DAILY DEVOTIONALS: 8.5.23

 August 1, 2023 HowTo Pray “Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.” (John16:24) Jesus promised that “whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you” (John16:23). This condition for answered prayer and its resulting fullness of joy is not just a formula with which to end a prayer. “In my name” implies representing Him and what He stands for, so that our prayer could truly be His prayer as well. For example, our prayer must be in His will. “If we ask any thing according to his will...we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him” (1John 5:14-15). We need also to recognize that God’s great purpose in creation is of higher priority than our own personal desires, so this should be of first order in our prayers. Jesus said, “When ye pray, say, Our Father....Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven,so in earth” (Luke11:2). We can also pray for our own needs, of course, especially for God to “deliver us from evil” (Luke11:4), the closing request in His model prayer. It is good to seek God’s wisdom in all our decisions and undertakings so that we can be confident we are indeed in His will, but our request for such guidance must be sincere and in willingness to act on His answer. “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask ofGod....But let him ask in faith” (James1:5-6). And it should be obvious that the request be made with a clear conscience before God. “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me” (Psalm66:18). But when we are indeed confident that we are praying “in His name” with all that this implies, then we should pray earnestly, for “the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James5:16), and when the answer comes—as it will, in God’s time—then our joy indeed will be full! HMM --------------------- RightlyDivide the Word “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing theword of truth.” (2Timothy 2:15) This command is for us to “give diligence” (Greek spoudazo) for God’s approval by “rightly dividing” the word of truth. That which is to be rightly divided is not in doubt: “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth” (John17:17). The end goal is to “display yourself” as one who is, therefore, approved by God. The key is to “rightly divide” the Scriptures. The Greek word orthotomeo, only used this one time, has several shades of meaning: to cut straight, to cut straight ways; to proceed on straight paths, hold a straight course; to make straight and smooth;to handle aright; to teach the truth directly and correctly. Two passages emphasize the way to “divide” the Scriptures. When Isaiah asked rhetorical questions about how to learn and understand biblical knowledge, the answer was “precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; herea little, and there a little” (Isaiah28:9-10). Thus: Find the major pieces first. Find the supporting elements next. Find the pieces throughout the text. Solomon, as the “wise preacher,” noted that one who would teach the people knowledge must have given “good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs” (Ecclesiastes12:9). Pay attention to the words (meanings, context). Penetrate (research) the teaching (text first, then books). Organize the information for teaching purposes. This kind of study preparation requires a “workman”—one who is willing to give the diligence necessary to produce the powerful sayings built on the “word of truth.” If properly prepared, the workman will never be “ashamed.” HMM III --------------------------- WhatWe Have Now in Christ “That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” (John3:15) The one who is trusting Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord has many wonderful possessions that cannot be seen with our physical eyes but that are as real and permanent as if we were already in heaven. Many of these (only a few of which can be listed here) arenoted by the present tense of the verb “have” (Greek echo). First of all, as our text indicates (and these are the words of Christ!), we who believe in Him have—right now—eternal life. Our sins have been taken care of by the sacrificial death of Christ, “in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace” (Ephesians1:7; see also Colossians 1:14). Our sins will be remembered against us no more, because we have already been eternally redeemed. Then, also, in spite of all our sins and failures, “being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans5:1). One of the great resources we now have, but use so seldom, is the capacity to “think God’s thoughts after Him.” “For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ” (1Corinthians 2:16). Having the mind of Christ should keep us from sin. Nevertheless, “if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1John 2:1). Not only do we have an advocate defending us, but we have a priest as our mediator. “We have a great high priest,...Jesus the Son of God” (Hebrews4:14). Finally, we already “have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens” (2Corinthians 5:1). And all this is only the beginning! “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard...the things which God hath prepared for them that love him” (1Corinthians 2:9). HMM ----------------------- Rememberthe