May 2021 – Praying Pint

24.w. “How you ought to walk and to please God”

1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

2 Peter 3:14    Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.

2 Peter 1:4-9     by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.  For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge,  and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness,  and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.  For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.

Psalms 78:8   and that they should not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not steadfast, whose spirit was not faithful to God.

Philippians 1:9    And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment,

1 Thessalonians 4:1   Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more.

What keeps us from being “Steadfast”, “Immovable”, and “Diligent”? Has the definition of these words changed? Loyal, faithful, committed, devoted, dedicated, dependable, reliable, steady, true, constant, unwavering, unswerving, resolute, determined, adamant, firm, unshakeable, unfailing, unyielding, unbending, uncompromising, unrelenting, careful, thorough, constant, persevering, persistent, zealous, dedicated, committed, driven, active, tireless. The meaning of these words has not changed so it be in our application of God’s Word in our lives. If we are not in His Word there is little chance it will have influencing application. If we allow ourselves to be consumed with what the world has to offer, how can we be steadfast, immovable, and diligent? It takes work, commitment, and determination to be steadfast, remain immovable, and ever diligent in things of God. Do not allow the allure of this word rob you of the grace, mercy, and blessings of God now and in heaven.

24.v. And the peace of God”

Romans 5:1 “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Philippians 4:7 “And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Colossians 1:19 For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on heart or things in heaven by making peace through the blood of His cross.

2 Thessalonians 3:16 Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.

Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son, is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace

The Bible talks about peace a lot in both the Old Testament and the New. Most often in the Old Testament, the Hebrew word used for peace is shalom which denotes not only peace, but also a sense of well-being, prosperity, and wholeness. In the New Testament, the Greek word most often used for peace is eirene which also denotes prosperity and rest, but includes the idea of joining together as one. The primary need for peace in human existence is to find peace with God. Because of our sinful nature, humanity’s relationship to God has been fractured. Blessedly for us, Jesus reconciled us to God “making peace by the blood of his cross” (Colossians 1:20). Paul explains that because “we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). So Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross and our acceptance of it through faith restores our relationship to God and sets us at peace with Him. Only then can a believer experience God’s peace “which surpasses all understanding” (Philippians 4:7).

Paul calls Jesus “the Lord of peace” in 2 Thessalonians 3:16. This title fits Jesus well. Isaiah 9:6 prophetically refers to Him as “Prince of Peace.” Jesus knew that His disciples would be dismayed upon His departing, so after lovingly explaining how He would send the Holy Spirit as a helper to them, He said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27). Jesus gifted peace to His followers not only while He walked the earth, but He continues to do so through the Holy Spirit even today. Peace is a natural outflow of the Holy Spirit at work in our lives; it is listed as a fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22–23. Interestingly enough, the Holy Spirit is mentioned as a source of peace even in the Old Testament (Isaiah 32:15–18). Our triune God is a God of peace and He gifts His peace to His people.

However, there are ways the Bible encourages us to experience a greater extent of peace, or in other words, to “let the peace of Christ rule in [our] hearts” (Colossians 3:15). Psalm 119:165 provides one practice to increase our experience of peace. It says, “Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.” The word for “your law” in Hebrew in this verse is Torah, which are the first five books in our Bible and would have been the Scriptures available to the psalmist who wrote this verse. Studying Scripture brings peace to those who love God’s Word. As we study His Word, we learn who God is and our trust in Him can increase. We learn that “for those who love God all things work together for good” (Romans 8:28). We hear Jesus say, “… in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Scripture is filled with reassuring verses that remind us of the truth about the God we serve.

24.u. “In the twinkling of an eye”

1 Corinthians 15:51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.

1 Thessalonians 4:14-17    For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.  For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.  For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

2 Peter 3:10    But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.

Matthew 24:31    And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

In the Biblical sense, a mystery is simply a thing to be understood by spiritual, rather than by merely human perception. Paul will tell the Corinthian Christians something they could not have known by reason or research. They could not have known this unless God revealed it to them.

