Monday, August 30, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Who Can Pray?
Who Can Pray?
Richard Stout in the Child Evangelism Publication "Praying God's Way" tells about two boys sitting on a porch in the sweltering summer sun. Both guys get quiet and perk up their ears. Yes, it's the sound of the ice cream truck! They stare into one another's eyes as their brains scheme for a "get-some-money-quick" plan. Since they are filling the empty space of Thomas' porch, the quickest, logical plan is to ask Thomas' dad. He's just inside the house.
Thomas nearly shouts his plan as he knows the truck will soon be passing their intersection and won't wait forever. "Quick, Ryan, run in and tell my dad we need some money for ice cream?"
"What? Are you kiddin'? Why would I ever be the one to ask YOUR father for ice cream money? He's YOUR father. You ask him." His voice was as loud or louder than his friend's.
What would you do in Ryan's situation? And what does this story have to do with "Who Can Pray?"
Well, who is illegible to ask God to answer their prayers? Shouldn't it be only HIS children. Is God the Father of all? Many people believe that since God created mankind (that means men and women) that we are all God's children. Well, let's check this out in the Bible. Turn to John chapter 8.
Jesus is talking to some people and trying over and over to explain to them that He is from God and here they are trying to kill Him. They say:
We are of our father, Abraham. But Jesus argues, "If you were of
Abraham, you would have been doing the things Abraham did.
But here you are trying to kill me, a man who has spoken the truth
He got straight from God. Abraham never did that sort of thing.
You persist in repeating the works of your father."
They said, "We're not [without a legitimate father.] We have a legitimate father: the one and only God."
"If God [were] your Father," said Jesus, "you would love me for I came from God
and arrived here...He sent me. Why can't you understand that? Here's why.
You can't handle it. You are of your father, the devil and all you want to
do is please him."
WOW! Jesus told those people that they were not God's children. God was not their Father. They were of their father, the devil. You see, John 8 proves that not everyone is a child of God. You must ask Jesus Christ to wash away your sins. His blood that He shed on the cross was spilled out for our sins. God said in Romans 3:23 that every one of us is a sinner. That means we have thought, said or done things against God's Word. You know the Christmas Story...don't you? How Jesus came to earth as a little baby and many years later (33) died on the cross, then was buried and rose again. (That's why we celebrate Good Friday and Easter). When He willingly gave His life and His blood, it was so that we could have our sins washed away. You see, God made a rule. He said in Hebrews 9:22 that without the shedding of blood, there would be no forgiveness of sin. However, not just anyone could die for us. It had to be a perfect, pure, holy, spotless one. God's Son, Jesus Christ, is the only One who could die for us because He is the only one Who has never sinned.
Does that mean that everyone can now be automatically forgiven and go to heaven when they leave this earth. (That's the gift a child of God receives. He/she gets to spend forever in heaven with God) It's not automatic. God says, in I John 5: 11-15* that it's those who receive and believe on His Son Jesus and what He did on the cross who will have everlasting life. You can also find that truth in John 1:12
"Yet, to all who recieved Him, to those who believed on His name, He gave the right to become children of God." This chapter is talking about Jesus. So there are two verbs in this verse. Can you find them?
Where are the action words? What are the two things you must do to become a child of God?
Read it again. "to all who __________ and to those who ___________ on His name"
You can tell God right now (if you never have before) that you want the blood of Jesus to count for you. If you want to become a child of God, you can talk to God just like you would to any person. Tell Him that you want to become His child and follow Him. He promises in
I John 5:12 "He who has the Son has life, he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. "
Do you believe God? He says that all have sinned (Roman 3:23) and that the payment for sin is death, Romans 6:23. Do you think you have ever done anything against the Word of God? If you don't know for sure, start reading the ten commandments in Exodus chapter 20. Have you always loved the Lord with all your heart, soul and mind? If you have never asked Jesus to be your Savior from sin, then there is only one prayer that God will answer for you. It is called the sinner's prayer. It should sound something like this:
God, please forgive me, I have sinned.