Day of Rest “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventhday is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates.” (Exodus20:8-10) The Hebrew word for “remember” actually means to “mark” or “set aside.” The Israelites didn’t need to be told to “remember” the sabbath, because all nations had been keeping time in weeks ever since creation (Genesis2:1-3). (Note the references to the sabbath in the sending of God’s manna, prior to the giving of this commandment [Exodus 16:23-29].) But they did need to be reminded to mark it as a holy or rest day, as God had done in that first week. The Hebrew word for “sabbath” does not mean “Saturday” any more than it means “Sunday.” It means, simply, “rest” or “intermission.” The institution of the sabbath (that is, one day out of every seven days to be “set aside” as a day of rest, worship, and remembranceof the Creator) was “made for man” and his good (Mark2:27). It was even of benefit to the animals used by man (note the mention of “cattle” in the commandment). It had been a pattern observed since the completion of God’s six days of creation and making all things at the very beginning of world history (note Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 20:11). It is still appropriate today, as well. “There remaineth therefore a rest [that is, ‘a sabbath-keeping’] to the people of God” (Hebrews4:9). All men have a deep need to remember their Creator and His completed work of creation at least once each week, as well as His completed work of salvation—especially in these days when both of these finished works are so widely denied or ignored.HMM --------------------- WhatConfession Really Means - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. �1 John 1:9 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/what-confession-really-means/- Listen It�s important that we know what it means to confess our sin, because our very forgiveness hinges on our understanding of it. The Hebrew word for �confess� means to �acknowledge.� In the New Testament we could translate it �to agree with someone� or �to say the same thing as another.� We find theterm in 1 John 1:9: �But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness� (NLT). This is essentially saying that if we will agree with God about our sin, if we will acknowledge it for what it is, not make excuses for it, see it as God sees it, and turnfrom it, then we will be forgiven. But here�s the problem. Some people believe they�ve confessed their sin when they really haven�t, because they think confession is merely acknowledging their sin. For example,they�ll sin, get caught, and then say, �Okay, I confess that sin. That was a bad thing. I won�t do it again.� Later, however, they go out and do it again. So they say, �I did it again. I confess that sin.� That isn�t confession. They�re simply acknowledging their sin. They�re recognizing what is obvious. Confession, on the other hand, means to see sin for what it is, be sorryfor it, and turn from it. There are people who think they�ve confessed their sin and that God has forgiven them when, in reality, God hasn�t forgiven them at all. That�s because they haven�t done itGod�s way. They must take that sin to the cross and recognize that it�s offensive to a holy God. Then they must turn from it, stop making excuses for it, and be sorry enough to change. If you�re willing to do this when you�ve sinned, then God will forgive you. ---------------------------- Fromthe Beginning �For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by thethings that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse.� (Romans1:20) One reason we trust that the early chapters of Genesis describe history just as much as other Scriptures is that the New Testament agrees with the plain details of Genesis. What did the apostles and those they recorded say happened in the beginning? Luke 1:70 quotes John the Baptist�s father, Zacharias, as saying, �As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began.� He said that prophets have been revealing God�s words from the world�s beginning. Possibly he consideredAdam a prophet since he was present during the creation week. Consistent with this, Genesis 5:1 lists Adam as responsible for his own �book,� or written record, which presumably began in Genesis 2:4. The Lord Jesus named Adam�s son Abel a prophet in Matthew 23:35. Thus, both testaments agree that prophets were around right from the start. Romans 1:20 teaches that creation has been revealing the Lord�s �invisible things,� meaning His supernatural essence, �from the creation of the world.� Psalm 19:1 also asserts that �the heavens declare the glory of God.