For the month of October I will be in Kamchatka, the far east Russia - away from easy access to the internet. I simply ask that if you read this that you will pray for me. I am asking the Lord that I remain anointed and full of the Holy Spirit, in gifts and fruits and boldness, so I can minister. I have tried to minister without the anointing and it is a miserable time for all...
Please also pray for my wife Malana. She will have all the responsibilities while I am gone. May the awareness of the Lord's presence be her portion.
Thanks!
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Wrestling in Prayer part 2
I have been thinking about the concept of wrestling in prayer. Previously in doing so I did not look at our ancestor Jacob when he wrestled with that man whom Jacob afterward called God. Jacob was in what looked like to him the most dangerous time of his life. His brother Esau was coming to greet him with 400 men. Not exactly a group you’d take on a picnic! Jacob was fearful because he had cheated his brother of the rights of the firstborn and his blessing. He had reason to be afraid of Esau.
Having sent his family and all his possessions on ahead, Jacob wrestled all night with some man. Why we are not told except that Jacob wanted this man to bless him. He had his father’s blessing, but this blessing was more important. So much so that Jacob would not let the man go, even after the man dislocated Jacob’s leg at the hip. Talk about not taking no for an answer!
This reminds me of the woman who wanted Jesus to deliver her child from a demonic possession, but she was a Gentile and had no right to Jesus’ blessing. She even endured Jesus’ sharp refusal with an apt rely. “Even the dogs get the crumbs that fall from the table” she said. Jesus was amazed at her faith – her refusal to take no for an answer. She had great faith.
Jacob was like this – fully determined to be blessed by God. How he knew this man was God, it does not say. Can you say Theophany?
When we wrestle in prayer are we wrestling with God? Is God reluctant to bless, to answer our prayers? I still don’t think so. Why did the man wrestle with Jacob all night when he apparently could have defeated him at any time? What did Jacob have to do to be blessed?
Jacob had to confess his name before God. “What is your name” the man asked. The last time Jacob was asked this question he lied. He said that his name was Esau. The blessing that Jacob received then was all built on deception. Now he could use no deception – he had to confess the truth about himself in order to be blessed. And the Lord blessed him by changing his name to Israel. Jacob was now a prince with God – one who struggled with God and has come through to victory.
God is not reluctant to answer our prayers. But we have to understand a little bit about prayer. Why pray? Why pray to God who loves us and knows what we need before we ask? Prayer is not a conduit for us to inform God of things he does not know. It is not a way to get God to do stuff he really does not want to do. Prayer must be a way in which we are transformed by entering into a union with God regarding things that God already wants to do.
The first step in this transformation is a willingness to admit before God who we really are. “God be merciful to me a sinner” is what gives us standing with God. The man didn’t need to know Jacob’s name. He knew who he was wrestling with. To ask Jacob his name must have been for Jacob’s sake. “I am a supplanter, a grasper of heels,” admits Jacob.
Jacob didn’t want this blessing to be based on anything other than the truth. I tend to think that this wrestling with God had more to do with bringing Jacob to a place of honesty and dependence more than anything else. This seems to be why the match lasted all night.
Sometimes our prayers feel like they are falling on deaf ears. Don’t stop praying but take the time to examine your own heart. Who are you really? Can you be called a dog by Jesus and still have faith to receive? We can bank on the righteousness of God. He will bless us with answered prayer. We on our part need to believe that indeed our God is lord of all and nothing can separate us from His love. We cannot dress ourselves up in a way to fool our God. He knows exactly who we are yet still loves us. While we were yet sinners Christ dies for us, demonstrating for all time his undying love. Surely he will answer our prayer. But will we have faith to see it?
Having sent his family and all his possessions on ahead, Jacob wrestled all night with some man. Why we are not told except that Jacob wanted this man to bless him. He had his father’s blessing, but this blessing was more important. So much so that Jacob would not let the man go, even after the man dislocated Jacob’s leg at the hip. Talk about not taking no for an answer!
