A Dead Child Brought to Life through Elisha’s Obedient Prayer — 2 Kings 4:33

Posted on March 2, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen
 

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2 Kings 4:33 
He went in therefore, shut the door behind the two of them, and prayed to the LORD.

 

Elisha was a man of great faith, and gifted by God to do miracles just as Elijah his predecessor had done.  Here, in the context of Elisha’s first recorded prayer (2 Kings 4:33), a Shunamite woman’s son had died; and the woman, being a friend of Elisha, and knowing that he was a great man of God, ran to get him so that he could raise her son.  But interestingly, he didn’t at once rush off to raise the lad; instead, he gave his servant Gehazi his staff and told him to go to the lad and lay the staff on the lad’s face.  Well, Gehazi did what Elisha instructed him to do, but then returned to Elisha and said, “The child has not awakened.”

Of course not!  How could a staff raise anyone from the dead?  Some commentators say that Elisha did not actually think that his staff could raise the child.  But he sent his servant out to attempt it in order to teach him and the Shunamite woman, and any others watching that the power to do miracles does not come magically by any staff, but by the power of God through prayer.

Well, as it happened, soon after Gehazi attempted to raise the child (and failed), Elisha came, and went into the room where the lad was, and he “prayed to the Lord.”  The things that Elisha did next—laying himself on the child, putting his mouth on the child’s mouth, and his eyes on the child’s eyes, and his hands on the child’s hands—I take it that he did them in direct obedience to God, as He spoke to him and instructed him in his prayer.  And so it happed that the flesh of the child became warm.  Then, after Elisha walked back and forth in the house (he probably prayed as he walked), God spoke to him again and told him to stretch himself on the child once more; and this time the lad sneezed seven times and he opened his eyes.

 

Holy Father,
Help us as we pray.
Give us faith to believe you
And persistence
when we pray
for impossible things.
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Seven Weeks and Sixty-Two Weeks: From the Issuing Of A Decree until Messiah the Prince — from Daniel 9:25

Posted on February 27, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen

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Stephen Nielsen's avatarStudying Bible Prophecy

Daniel praying In previous blog posts we have looked at the seventy weeks (of years) of Daniel (mainly from Daniel 9:24). Here in this post and in the next two posts we will be studying verses 25 through 27.  In these verses we have laid out so clearly before us a timeline of the entire seventy week period (490 years)—and it also includes a large gap of time that is not part of the seventy weeks.  Verse 25 tells us when the seventy week period begins and when week sixty-nine ends.  Verse 26, as we will explain, gives us key events that come as a gap of time between the end of the sixty-ninth week and the beginning of the seventieth week.  Last, verse 27 describes key events in the seventieth week—which is the great Tribulation period.

 Our study for this post will be from Daniel 9:25.

 So you are to…

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Snow in Minnesota: God Has Made Me Glad!

Posted on February 22, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen
 
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After the snow had come and gone
After a good night’s rest
I woke with a song
The sun had come
And I was hungry
So I went to get some breakfast
and a cup of coffee
 
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I ate and drank
and read my book
Then I went
to take a look
 
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What beauty all around
What contrast
The wonderful blue sky
Brown, marble trees
Very white ice and snow
 
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Tall towers
Reaching to heaven
Decorating the white path
with shadows
 
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O Lord!
What a sight!
I am so delighted by
the beauty I see
 
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White trees everywhere
Surrounded by your beautiful
bright, blue sky
 
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Crisp, icy branches
Reaching to heaven
Thankful for the Sun
 
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A man sits on a bench
full of snow
I said, “Hello”
He said hello too
“A beautiful day,” I said
“Yes it is,” he said
“I’m enjoying the sunshine.”
 
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I found a stick nearby
I used for walking
A dog came along
and wanted to fetch it
 
I threw it once
 And that was enough
I could see
He was friskier than I
 
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The clean, bright snow
The crisp, cool air
The man in the chair
I thank the Lord today
He is so wonderful
He loves to please me
I love to be near Him
 
Psalm 73:28
But as for me, the nearness of God is my good;
I have made the Lord God my refuge,
That I may tell of all Thy works.
 
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The Nearness of God Is My Good: Five Bible Passages

Posted on February 19, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen

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Yes, the nearness of God is our good.  And we experience His nearness in all of creation.  When I behold all that He has made and know that He is present in all of it, and that He is always near me, I feel better and I feel empowered to do good and to be good.

The following five Bible passages will shed more light on this truth:

08320012 1.  The whole earth is full of His glory — Isaiah 6:3

“Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts,
The whole earth is full of His glory.”

