The Focus of Faith

Recently I was listening to an excellent teaching tape with my wife and friends on faith, fear and expecting supernatural results to our prayers when needed by a very good teacher and preacher. A little bit later, when my little group launched into a question and comment session, I clearly heard the Holy Spirit prompting me to ask out loud this peculiar question:  Other than when He prayed for the Father to spare His life before the Crucifixion, can anyone give me some - or even one - Scripture references where Jesus petitioned the Father to specifically provide for His earthly, human needs and wants...Or taught His disciples to do so?  As the question hung out there like some kind of doughy dumpling, I myself realized that I did not have an answer for that interesting challenge.

So let me ask you this (I would appreciate your opinion if you have time), other than in the Garden before His crucifixion and death, did Jesus ever pray for Himself and His needs and wants? For instance, did He petition the Father for food or clothes or housing or money or transportation? Can you refer me to any of the Gospel scriptures where He makes these kinds of requests.  I’m not testing you or being facetious or preachy when I ask this...I am truly searching for guidance on this issue, because if we expect to walk as Jesus did on this earth, and THAT is our commission, then this is an important area we need to know about, and not just speculate or guess about. The reason this question comes up to me is that it goes directly to the question about what is prayer and how do we do it; because if we are walking like Jesus did and if we are expected to do  even greater things than He did, as we read in the Gospel of John, we need to understand God’s support system for our ministries, to include our personal needs. It would seem that the more that we get lined up with the way Jesus walked in His ministry, the more effective and successful our ministry walk will be.

One of the reasons I bring this up is that I think that we often spend most of our prayer time petitioning God for the things we need and want for ourselves, our families, our relatives and our friends than we do petitioning Him for guidance, direction and resources to accomplish the purpose He created us for...and, believe me, we all have that purpose! God assured me a long time ago, when I was writing The Prayer Directed Life, that when we are working to accomplish the purpose He created us for using our faith, He will move Heaven and earth to remove any obstacle or barrier that would stand in the way of our efforts; I can tell you that He has demonstrated that for me over and over again.  Actually, that goes directly to Jesus’ command in the Gospels: “Seek first the Kingdom of God and righteousness, and all the rest will be added onto you.” (Recall that the “Kingdom of God” is not Heaven; it’s God’s way of doing things:  And “righteousness” is not about being a good person; it’s about being in right standing with God...being a born again child of God.)

Even when we examine the template for prayer that Jesus gave to His disciples in the Gospel of Matthew, traditionally called the Lord’s Prayer, we only see one line out of the whole template that concerns petitioning for our needs (nothing is suggested about petitioning for our “wants”): “...And give us today our daily bread...”.  Even that petition centers on “today”, not “tomorrow” or the future. Another thing that we might need to consider about that template is that it was given to the disciples before they became born again...they were literally just beginning to learn a new concept for prayer. And remember in Luke 16:13-15 where Jesus says, “No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon (money)”, and “For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination to the will of God.”? Does that not strike a clarion bell in your spirit? Does not the story of Lazarus and the rich man, told a little later in the same chapter, give you a little concern about using God’s gift of faith for our wants and desires? Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that God doesn’t want us to have things...even really nice things! The Bible shows God has always been a giver and a gifter to those who obey Him and seek His ways first! But here’s the question: In your daily prayer time, do you spend more time petitioning the Father for what you need and want than thanking Him in detail for what you have and the gifts He has given to you?

You see, I will admit to you that I came to the Lord partly through the attraction of the so-called faith and prosperity message; and I still believe important aspects of that message, especially as concerns the “faith” part, are still essential to a close and successful walk with God. After all, Hebrews 11:6 clearly says, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek HIM.”  That’s the truth of the “prosperity message” right there!  Seeking Him first exactly lines up with Jesus’ teaching to “Seek first the Kingdom of God and righteousness, and all the rest will be added on to you.”

Now, I do believe that there is an important caveat to the line of thought concerning this issue, and it is this: We absolutely need faith for all of this stuff to come together and work like it should in our lives as children of God; that is, we need unshakable faith, like that of a young child’s for the provision of its parents, that is convinced that Almighty God can use the supernatural and miraculous to provide where all else fails. Our faith needs to be strong, but more than that, it needs to be convinced that God can - and will - do all things, even the impossible to accomplish His will...For nothing is impossible for Him! The good news for us is Jesus said that all we need is faith the size of a mustard seed (if you don’t know how small a mustard seed is, Google it!) to operate in this area.

