Holiness: A Necessity for Effective Prayer

Posted on January 21, 2017 by Stephen Nielsen

017

 

Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8). Hebrews 12:14 says, “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord.”  Holiness and purity are absolutely necessary for true prayer.

Those who take steps to see God and His holiness, so as to be holy like Him, to pray “Hallowed be Thy name,” to them God grants the pleasure of His friendship and of dwelling peacefully with Him. This I think is the essence of prayer—to be in His presence and to be in awe of His glory.  Therefore, when we do what it takes to be holy we lay the groundwork for prayer.

Though friendship with God I think is so important for prayer, God desires that we go beyond friendship. He makes us holy so that in our friendship with Him we may also do His work and pray according to His will.  Through holiness, as we dwell with Him in friendship, He makes us able to see things from His perspective and therefore to pray and serve Him according to His will.

Moreover, by holiness our prayers will be effective. James 5:16 says, “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.  The word “righteous” here means to be godly.  And in order to be godly we must set our heart to be holy—that is, to be as much like the sinless Jesus as we can be.  If this is your goal, God will help you to accomplish it and will hear your prayers.

Posted in Part 5, Practice of Prayer, Prayer A to Z Excerpts, Zenith of Prayer | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What If Those Pigs Were Mine? – From Matthew 8: 28-34

Posted on January 15, 2017 by Stephen Nielsen

pigs

 

This is the question that I have been asking myself after reading the following biblical story.

When he [Jesus] arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. 29 “What do you want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?”

30 Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. 31 The demons begged Jesus, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”

32 He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. 33 Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. 34 Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.

 

When I first read this, I felt angry at the town people for wanting Jesus to leave. But then I later asked myself,

How would I feel if those pigs were mine?

And by the way, Mark’s gospel tells us that there were 2,000 pigs that were drowned in the lake!

So how would I feel? And how would you feel if they were your pigs?

Would I be angry at Jesus? And would you?

Would I accept it?

Would I accept losing 2000 pigs???

I wonder how much pigs are worth today.

Well my acceptance of what happened would depend on my relationship and my knowledge of Jesus, wouldn’t it? That Jesus would somehow reimburse me, and that things would work out. Ultimately, that He has a good plan for me.

But in the story, it doesn’t appear that Jesus made any effort to apologize or to reimburse the owners, whoever they were.

You know sometimes that’s the way things happen isn’t it. God takes things away from us and doesn’t say anything about it. Or maybe He has said something. Yes, it seems to me that He has told us that if we seek His kingdom and His righteousness that all the things we need will be given to us. (in Matthew 6:33).

Maybe you are say…

I don’t have pigs, and I will never have pigs. So how does this story apply to me?

Well, you may not have pigs, but you have other thing that God may want to take away—for His good purposes. Yes, Jesus sent the demons into the pigs to drown for a purpose—for His good purpose. And if there was a purpose in what He did in that particular story, then whatever He does in your life, even if it is tragic, there will be a purpose for it, a good purpose.

God may choose to take away your…

Business,

Or your Job,

Or your house,

Or even your children and family.

Or all of it!!

If God took one or all of these things away from you how would you feel? What would you do?

You may be thinking, God would never do that because He is good.

Oh really. Well, He did it to Job.

Yes, through Satan, God tragically took everything away from him, even his health.

And why did He do that? He did it for a very good purpose, to prove to Satan—and to all of us—that Job would be loyal to Him. And in the end God restored all of what Job had and more (Job 42:12-17).

Well, I am still asking myself, that question: What if those pigs were mine? I hope I will never be angry at God for whatever He decides to do in my life that may be painful. I want to be able to trust Him always, in every circumstance. For His purposes in the world, that include me, will always be good.

 

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28-29.

 

Posted in 4 Matthew to Acts, Bible Studies, Quiet Time Highlights | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Evil: Its Source, Its Nature, and Who It Affects

Posted on January 8, 2017 by Stephen Nielsen

Stephen Nielsen's avatarStudying Bible Prophecy

006

 

As we begin this study of evil, our first duty must be to find out its source. We really don’t know how it originally began. As far as we know from scripture, it first appeared in Lucifer (Satan), who was God’s wisest and most beautiful angel—whom He created for His own glory. Indeed, his beauty and glory were like none other. However, scripture tells us, in Ezekiel 28:15, that one day “unrighteousness was found [in him].”  Also, in Isaiah 14:13-14, we read that he willed to usurp God’s position of authority.  He said, “I will make myself like the Most High.” In other words, He wanted to take God’s place—to be God himself.