In a single moment, Jesus will gather His people (both dead and on the earth) to Himself, for resurrection. There will come a day when in God’s eternal plan, He gives those dead in the Lord their resurrection bodies, and then in an instant He gathers all His people to meet Jesus in the air. All the redeemed on the earth at that time will rise up to meet the Lord in the clouds, and will receive their resurrection bodies. Ironside says that the last trumpet was a figure of speech that came from the Roman military, when they broke camp. The first trumpet meant, “strike the tents and prepare to leave”; the second trumpet meant, “fall into line”; the third and last trumpet meant “march away.”

Are you anticipating the last trumpet? Are you ready to hear it? Are you ready to face death and enter eternity? Surrender your entire life to humbly serve, honor, follow, obey, trust, and rely in Jesus Christ. There is no other way to enter eternity in heaven.

24.t. “Making known to us the mystery of his will”

1 Corinthians 15:50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

John 3:3   Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

John 3:5     Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

Ephesians 1:9    making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ

Essentially, this means to have new life. A theological term for this is regeneration. It isn’t simply a moral or religious reform, but the bringing of new life. “To belong to the heavenly kingdom, one must be born into it. This isn’t something that we can do to ourselves. When Jesus had says “Unless you are born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God” then we might think, “I can somehow do this myself”, like a man might wash himself; but he could never birth himself. God’s great plan and purpose which was once hidden but is now this mystery is revealed to us in Jesus.

Why is it that this mystery which was hidden and now revealed is seen by some and not by others? Are they who understand the mystery smarter, more intelligent, or more worthy? Absolutely NO they are not. So why then, once the veil has been taken away, can this mystery no longer be a mystery to some and to others it is still an unfathomable mystery? Think about creation and the responses man has given to explain this mystery. This certainly is a mystery. How can something be brought into existence – (being made from nothing)? God created. Period. He made all there is. He created light, placed the stars and planets in all the of the universe, all of the elements of chemistry, and all of the physics that control interactions between them, life (plant, animal, mankind), spiritual heavenly beings, etc…….. How do we know this? Because He made it know by telling us. He revealed it both to our hearts and through His Word. It is through belief that though we don’t know how exactly, but we do know who. Belief in God takes away the searching of both how and who. Yet, for those who do not believe it is still a mystery, and billions if not trillions of dollars are spent trying to figure out who, when, and how all of creation came into being. With all of this money and with thousands of intelligent brains searching the best they come up with is a big bang. It is easier for some to believe this than in God who created it all. The mystery remains for these.

The same is true for the mystery of new birth, born again, a new creation. To those who believe it is a mystery revealed soul, heart, and mind deep. They are changed forever and await their final new eternal life in heaven. Yet, once again, those who do not believe (trust in, cling to, rely on Jesus Christ by faith) will try to sort out this mystery by every means possible to earn it or be worthy of it. It is not by works of the flesh, or the mind of the wise, but by the power of God through Jesus Christ in grace, mercy, and love. To those who believe, the mystery is no longer a mystery. They absolutely know they are born again. If you do not know this with absolute certainty, relinquish all hope in self and self-reliance and surrender to the grace, mercy, and love, found only in and through Jesus Christ, and the vail of the mystery of being born again, new birth, new creation, will be removed forever.

24.s. “So is it with the resurrection of the dead”

1 Corinthians 15:42 So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.

Isaiah 38:17    Behold, it was for my welfare that I had great bitterness; but in love you have delivered my life from the pit of destruction, for you have cast all my sins behind your back.

Romans 8:21    that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

1 Peter 1:4    to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,

Philippians 3:20-21     But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,  who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

1 Corinthians 6:14   And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power.

Matthew 13:43    Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

It’s hard to understand what our resurrection bodies will be like, so Paul will use contrast to help us, giving four contrasts between our present body and our future resurrection body. Incorruption triumphs over corruption. Glory triumphs over dishonor. Power triumphs over weakness. Spiritual triumphs over natural.

