Pray in the Spirit

February 28, 2018

Pray in the Spirit

I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.

Ephesians 6:20

Read: Ephesians 6:18-24

“Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere” (Ephesians 6:18). Paul closes his letter to the Ephesians with a call to prayer.  Prayer is the most difficult and the most misunderstood aspect of the Christian life.

Prayer is hard work. What Paul has in mind cannot be accomplished by a few minutes early in the morning as you try to pray with sleep still in your eyes, or a few minutes late in the evening when your body is longing for sleep. While that may be better than no prayer at all, it is like giving a hungry person a piece of stale bread. That may be better than no food at all, but it’s certainly not a substitute for a good meal.

Take time to reflect on whether your prayer life is consistent with the call to prayer Paul is making, and if not, why not? A good barometer of our prayer life is to measure our prayer requests over and against the prayers of Paul. Ephesians 6:19-20 is a good place to start looking:

“And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike. I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.”

My Takeaway: The number one prayer request in the vast number of prayer chains circulated through our churches, are requests to change our circumstances. If Paul followed that model, his request quoted above would have been to be released from jail. Yet he prayed for boldness to keep proclaiming the Good News of Jesus. Abba Father, may this be my model for prayer!

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2018 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

A Final Word

February 27, 2018

A Final Word

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.

Ephesians 6:10

Read: Ephesians 6:10-17

In this powerful passage where Paul introduces us to our armor in Christ, I want to focus on three points. First, Paul makes it abundantly clear our strength is in the Lord: “Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power” (Ephesians 6:10). Too often, we may yield to temptation and shrink from God’s calling on our lives because we fear we do not have the strength or the power to complete the assignment. However, we can purpose in our hearts to make Paul’s word the final word in our life about the matter: “A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.”

Secondly, Paul makes it clear that we have an adversary, the great enemy of God. The difficulties we face are not just of our own making or just the consequences of the sins of others. There is a force of evil in the world, and Jesus told us that our enemy has but one mission: “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10a). But Jesus also made clear his mission: “My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life” (John 10:10b). God did not leave us defenseless against His enemy, and that is my third point.

All of the armor of God is a gift of God to us, to enable us to be strong in the Lord and His mighty power. As we allow God to fulfill His purpose for us of a rich and satisfying life, we will encounter difficulties of our own sinful making, and we will suffer the assaults of our enemy. However, we are not alone; God is with us, God is for us, and Christ is victorious over the powers of the evil one.

My Takeaway: We can remain faithful to God because God remains faithful to us, and He has provided us with His truth, His righteousness, His equipping for sharing the Good News, His gift of faith, His salvation and His Word.

Therefore, “A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.”

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2018 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

You Belong to the Lord

February 26, 2018

You Belong to the Lord

Masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Don’t threaten them; remember, you both have the same Master in heaven, and he has no favorites.

Ephesians 6:9

Read: Ephesians 6:1-9

Paul returns again to practical advice for Christian living, and again he interlaces his advice with deep theological truth. As he encouraged children to obey their parents, he reminded them of the promises in Exodus 20:12 and Deuteronomy 5:16: “Honor your father and mother. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you.” Into his advice, Paul slipped in a simple phrase that provides the underlying foundation for all of our life as the followers of Jesus: “obey your parents because you belong to the Lord” (Ephesians 6:1 Emphasis mine). Paul’s phrase is the inspiration for my most frequent prayer: “My Gracious and loving Father, I acknowledge you to be my Creator and my God. I render to you the reverence of my being and my life. I am not my own. I am yours. By creation and redemption I am yours. I will devote myself to your service this day and forever.”

Paul carries this theme into his advice for workers: “Render service with enthusiasm, as to the Lord and not to men and women” (Ephesians 6:7 NRSV). In Paul’s world, slavery was as much a part of the culture as electricity is in our world – you can’t imagine the world without it. Here again, consider how counter-cultural Paul is by not only inspiring the slaves in their work ethic, but also inspiring the slave masters to ethical treatment of their slaves. Such instruction was unheard of in Paul’s time. Remember, in the Christian communities the slaves and masters came together as one in their worship and Christian fellowship.

How much would change in our lives if we had a deep-seeded belief that we were serving Jesus through our daily work? I know that this is widely-accepted counsel for our work within the ministries of the church, but Paul was speaking to farm laborers. His point was that whether you are hoeing a field, working in a government office, working in a factory, self-employed or participating in the creative arts, do all that you do as unto the Lord.

My Takeaway: Paul’s vision here is not of Jesus as a task-master, checking to see if you completed your task properly. Rather, Jesus is your cheerleader. He is urging you on to your very best because what you are doing, and how you are doing it, can make a huge difference for good in the Kingdom of God.

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2018 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.

Equality in Christ

February 23, 2018

Equality in Christ

And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Ephesians 5:21

Read: Ephesians 5:21-33

Remember Paul’s dream for Christian communities: “There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). Equality in Christ, for all people, is a theme Paul continually reinforces.

As you consider the application of Paul’s writings today, keep in mind that Paul’s model for someone in a superior position is Jesus. In Philippians 2: 5-11, Paul shows the self-sacrificing manner in which Christ loved us. Paul says this is the way that a husband should love his wife. In Paul’s day, women and children were seen as inferior subjects. Paul raises everyone to an equal standing before God. That was hugely counter-cultural for the church in Ephesus, just as it is today.

Paul seems to use the words, respect and submit, interchangeably. He also begins this passage urging the church to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Submit to or respect one another. Wives are called to submit to or respect their husbands. Husbands are called to love their wives as Christ loved the church. These do not seem to be onerous expectations for those within the Body of Christ.

My Takeaway: Paul believed intently that when we keep our eyes on Jesus, when we submit ourselves to God, and allow the Holy Spirit to transform us by the renewing of our mind, we begin living the life in Christ; we begin living as people created in the image of God. I believe that too.

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2018 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.