So this is the only information we have as to when evil began. And we could go on and on with a discussion about why God allowed it, etc.; but I will leave that discussion for…

View original post 956 more words

Posted in Reblogs | Leave a comment

Evil: If You Search For Evil, It Will Find You! – Proverbs 11:27

Posted on January 6, 2017 by Stephen Nielsen

Stephen Nielsen's avatarStudying Bible Prophecy

023

 

Evil. This is a topic that I’m guessing many don’t like to think about, much less write about. Yet this word evil is scattered throughout the bible—Old and New Testament. I’ve been reading through Proverbs, and the other day I ran across a verse that got my attention—Proverbs 11:27 (in the NLT). It says,

If you search for good, you will find favor; but if you search for evil, it will find you!

The reason it got my attention was because I always thought of evil as being sort of a dead inconsequential force, or something that I am safe from, something that only really bad people are affected by—and I think this is the belief of a lot of people. But here in this verse evil seems almost alive. The verse says that if I look for it or desire it, it will find me! The verse doesn’t…

View original post 329 more words

Posted in Reblogs | 2 Comments

Jesus’ Promise To Believers: “I Am Coming Quickly”

Posted on January 3, 2017 by Stephen Nielsen

Stephen Nielsen's avatarStudying Bible Prophecy

002

 

In the last chapter of the bible (in verses 7, 12, and 20), Jesus tells us three times, “I am coming quickly.”

“And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book.”

12 “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.

20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. (Bold for emphasis)

And because He has been speaking (in chapters 21 and 22) of the believers’ eternal home—of the New Jerusalem, the river of life, and of seeing His face, etc.—I think, He is speaking to the church and not to the unbeliever. Thus His words are intended to be words of hope and encouragement to us. They are indeed words of promise. He…

View original post 74 more words

Posted in Reblogs | 2 Comments

Obama, Kerry, and the UN Against Israel

Posted on December 30, 2016 by Stephen Nielsen

Stephen Nielsen's avatarStudying Bible Prophecy

un-obama-kerry

The latest events at the UN have been absolutely shameful. I feel sick about it. Hal Lindsey has written an excellent article about it entitled Shameful.  I invite you to read the entire artitle. I feel strongly that this turning against Israel is an indicator that our Lord is coming soon.

 

‘Shameful’

By Hal Lindsey

The Drudge Report headline read, “OBAMA BACKSTABS ISRAEL.”

The New York Post titled their editorial on the subject, “Obama’s appalling UN betrayal.”

It happened on the Friday afternoon before a Sunday Christmas.  The United States allowed passage of a UN Security Council resolution that condemned Israel’s settlements and, in effect, proclaimed that every bit of land beyond the 1967 borders already belongs to the Palestinians.  That includes East Jerusalem with the Temple Mount and the Wailing Wall.

The original resolution had been sponsored by Egypt and scheduled for a vote on Thursday the 22nd.  But a…

View original post 103 more words

Posted in Reblogs | 2 Comments

Fasting: A Great Prayer Aid with Continual Rewards

Posted on December 26, 2016 by Stephen Nielsen

017

 

Those who are serious about prayer and about doing the will of God will use this great prayer aid. It is the best way I know of to detach yourself from earthly, sinful things and to keep your physical appetites under control—so as to prepare your heart for the kind of serious prayer you desire.

Fasting with prayer will cleanse and renews your heart, give you a deep hunger for God, and will make you more sensitive to the things of the Spirit—so that you will be able to understand the deep things of God (1 Cor. 2:10), things that the natural man has no knowledge of (1 Cor. 2:14).

As fasting does its work of cleansing, you will be more and more desirous of prayer—to pray with more earnestness. Continued fasting will help you to express that earnest desire, and at the same time kindle in your soul even more earnest zeal so that you are willing and prepared to continue praying until God gives you the answers you desire.

And fasting not only helps to bring us answers to pressing current problems; it will continue to aid your prayers (and your life). One time of fasting will pay you dividends for a lifetime, even for eternity.