The psalmist said in Psalm 66:18 "If I had kept sin in my heart, the Lord would not have heard my prayer."
God can clean your heart. Just as it says in Hebrews 9:22 "...almost everything is cleansed [cleaned] by the blood and without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness."
So now we know that
1. not everyone is a child of God
2. one must believe
a. that they have sinned
b. that Jesus is the perfect Son of the holy, true God of the Bible
c. that God has the power to forgive your sins
d. that God keeps His promises and will forgive if one will ask God to make Jesus' blood
count to wash their sins away
3. one must turn away from his/her sin and follow Jesus' ways
4. the only prayer that God will pay attention to before we ask Christ to forgive us is the sinner's
prayer.
5. God's children can pray to Him and expect answers.
That's a lot to learn in one blog, but there is so much more for us to learn. God has given us His Word so that we can know Him and copy off of Him.
Who can pray? That's the answer to this blog's question. If you are a child of God, you can pray and expect answers from God. Learn more about prayer by reading the Bible and keep following this blog.
Next blog we'll talk about who God is. Why should we believe in the God of the Bible? Is He really the Father of Jesus?
*I John 5:11, 12 and 13 NIV (New International Version)
"And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life."
Wow! Think of it. You can KNOW that you have eternal life. Please leave a comment below and let me know what you think of all this.
Richard Stout in the Child Evangelism Publication "Praying God's Way" tells about two boys sitting on a porch in the sweltering summer sun. Both guys get quiet and perk up their ears. Yes, it's the sound of the ice cream truck! They stare into one another's eyes as their brains scheme for a "get-some-money-quick" plan. Since they are filling the empty space of Thomas' porch, the quickest, logical plan is to ask Thomas' dad. He's just inside the house.
Thomas nearly shouts his plan as he knows the truck will soon be passing their intersection and won't wait forever. "Quick, Ryan, run in and tell my dad we need some money for ice cream?"
"What? Are you kiddin'? Why would I ever be the one to ask YOUR father for ice cream money? He's YOUR father. You ask him." His voice was as loud or louder than his friend's.
What would you do in Ryan's situation? And what does this story have to do with "Who Can Pray?"
Well, who is illegible to ask God to answer their prayers? Shouldn't it be only HIS children. Is God the Father of all? Many people believe that since God created mankind (that means men and women) that we are all God's children. Well, let's check this out in the Bible. Turn to John chapter 8.
Jesus is talking to some people and trying over and over to explain to them that He is from God and here they are trying to kill Him. They say:
We are of our father, Abraham. But Jesus argues, "If you were of
Abraham, you would have been doing the things Abraham did.
But here you are trying to kill me, a man who has spoken the truth
He got straight from God. Abraham never did that sort of thing.
You persist in repeating the works of your father."
They said, "We're not [without a legitimate father.] We have a legitimate father: the one and only God."
"If God [were] your Father," said Jesus, "you would love me for I came from God
and arrived here...He sent me. Why can't you understand that? Here's why.
You can't handle it. You are of your father, the devil and all you want to
do is please him."
WOW! Jesus told those people that they were not God's children. God was not their Father. They were of their father, the devil. You see, John 8 proves that not everyone is a child of God. You must ask Jesus Christ to wash away your sins. His blood that He shed on the cross was spilled out for our sins. God said in Romans 3:23 that every one of us is a sinner. That means we have thought, said or done things against God's Word. You know the Christmas Story...don't you? How Jesus came to earth as a little baby and many years later (33) died on the cross, then was buried and rose again. (That's why we celebrate Good Friday and Easter). When He willingly gave His life and His blood, it was so that we could have our sins washed away. You see, God made a rule. He said in Hebrews 9:22 that without the shedding of blood, there would be no forgiveness of sin. However, not just anyone could die for us. It had to be a perfect, pure, holy, spotless one. God's Son, Jesus Christ, is the only One who could die for us because He is the only one Who has never sinned.
