Praying Pint

But they constrained Him, saying, “Abide with us.” … And He went in to stay with them.
Luke 24:29

When Jesus was born, there was no vacancy in the inn, but later many people opened their homes to Him. He attended a wedding in Cana in John 2. Peter’s home became His headquarters in Capernaum. In Matthew 9, Jesus dined in the home of Matthew, who became the author of the first Gospel. Mary and Martha entertained our Lord in Luke 10, and Simon the leper held a dinner for Him in Matthew 26. Jesus visited Jairus’ home in Luke 8, where He raised a little girl from the dead. On the night before His crucifixion, our Lord enjoyed the hospitality of a home with a large upper room. Three days later He sat down for supper with a family from the village of Emmaus (Luke 24).

If you knew Jesus would visit your house, you’d prepare for Him. Although He cannot now physically come, we’re able to serve Him by inviting others needing help, encouragement, provisions, or fellowship.

Jesus always blesses the homes He enters—and He will bless your hospitality this season too.

Jas 3:13-18  Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.  For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.  And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

 Psalms 107:43      Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the LORD.

 Ecclesiastes 8:5      Whoever keeps a command will know no evil thing, and the wise heart will know the proper time and the just way.

 Jeremiah 9:23     Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches,

 Matthew 7:24     “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.

 Psalms 25:9      He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way.

 Psalms 149:4     For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation.

 Zephaniah 2:3     Seek the LORD, all you humble of the land, who do his just commands; seek righteousness; seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the anger of the LORD.

 Matthew 5:5     “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

 Matthew 11:29      Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

 Ephesians 4:2      with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,

 Colossians 3:12     Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,

 1 Peter 3:4     but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.

 Job 28:28     And he said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”

 Daniel 2:21     He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding;

He who thinks well, or he who talks well, is not wise in the sense of the Scripture, if he does not live and act well. True wisdom may be know by the meekness of the spirit and temper. Those who live in malice, envy, and contention, live in confusion; and are liable to be provoked and hurried to any evil work. Such wisdom comes not down from above, but springs up from earthly principles, acts on earthly motives, and is intent on serving earthly purposes. Those who are lifted up with such wisdom, described by the apostle James, is near to the Christian love, described by the apostle Paul; and both are so described that every man may fully prove the reality of his attainments in them. It has no disguise or deceit. It cannot fall in with those managements the world counts wise, which are crafty and guileful; but it is sincere, and open, and steady, and uniform, and consistent with itself. May the purity, peace, gentleness, teachableness, and mercy shown in all our actions, and the fruits of righteousness abounding in our lives, prove that God has bestowed upon us this excellent gift. (Henry)

Who is a wise man. Meaning, not in things natural and civil, or merely moral, but in things spiritual: and he is a wise man, who is both wise to do good, and wise unto salvation; who has learned to know his own ignorance, folly, and stupidity; for the first lesson in the school of spiritual wisdom is for a man to know that he is a fool: and he is a wise man who considers his latter end, thinks of a future state, and what will become of him in another world; and who builds his faith and hope of eternal salvation on the sure and only foundation, the rock Christ Jesus; and who takes up a profession of religion upon principles of grace, and with views to the glory of God, and, upon mature deliberation, reckoning the cost, and what he must expect to meet with; and which he holds fast, without wavering, and yet does not depend upon it; and who walks circumspectly, and with wisdom, towards them that are without; and who observes both providences and promises, for the encouragement of his faith; and keeps looking to the mark for the prize, preferring heavenly things to earthly ones.