Ronald Dunn, in his book, Don’t Just Stand There Pray Something, writes,

The word Jesus uses for reward [the reward of fasting] in verse 16 [Mathew 6:16, misthon] is different from the one used in verse 18 [apodidomi].  The word used to describe the reward of the hypocrite implies an immediate reward and a reward paid in full. In other words, “What you see is what you get.”  But the word Jesus uses to describe the reward given in response to the right spirit [apodidomi] suggests a restoration over a period of time.  The rewards of fasting are like dividends from blue chip stock.  Day after day, God continues to unfold for you and others the rewards of fasting (p. 168).

 

 

 

 

Posted in Part 5, Practice of Prayer, Prayer A to Z Excerpts, Zenith of Prayer | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Scripture Memory: Five Ways It Will Aid Your Prayers

Posted on December 16, 2016 by Stephen Nielsen

019

 

Scripture memory is a vital part of both meditation and prayer. Here are five ways scripture memory will aid your prayers:

1. The memorized Word is our best weapon against the enemy. When Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, each time Jesus countered the temptation with, “it is written” (Matt. 4:4-10). To say back to Satan “it is written,” and then to quote an appropriate verse, will bring unbelievable power to your prayers. It will leave Satan speechless (read 2 Corinthians 10:4-5).

2. Scripture memory is our best defense against all evil. If you memorize a verse for every lie Satan tells you, you will build for yourself a huge stronghold of truth, and your prayers will be greatly empowered.

3. When we memorize God’s Word it helps us to know Him, love Him and have faith in Him. Whenever we commit scripture to memory it forces us to think about it and dwell on it and keep it with us always. When we memorize scripture, instead of just reading it and leaving it, there is a much better chance that we will abide in it, and thus abide in Him—giving prayer its ultimate power. John 15:7 says, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.”

4. The memorized Word makes us pure. Psalms 119:9 and 11 says, “How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. 11 Your word I have hidden in my heart that I might not sin against You.”

Here we see that when we hide God’s Word in our heart, it will serve to keep us from sin (v. 11). But if we do sin, the memorized Word (when we obey it) also serves as a cleansing agent (v. 9).  Thus the Word makes us pure and keeps us pure.  And when we are pure our prayers will be unhindered.

5. The memorized Word will bring form to our prayers. Have you ever prayed but just couldn’t find the right words? That is common for us all. But scripture memory can be helpful for that problem, because the Holy Spirit will put those passages you have memorized into your prayers. In fact, He will use the memorized Word (especially from the Psalms) to show you what is really on your heart so that you will be able to pray a scripture passage back to God that expresses exactly how you feel.  And He will also bring verses up from your memory banks to show you how He feels and what He wants you to pray; that is, He will bring His thoughts from His heart to your heart through verses you have memorized. The memorized Word actually becomes spontaneous prayer!  What a powerful way to pray!

 If you want to follow my progress, here are the nine prayer aids that I have been writing on. In my last post I wrote on meditation; next time it will be on fasting—a very valuable aid to prayer, one we often ignore and don’t like to think about for obvious reasons.

  1. Meditation
  2. Scripture memory
  3. Fasting
  4. Holiness
  5. Biblical (inspired) prayers
  6. Forgiving others
  7. Serving others
  8. Witnessing
  9. Praise
Posted in Part 5, Practice of Prayer, Prayer A to Z Excerpts, Zenith of Prayer | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Nine Aids to Christian Prayer: # 1 — Meditation

Posted on December 10, 2016 by Stephen Nielsen

003

 

A good thing to consider in your practice of prayer is to develop prayer aids—practices that will come along side of prayer to support your prayers. Our best aid of course is the Holy Spirit.  We can’t pray at all without the Holy Spirit.  He intercedes for us and He tells us in our spirit how to pray according to the will of God (Rom. 8:26-27).  And He is the prime mover of all the other things that support and aid prayer—things that make us ready to pray and that make us strong in prayer.

I have come up with nine things that will assist the Christian in prayer:

  1. Meditation
  2. Scripture memory
  3. Fasting
  4. Holiness
  5. Biblical (inspired) prayers
  6. Forgiving others
  7. Serving others
  8. Witnessing
  9. Praise

Over the next couple of months I will be presenting blog posts on these nine prayer aids, in an effort to make you stronger in prayer. Today we will focus on the first one, meditation.