Finally, the one occasion I did find where Jesus told the disciples to pray for themselves was on the Mount of Olives after the Last Supper.  Here’s a couple of things that we all should probably take note of in the Gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark and Luke (John didn't cover this event) concerning the Garden of Gethsemane before His crucifixion: First, in all three accounts, Jesus asked His disciples to keep watch for Him while He prayed (note that He did not ask them to pray for Himself), and when He was through praying and came back to find the men asleep, He woke them up and admonished them to pray for themselves, that they not fall into temptation; Second, the Gospel of Luke notes that when Jesus was praying for His Father to spare His life, “an angel from heaven appeared to Him and strengthened Him.”(LK22:43)  Wow, did you know or remember that? If they can do that for Jesus, they can - and will - do it for us, as need be!

May I suggest that if you haven’t read and studied Matt 6:25-34, you really, really need to do that if you want to get a handle on this subject. I can assure you that when I finally began to get a hold of the meaning of this teaching, my faith focus changed for sure.

For American Christians: What's Your Citizenship Priority?

Have you ever walked down the side of a street while straddling a curb, or perhaps walked in the woods or a field while trying to straddle a narrow ditch or chasm? Didn't that make you walk funny and and feel unstable...sorta off balance?  Well, you know, that's kinda what happens when we Believers try to walk in both the kingdom of earth (Man's way of doing things) and the Kingdom of God (God's way of doing things) at the same time; our spiritual walk and our fleshly walk both become unstable, out of balance and frustrating...In other words, we walk funny. I believe that this is where the average American Christian finds himself in today's highly charged political environment; we are trying to be good citizens of two different worlds, and failing miserably at both.

Recently, when I found myself fretting, fuming. frothing and foaming way too much over the current Presidential campaign environment and political posturing, I decided to to ask the Holy Spirit for some much needed guidance on how to break free from the anxiety net that was closing in on me like a giant trap.  When vinegar turns to vitriol, it turns from being distasteful to becoming outright poison, and I was beginning to feel the results of that potion. As usual, when I began to listen for His answer, the Holy Spirit began to show some things in the Gospels and New Testament of the Bible that address this very subject, but that we seldom hear about from our teachers, preachers and pulpits in most of our churches today. Hear are some of what I believe are important highlights from some of the things He began to show me on how to deal with this situation; I hope that if you are experiencing some of that electioneering apprehension and anxiety, they help you as much as they have helped me:

• Can you give me even one example in the Gospels where Jesus ever got involved in the politics of His day? Can you recall Him ever protesting against abortion or the death penalty or government graft or political corruption or high taxes? Can you show me one place where He voted or held office or served in the military...Or admonished others to do these things? Can you point to even one social justice rally He attended or group He formed to protest global warming/climate change? Can you even find any example where He suggested or directed His apostles and/or disciples to become involved in these earthly endeavors? You see, the fact of the matter is you can't! In fact, that was one of the main reasons why Judas was angered enough to betray Jesus; he was disappointed that Jesus wasn't interested in leading a violent revolution to throw off the shackles of the Roman oppressors and right all of the wrongs of the day. The fact is that Jesus knew the only way to truly bring lasting change to the problems and ills of our world is to change peoples' hearts...One heart at a time; because until the hearts of men are changed, they will always be rebellious, disobedient, prideful and destructive, due to the sin nature they inherited at birth. 
• Do you recall what Jesus said in what I call the real "Lord's Prayer", the 17th chapter of the Gospel of John, concerning the citizenship of His followers? Here, let me remind you:  "I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.  My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, even as I am not of it."(Jn17:15-19) That's pretty plainly stated if you ask me.
• Speaking of politics, do you know what an ambassador is? You really should, because that is what Paul says we become when we become born again citizens of the Kingdom of God. 2 Cor 5:20 says this: "We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us." Essentially, an ambassador is an official who is appointed to represent the interests of the country/world he or she is a citizen of to the host country where he/she is living or stationed. Although an ambassador may sometimes offer his advice or opinion to a host country's leaders and citizens about how they run their country, she never votes or participates in the leadership of the host country or entity where he/she resides. Think of it in terms of an American ambassador being assigned to a country like Russia or China; he/she would never assume to take part in there in there political process or try to tell them how to govern their citizens...that is not his what his position calls for.
• In Ephesians 2:19, it says this: "Consequently, you (those who are born again) are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household built on the foundations of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone." In other words, we are citizens of the Kingdom of God.
• In the 3rd chapter of Philippians, Paul says, "For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven."(Php 3:18-20)  Are you beginning to see a pattern here...a priority of citizenship, so to speak?