And endued with knowledge amongst you? as he is, who is endued with the knowledge of himself; of the impurity of his nature, and the plague of his heart; and of his impotency and inability to do any thing that is spiritually good of himself; and of the imperfection and insufficiency of his righteousness to justify him before God; and of his lost state and condition by nature, how deserving of the wrath of God, and obnoxious to the curses of the law; and how miserable he must be without the grace of God and righteousness of Christ: and who is also endued with the knowledge of Christ, so as to see a fulness, suitableness, and ability in him as a Saviour; so as to love him, approve of him, as such, and trust in him; which knowledge is always practical and soul humbling; and the least degree of it saving; and though it is imperfect, it is growing, and will at last come to perfection. (Gill)

The more my heart and mind are matured through God’s Word and the Holy Spirit’s leading, the more I am humbled by God’s grace, mercy, and love toward me, the more I am aware of my own sinful nature, the more I recognize how unworthy, unholy, and undeserving I am. How can I claim any part of my life as worthy of God’s love? I can’t. How can I claim any of God’s blessings in my life as though they were accomplished through my own effort? I can’t. 

How can I not be humbled as God’s Word is continually revealing God’s holiness and exposing my sinfulness? It is a blessing from God to grow and mature in understanding, knowledge, and wisdom of His holiness. In these, we become more and more humbled by who God is and His awesome power, might, strength, grace,, love, mercy, and Creator of all there is. 

“Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil.
Ephesians 4:26-27

When rock climbers are ascending the sheer face of a mountain, they look for the tiniest place to lodge their toes—a place that gives them the opportunity to make progress. Climbers refer to such places—a ledge, crack, or outcrop—as a foothold. Place, opportunity, and foothold are all English words used to translate Greek topos in Ephesians 4:27: “Nor give place [opportunity/foothold] to the devil.” Foothold calls to mind the expression, “Get a foot in the door”—when someone takes advantage of an opportunity for advancement. What is Paul discussing? How might we give the devil an opportunity for advancement in our lives?  (Dr. Jeremiah)

Scripture tells us to be filled with the Holy Spirit and to take every thought captive. Some thoughts come to our minds that are so ungodly, God-honoring, or God-glorifying and are even offensive to us and we have to wonder where in the world did it come from. We need to be able to recognize these thoughts for what they are.

Whether we want to acknowledge it or not, we have a sinful nature that continues within us until the day we die. It rears its ugly head in our thoughts when we are not expecting it or even desiring it.

Satan is the prince of this World, its lies, false hopes, disgusting lusts, self-satisfaction, self-greed, personal justice, self-reliance, self-pride, personal worth, etc….. all of which are footholds in our minds and thoughts.

The world and its desires are clearly displayed in social media, sports, news outlets, movies, radio, podcasts, etc… It is impossible to live in this world and not have these influences tempt our minds and thoughts. Recognizing them requires Word of God, diligence, perseverance, and Holy Spirit discernment. The more time spent in God’s Word the more our eyes will be opened to truth and through the Holy Spirit we will discern and identify worldly influences that tempt our thoughts. When we are able to recognize an errant thought we can take it captive, confess it, thank God for exposing it, and cast it out of our head.

Too many times we allow these thoughts to linger and take a foothold. Too many times we do not recognize them for what they are and who they are from. When we fill our hearts and minds with God’s Word and desire and seek the Holy Spirit’s leading we will have a firm foundation on which God will be honored and glorified.  We can’t stop these thoughts from coming but we most certainly know they are not God-Honoring or God-Glorifying, take them captive, and cast them out.

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above.

–James 1:17

How can you develop an attitude of gratitude? I recommend writing a list of God’s blessings in your life. Let me give you five ideas to prompt your thinking:

Material blessings–In 1 Timothy 6:7–8, Paul said, “We have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content.” Paul was saying if you have food on the table and a place to sleep, you ought to be content; anything beyond that is gravy. Thank God for His material blessings.

Church–Psalm 100:4 says, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise.” Every time you enter your church, thank God for providing a place of worship and fellowship with other Christians.

Answered prayer–Philippians 4:6 says, “Tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank him for his answers” (TLB). How easy it is to pray for our needs without stopping to thank God for what He’s already done. That’s one reason I keep a prayer journal. When I look back over my requests, many times I am more thankful for the “no” answers than the “yes” answers. Before you ask God to do something else, thank Him for answered prayer.

Problems–James 1:2–3 says, “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.” Joy is a calm assurance that no matter what happens, God is still in control. The Bible says you can rejoice and thank God in difficult circumstances because you’re confident that He’s still working out His plan for you.