� Ever since God made the immense heavens, they have testified to the infinite immensity of their Creator. This means people were there to comprehend that message�from the beginning. Similarly, Hebrews 1:10 quotes Psalm 102:25, saying God laid the foundation of the earth �in the beginning,� not billions of years after the beginning. Genesis says the same. The whole Bible agrees about what God did from the very beginning. Will we submit our beliefsto what He has said? BT --------------------- Revived and Refreshed - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org The instructions of the LORD are perfect, reviving the soul. �Psalm 19:7 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/revived-and-refreshed/- Listen If you�ve ever been in the hot sun and then dove into the ocean, a lake, or a swimming pool, you know what it feels like to be revived and refreshed. I love the word refresh. It�s such a perfect term to describe starting again or returning to something. Jesus said, �Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentleat heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light� (Matthew 11:28�30 NLT). Could you use some spiritual refreshment? The place to find it is God Himself. The psalmist David wrote, �The instructions of the Lord are perfect, reviving the soul� (Psalm19:7 NLT). We will find spiritual refreshment when we read and study the Bible. We don�t always have an emotional experience when we open God�s Word and read it. But this isn�t about emotions. It�s about replenishment, restoration, and gaining perspectiveon life. It�s about getting direction from the Lord. And as you open the Bible, the Word of God, it will refresh your soul. You also will be spiritually refreshed when you think of others more than yourself. This may seem counterintuitive in today�s selfie culture. But when we stop thinking aboutourselves so much and instead think about others, it will refresh us. As we give to others, we�ll find that we�re spiritually replenished (see Proverbs 11:25). Do you need a spiritual reboot? Spend time in God�s presence. Study the Word of God. Put the needs of others above your own. Then you will find spiritual refreshment. ------------------------------------- Why We Put Off Prayer - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org Don�t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. �Philippians 4:6 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/why-we-put-off-prayer/- Listen Why don�t we pray more often? And why do we put off prayer? Maybe we don�t pray as often as we should because we think we don�t have the time. But is that really true? How much time do we spend on social media every day? Recent research says that people in the United States check their social media accounts seventeen times each day. Thatis once every waking hour. Imagine if we prayed seventeen times every day instead of checking our phones. We can waste so much time. Yet we�ll make time for what matters to us. Maybe another reason we don�t pray is that we don�t think prayer is all that important. We would never admit that outright, of course. But what do we really think about prayer?It is, in fact, very important. In the Book of Joshua, we read about the Israelites who were led out of the bondage of Egypt into a new land flowing with milk and honey. But there was an obstacle in theirpath: the mighty city of Jericho, a huge fortress. There was no way they could bring it down militarily. But God told them He would give them the city. So, they prayed and called on God, and He gave them a rather unorthodoxbattle plan. They marched around the city, yelled, and blew trumpets. But it worked, and the walls of that fortress came crashing down. Afterward they needed to conquer a smaller town called Ai. But the Israelites didn�t pray about defeating Ai. And when they went to capture it, they were soundly defeated.This serves as a reminder that we need to pray about everything. The Bible says, �Don�t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done� (Philippians 4:6 NLT). Do you havea need today? Call out to Jesus. --------------------- Shortsighted Prayers - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org But Jesus answered by saying to them, �You don�t know what you are asking! Are you able to drink from the bitter cup of suffering I am about to drink?" �Matthew 20:22 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/shortsighted-prayers/- Listen It was Jesus who gave His disciples James and John the nickname �Sons of Thunder� (Mark 3:17 NLT). Now, you don�t get a nickname like that without a reason. On one occasion during Jesus� ministry, the people in a Samaritan village weren�t responsive to His message. So, James and John said, �Lord, should we call down fire fromheaven to burn them up?� (Luke 9:54 NLT). The Bible also gives us a little hint, perhaps, as to why these two became the Sons of Thunder. One day their mother, Salome, approached Jesus with her sons�and a request: �In your Kingdom, please let my two sons sit in places of honor next to you, one on your right and the other on your left� (Matthew 20:21 NLT). But Jesus told them, �You don�t know what you are asking! Are you able to drink from the bitter cup of suffering I am about to drink?� (verse 22 NLT). What was this cup? It was the cup of God�s wrath as Jesus bore the sins of the world on the cross. Remember, in the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus prayed, �My Father! If it ispossible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine� (Matthew 26:39 NLT). God said no to their mother�s request, and no doubt they were thankful for that later. After all, Salome was there at the crucifixion of Jesus. As she stood at the foot ofthe cross, she would have seen the two criminals who hung on crosses to the right and left of Jesus. If God has said no to your prayer recently, don�t think that it�s necessarily a bad thing. It could be a very good thing, because God loves you and sees the big picture. Thereis a place for faith and prayer. But God may overrule our requests, especially when we ask for something that will harm us. ------------------------------ "IAM" in the Pentateuch �And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this landto inherit it.