In summary, Paul hit the nail on the head when he made this important statement: "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things."(Col 3:1-2)

Now, please don't get me wrong:  If you are an American citizen, you certainly have the right to become involved in the political process and to vote in its elections, if that is your desire. But this country as a whole has pretty much turned its back on God's providence, provision and protection; indeed, true Believers and committed Christians are being demonized and persecuted from almost every segment of our society, especially the government and judicial systems...often with great vitriol and vindictiveness. And it's become quite obvious that as Americans abandon the Judeo-Christian values upon which the United States of America was founded, God is turning His back on us...USA. What we have to understand that voting only changes godless regimes, and until hearts are changed, our country's demise will only escalate, whether we like it or not.

You see, my brothers and sisters in Christ, I believe what the Holy Spirit is showing me is this: We Believers need to decide whether we are citizens of this world or ambassadors to it! As is, most Christians are "walking funny" because we insist on trying to be good citizens of both the kingdom of earth (Satan's realm) and the Kingdom of God (God's realm), and THAT just isn't going to happen; those realms are diametrically opposed to each other! And the fact that we get anxious, depressed and all upset about elections and the political process every time they come around is a good sign that we are not supposed to be involved in that process (unless of course, God specifically tells us to), for, please recall, the Bible consistently advises us to be anxious for nothing!(Php 4:6, 1 Pet 5:7)

I, for one, am through with the political system and electoral process of this country...and indeed, of this world. Instead, I chose my spiritual citizenship in the Kingdom of God over my flesh citizenship in the United States of America. My focus is going to be about changing hearts, not politicians and/or administrations.  As an ambassador for the Kingdom of God, I am going to be about allowing Jesus Christ, my Savior and my King, to work in and through me to change the hearts of mankind, one at a time. When enough of that happens, we won't need politicians and laws and governments to tell us what's the right thing to do...We'll know in our hearts.  If you are a Christian Believer, I hope you will join me in that endeavor?

THE GOSPEL MESSAGE AIN'T COMPLICATED

I am so tired of reading, watching and listening to the complicating of the Gospel Message that I think my head is going to explode! Sometimes I just want to open up my window and holler to the world, "IT AIN'T THAT COMPLICATED, PEOPLE, SO QUIT TRYING TO MAKE IT SO!" The more complicated we try to make the Gospel Message, the more complicated we make life in general...And the more screwed up the world becomes!

People, here's the thing: The Gospel Message has to be so simple that a person on their death bed or a child just obtaining the "age of reason" can comprehend it quickly and completely, in order to make his or her decision of whether to accept it or reject it in a reasonably short period of time. Jesus Himself emphasized this "simplicity" factor several times in the Gospels:

• "And he said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven"(Mat 18:40)
• Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such at these."(Mat 19:14)
• "Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it."(Mk 10:15)(Lk 18:17)

Yet, isn't it amazing how we continue to do what Jesus does not want us to do...Complicate the Gospel! We create ceremonies, invoke prayers, establish procedures, teach restrictions, write books, teach drawn-out sermon series and establish codes of conduct, all with the idea of helping a person to become a born again believer in the Kingdom of God. Everyone of these things depend on some kind of action or work, and a way to judge whether this action or work is performed acceptably; yet Jesus said the only action required of us is to believe in Him and what He has done for us by accepting His life into ours; the rest is pure grace.

Jesus made two separate but related important claims on which all of the Gospel Message is based: 1) For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."(John 3:16); 2)"I am the way, the truth and the life. NO ONE COMES TO THE FATHER (and by default, Heaven) EXCEPT THROUGH ME'!"(John 14:6)

Here, then, is the Gospel Message, or as it is called in 2 Cor 5, the Message of Reconciliation, in it's most basic and simplest form:

Each person God creates is a spirit, who has a soul (generally defined as our mind, will and emotions) and who lives in a flesh body. Even Adam and Eve, who were created without conception as the parents of all mankind, were made this way.  Basically, the real YOU is a spirit who has a soul and lives in a body. One might say you are like an astronaut in his spacesuit; your body is your earth suit for the real spirit you with your soul inside. That explains why a dead body always seems to have little resemblance to the person when he or she was alive.

Each person is born with the Spirit of God as part of their being, but because of the disobedience of our first parents, Adam and Eve, the moment we become reasonably aware of the difference between right and wrong, good and evil (sometimes called "the age of reason", and make the decision to do (or even think of doing) the wrong or evil thing, we become separated from the Spirit of God.  Essentially, we become "dead" to Him, because we lose a righteousness that was based on His Being and establish one that is based on ours.  In effect, we become our own god, and the inbred pride, selfishness and wickedness of our spiritual heart begins its relentless corruption.  Unfortunately, only children who have not reached the age of reason and the mentally challenged are spared this process.