This reminds me of the woman who wanted Jesus to deliver her child from a demonic possession, but she was a Gentile and had no right to Jesus’ blessing. She even endured Jesus’ sharp refusal with an apt rely. “Even the dogs get the crumbs that fall from the table” she said. Jesus was amazed at her faith – her refusal to take no for an answer. She had great faith.
Jacob was like this – fully determined to be blessed by God. How he knew this man was God, it does not say. Can you say Theophany?
When we wrestle in prayer are we wrestling with God? Is God reluctant to bless, to answer our prayers? I still don’t think so. Why did the man wrestle with Jacob all night when he apparently could have defeated him at any time? What did Jacob have to do to be blessed?
Jacob had to confess his name before God. “What is your name” the man asked. The last time Jacob was asked this question he lied. He said that his name was Esau. The blessing that Jacob received then was all built on deception. Now he could use no deception – he had to confess the truth about himself in order to be blessed. And the Lord blessed him by changing his name to Israel. Jacob was now a prince with God – one who struggled with God and has come through to victory.
God is not reluctant to answer our prayers. But we have to understand a little bit about prayer. Why pray? Why pray to God who loves us and knows what we need before we ask? Prayer is not a conduit for us to inform God of things he does not know. It is not a way to get God to do stuff he really does not want to do. Prayer must be a way in which we are transformed by entering into a union with God regarding things that God already wants to do.
The first step in this transformation is a willingness to admit before God who we really are. “God be merciful to me a sinner” is what gives us standing with God. The man didn’t need to know Jacob’s name. He knew who he was wrestling with. To ask Jacob his name must have been for Jacob’s sake. “I am a supplanter, a grasper of heels,” admits Jacob.
Jacob didn’t want this blessing to be based on anything other than the truth. I tend to think that this wrestling with God had more to do with bringing Jacob to a place of honesty and dependence more than anything else. This seems to be why the match lasted all night.
Sometimes our prayers feel like they are falling on deaf ears. Don’t stop praying but take the time to examine your own heart. Who are you really? Can you be called a dog by Jesus and still have faith to receive? We can bank on the righteousness of God. He will bless us with answered prayer. We on our part need to believe that indeed our God is lord of all and nothing can separate us from His love. We cannot dress ourselves up in a way to fool our God. He knows exactly who we are yet still loves us. While we were yet sinners Christ dies for us, demonstrating for all time his undying love. Surely he will answer our prayer. But will we have faith to see it?
Friday, September 17, 2010
Wrestling in Prayer
I have been thinking about prayer. Every time I read verses like Matt 21:22 “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer”, I am floored by the import. Can Jesus really have meant this? What is the catch? It is simply the only if in that passage – if you believe. There can be no other catch.
What is it to believe? When I met Jesus I believed. “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. “ (Jn 1:12-13 NIV) I had no doubt, I was born of God. When I asked to be filled with the Holy Spirit – baptized in the Holy Ghost – I received. No doubt about it.
And there have been many answered prayers, yet I still wrestle with doubt. Or is it faith that I wrestle with? It is a matter of some importance. If I’m wrestling with doubt, I have faith. If I’m wrestling with faith, I am in doubt. Regardless, it seems the path to follow is the same. Believe the truth.
Wrestling in prayer is not just a 21st century angst thing, it has an ancient pedigree. Paul wrote in Col 4:12 NIV about “Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured”.
Now what kind of wrestling was Epaphras doing? Was it with faith or was it with doubt? Or was it with wicked Spirits whose dominion he was invading? Or was it with himself so he would keep on praying until he was assured by the Holy Spirit that his prayer was answered? All of these have been put forward as an answer to this question. Let’s look at them a little bit closer.