The first perfect man, Adam, gave us one kind of body. The second perfect man, Jesus the last Adam, can give us another kind of body. We have all borne the image of the first Adam, and those who put their trust in the last Adam will also bear His resurrection image. From the first Adam, we all are made of dust, but from the last Adam we can be made heavenly. For believers, the promise is sure: we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man. Philippians 3:21 Who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

Sometimes it is hard for us to understand this transformation from death to life. We know it will happen and we wait for it, but how it happens and what we will be like and what heaven will be like and what will it be like when we see Jesus Christ face to face are all questions that will be answered at our resurrection. All the fog of understanding will be taken away and we will see Jesus Christ in all His glory. This is the promise of God to all who believe and it is now, while we are in this perishable body, that we live to honor and glorify the one who purchased our redemption until we see Him face to face

22.t. “Wait on the Lord; be of good courage”

Psalm 37:34 Wait on the Lord, And keep His way, And He shall exalt you to inherit the land; When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it. I have seen the wicked in great power, And spreading himself like a native green tree. Yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; Indeed I sought him, but he could not be found. Mark the blameless man, and observe the upright; For the future of that man is peace. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; The future of the wicked shall be cut off. But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, And save them, Because they trust in Him.

Psalm 27:14: “Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!

Psalm 25:3 Indeed, let no one who waits on You be ashamed.

Have you ever experienced a delayed answer to prayer? Well, yes and no. It may have seemed delayed to you, but from God’s perspective it was right on time. If you’re praying about something right now, it’s important to ask God to answer according to the synchronized schedule of His perfect will. J. J. Lynch wrote a poem about this that was often quoted by V. Raymond Edman of Wheaton College: His wisdom is sublime, His heart profoundly kind; God never is before His time, And never is behind.

As we pray faithfully, God answers in His time. So let us learn in prayer to practice Psalm 27:14: “Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!” Don’t be discouraged. Never stop praying. Keep your eyes on the Timekeeper, not on the timepiece. The Lord will turn delay into deliverance.

Delay does not forget God’s servants nor cause His faithfulness to fail; rather, it fortifies their souls and vindicates His name.

Pathway to Victory

22.r. This is from Compelling Truth and very worth the read.

The church is the body of Christ and, as such, is charged to carry out His work in the world. Before Jesus ascended back into heaven, He gave the disciples the Great Commission: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19—20). A healthy local church will be actively fulfilling the Great Commission, and the Bible provides specific guidelines of what the signs of a healthy church are.

First, it’s important to mention that a large church is not a foolproof sign of a healthy church. Growing in numbers can be a sign that a church is healthy (Acts 2:47; 5:14; 16:5), but it’s not an automatic guarantee of health. Spiritual growth and biblical soundness, not numbers, are how we measure the healthiness of a church. What are the key things to look for?

Sound Biblical Doctrine
The Bible should be the center of all teaching, and the doctrine should be sound (Titus 1:9; 2:1; 1 Timothy 6:3–4; 2 Timothy 2:2). Sound doctrine will be reaffirmed throughout the Bible and is generally not based on a single verse or passage. Rather, it’s a message we see repeated throughout the Scriptures. All of Scripture should be taught within its proper context, not just favorite portions. As Paul told Timothy, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16—17). Ungodliness prevails when doctrine is not sound. When we hear and apply sound doctrine, the result is godly living (1 Timothy 1:10; 4:6; 2 Timothy 1:13—14).

Godly Leadership
A healthy church will have godly leadership who exemplify a life of obedience to Christ and a heart of service for others. Their lives will be marked by faithfulness and righteous living (Titus 1:6–9; 1 Timothy 3:1–7). Jesus Christ is the head of the church, and while no pastor is perfect, it should be evident that they are working to become more like Jesus every day (Colossians 1:18; Matthew 20:25–28; John 13:12–17). Godly leaders will be good stewards of the resources, talents, and ministry that God has entrusted to them (1 Corinthians 4:1–3; 9:17; 1 Peter 4:10; Ephesians 4:11–16). As Jesus spent time with the disciples, training them in the ways of the Lord, godly leaders will train and cultivate others into spiritual leadership, as well (Acts 6:1–7).

Discipleship and Spiritual Fruit
When a church has sound doctrine and godly leadership, discipleship and subsequent spiritual fruit will be evident within the congregation. Faithful leaders produce faithful followers who love the Lord and seek to live according to His Word (John 8:31–32; 14:15; 1 John 2:3–6). Believers who are being discipled will build solid relationships with others (Acts 2:42–47; 1 Corinthians 10:17; Hebrews 10:24–15), be involved in the church—using their gifts to serve others (Romans 12:4–8; 1 Corinthians 12:7), and will be bearing fruit as they grow in their own sanctification (John 15:5–8; Galatians 5:22–25; 1 Thessalonians 5:23).