Fortunately, God, out of the goodness of His Being and His love for the Mankind He created, has provided a way for all people who have become separated from Him to be restored to that original relationship we had with Him...But it involves making a choice! That choice involves the pivotal question of the Gospel Message:  WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH WHAT JESUS SAID HAS CLAIMED?!  Remember, He claims in the 14th chapter of the Gospel of John that not only is He "the way, the truth and the life", but that He is also the only way to be reunited with the Father.  So, having made that claim, each of us has to decide if Jesus was A) Telling the truth, therefore requiring us to decide whether we will believe in Him or not; B) Telling a lie, therefore not to be believed or followed; or C) A crazy man, who was not in touch with reality, and therefore, certainly not to be trusted or believed.  If you believe in either B) or C), then you have rejected the Gospel Message and need read no further, because essentially, you have rejected the Christian's God and His plan for you and you are basically on your own.

On the other hand, if your belief is in A) - That Jesus is who He says is and that He is the only way to the Father and eternal life - Then Jesus says in John 3:16 that whoever shall believe in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.  That is the basic Gospel Message...nothing more, nothing less.  When we place our belief in Jesus Christ we accept what He has done for ourself and all mankind, and our spirit becomes one with His Spirit as we become filled with the Holy Spirit; essentially we become "born again," a new creation in the Kingdom of God.  The Bible says in Romans chapter 8 that we become children of the Father, heirs to His Kingdom, and coheirs with our brother, Christ Jesus.  A Bible teacher I used to listen to named Bob George used to simply put it this way:  Jesus gave His life for us, so He could give His life to us, so He could live His life through us!

Consider this simple, but powerful, illustration of the redemption process:  Let's say that you have a relative who dies of cancer.  Let's also assume that you have the power and ability not only to heal people, but to also raise them up from the dead.  What are the two problems that you would have to deal with to restore your kin to life and good health? Here is the dilemma:  If you attempt to bring your relative back from the dead without healing the cancer, he would just quickly die again. On the other hand, if you heal the cancer but don't restore life to his body, all you have is a cleaned up, healed corpse with no life.  For your efforts to be successful, you would need to first heal the cancer and then restore life to the body (After all, isn't that what Jesus did when He raised up Lazarus?).  In the illustration, the cancer represents sin, the dead relative's corpse represents all of lost mankind and you represent Father God.  The Father sent His Son Jesus to Earth to die on the cross as punishment for the sins of all mankind (regardless of whether they believe it or accept it...check Hebrews 10), thus curing the "cancer"; then He raised Him from the dead so that He might provide life to our spirit when we believe in Him and become "born again" through accepting His Spirit into ours, thus restoring our original relationship with Almighty God.

So you become born again...Then what? Once again, I believe that just as we have so complicated the basic Gospel Message with religions, teachings, Bible studies, sermons, and etc. that we have also complicated and distorted the purpose for becoming born again, which really explains why Christ left His Divinity behind and came to live among us on earth as a mere man. We need to understand that we must become born again in order to understand and partake in the things of God, not the other way around; we will never understand the things of God on our own before we become born again because their is a veil over the hearts of nonbelievers.(2Cor 3:14-16)  You see, becoming born again not only restores our original, eternal, personal relationship with Almighty God in this world, and the World to come, but it also allows the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit to live through us to bring the message of reconciliation to all mankind before this world comes to an end. Jesus demonstrated for us how that works when He lived here on earth as a man. First, He told us in the Gospels that He said nothing but what the Father told Him to say and He did nothing but what the Father to told Him to do; then He passed the baton to His disciples by telling them, "Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father."(Jn 14:9-12)

How did Jesus know what the Father wanted Him to say and do?  He LISTENED, early and often! That is what the prayer directed life is all about!

Now please don't misunderstand me or place words in my mouth here: I am NOT saying that once we become born again everything becomes easy-peasy and that we will instantly understand all the things of God and how to live and walk in the Christian lifestyle; believe me, the fact that the Bible, assembled over thousands of years, is a pretty thick "owner's manual", instructional book and historical document is not lost on me.  In fact, becoming born again, and thereby receiving  the Holy Spirit in our life, is just the beginning of a life-long process of training and instruction in living the Christian lifestyle and understanding God's specific purpose for life on this earth.  After all, it took Jesus 30 years before He "returned to Galilee (from the dessert) filled with the Spirit..."(Luke 4) to begin His life's ministry.  But the fact is, the ability to receive revelation knowledge and understand the things of God is impossible without becoming a child of God by having a born again relationship with Jesus Christ; we do that by simply having faith and believing what He has said about Himself. The old adage that says, "Every journey begins with a single step," certainly applies here.  That act is a simple "yes" or "no"... And THAT's the uncomplicated truth!