Salvation–Romans 5:6, 8 says, “While we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. . . . But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus didn’t die for you because you’re a wonderful person. No, the only reason He offers you forgiveness is that He loves you. Reflect on what your life would be like without Christ, and thank God for leading you to faith in Christ.

Once you’ve completed your list, ask yourself, Which of these good things is not ultimately a gift? James 1:17 says, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above.” When you think about it, everything you have ultimately comes from God.

Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth.
Psalm 105:5

Psalm 78:1-7.   Give ear, O my people, to my law;Incline your ears to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in a parable;I will utter dark sayings of old, Which we have heard and known,And our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children,Telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord,And His strength and His wonderful works that He has done. For He established a testimony in Jacob,And appointed a law in Israel,Which He commanded our fathers,That they should make them known to their children; That the generation to come might know them,The children who would be born,That they may arise and declare them to their children, That they may set their hope in God,And not forget the works of God,But keep His commandments;

We normally speak of time in three tenses: past, present, and future. But with every tick of the clock, the present becomes the past, leaving us only with the past and the future. As time passes, the past gets longer, and the future gets shorter. The ever-increasing past provides a growing memory of the works and wonders of God.

“Remembering” was an integral part of the Israelite culture as reflected in the Old Testament: “For He established a testimony in Jacob…that they should make them known to their children; that the generation to come might know them, the children who would be born, that they may arise and declare them to their children, that they may set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God” (Psalm 78:5-7). What God did in the past—His works, wonders, and Word—were to be the foundation for faith in the future.

The same is true for us. What God does for us today will be a memory come tomorrow—and the foundation on which we will build a life of faith going forward.

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Let me remind you that Satan will attack you with your memory. He will tell you that you are worthless and bring to mind all of the sinful lusts and passions of the past trying to drive you into shame, despair, and uselessness. These are his lies. He is the father of lies. He is the great deceiver.

The past may all be true about you. The closer you walk with Jesus and the more you grow and mature, you will become more and more aware of just how unworthy of God’s grace, mercy, and love you are. PRAISE be to GOD for His grace, mercy, and love. He loved you so much that He gave up His one and only Son to take all of your past, present, and future sins, forgive you, and send His Holy Spirit to fill you and give you His Word readily available, full of His promises, examples, wonders, signs, miracles, and love, joy, hope, peace, and blessings.

You are a child of God! Do not let Satan deceive or confuse you about this. Scripture tells us that the blood of Jesus has removed your sins as far as the East is from the West. Though your sins were like scarlet they are now white as snow. You are a child of God!

After hundreds of years of disobedience to the Lord, God punished the Israelites with seven decades of captivity in the city of Babylon.

After this discipline, one would think the people of Israel had learned their lesson. The exiles had returned, the Temple was rebuilt, and Jerusalem had reestablished some degree of normalcy.

However, it didn’t take long for complacency to set in, bringing with it spiritual pollution.

Unfortunately, this is somewhat similar to many Christians today. They believe, but live like God doesn’t exist. They go through the motions, undistinguishable from the world around them, compromising the truth for worldly pleasures.

In light of this, perhaps it’s worth examining the spiritual pollution of the Israelites—and, in particular, their priests—in their attitude toward God, found in Malachi 1:6-14.

Disrespectful (Verses 6-7)

First, we need to realize that spiritual pollution causes us to serve God in a disrespectful manner. God asks a question, “Where is My honor?” The priests were cutting deals, accepting blemished animals for selfish reasons. They disrespected the Lord because they allowed spiritual pollution to cloud their spiritual sight.

What about us? Because of Christ’s finished work on the cross, we no longer offer blood sacrifices, but do we truly honor God with our lives, praise, time and treasure, or are we offering disrespectful cast-offs on our own terms? Don’t disrespect God by offering Him second choices and halfhearted service.