What was Epaphras’s prayer? That the Colossians would stand firm in all the will of God. That they would be mature and fully assured. (Assured of what? I might add). Do you think that maybe Epaphras didn’t believe that the Colossians would stand firm and he had to convince himself that they would so he could pray in faith? Or maybe he was tempted to doubt that they would stand firm so he wrestled with doubt. Or is it more likely that demon spirits were preventing the Colossians from standing firm in all the will of God and he was wrestling with them? What precedents do we have?
Many will take us to Daniel for the concept of wrestling with the spirits. Unfortunately for this point of view, Daniel didn’t wrestle. What Daniel saw was “a man dressed in linen, with a belt of the finest gold around his waist. His body was like chrysolite, his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and his voice like the sound of a multitude.” Dan 10:5-6 NIV This man then said, “Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. Dan 10:12-13 NIV So we see that it was this mysterious man with the voice like a multitude who was dealing with the “prince/king(s) of Persia”. Regardless of who you might think the prince/king(s) of Persia might be, Daniel was humbling himself in fasting and prayer.
But why did Daniel continue this for three weeks? Why three weeks? Was it just until he got an answer? Or was it until he was done “mourning”? Scripture doesn’t say.
One time Paul sought the Lord for an answer to his problem of the “thorn in the flesh” that was making him weak. He prayed three time! Yes, a whole three times! Then he was answered. “My strength is made perfect in weakness” was the answer.
Daniel set his mind, he was determined, to get an answer from the Lord. He humbled himself three weeks, then it seems was done. The man told Daniel that the answer came when he first prayed! How often do we pray just a casual “if it be your will” and then go get something to eat? How often are we, am I, determined to get an answer? When do we pray with such determination?
This brings to mind a verses of scripture that read “if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.” Deut 4:29 and “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the Lord”. Jer 29:13-14 NIV This seeking is to be done with all your heart.
If we truly believed that we could find the answers to all our questions and solutions to all our problems buried in the backyard, who among us would not be now digging? And if you did not find the treasure immediately, would you stop digging? Not if you still believed. Paul wrote that his “purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Col 2:2-3 NIV We know where it all is! It is in Jesus! Can you dig it?
So if we need an answer to our prayer, do we believe? What will we do if we believe? Keep on praying until we receive! This often takes wrestling, probably with our flesh so we can continue until we are answered. The old saints used to call this prevailing prayer, or praying through. I need to pray through until I’m answered. Do you?
What is it to believe? When I met Jesus I believed. “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. “ (Jn 1:12-13 NIV) I had no doubt, I was born of God. When I asked to be filled with the Holy Spirit – baptized in the Holy Ghost – I received. No doubt about it.
And there have been many answered prayers, yet I still wrestle with doubt. Or is it faith that I wrestle with? It is a matter of some importance. If I’m wrestling with doubt, I have faith. If I’m wrestling with faith, I am in doubt. Regardless, it seems the path to follow is the same. Believe the truth.
Wrestling in prayer is not just a 21st century angst thing, it has an ancient pedigree. Paul wrote in Col 4:12 NIV about “Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured”.
Now what kind of wrestling was Epaphras doing? Was it with faith or was it with doubt? Or was it with wicked Spirits whose dominion he was invading? Or was it with himself so he would keep on praying until he was assured by the Holy Spirit that his prayer was answered? All of these have been put forward as an answer to this question. Let’s look at them a little bit closer.
What was Epaphras’s prayer? That the Colossians would stand firm in all the will of God. That they would be mature and fully assured. (Assured of what? I might add). Do you think that maybe Epaphras didn’t believe that the Colossians would stand firm and he had to convince himself that they would so he could pray in faith? Or maybe he was tempted to doubt that they would stand firm so he wrestled with doubt. Or is it more likely that demon spirits were preventing the Colossians from standing firm in all the will of God and he was wrestling with them? What precedents do we have?