� (Genesis15:7) There are seven �I am�s� in the book of Genesis. The first is a beautiful figure of speech (�I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward,� Genesis 15:1), but the others are all names and titles of God. The first of these is in our text above, identifying Jehovah Himself (the LORD) with the �I am.� The next is Genesis 17:1: �I am the Almighty God.� The Hebrew here is El Shaddai (�God the nourishing sustainer�), also found in 35:11. Next is in 26:24: �I am the God of Abraham thy father: fear not, for I am with thee.� Then, �I am the LORD God ofAbraham thy father, and the God of Isaac� (28:13). �I am the God of Bethel� (31:13). Beth-el means �the house of God.� Finally, God says: �I am God, the God of thy father� (46:3). In Exodus, there are 21 places where God says �I am.� Most of these are merely variations of the different names of God as noted above in the �I am�s� of Genesis, but six do give new insight. The first, of course, is the great assertion of Exodus 3:14 where God identifies Himself as �I AM THAT I AM.� The others: �I am the LORD in the midst of the earth� (8:22); �I am the LORD that healeth thee� (15:26); �I the LORD thy God am a jealous God� (20:5); �For I am gracious� (22:27); �I am the LORDthat doth sanctify you� (31:13). In the remaining books of the Pentateuch, the phrase �I am the LORD your God� occurs very frequently, but there are two important new �I am�s.� �I am holy� occurs six times (e.g., Leviticus 11:45), and �I am thy part and thine inheritance� is recorded in Numbers 18:20. The great theme of all these claims and names of God is that the mighty God of time and space is also a caring, personal God. We can trust Him, and He cares for us. HMM -------------------------- SanctifiedThrough the Word �Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.� (John17:17) This powerful Scripture is actually part of Christ�s great prayer for His disciples recorded in John 17. But the prayer was not just for them, because later He said, �Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word� (John17:20). Christ�s earnest prayer is for His people to be sanctified, which is denoted by the Greek verb hagiazo that�s part of what�s known as the holiness word group. As holiness relates to the saints, it means to be set apart from the world and obedient to God�s Word. However, God�s Word is not just to be obeyed but to be feasted upon for the strength to obey. The persecuted prophet Jeremiah said, �Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thyname, O LORD God of hosts� (Jeremiah15:16). Christ spoke of the sanctifying empowerment of His Word when He said, �It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life� (John6:63). It�s not just the reading of God�s Word but the dynamic combination of the Holy Spirit in the meditation on God�s Word. Christ said, �Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoeverhe shall hear, that shall he speak� (John16:13). Keeping all this in mind, let us remember Peter�s exhortation: �As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby� (1Peter 2:2). JPT ------------------------ Filledand Empowered - by Greg Laurie � www.harvest.org And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. �Romans 8:2 https://harvest.org/resources/devotion/filled-and-empowered/- Listen Who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is God and a member of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit has a distinct personality, a will, and a purpose. And the Holy Spirit has a specificwork that He wants to do in our lives. Before we were Christians, the Holy Spirit convicted us of our sin and drew us to Christ. And once we believed in Christ, the Holy Spirit sealed us. The Holy Spirit also willlead us, empower us, and fill us each day as we seek to live the Christian life. Paul wrote to the believers in Ephesus, �Be filled with the Holy Spirit, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, and making music to the Lord in yourhearts� (Ephesians 5:18�19 NLT). Being filled with the Spirit has nothing to do with our emotions. Unfortunately, some people take the work of the Spirit and make it look bizarre. But that has nothing todo with the Holy Spirit. Being filled with the Spirit simply means letting the Holy Spirit control us. When we ask God to fill us, we are asking Him to control our lives. In fact, the term �filled� that Ephesians 5:18 uses to describe the filling of the Holy Spirit also carries the meaning of permeation. For example, think of how people used salt in the first century. They didn�t have refrigeration, so they rubbed salt into meat to permeate it and, as a result, preserve it.Our closest modern comparison would be jerky. So, Paul was saying the Holy Spirit wants to permeate our lives. The Holy Spirit wants to be a part of every aspect of our daily living. It isn�t about trying harder. It�s about realizing the Holy Spirit will give us the power we need to live this Christian life.