Does that mean that everyone can now be automatically forgiven and go to heaven when they leave this earth. (That's the gift a child of God receives. He/she gets to spend forever in heaven with God) It's not automatic. God says, in I John 5: 11-15* that it's those who receive and believe on His Son Jesus and what He did on the cross who will have everlasting life. You can also find that truth in John 1:12
"Yet, to all who recieved Him, to those who believed on His name, He gave the right to become children of God." This chapter is talking about Jesus. So there are two verbs in this verse. Can you find them?
Where are the action words? What are the two things you must do to become a child of God?
Read it again. "to all who __________ and to those who ___________ on His name"
You can tell God right now (if you never have before) that you want the blood of Jesus to count for you. If you want to become a child of God, you can talk to God just like you would to any person. Tell Him that you want to become His child and follow Him. He promises in
I John 5:12 "He who has the Son has life, he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. "
Do you believe God? He says that all have sinned (Roman 3:23) and that the payment for sin is death, Romans 6:23. Do you think you have ever done anything against the Word of God? If you don't know for sure, start reading the ten commandments in Exodus chapter 20. Have you always loved the Lord with all your heart, soul and mind? If you have never asked Jesus to be your Savior from sin, then there is only one prayer that God will answer for you. It is called the sinner's prayer. It should sound something like this:
God, please forgive me, I have sinned.
The psalmist said in Psalm 66:18 "If I had kept sin in my heart, the Lord would not have heard my prayer."
God can clean your heart. Just as it says in Hebrews 9:22 "...almost everything is cleansed [cleaned] by the blood and without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness."
So now we know that
1. not everyone is a child of God
2. one must believe
a. that they have sinned
b. that Jesus is the perfect Son of the holy, true God of the Bible
c. that God has the power to forgive your sins
d. that God keeps His promises and will forgive if one will ask God to make Jesus' blood
count to wash their sins away
3. one must turn away from his/her sin and follow Jesus' ways
4. the only prayer that God will pay attention to before we ask Christ to forgive us is the sinner's
prayer.
5. God's children can pray to Him and expect answers.
That's a lot to learn in one blog, but there is so much more for us to learn. God has given us His Word so that we can know Him and copy off of Him.
Who can pray? That's the answer to this blog's question. If you are a child of God, you can pray and expect answers from God. Learn more about prayer by reading the Bible and keep following this blog.
Next blog we'll talk about who God is. Why should we believe in the God of the Bible? Is He really the Father of Jesus?
*I John 5:11, 12 and 13 NIV (New International Version)
"And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life."
Wow! Think of it. You can KNOW that you have eternal life. Please leave a comment below and let me know what you think of all this.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
continued from "Who's In Your Car?"
Here's a quote from Andy Stanley's book mentioned in the last post, "The Best Question Ever".
"[Paul] begins the second half of the book [Ephesians] with a plea:
'I urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you
have been called.' (Eph. 4:1 ESV) IN other words, live your life in a
way that reflects the changes God has made in you. Or as a friend of
mine is fond of saying, 'Dont live the way you used to live. After all,
you are not the person you used to be.'
From there, Paul launches into one of the most practical sections in the
Bible. He talks about everything from sex, to marriage to alcohol to...you
name it. He gives instructions on what is permissible to talk about, think
about and even laugh about. The entire discussion is intense and thorough
and frankly, somewhat overwhelming. "
You may be wondering why I felt this was a "must" to post ...what was the urgency?
Four family members have just recently realized that their dear Christian friends who attend
their same church, do not have at all the same convictions as they do. Some are outright sinful
behaviors that cannot be denied as sinful. Since I learned this directly after our pastor's messages on "Who's In Your Car?" I felt God put it in my heart to share his thoughts and my own. Maybe someone who is reading this has discovered the same situation. Perhaps you are frustrated that your church friends seem to have deviated from the Word of God and even have allowed their children (friends with your children) to view ungodly things or even worse, as my one relative discovered her friend did not see the evils of viewing porn. IMPOSSIBLE? IN THE CHURCH?