 

A more literal translation of this second line is, the fullness of the whole earth is His glory.  In other word, His glory or His presence can be seen and experienced in all that He has created.  All that we see has His ownership mark on it, and likewise the mark of His character—His beauty and intelligence. But besides the visible things we see, Romans 1: 20 reminds us that…

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2. In His creation we are able to somehow see His invisible attributes — Romans 1:20

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.
 

Yes, in God creation we see His eternal power and divine nature—so that we are without excuse not to honor Him and trust Him.

0033. In the heavens we see God’s handiwork — Psalm 19:1

The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.

 

0054. The animals, the birds and the fish teach us about God — Job 12:7-10

 But now ask the beasts, and let them teach you;
And the birds of the heavens, and let them tell you.
8 “Or speak to the earth, and let it teach you;
And let the fish of the sea declare to you.
9 “Who among all these does not know
That the hand of the Lord has done this,
10 In whose hand is the life of every living thing,
And the breath of all mankind?

 

Yes, we should let the beasts, the birds and the fish teach us about God—that he has given them life, hence that He is a life giver, and that he has given us and all things life.

5.  God sends us rain — Psalm 147:8; Matthew 5:48

 Psalm 147:8
Who covers the heavens with clouds,
Who provides rain for the earth,
Who makes grass to grow on the mountains.

The goodness of God sends rain to us all for our good—for our strength and health.  Whenever it rains we ought to remember that He is good and that He cares for us all.

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Knowing That God Is Near Gives Us Strength for Purity

Posted on February 17, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen

Stephen Nielsen's avatarStudying Bible Prophecy

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A pastor once said to a man who couldn’t resist clicking on porn sites, “If you knew that Jesus was near you, sitting right next to you while you were on your computer, would you still click on porn sites?”

 The man said, “Of course not! I wouldn’t want Jesus to see that stuff!”

One of the points of the sermon in my church today was that faith knows that God is near, always present—hence, the above illustration that was given.  And so it follows that, when we know that God is near, that is when our faith is activated, and then we are able to resist temptation.

My best verse for purity—which starts in the mind—is Psalm 16:8: “I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.”

Unfortunately, I don’t always remember it when I need it.  But…

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How to Pray the Word in Your Devotions: 4 Steps

Posted on February 13, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen

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When you have your devotions, if you want the Word to be powerful and take root in your heart, take time to pray the Word.  Here’s how in four steps.

1.  First, before reading the scriptures in your quiet time, take just a minute or so and ask God to speak to you and teach you, and give you understanding.  If you can’t think of what to pray, here are some words of scripture you can pray, from Psalms 119.

 Psalms 119: 12, 26, 33, 108, 124, and 135
Teach me Your statues.
 
 Psalms 119: 18
Open my eyes, that I may see wonderful things from Your law.
 
Psalms 119: 25, 28, 107, 149, 154, and 159
Revive me according to Your Word.
 
Psalms 119:27
Make me to understand the way of Your precepts, so shall I meditate on Your wonderful works.
 
Psalms 119:34
Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law; indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart.
 
 Psalms 119:35
Make me walk in the path of Your commandments.

 

0012.  Next, read and meditate over the passage you have chosen, expecting God to speak to you.

3.  Third, focus on the verses that God is speaking to you about.  Ask Him what He wants you to learn from those verses and from the passage.  Maybe He is trying to point out a sin in your life.  Perhaps He has a promise He wants you to claim in prayer, or maybe He just wants you to thank and praise Him for something.  Whatever it is, He will show you.

4.  Last, pray the passage back to God.  If you chose, I think it’s a good idea to record your prayer and meditation in a journal.  I don’t do it all the time, but every once in a while I do.  Here are two short examples that I have picked out from my own journal.  I hope they will give you some ideas.

From 2 Timothy 4:7.
 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.
 

Here is the prayer that I recorded in my Journal:

 Lord, keep me on that course; keep me fighting.  Strengthen me for the fight.  Show me the finish line.  Help me to endure all along the way.  Give me rest even while I run.  Show me how to meditate during the day.  Keep me in your hand.

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Seattle Seahawks: Who is Jesus?

Posted on February 10, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen

This is an awesome video! To hear these men say that Jesus is much better than winning the super bowl really warmed my heart.

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Five Ways That Prayer Brings Power to the Word

Posted on February 6, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen

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I will not say that the word has no power without your prayers, but your prayers will sure help to put the power of the word to use in your life.  If you pray before you read the word that it will take hold of your life and that God will speak to you through that word, I guarantee that God will indeed speak to you—and it will come alive to you.  Yes indeed, your prayers will bring power to the word.  Here are…

Five Ways That Prayer Brings Power to the Word

 1. By prayer we are able to take hold of the author of the Word, who makes the Word powerful and active in the hearts and minds of those we pray for.  E. M. Bounds has said, “Prayer may well be defined as that force which vitalizes and energizes that Word of God, by taking hold of God, Himself.”  Thus, if the Holy Spirit stirs your heart to take hold of God to ask Him to bring His Word into the minds of certain ones, God’s Word will definitely come alive in them and will work to change their lives.

