said unto her, Thou art mad" (Acts 12:15). How sad that a group of Christians in a prayer meeting should think a person crazy who came to tell them that their prayers had been answered, but this is the fact. When the young girl constantly affirmed that it was true and that Peter was there, the leaders of the prayer meeting said, "It is his angel" (verse 15). This is a sad commentary of our slowness of heart to believe the promises and the power of God. "But Peter continued knocking" (Acts 12:16). There was no getting away from that noise at the gate, and the leaders went out and opened the gate. When they saw him, we read further that they were astonished. And even after this, it took some convincing by Peter before they really understood what had happened.
In the light of this we must not be too astonished that the church today is generally prayerless and spiritually careless. The average prayer meeting in the average church is a vain thing. In thousands of churches the prayer meetings have been eliminated, and where the mid-week service of prayer has gone by the board the Sunday evening service has generally followed. Whenever there is a true prayer meeting there is always a witnessing church, and a church with power. If anyone reading these words is looking around for a church, select one whose doctrinal creed is biblical and then look for an individual congregation whose prayer meeting is well attended, and where people are truly fervent in prayer. That is a church where there will be real spiritual life.
In seeking to learn to pray as we ought, we now come to the consideration of what it is to pray in the will of God. In John's first epistle there is one of the greatest prayer promises in the Bible. There we read, "And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us; And if we know that he hear us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him" (1 John 5:14-15).
The first thing that we must realize about this text is that it does not refer to everybody. If "we" ask anything . . . He hears "us." Who are the "we" and the "us" in this text? The answer is in the context. It concerns only those who have been given life through Jesus Christ. It does not refer to Mohammedans or Buddhists. Nor does it refer to Protestants or Catholics who are Christians in name only. It is a promise that belongs exclusively to those who are the present possessors of eternal life. Listen to the preceding verses: "He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself . . . And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his son. He that hath the Son hath life . . . These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that ye may know that ye have eternal life" (1 John 5:10-13). The prayer promise follows immediately. To be honest with the Word of God it must be admitted that the promise belongs only to those who have everlasting life and who know it.
In the light of our text we must read it: "This is the confidence that we [who are saved and know it] have in him, that if we [who are saved and know it] ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us [who are saved and know it.] And if we [who are saved and know it], know that he hear us [who are saved and know it], whatever we [who are saved and know it] ask, we [who are saved and know it] know that we [who are saved and know it] have the petitions that we [who are saved and know it] desired of him."
With this established, we may now ask the second question that the text poses. What is it to ask according to the will of God? There is no one text that is going to furnish the complete answer to that question. The whole of the Bible must be studied to find out that which is the will of God. We may, perhaps, summarize it by saying the will of God for any human being is that which is in consistent accord with the nature of God's attributes — His holiness, His justice, His righteousness, His love, His truth. The details are to be found by living under the dominance of the Holy Spirit within the sphere of the whole of the Bible. This is the heart meaning of, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4).
Men who were unbelievers once asked the Lord Jesus, "What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered, and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent" (John 6:28-29). We may further define our theme, therefore, by pointing out that the will of God always begins, centers, and ends in Jesus Christ. As far as we can discern from the whole biblical revelation, God has no thought or desire apart from the glorification of the Lord Jesus Christ. The only prayer that an unsaved man could pray acceptably, therefore, is the thought contained in such a prayer as this: "Oh God, I deserve nothing from Thee but Thy just wrath; but Thou sayest that Thou didst love me and gave Jesus Christ to die for me. Now as best I know I stop trusting in anything that is of myself, and believe Thy word about Christ—that Thou art satisfied with His death instead of mine, and that in Him Thou doest give me life eternal."
When such a prayer has been prayed God is already looking upon such a man in grace, and he may then come with great boldness to claim all of the promises which have been given to us in Christ. Thus our ignorance will be banished since our Lord said, "If any man will [determines to] do his will, he shall know of the doctrine [teaching], whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself" (John 7:17). Thus, the willingness, to do the will of God brings light upon the direction of the will of God for us in any set of circumstances.
When believers have reached this point they may pray with very great confidence. There are many prayers that we may offer to which we do not need to add the qualifying phrase, "if it be Thy will." For example, when the Holy Spirit brings to our hearts a longing for deeper holiness of living, we may cry to God for it, expecting that He will answer. The ground of such expectation is in the Word, where we read, "For this is the will of God, even your sanctification" (1 Thessalonians 4:3). It is on this same foundation that the promise of Christ rests, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33).
In the light of this, let us consider, for a moment, the reasons why so many church prayer meetings are rather empty, and why, like the members of the early church, a true answer to prayer seems almost unbelievable. It is because the gathered believers are praying aimlessly without a true sense of the majesty of God and His righteousness, and with little thought of seeing wonders worked by the all-loving and all-powerful Father. The average prayer meeting lasts for an hour. The first ten or 15 minutes are spent in singing hymns, sometimes the fruit of true praise, and sometimes mere time-fillers. How many times have we heard such an announcement as this: "Now we will sing another hymn while the late-comers are arriving." A hymn loses all the inwardness of praise in such circumstances, and it is not astonishing to see people whispering to each other, or looking around the room. Following this, the leader fills up a few more minutes with an introductory prayer, thanking God for the privilege of coming together to praise Him and asking Him to be with them that there might be true praise and a real sense of His presence among them. Then another hymn, perhaps, and then the announcements, and finally, the suggestion that prayer requests be presented. For a few minutes there are various suggestions—the name of the sick of the congregation are brought to mind, the missionaries, the various needs of the church, perhaps a request for the salvation of some loved one, and at last, comes the time to pray. The deacon with the longest memory usually starts and goes over the list of things that have been mentioned. Then another prayer will be offered for some of the things that have been omitted. A few more prayers, generally more and more brief, and by now, most of the praying men and women have spoken. Then comes a long silence, and finally the voice of the leader in the closing prayer. Then, for there are still some 20 minutes left, the hour is filled up by a sermonette, sometimes called Bible study. The hour draws to a close, a final hymn is sung, and the benediction is pronounced.