Outreach
Finally, a healthy church will be recognized by its outreach. It will be evangelistic, spreading the gospel. And it will be compassionate and generous with its resources for the sake of others. Evangelism occurs within a wide spectrum of experience, ranging from our day-to-day lives and interactions with others to local community efforts and world missions. We have this incredible gift of forgiveness and salvation, and because of this, as the church, we are called to be: “the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life” (2 Corinthians 2:15–16). The good news of salvation through Jesus Christ is not something to hoard—it should be shared near and far, fulfilling the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19—20). This good news brings forgiveness, salvation, light to darkness, and peace to chaos. A healthy church can be recognized by its passion to get the word out to those in need.

22.q. “Search me, O God, and know my heart!”

1 Corinthians 15:34 Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.

Hebrews 5:11-12 About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food,

Jeremiah 9:3

“They bend their tongues like bows; lies prevail over truth in the land. For they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not take Me into account,” declares the LORD.

Matthew 22:29

Jesus answered, “You are mistaken because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.

Psalms 119:11 I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.

Psalms 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!

Wake Up! Stop living like a drunk person who is unable to reason with a sound mind. Have you lost all of your senses? You are living in ways that are sinful. Can’t you see it? Are you aware that some of you have no knowledge of God for you are disgracefully ignorant of Him, and ignore His truths. Paul is making a point. “Test and evaluate yourselves to see whether you are in the faith and living your lives as [committed] believers. Examine yourselves [not me]! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves [by an ongoing experience] that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test and are rejected as counterfeit?”

We can all get sideways in our walk with God. When His Word is put aside and our interests seem to leave no time for it, is when we fall into a void and subject ourselves to wrong thinking and acting. Test what you do against what is written in God’s Word. Have a heart that asks God to show you where you are not honoring Him and be willing to receive instruction through His Word and leading. It is a lonely path leading to a void of instruction when we choose to put aside His Word for the interest of other things.

22.p. “Leave your simple ways, and live, and walk in the way of insight.”

1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”

Proverbs 9:6    Leave your simple ways, and live, and walk in the way of insight.”

Galatians 6:7    Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.

2 Timothy 2:16-17    But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,  and their talk will spread like gangrene.

Hebrews 12:15     See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;

Paul deals with the moral problems of the Corinthians: envy, divisions, pride, immorality, greed, irreverence, and selfishness. How much of this came in because of they kept evil company? This speaks to the vital need described in Romans 12:2: do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. By keeping evil company, the Corinthian Christians were being conformed to this world, and they needed to be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Christians must let the Word of God shape their thinking, not the evil company of this world.

It is very easy to “get conformed to the world”. The world does not recognize God. The world does not speak about God, other than to say He does not exist. The world tries to replace the joy, hope, and trust in Jesus Christ alone with everything that promises to satisfy the soul but leaves the soul lacking and wanting more, something better. All-day long the world denies, rejects, and proclaims its self-center self-reliance and calls things of God foolish and false. Paul is saying rid yourselves of these influences. Take your guidance from the Word of God.

22.o. “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

Genesis 50:20 But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.

Psalms 56:5   All day long they injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil.

Psalms 119:71     It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.

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

When something bad happens in the life of a new Christian, they will often say, “Lord, why is this happening to me?” When something bad happens in the life of a mature Christian, they will often say, “Lord, why is this happening to me?” Same question, but different motivations. The new Christian may think it unreasonable that a bad thing happened. But the mature Christian knows problems are part of life in a fallen world. His “Why?” question is to discern from God what he can learn from the difficult situation—how he might grow in faith. When the teenage Joseph was sold by his brothers into slavery, he no doubt asked the “Why?” question. At first, he may have thought, “What did I do to deserve this?” But later, his “Why?” likely turned into, “Oh, now I see why!” He realized God had sent him to Egypt to prepare a place for Jacob’s family to escape the famine in Canaan. When you experience difficulties in life, it’s not wrong to ask “Why?” Just make sure you’re asking for the right reason.