Unfit (Verses 8-9)

Next, we realize that spiritual pollution causes our services to be ineligible unto the Lord. God will not accept them. Deuteronomy 15:21 says, “But if it has any blemish, if it is lame or blind or has any serious blemish whatever, you shall not sacrifice it to the Lord your God.” This is exactly what the priests were doing. Not only did God reject their offering, but twice in verse 8 He referred to the offerings as “evil,” because the offerings were unfit.

When we allow spiritual pollution to remain in our lives, we offer God disqualified service, and He will not accept it. Sin keeps us from fully participating in God’s plans.

Apathetic (Verses 10-14)

Finally, when we allow spiritual pollution to remain in our lives, we develop disdainful attitudes. In verse 13, the priests referred to their calling as “weariness.” They would “sneer” at the work. They—the priests—were bored with serving the Lord. Their attitudes were so bad that God wished that they would shut the doors to the Temple.

Again, this is similar to us, and it’s an easy trap as you slip into spiritual complacency. The Creator of the universe calls us to worship Him, and yet we struggle to attend church or spend time in Bible study and prayer. We claim to be God’s children, but our hearts are far from Him. We cling to the things of this world, while treating the holy as mundane.

Remember God’s admonishment to the church in Laodicea in Revelations 3:15-16: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.”

My friends, this is a very dangerous place to be. Spiritual complacency and pollution are a problem. What’s the answer?

• First, take an inventory of your spiritual life. Similar to a medical diagnosis, you must first recognize the issue before you can move forward in fixing it.
• We must confess our sin to the Lord and allow Him to purify us of that which taints our lives and souls.
• With God’s help, you must develop a new fervor (passionate, deliberate and intentional) for service unto the Lord.

James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” This promise still holds true.

You have become arrogant and have not mourned instead, so that the one who had done this deed would be removed from your midst.

–1 Corinthians 5:2

When it comes to the issue of confronting sin in the church, churches tend to go to one of two extremes. There are some churches that have the “live and let live” motto. They say, “Who are we to judge if somebody is in sin? That is between the individual and God.” Then there are other churches that want to confront every sin in the church. Every sin becomes a federal issue.

Neither model is good to follow. The fact is, all sin in our lives and in the church should be confronted, but not all sin in the church demands to be confronted publicly. There are three categories of sin that must be dealt with publicly if the sinner does not repent:

• Sins that threaten the moral health of the church.
• Sins that threaten the doctrinal health of the church.
• Sins that threaten the emotional health of the church.

Instead of dealing with the brazen sin of immorality in their church, the Corinthians ignored it. Look at 1 Corinthians 5:2: “You have become arrogant and have not mourned instead, so that the one who had done this deed would be removed from your midst.” The Corinthians were priding themselves on the fact that they did not deal with this sin. Perhaps they said, “In our church, we do not judge people. We are a church that teaches grace.” Paul said that was the wrong response; instead, they should have mourned this sinner as if they had lost a loved one.

Years ago, I had a friend who abandoned his family and fell into immorality. And every time I talked to him, it was like I was talking to a blank wall. It was as if the person I had known had died and somebody else was living inside his body. That is exactly what Paul was talking about. He said when a Christian falls into sin and will not repent, we ought to mourn as if we have lost a loved one. And if that sin is threatening the health of the church, we need to take action.

You cannot discern the signs of the times.
Matthew 16:3

Have you ever been confused by highway signs like these: “Slow Children at Play.” Or “Caution Pedestrians Slippery When Wet.” A traffic sign in England says, “Right Lane Must Turn Left.” One man saw a sign reading, “Entrance Only. Do Not Enter.” A sign in California said, “Please Slow Drively.” And if you see a large sign announcing, “Welcome to Accident,” you’re probably entering the town of Accident, Maryland.

The world is giving us a lot of confusing signs right now, and sometimes we hardly know where we’re headed or what we’re doing. We feel lost. But let your mind go back to when Thomas felt the same way. He asked, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?” Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:5-6).

When we focus on Jesus, we find the Way, we know the Truth, and we experience the Life. There’s nothing confusing about that. He can help you on your journey!

Jesus is the way; He knows where to go; He is the truth; He knows what to say; He is the life; He knows who He is—the One who gives us life both abundant and eternal.