Believe me, this description has been given, not with any sense of irony, and certainly with no sense of criticism, but with a deep sense of grief that so many of the Lord's people miss so much of the blessing that He is so eager to give. Too many believers are existing on ground meat which they did not mix themselves, and whose ingredients they often ignore, instead of having the finest cuts of the meat prepared as only God can feed us.
Let me suggest a program for an alternative meeting. Let the believers gather together and spend two minutes suggesting subjects of praise. Then sing a stirring hymn of praise. Then let someone mention some of the glories of the Lord Jesus Christ, and follow this with a hymn that exalts the wonders of His being and His work.
Following this, assign each person five chapters — different chapters — to read rapidly, silently, for one purpose, namely to discover some expression that shows what the will of the Lord is. When these chapters have been read, and the findings summarized on the blackboard, then spend 20 minutes in prayer for the things that have been found, and let not the words, "if it be Thy will," be spoken even once. Let there be the tone of triumph that goes with the certain knowledge that a check is being presented that must be cashed because the bank has acknowledged that it is a certified check, and that you have been fully identified. Above all, eliminate such prayers as those faithless clichés, "We ask Thy presence with us tonight;" or, "Wilt Thou, in grace, be with us in this hour." To pray such a prayer is like asking the host who had provided all the ingredients for a Christmas dinner, and who had set the table, and who had taken his place at the head of the board, if he would please come to dinner with the guests. He is already there. He has planned it for the sake of the larger fellowship.
How wonderful to begin a meeting of believers with the triumphant cry, "Thou art here, dear Heavenly Father! Thou art here, blessed Lord Jesus! Thou art here, Spirit of truth to guide us!" There are no ifs, ands, buts, or maybes. There is the acknowledgment of a divinely revealed fact. "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I" (Matthew 18:20). And remember He is not there because there is any place on this earth that is a sanctuary. Men call buildings churches, but in the beginning it was not so. The church is the group of believers, and it was others who began to call the buildings they ultimately began to meet in by the name of the believers who gathered there. The Lord is in a meeting because one believer, whose body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, walks into the presence of another believer on an arrangement to be gathered together in the name of the Lord. In the moment of their meeting, the Holy Spirit Who dwells in each believer, comes in the added power of the presence of Christ to give joy and blessing.
Prayer meetings that are ordered on these divine principles cannot fail to attract those who know the Lord in reality, and who are free to join with other believers at the time and place of the gathering.
In all such meetings there should be a portion of the time spent in praying for those things for which there is no clear light as to the will of God. It is God's will to be with you in presence and in power; it is God's will to make you holy; it is God's will to forgive you from all sins that are confessed; it is God's will to bless the going forth of His word to condemn or to save; it is God's will to bless His people, to conform us to Christ, to teach us His will, and to bring us on in growth, performing His work in us unto the day of Jesus Christ. But we may have a portion of the meeting where we proceed very slowly. One man is sick. We certainly may not ask God with positiveness to raise the man up, for it may be the will of the Lord to take that one to Heaven. To such a prayer we must add, "if it be Thy will." We may not ask God to protect us from accident, or loss, or disaster, for it may be His will to bring us into these things in order that we may learn that "in" all these things we are more than conquerors.
As time goes by we grow in spiritual life. At the outset of our experiences with Him we may pray ignorantly. The Heavenly Father will not look at us askance because of this. Sometimes — yes, many times—He answers us even when we ask ignorantly. He loves us more than we love our children.
One of my sons once wrote me two letters from college, both asking me for 50 dollars. The letters came about six weeks apart. One of them was several pages long and asked for the money with great details as to how it would be spent. It was hedged about with arguments to make the request plausible. In spite of this he did not get the money. The second letter was about seven lines long, but he got the money by return mail.
The first letter began by telling me that he was on the dean's list. The second paragraph spoke of his friends. They, too, were honor roll students. He was laying the ground work for his request, and he was doing it by telling of his own attainments and by reminding me that he was a companion of good men. The letter then outlined the plan of the request; they were to leave Boston by car and drive out to Ohio, missing only their Friday and Saturday classes, and attend a social function in honor of the sister of one of the young men. My son's part of the expenses would be about $50.00, including flowers, entertainment, and travel. The letter closed with the equivalent of a request — if it be thy will, dear earthly father — for 50 dollars. He did not get the 50 dollars.
A few weeks later there came a terse note: "Dear Daddy: There was an accident today in the chemistry lab, and another fellow broke a beaker of acid that spilled on my clothes. It burned a big hole in my coat and another hole about four by five inches across in my trousers. I have ordered another suit and must have 50 dollars at once. Your loving son, David." He got the money by return mail. It was according to my will to send him that money. I am his father, and one of the obligations of parenthood is that a son be kept in pants.
None of this should cause us to think that we should go slowly in approaching our heavenly Father with our requests. "We know not how to pray as we ought," but we are coming to our Father. In all matters where we know His will, we come with gladness and holy boldness. Wherever there is doubt we must tell Him that we are asking and not insisting, for we want nothing other than His will. He will never be angry with us, and He will always be patient with us. He is our Father. He loves us.

Religious Fault Finders

We are progressing well.
"The below work study is from InTouch Ministries"

Day 3:

 

Please carefully read Mark 7:1-7 and answer the following questions.

 

1.  It appears a group of Pharisees and Scribes followed Jesus around to monitor His actions so they would find a reason to criticize Him. What did they observe about the disciples that they latched onto, and how did Mark explain this to his Roman audience (v. 2-4)?

 

2.   What accusing question did they ask Jesus (v. 5)?

 

Sidelight:  Clean and Unclean

As we read in our Introduction, since the days of the Jews’ Babylonian Captivity, the religious leaders had been developing and instituting an oral law and interpretations of what the Scriptures really meant in their viewpoint. These became viewed as having the highest religious authority for Judaism, and in a sense supplanted the Scripture.[ii] A tradition; the Greek word paradosis, was something delivered by someone to a second person to keep or care for. A tradition therefore meant instructions handed down from one generation to another, to be observed by following generations. Holding is krateo, to keep carefully and faithfully.[iii] At issue here wasn’t whether Jesus’ disciples were practicing good hygiene. Rather it was all about their notion of being clean versus unclean (koinais, “common”). As Mark explained to his Gentile readers, this meant ceremonially unwashed, denoting whatever was contaminated according to their religious rituals was unfit to be called holy or devoted to God.[iv] They literally believed that sin, evil, and uncleanness could be transmitted from objects and from other people. The Pharisees took this to an extreme, and in a sense very few in Judaism would even have the ability to try to maintain a state of religious purity as they defined it. Thus their tradition excluded the vast amount of the Jews let alone the Gentile peoples. The whole notion of ritual cleanness was thus the heart of what the Pharisees were all about. It was that heart (or perhaps better the lack of it) Jesus attacked because of their ongoing hypocrisy.

 

3.  How did Jesus respond to this accusation, and bring the conflict the Pharisees had with Him to a head (v. 6, 7)?

 

4.  The word hypocrite comes from the Greek hupocrites; hupo means under, and krino means to judge, and originally meant one who judged from under the cover of a mask, assuming an identity and a character which he was not; an actor on the Greek stage, taking the part of another. The Pharisees were religious actors so to speak in that they pretended to be on the outside what they were not on the inside. They honored God externally, not from the heart, teaching their own commands rather than the Word of God as revealed. This a clear mark of religion (or a cult for that matter) versus what Christianity is, a living relationship with God. Religion always finds fault with others and substitutes external actions for a living walk with God, taking the Word of God away from the common person and substituting its own version. 

 

The Jews were supposed to be a light to the world, a living witness to the nations. Rather, these leaders fulfilled the passage Jesus quoted from Isaiah. Read Isaiah 29:13-16 and record how it applies to religious hypocrisy. Also, what are some things that Paul warned about how believers should respond to these types of so-called teachers that might come along (Colossians 2:8-23)?

 

Scripture Memory:  This week we will be memorizing Mark 7:21-23.  Review the passage several times throughout the day each day this week, and by the end of the week, you should have it memorized completely.

 

For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts... All these evil things come from within and defile a man. Mark 7:21a, 23 (nkjv)

A HEART OF COMPASSION

I hope you went through yesterdays publication. God speaks to us daily, may we have a teachable spirit that is geared towards pleasing God.

DAY TWO

 

Please carefully read Mark 6:33-37 and answer the following questions.

 

1.  Despite Jesus’ attempt to find rest for Himself and His men, what happened (v. 33)?

 

2.  How did Jesus respond to this delay (v. 34)? In contrast, what was the disciples’ reaction to this (v. 35, 36)?

 

3.  What challenge did Jesus set before the disciples, and what was their reaction to this challenge (v. 37)?

 

4.  In human terms, Jesus had the right to be upset and ignore the needs of the crowd or react like the disciples did, wanting them sent away. Even 200 denarii (the equivalent of about eight months’ wages today[iv]) couldn’t provide them all even a snack! Yet Jesus looked at these people not with human vision, but from the compassion of His heart. The Greek phrase for moved with compassion literally means to be moved as to one’s bowels, or to be moved with or have compassion (the bowels were thought to be the seat of love and pity); it also can be translated to feel deeply or viscerally (in the gut), to yearn, have compassion and pity. This phrase is used in the New Testament only by or about Jesus, and suggests not just pity for someone but His practical help for the one pitied.[v] It is interesting that Jesus began by teaching these people, for their spiritual need was greatest at that moment, but He didn’t ignore their physical needs. 

 

What are some things you glean as you read the following passages about the compassion God has for us as sheep, lost and drifting without a shepherd? Record your thoughts about this.

 

Psalms 86:15

Isaiah 49:14-16

Isaiah 53:4-6; Jeremiah 50:4-6

Hebrews 4:14-16; 1 Peter 3:8-9

 

Scripture Memory:  Try to fill in the missing words in the blanks below, by memory if at all possible, and then review the passage several times today.