004

MEDITATION

 

There are a number of ways that our meditation on the Word (the Holy Bible) helps us pray. First of all, when we meditate on the Word each day it serves as a cleansing agent, cleaning us from sin.  Here is how it works: when we read the Word and meditate on it, the Holy Spirit uses the truth of the Word (applies the Word to our heart and mind) to convict us of our sins and convince us that we should confess our sins.  Then as we confess our sins to God, He forgives us; and the Holy Spirit takes the Word and washes us clean so that our mind and heart is made new (1 Jn. 1:9).

The cleansing of the Word, starting with confession, is our best preparation for prayer. But it doesn’t have to end with confession.  If we continue feeding on the Word and are obedient to it, God will speak to our heart and tell us what is on His heart.  As we let the Word teach us, reprove us, correct us, and instruct us in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16), the Holy Spirit will continue to cleanse and renew our heart to make us even more ready for prayer.

If we continue to meditate on the Word, more and more, His voice (coming through the words of scripture) will be pleasant to us, so that we desire Him and delight in Him. David said, “I love Your commandments more than gold, yes, than fine gold” (Ps. 119:127)!

I suppose we can say that we desire His Word because He makes us desire it; that is, when we meditate on the Word the Holy Spirit does a work in our heart and mind so that our thoughts and desires are conformed to His thoughts and desires.

Consequently, because we meditate on the Word, we can pray with confidence that He will give us the desires of our heart. As the Psalmist has promised, “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart” (Ps. 37:4).

Over all, meditation shows us who God is, what He has done for us and how He loves us. When we meditate on His Word He helps us to love Him and trust Him and to have confidence in Him.  By meditation on the Word we become more and more conformed to His image (2 Cor. 3:18).  With each bit of scripture we think about and obey we become more like Him.  What a great aid to prayer meditation is!

005

Posted in Part 5, Practice of Prayer, Prayer A to Z Excerpts, Zenith of Prayer | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

4 Reasons Why It Is Important To Have A Special Place for Prayer

Posted on December 3, 2016 by Stephen Nielsen

86660010

 

Whenever you pray it is important to first have a special place picked out where you believe God will speak to you and where you will experience His presence.

Here are four good reasons why praying in a particular, quiet place is better that praying on-the-go.

1. When we find a quiet place to pray it gives us a chance to rest from all the evils of the world. When we shut out the world and meditate only on the things of God, as we rest our mind and our spirit in prayer, we also rest our body.

2.  A quiet place allows me to better dwell and commune with God. David said in Psalms 27:4,

 

One thing I have desired of the Lord,

That will I seek:

That I may dwell in the house of the Lord

All the days of my life,

To behold the beauty of the Lord,

And to inquire in His temple.

 

When God allows us to find a place where we can quiet our hearts before Him, we in turn are better able to see Him—to see His beauty. Even if we are in the desert or if we are praying at night in the dark, if we are tuned into God He will allow us to see His beauty in our mind and in our spirit.

In that quiet place we are also better able to inquire of Him. A soul that is rested and not in turmoil has a heart that is open and a spirit that is free to communicate what is on the heart.  Moreover, the secret place of prayer is where we are best able to tell God our secrets and where He tells us secrets.

3.  A quiet place is where we best learn from God. He says to us, “Be still and know that I am God” (Ps. 46:10). When we are still and quiet before Him we will learn His voice. And when we find a quiet place to study and meditate on His Word He will be faithful to show us His will and His ways.

4.  If you can find a quiet place to pray it will allow you to be more focused on God and tuned into His presence. In this new found place, if you have come seeking God and are yielded to Him, He will let you find Him. Here the body may suffer a bit (especially if you are fasting), but your spirit will be awakened as His Spirit creates in you greater and greater desires for Him. Soon, if you continue to seek Him, you will lose the impression of the world and gain the impression of Christ. If you continue knocking on His door, seeking for more of Him so that your whole being—body, soul, and spirit—is reaching out to Him in praise and prayer, He won’t disappoint you.  He will indeed come to you (Matt. 7:8).  In these times, in these special places, God sometimes not only awakens the spirit, but He rejuvenates the body so that the whole man is revived and enraptured by His presence.  It is in these places that we will often capture a sense of timelessness, where heaven invades earth and floods us with heavenly joy; it is a joy so unspeakable; it is the joy of His presence that fills the heart and energizes the whole body (Rev. 3:20).

 

Posted in Part 5, Practice of Prayer, Prayer A to Z Excerpts, Zenith of Prayer | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment