Only a God of love could make such a sacrifice as to send His “Only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ” to become the “Son of Man” and to die on an old rugged cross to pay for our sins. And, he would then rise from the dead and go back to join His Heavenly Father so they could form a Throne of Grace for lost souls to repent and believe in Jesus and to be devoted to a life of prayer.
I call attention to the apostle Paul’s message to first-century believers; it is also a message for we 21st century believers: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function. So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.” (Romans 12:1-5).
The apostle Paul is writing a hymn of salvation, and he speaks of our gifts and all spiritual blessings! In fact, Paul, who wrote most of the New Testament epistles, often mentioned PRAYER as one of the main spiritual blessings. May God help us all to realize that, once Jesus had returned to our Heavenly Father and established the Throne of Grace for us to approach Him in prayer, He sent the Holy Spirit to help us pray. We are told in Romans 8:26 that, on our own, we do not know how to pray as we ought. But we read that the Holy Spirit helps us in our weaknesses and makes intercession for us so that we can pray according to the will of God. (Romans 8:26-27)
I would remind us that back in the early days of America, even before we became a nation, the Holy Spirit began preparing some spiritual leaders for an unusual outpouring of fresh spiritual power on a number of believers in different places. Theodore Frelinghuysen experienced a new anointing as he preached conviction for sin to his startled sanctimonious Dutch Reformed congregation in Raritan, New Jersey. About the same time, Gilbert Tennent and other Presbyterian ministers were moved by the Holy Spirit to fast and pray for revival fires throughout Philadelphia. Jonathan Edwards, a congregationalist pastor in Northampton, Massachusetts, through much prayer and fasting, spearheaded a New England awakening. It was during this period that Edwards preached the most celebrated sermon of that great awakening in Enfield, Connecticut. This sermon was called “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.”
And then along came George Whitefield, a prominent British evangelist, who in his outdoor meetings was used mightily to tie all these scattered revival fires together throughout the Southern and Middle colonies. He was on his way to New England where the first great American awakening climaxed in great power.
During this Thanksgiving season, we should all be grateful that there are millions of concerned Americans who realize that nothing politicians or theologians contrive is going to save America from self-destruction with all our spiritual compromise, political division, and social and moral collapse; God alone can save us, and He longs to do just that! But His message to His believers is clear—it starts with PRAYER! “if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to prayer made in this place. (II Chronicles 7:14-15). Please note that this condition begins with HUMILITY—being humble enough to confess sin, no matter how long you have been a member of the church. Then comes PRAYER—confessing sin, believing that you are forgiven and that you will be heard as you pray! Pray for yourself, loved ones, fellow church members, neighbors, friends, pastors, children, teachers, politicians, the sick, and for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit on all the communities throughout the nation. In PRAYER, let us “Seek God’s Face!” This means plead earnestly to get his attention, and this includes asking God to help you keep in mind His divine mercy and power to give you what you ask for. Then “Turn from your wicked ways.” When we are forgiven, we are to quit the sin business with the help of the Holy Spirit. Ask the Holy Spirit to cleanse your heart and empower you to not only understand the Bible you read but also to have the strength to obey. Learn to live the Christian life. Keep at it praying alone, with the family, and with brothers and sisters in Christ in small groups or greater gatherings. Plan on keeping up the prayer; it is a long hall, but prayer is the road to revival. The Holy Spirit comes from Heaven and charges the atmosphere with the fear of God, the conviction of sin, and the boldness and humility to repent and to change your ways.
Philosophers and pastors have all written their testimonies on how the first early American revival resulted in producing courageous spiritual, mental, moral, and political leaders. They were helpful in preparing the colonies to sue for their freedom to become “the Great City on the Hill for the inspiration of the nations and for the glory of God.”
Of course, it is the nature of spiritual awakenings to weaken as time passes. So, all too soon the early Americans slipped back into spiritual complacency; cold hearts developed in the church, in the business world, and in the political world. But what has kept America alive have been the great revivals of the 1700s, 1800s, and 1900s. Unfortunately, the 19th century revivals were the weakest of those spiritual awakenings. But that which caused God to send outpourings of the Holy Spirit for the first three centuries is still a promise.
During this Thanksgiving Season, we can feel blessed in believing that it is not too late. A good friend of mine has sung throughout the world that “It Is No Secret What God Can Do!” Great evangelists, pastors, and laymen from the past who were all great prayer warriors include John Wesley, Jonathan Edwards, Charles Spurgeon, Charles Finney, D.L. Moody, and A.B. Simpson. If they were living today, I think they would find a way to convince a great number of Americans that all the idolatry, immorality, irreverence, and sin are merely reminders that form the background and set the stage for the greatest spiritual awakening in the entire history of America! Now I know there are those, and even some who claim to be Christians, that think the appalling moral and spiritual darkness is to be ignored and allow God to pronounce divine judgment.
The apostle Paul instructs us in Ephesians 6:11-18: “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”
No comments:
Post a Comment