 

And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with _____________________ for them, because they were like _________________ not having a ________________________. So He began to teach them ___________ things. Mark 6:34, nkjv

STUDY ON THE BOOK OF MARK

Studying Mark's Gospel: Hey guyz this week we are going to do a study on the book of Mark. Lets walk together step by step as we listen to what God has for us.    DAY ONE:  Return and Rest Please carefully read Mark 6:30-32 and answer the following questions. 1.  What happened when the apostles returned from their mission (v. 30)? 2.  What did Jesus prescribe for His men, and why (v. 31, 32)? 3.  These men as well as Jesus Himself needed rest in view of the stress of all that had been going on. The Greek word for rest is in the middle voice, literally meaning refresh yourselves, rest up; a deserted place (or desert in the kjv) isn’t a desert in the sense we use the word, but a deserted place, solitary, lonely, uninhabited, the kind of place for an “over-wrought, exhausted Christian worker. How solicitous Jesus was for His tired servants. He Himself was careful to take His needed rest. It is the duty of His servants to do so also. The Devil would wear us out before our time, if he could.”[ii] This helps us see that Jesus is concerned for His followers’ physical well-being, taking into account our physical limitations. Jesus never encouraged His disciples to pamper themselves, nor did He encourage laziness![iii] There was a saying many years back about being “burned out for Christ,” letting Him completely exhaust us in service. While that sounds spiritual, rest is important to successful service and Christian living. The Old Testament law commanded one day in seven to rest, and also the observance of several holidays set aside on which to rest and regain strength. What did Isaiah record about this rest and renewal we all need (Isaiah 40:28-31)? 4.  What are some further important things that we read from the following passages about times of rest and renewal in our lives? Psalms 37:7; Jeremiah 6:16 Matthew 11:28-30 Hebrews 4:9-11 Scripture Memory:  This week we will be memorizing Mark 6:34. Review the passage several times throughout the day each day this week, and by the end of the week, you should have it memorized completely. And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things.  Mark 6:34, nkjv

PUT TO DEATH!! PUT TO DEATH!!

Dear friends this is a call from the most high God, obey it and live 
"Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming.In these you once walked, when you lived in them.¶ But now put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and foul talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old nature with its practices and have put on the new nature, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.
  Here there cannot be Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free man, but Christ is all, and in all.  ¶ Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and patience,  forbearing one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
  And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful.
  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teach and admonish one another in all wisdom, and sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

10 ESSENTIALS TRUTHS ABOUT GIVING

Ligon Duncan
Very often, people ask or wonder "what are the basic biblical principles for Christian giving?" As we seek God's answer to that question and as we contemplate our own giving to the Lord's church in response to the clear teaching of His Word, perhaps it would be wise and helpful to review those principles here.
First, let us go to the Word of God itself, without comment:
Matthew 6:1-4 Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
1 Corinthians 16:1-2 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so do you also. On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come.
2 Corinthians 8:9-15 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich. I give my opinion in this matter, for this is to your advantage, who were the first to begin a year ago not only to do this, but also to desire to do it. But now finish doing it also, so that just as there was the readiness to desire it, so there may be also the completion of it by your ability. For if the readiness is present, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. For this is not for the ease of others and for your affliction, but by way of equality - at this present time your abundance being a supply for their need, so that their abundance also may become a supply for your need, that there may be equality; as it is written, "HE WHO gathered MUCH DID NOT HAVE TOO MUCH, AND HE WHO gathered LITTLE HAD NO LACK."
2 Corinthians 9:6-7 Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