Could a faithful Bible study attender say:
"What we do with our own personal time is our own business. Regardless of how ungodly my choices may seem to you, it's up to me whether I participate in such activity or not."?
Is this not what we read in Judges. Will every man do what is right in his own eyes. Will their sin effect those around them.
Does this grieve the heart of God?
Send your answers and I will continue the next time I can get on here. go to northridge.ch and search for "Who's In Your Car?"
"[Paul] begins the second half of the book [Ephesians] with a plea:
'I urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you
have been called.' (Eph. 4:1 ESV) IN other words, live your life in a
way that reflects the changes God has made in you. Or as a friend of
mine is fond of saying, 'Dont live the way you used to live. After all,
you are not the person you used to be.'
From there, Paul launches into one of the most practical sections in the
Bible. He talks about everything from sex, to marriage to alcohol to...you
name it. He gives instructions on what is permissible to talk about, think
about and even laugh about. The entire discussion is intense and thorough
and frankly, somewhat overwhelming. "
You may be wondering why I felt this was a "must" to post ...what was the urgency?
Four family members have just recently realized that their dear Christian friends who attend
their same church, do not have at all the same convictions as they do. Some are outright sinful
behaviors that cannot be denied as sinful. Since I learned this directly after our pastor's messages on "Who's In Your Car?" I felt God put it in my heart to share his thoughts and my own. Maybe someone who is reading this has discovered the same situation. Perhaps you are frustrated that your church friends seem to have deviated from the Word of God and even have allowed their children (friends with your children) to view ungodly things or even worse, as my one relative discovered her friend did not see the evils of viewing porn. IMPOSSIBLE? IN THE CHURCH?
Could a faithful Bible study attender say:
"What we do with our own personal time is our own business. Regardless of how ungodly my choices may seem to you, it's up to me whether I participate in such activity or not."?
Is this not what we read in Judges. Will every man do what is right in his own eyes. Will their sin effect those around them.
Does this grieve the heart of God?
Send your answers and I will continue the next time I can get on here. go to northridge.ch and search for "Who's In Your Car?"
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Who's in Your Car?
In the book of Judges in the Bible we learn "in those days Israel had no king and every man did what was right in his own eyes."
I am degressing from my children's blog today because of an urgent need in our country which must be addressed.
Is the above passage describing what you are seeing in your church or fellowship today? Pray to God (the God who cares and answers prayer as the Psalmist calls Him, Psalm 65:1-5) and ask Him to link you up with a group of purified and sanctified believers whose goal is "a long obedience in the same direction. (There is a book with a similar title by Peterson ) Listen to our pastor's sermon on our churches' website entitled "Who's in Your Car?" http://www.northridge.ch/
Look for the archives of sermons and find "Who's In Your Car?"
The people we hang with is a matter of great importance to God. If the church you are attending is not helping you to link up with people who are doing what's right and making wise decisions, you are on a slippery slope, as Andy Stanley puts it in"The Best Question Ever" in chapter 3.
Sorry, I'll have to finish this blog later but do go to http://www.northridge.ch/ right now and take the time to hear that message instead of reading this blog.
I am degressing from my children's blog today because of an urgent need in our country which must be addressed.
Is the above passage describing what you are seeing in your church or fellowship today? Pray to God (the God who cares and answers prayer as the Psalmist calls Him, Psalm 65:1-5) and ask Him to link you up with a group of purified and sanctified believers whose goal is "a long obedience in the same direction. (There is a book with a similar title by Peterson ) Listen to our pastor's sermon on our churches' website entitled "Who's in Your Car?" http://www.northridge.ch/
Look for the archives of sermons and find "Who's In Your Car?"
The people we hang with is a matter of great importance to God. If the church you are attending is not helping you to link up with people who are doing what's right and making wise decisions, you are on a slippery slope, as Andy Stanley puts it in"The Best Question Ever" in chapter 3.
Sorry, I'll have to finish this blog later but do go to http://www.northridge.ch/ right now and take the time to hear that message instead of reading this blog.