 2.  By prayer the Word spreads rapidly.  In 2 Thessalonians 3:1 Paul asked the Thessalonians to pray for him and his comrades, that the Word of the Lord may spread rapidly.  Notice that prayer was requested not for the Word, but for them.  That is because, the Word doesn’t need prayer, people need prayer.  For the Word is pure and holy.  It stands on its own.  But since God has decreed that the Word be spread by you and me, we need prayer to be faithful in handling it.  And we find throughout the Scriptures that everywhere that people had faith in God, wrought by prayer, the Word was sounded forth from them (1 Thess. 1:8).

 3.  By prayer the Word is declared boldly.  In order for the Word to be declared boldly people need to be bold in their sharing.  Hence, we need to pray that we would speak the Word of God with boldness.  And if God has revealed to us any reasons why we are not confident in our speaking, let us pray in that regard—perhaps to put aside certain sins and hindrances.  Thus, when we have faithfully prayed as God has led us, we ought to be assured that God has begun a great work in us, to give us boldness in Him—to speak the Word of God with confidence.

Such was the case with a certain group of Christians as they prayed together in regard to the persecution of Peter and John (Acts 4:29-31); for after they prayed the Spirit of the Lord came upon them so powerfully that the place where they had gathered was shaken.  And their lives (those who had prayed together) were dramatically changed from that point on, so that wherever they went they spoke the Word of God with boldness.

 4.  By prayer God opens up to us a door for the Word (Col. 4:3).  If it is God’s will for the Word to be spoken boldly, it must also be His will for a door to be open to us, that the message of the Lord would get through to the hearer.  Therefore, what we are praying for is (1) for opportunities to share the message of the Word, (2) that the people would be willing to listen to the Word, and (3) that the Word would be effective—people would hear and believe the Word (1 Cor. 16:9).

Can we believe that God will open a door for us?  Yes indeed! If we pray, He will open a door.

 5.  By prayer the seeds of the Word take root and grow.  The growth of the Word—that is, the growth of the application of the Word—will happen only through prayer.  Through prayer the soil of the heart is made soft and fertile, and ready to plant the seeds of the Word.  Then, through prayer, the seeds are planted in the heart.  Likewise, through prayer, the seeds of the Word are watered and cultivated. And soon, through continued prayer, the Word takes root, grows, and bears fruit (Matt. 13:23).  From the fruit, seeds are again planted.  And so the Word goes out again and takes root in the heart, and grows and bears fruit.  Hence, the process continues by much prayer.   

 

This is an excerpt from Prayer A to Z.

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Earnest Prayer That Brought Rain after Three and One Half Years of Drought

Posted on January 31, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen

 

pouring raindrought

 

 

 

 

 

Here is that earnest prayer that brought rain after three and one half years of drought.

 

1 Kings 18:42

 So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees…

 

Mt Carmel

 

Elijah’s position, crouched down on the earth, with his face between his knees, shows us that he prayed earnestly. His earnestness was not without knowledge or assurance, however.  In fact, he prayed with certainty; for God had already revealed to him that the rain would come by his word (17:1); and God had already brought the thunder (v. 41), which Elijah heard—even though there was no clouds in the sky yet. Therefore, when Elijah prayed he no doubt reminded God of His promise that he was to be the instrument to bring rain.

Elijah was so confident and so persistent that it would rain that he kept sending his servant out to look for it—up to seven times—until he finally saw a small cloud the size of a man’s hand coming up from the sea.  And sure enough, in just a little while, “the sky grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy shower” (v. 45).

This is an excerpt from my book Prayer A to Z.

 

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God’s Answer to Elijah’s Public Prayer Caused People to Believe—1 Kings 18:36-37

Posted on January 25, 2014 by Stephen Nielsen

1 Kings 18:36-37 

And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. 37 Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that You are the LORD God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.”

 

Here is probably Elijah’s most famous prayer, which he prays openly and loudly so all the people could hear.  The intention of the prayer when he prays “hear me” is that God would answer by fire (v. 24) and show to all the people that God was really God and that Baal was no god at all.  And so, as it happened, God did answer by fire; and when all the people saw it they fell on their faces and said, “The Lord, He is God!  The Lord, He is God!”

In all our works and in all our public prayers, our motive must be to lift up the name of God just as Elijah did.

This is an excerpt from my book Prayer A to Z

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