Many will take us to Daniel for the concept of wrestling with the spirits. Unfortunately for this point of view, Daniel didn’t wrestle. What Daniel saw was “a man dressed in linen, with a belt of the finest gold around his waist. His body was like chrysolite, his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and his voice like the sound of a multitude.” Dan 10:5-6 NIV This man then said, “Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. Dan 10:12-13 NIV So we see that it was this mysterious man with the voice like a multitude who was dealing with the “prince/king(s) of Persia”. Regardless of who you might think the prince/king(s) of Persia might be, Daniel was humbling himself in fasting and prayer.
But why did Daniel continue this for three weeks? Why three weeks? Was it just until he got an answer? Or was it until he was done “mourning”? Scripture doesn’t say.
One time Paul sought the Lord for an answer to his problem of the “thorn in the flesh” that was making him weak. He prayed three time! Yes, a whole three times! Then he was answered. “My strength is made perfect in weakness” was the answer.
Daniel set his mind, he was determined, to get an answer from the Lord. He humbled himself three weeks, then it seems was done. The man told Daniel that the answer came when he first prayed! How often do we pray just a casual “if it be your will” and then go get something to eat? How often are we, am I, determined to get an answer? When do we pray with such determination?
This brings to mind a verses of scripture that read “if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.” Deut 4:29 and “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the Lord”. Jer 29:13-14 NIV This seeking is to be done with all your heart.
If we truly believed that we could find the answers to all our questions and solutions to all our problems buried in the backyard, who among us would not be now digging? And if you did not find the treasure immediately, would you stop digging? Not if you still believed. Paul wrote that his “purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Col 2:2-3 NIV We know where it all is! It is in Jesus! Can you dig it?
So if we need an answer to our prayer, do we believe? What will we do if we believe? Keep on praying until we receive! This often takes wrestling, probably with our flesh so we can continue until we are answered. The old saints used to call this prevailing prayer, or praying through. I need to pray through until I’m answered. Do you?
Monday, September 13, 2010
Turning Controversy into Church Ministry: a Christlike response to homosexuality By W.P. Campbell Published by Zondervan 2010
W.P. Campbell likes balance. He has turned a very difficult topic into a balancing act between two extremes. Our topic is homosexuality. The balance is grace and truth. The extremes are the affirmation of gays and lesbians as they are on one hand while on the other hand is the bashing of gays and lesbians without offering any compassion, love, or hope. It is Campbell’s heart that homosexuality be considered a temptation and sin like any other with Jesus as our savior. He offers hope and understanding to those who struggle with unwanted same-sex attractions. He offers guidance to Christians and churches who want to minister to those who so struggle.
Turning Controversy into Church Ministry is a book that attempts to simplify the current issues surrounding homosexuality . It is written from the stance of a moderately conservative Christian viewpoint that wants to, in the midst of swirling controversy, be an eye in the middle of the storm. He wants to “equip Christians and their churches to provide a Christlike response to homosexuality and to people who struggle with unwanted same-sex attractions”. (p.7)He does this by demonstrating, quite clearly to my way of thinking, that the “liberal” and “conservative” stances on homosexuality are actually extremes that need each other in order to find balance. Campbell writes that his book “is not a call for compromise but a call to deeper Christian commitment”. (p.7) Campbell wants us to see that Christ’s way does not affirm sinful behavior. Yet Christ’s way not only loves the sinner, but has provided all that is needed for anyone to live a godly life.
Campbell interacts carefully with those who believe that God made some who are born to be homosexual and also feels that fulfilling those desires is normal and right. By going through each place in scripture that refers to homosexual behavior Campbell shows that this view cannot be maintained and still hold to scripture as “useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work”. (2 Tim 3:16-17NIV) He realizes that his way of thinking will not convince those who do not hold to such a view of scripture or those who are not interested in overcoming their same-sex attractions.
But to those who do hold a similar view of scripture his argument is very good. Additionally Campbell discusses the genetics question, the stance of modern psychology, and the poor responses of the church regarding homosexuality. In each of these areas Campbell shows how the truth has been distorted. He even discusses some of the roots of these distortions.
He also interacts with those who see homosexuals as an abomination in a similar fashion. The church’s negative response to homosexuals has hurt the spread of the gospel, not only among the homosexuals, but also the general public. Campbell then carefully brings correction to those who judge the homosexual along with the sin of homosexuality. He urges us to separate the sin from the sinner and find positive ways to relate to the homosexual. One example was taking part in a march against AIDS. By this they showed to the homosexual community that they are sensitive to their plight. This example of compassion is, as Campbell believes, also an example of Jesus’ heart.
This is the crux of the book. Christians must show Jesus’ love to all. This promotes the gospel to all, homosexual and non-homosexual alike. Campbell then identifies six ministry spheres, rooted in the love of God, through which the church can minister to the homosexual. These spheres are prayer, leadership, healing, mentors, small groups, and outreach. With these a church can provide a real door of hope to those who struggle with same-sex temptations.
We cannot leave this issue in the closet, so to speak. Christians have to examine their own hearts and see if their actions and reactions are truly built upon Christ and His love. Too long we have accepted behavior that upon inspection does not stand up to the light of scripture. Turning Controversy Into Church Ministry by W.P. Campbell is a good guide that helps us with this kind of heart scrutiny.
Turning Controversy into Church Ministry is a book that attempts to simplify the current issues surrounding homosexuality . It is written from the stance of a moderately conservative Christian viewpoint that wants to, in the midst of swirling controversy, be an eye in the middle of the storm. He wants to “equip Christians and their churches to provide a Christlike response to homosexuality and to people who struggle with unwanted same-sex attractions”. (p.7)He does this by demonstrating, quite clearly to my way of thinking, that the “liberal” and “conservative” stances on homosexuality are actually extremes that need each other in order to find balance. Campbell writes that his book “is not a call for compromise but a call to deeper Christian commitment”. (p.7) Campbell wants us to see that Christ’s way does not affirm sinful behavior. Yet Christ’s way not only loves the sinner, but has provided all that is needed for anyone to live a godly life.
Campbell interacts carefully with those who believe that God made some who are born to be homosexual and also feels that fulfilling those desires is normal and right. By going through each place in scripture that refers to homosexual behavior Campbell shows that this view cannot be maintained and still hold to scripture as “useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work”. (2 Tim 3:16-17NIV) He realizes that his way of thinking will not convince those who do not hold to such a view of scripture or those who are not interested in overcoming their same-sex attractions.
But to those who do hold a similar view of scripture his argument is very good. Additionally Campbell discusses the genetics question, the stance of modern psychology, and the poor responses of the church regarding homosexuality. In each of these areas Campbell shows how the truth has been distorted. He even discusses some of the roots of these distortions.
He also interacts with those who see homosexuals as an abomination in a similar fashion. The church’s negative response to homosexuals has hurt the spread of the gospel, not only among the homosexuals, but also the general public. Campbell then carefully brings correction to those who judge the homosexual along with the sin of homosexuality. He urges us to separate the sin from the sinner and find positive ways to relate to the homosexual. One example was taking part in a march against AIDS. By this they showed to the homosexual community that they are sensitive to their plight. This example of compassion is, as Campbell believes, also an example of Jesus’ heart.
This is the crux of the book. Christians must show Jesus’ love to all. This promotes the gospel to all, homosexual and non-homosexual alike. Campbell then identifies six ministry spheres, rooted in the love of God, through which the church can minister to the homosexual. These spheres are prayer, leadership, healing, mentors, small groups, and outreach. With these a church can provide a real door of hope to those who struggle with same-sex temptations.
We cannot leave this issue in the closet, so to speak. Christians have to examine their own hearts and see if their actions and reactions are truly built upon Christ and His love. Too long we have accepted behavior that upon inspection does not stand up to the light of scripture. Turning Controversy Into Church Ministry by W.P. Campbell is a good guide that helps us with this kind of heart scrutiny.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)