Friday, August 6, 2010
Does Prayer Make a Difference?
Have you ever asked yourself these questions?
What is prayer? When should we pray? Where should we pray? Where did the people of Bible times pray? How do we pray? Why should we pray? Does prayer make a difference.?
This book will help you to find these answers. It may also inspire you to learn more about prayer on your own. Perhaps then you will want to pray more. There is a very good chance that you will become closer to God if you follow what you learn in this book. You may find this to be very exciting to see how God answers prayer. Maybe you have already known the thrill of answered prayer. Take it from one who is still learning. IT IS EXCITING!
Each day you can read another portion of a book the author of this blog is writing.
We'll start with the last question above. DOES PRAYER MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
While reading a book by Donal S. Whitney, this blogger read the following about the difference prayer made in his life. The book was "SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES FOR THE CHRISTIAN LIFE".
He explains that his wife works at a job where she only has assignments occasionally. Since she hadn't been getting too many assignments, they started praying that God would increase her assignments.
Here's what happened after they started praying. One morning she called her husband, Donald S. Whitney, from her office and said,
" 'Please stop praying that the Lord will provide art work for me! I've had so many callers commissioning work this morning that it's going to take months to get it all done!'
She never had so much work come her way so quickly. There were any number of things I had been praying for (regarding not just myself, but my church and others) that the Lord could have chosen to answer. I don't know why it pleased Him to choose that particular request. Were these multiple opportunities really answers to prayer or just coincidences? God knows for sure. But I agree with the man who said, 'If it is coincidence, I sure have a lot more coincidences when I pray than when I don't.' "
Readers, if you decide to read this blog, you are making a decision to learn more about prayer. Here's the second quote from Mr. Whitney's book.
"Unless I'm badly mistaken, one of the main reasons so many of God's children don't have a significant prayer life is not so much that we don't want to, but that we don't plan to."
But that's not true of you if you decide to follow this blog almost every day. You are about to learn the answer to the question which is the title for tomorrow's blog.
Does prayer make a difference?
What is prayer? When should we pray? Where should we pray? Where did the people of Bible times pray? How do we pray? Why should we pray? Does prayer make a difference.?
This book will help you to find these answers. It may also inspire you to learn more about prayer on your own. Perhaps then you will want to pray more. There is a very good chance that you will become closer to God if you follow what you learn in this book. You may find this to be very exciting to see how God answers prayer. Maybe you have already known the thrill of answered prayer. Take it from one who is still learning. IT IS EXCITING!
Each day you can read another portion of a book the author of this blog is writing.
We'll start with the last question above. DOES PRAYER MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
While reading a book by Donal S. Whitney, this blogger read the following about the difference prayer made in his life. The book was "SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES FOR THE CHRISTIAN LIFE".
He explains that his wife works at a job where she only has assignments occasionally. Since she hadn't been getting too many assignments, they started praying that God would increase her assignments.
Here's what happened after they started praying. One morning she called her husband, Donald S. Whitney, from her office and said,
" 'Please stop praying that the Lord will provide art work for me! I've had so many callers commissioning work this morning that it's going to take months to get it all done!'
She never had so much work come her way so quickly. There were any number of things I had been praying for (regarding not just myself, but my church and others) that the Lord could have chosen to answer. I don't know why it pleased Him to choose that particular request. Were these multiple opportunities really answers to prayer or just coincidences? God knows for sure. But I agree with the man who said, 'If it is coincidence, I sure have a lot more coincidences when I pray than when I don't.' "
Readers, if you decide to read this blog, you are making a decision to learn more about prayer. Here's the second quote from Mr. Whitney's book.
"Unless I'm badly mistaken, one of the main reasons so many of God's children don't have a significant prayer life is not so much that we don't want to, but that we don't plan to."
But that's not true of you if you decide to follow this blog almost every day. You are about to learn the answer to the question which is the title for tomorrow's blog.
Does prayer make a difference?
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