In our review of these four New Testament passages, we find at least ten principles for Christian giving.
1. The Lord Jesus expects and requires us to give. Jesus said to His disciples, "when you give" not "if you give" (Matthew 6:2)! Hence, Christian giving is not optional, but rather essential. We often hear folks say: "in the Old Testament they had to give, but not in the New - now we only give if we want to." This is clearly not Jesus' teaching. He expected all His followers to be givers. Christians will give. Are you giving?
2. The Lord Jesus wants us to give for the right reasons. Jesus warned His disciples not to give for the sake of being admired by men. "Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them," He said (Matthew 6:1). When we give, we must be careful to examine our motives. We ought to give for the glory of God and the good of His people. We must desire His approval of our giving, rather than the praise and admiration of people. Are you giving for God's praise or man's?
3. The Lord Jesus wants us to practice benevolent or charitable giving. Jesus said "When you give to the poor . . . ." (Matthew 6:2-3). Jesus is specifically teaching about "alms" in this passage: aid, charity, or benevolent offerings for the needy. Do you give amply enough to the Church that she can be generous in benevolent giving?
4. The Lord Jesus reminds us that our giving is ultimately to the all-seeing heavenly Father. Jesus said "When you give . . . ; your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you" (Matthew 6:3-4). When we give, we are not simply adding to the Church budget, we are giving up a thank offering to the Father Himself. Thus, we must all give "as unto the Lord." Our ultimate goal in giving is to please Him. Are you conscious of the fact that your giving is to the Lord and seen by the Lord?
5. The Bible teaches that Christian giving is an act of worship. In connection with the previous point, we see this truth stressed in another way in Paul's word's "On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save" (1 Corinthians 16:2). Paul here teaches the Corinthians that their taking up of the collection is an act of worship which is to be a part of their regular Lord's Day worship. When we put our money in the plate, we are worshiping Almighty God in accordance with His Word. Note well, Paul is speaking here of a "collection for the saints" - this is giving by the Church to the Church for the Church. Did you realize that giving is a part of worship? Is your worship in this area abundant or inhibited? Is giving to the Church a priority with you?
6. The Bible teaches that Christian giving should be done in light of the incarnation. Many Christians argue about whether the tithe (10% of our income) is still the standard for our giving to the Church (disputants usually want to show that less than 10% is fine). Paul scuttles the whole debate in one verse. He says: "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich" (2 Corinthians 8:9). Christ's self-giving is now the standard for our giving! We begin from the base of the tithe and aim for emulation of His self-sacrifice. Our giving is to be inspired and instructed by Christ's inexpressible gift. In light of such a challenge, who could possibly satisfy himself with asking "how little a percentage is acceptable for me to give?" Do you try to get by with giving as little as possible to the Lord, or do you give in view of the Lord's costly sacrifice?
7. The Bible teaches that Christian giving should be done in accordance with our means. Paul is quite clear on this: "For if the readiness is present, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have" (2 Corinthians 8:12). Put another way Paul is saying that you should give in proportion to what God has given you. He said it this way in 1 Corinthians 16:2, "each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper." This means at least two things: (1) since we are all supposed to give proportionately, those who have more money are expected to give more [we who are particularly blessed materially must remember this], and (2) the Lord never asks us to give what we do not have, or contribute beyond our means. Are you really giving in proportion to the material blessings that the Lord has given you?
8. The Bible teaches that the liberality of God's blessings to us is connected to the liberality of our Christian giving. Though it may seem strange, both Jesus and Paul emphasize that there is a relation between our giving to the Lord and the Lord's giving to us. As Paul says in 2 Corinthians 9:6 "Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully." About this matter J.A. Beet once said: "They who in giving think, not how little they can give, as they would if self-enrichment were the aim, but of benefits to be conferred, will receive back on the same principle. As they do to others, so God will act to them." Jesus reminds us of this in Matthew 6:4, where He teaches that our reward in giving comes from our heavenly Father. As someone once said: "The desire to be generous and the means to be generous both come from God." Do you realize that the Lord has given you much, so that you can give much?
9. The Bible teaches that Christian giving must be willing giving, free giving. We learn this in 2 Corinthians 9:7 "Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion." But doesn't this contradict what we learned under the first principle, that Christian giving is not optional? The answer is, of course, no. True Christian giving is both mandatory and voluntary. It is required by God, but always willingly given by the believer. Is your giving to the Church something you do wholeheartedly, or indifferently, or grudgingly?
10. The Bible teaches that Christian giving ought to be cheerful giving. As Paul says "God loves a cheerful giver." This is a truly amazing assertion. Paul assures us here that the Lord takes a special delight in those who are joyful, energetic, merry givers. Is there joy in your heart as you give? Can you truly be characterized as a "cheerful giver"?
We have not come close to reaching our potential for giving. Won't you pray that we will give as we ought? That we will give for the right motives? That we will give joyously? And that we will give extravagantly.

ADVERTS;

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BE IMITATORS OF GOD

 Just as Apostle Paul urged the Ephesians i also urge you my dear friends;

Be imitators of God as dear children.
 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for  a sweet-smelling aroma.
 But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.
 For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.
 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.
 Therefore do not be partakers with them.

JOB JOB. click here