“If God dwells inside us like some people say, I sure hope He likes enchiladas, because that’s what He’s getting.”-Jack Handy

We Christians believe in spiritual things. At least we are forced to since God is Spirit. We even claim to be both body and spirit. But how much do we really accept the spiritual world? Do we even consider the spiritual world as we go about our daily existence? We accept the Bible’s teaching on the spiritual world, but in daily life we exist almost entirely as if the spiritual world doesn’t exist. This is to our peril.

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12). Name your struggle. Now do you believe in the spiritual source of that evil? Perhaps the reason you haven’t overcome that struggle is because you are using non-spiritual weapons to fight it. After this statement by Paul, he talks about spiritual armor (truth, righteousness, gospel of peace, faith, salvation) and weapons (the Word of God and Prayer).

Every time we enter into prayer, we engage in spiritual warfare. Satan knows this and will do everything in his power to distract, discourage, and frustrate our time with God. It is on our knees where we most engage in this battle of Good and Evil. We don’t fight it to gain the victory, but we fight because we already have the victory. Our desire now is to see the Kingdom come; God’s reign extended to every soul on the planet.

Where should we start in warfare prayer? No matter how ignorant of the spiritual world we are there are a few things that everyone can do to drive back the work of the Devil on our world.

The first type of prayer is worship. Worship is our primary activity as God’s creation. It is for worship that we were created and it is in worship that we find our meaning of existence. Satan’s pride wanted this worship for himself. His hatred of God wants to steal the rightful praise of God from our hearts. To do that he tempts our fallen nature which is in rebellion against God. The sinful pride we so naturally carry with us is put aside when we worship. In worship we declare the greatness and glory of God. We declare him as holy and nothing compares to him. The Lord’s Prayer begins with worship and flows into God’s will being done on earth. It is the proper progression once we first recognize God in absolute wonder.

The second type of prayer that has powerful consequences in the spiritual realm is repentance. We rarely feel comfortable in this kind of prayer because it means confronting our sin. Guided by the Holy Spirit and God’s Word the depths of our unrighteousness is brought to the surface. It is here where it can be dealt with. Confession is an appropriate step at this point. Repentance affects the spiritual realm because it removes the strongholds of Satan in our lives. Every sin that we hide and hold on to is a place where Satan can attack. It is through these broken walls where he gains access and plunders

our faith, hope, and love. If you consider the Armor of God, the most essential is the Helmet of Salvation. Second in importance is the Breastplate of Righteousness. These guard the vitals on a soldier and are vital to our spiritual life. Proverbs 15:29 says, “The Lord is far from the wicked but he hears the prayer of the righteous.” If any of our other prayers are to have an effect in the spiritual realm we must go through the process of repentance. Only when wickedness has been rooted out of the heart are we in a position to pray with power.

It is hard to remove selfishness from our prayers. However, when we pray for others those prayers are much less likely to have a selfish motive. It is this third type of prayer that has great affect in the spiritual realm. It is right after Jesus presentation of the Lord’s Prayer in Luke 11 where he teaches on intercessory prayer. It is the persistence of a friend that gets the need met for another. God longs for these kinds of prayers because they are motivated by love. It was love that motivated Jesus to die on our behalf. Love is the persuasive power that gets intercessory prayer answered.

Enter into the battle that rages invisible around us. Shake the foundations that Satan has established in our world. We know that it stands on nothing but sand. Praise the name of the Lord who is our strong tower. Rebuild the walls that have crumbled down from sin. Stand firm and fight for those who can’t fight for themselves. “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.” (Matthew 11:12). We are more than conquerors…we are liberators.

    If Jesus were walking our streets [post]. . .

• He would be more critical of those who are theologically on target than those who are not.
• He would attend celebrations and drinking parties.
• He would possibly provide the beer.
• He would drink with the rest of us.
• He would spent a good chunk of time with those whom the religiously “pure” had no time for.
• He would interrupt some of our religious services by making unplanned announcements and controversial statements.
• He would tell stories that were relevant and attractive but not always immediately clear.
• He would spend a lot more time encouraging others to follow him than he would simply providing religious facts about himself.
• He would live courageously yet humbling.
• He would serve those who crossed his path.
• He would rub shoulders with the outcasts of society.
• He would demonstrate that theology is intended to be done in public and on the streets.
• He would go places deemed objectionable by the moral standard-bearers of society.
• He would make people feel both comfortable and uneasy.
• He would violate some of the rules of the religious establishment.
• He would desire to heal and not to hurt.
• He would be compassionate every day.
• He would be challenged (and in some cases hated) by the experts of our day.
• He would probably cause a lot of us to wonder if he is truly the one he claimed to be.
• He would keep his promises.
• He would most likely be criticized by a good percentage of the media.
• He would . . .

Also, peek around on the sight I found this on: The Porpoise Diving Life–Reality For the Rest of Us or Picking Up Where Purpose-Driven Peters Out by Bill Dahl.

1. Rice and black beans
2. Everything bagels, pancake mix, & 2 bananas
3. Pancake mix & bananas
4. Five pounds of potatoes
5. Ramen noodles and kool aid

We found it was definitely doable, tho’ not incredibly tasty. We estimated that we spend between $15-25 per day on food. Almost ten times what most people live on.

We looked at these verses:

“He who is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward him for what he has done.” -Prov. 19:17

“If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and not be answered.” -Prov. 21:13

“A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor.” -Prov 22:9

Powered by ScribeFire.

Powered by ScribeFire.

I have posted watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth. -Isaiah 62:6-7

Introduction

Eve of Revolution

Listen, my children, and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.He said to his friend, “If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower, as a signal light, –
One, if by land, and two, if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country-folk to be up and to arm.

You may recognize the words of the poem “Paul Revere’s Ride” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It was the eve of the Revolutionary War. Tensions had grown to the point where the British were about to take military action against the rebellious colonies. It was a professionally trained army going up against a ragtag militia known as minutemen. They were to be ready at a minute’s notice to fight, but they needed someone to give that notice and that is why Paul Revere and many others watched and waited for the signal to warn the militia.

What would have happened if no one was watching for that signal? If Paul Revere and the others simply went to bed and choose to ignore what has happening around them? We wouldn’t be here right now. Or we would but we would all have British accents. Instead, Paul Revere was watching and waiting, ready to ride. Here is how it is described in the poem:

Meanwhile, impatient to mount and ride,
Booted and spurred, with a heavy stride
On the opposite shore walked Paul Revere.
Now he patted his horse’s side,
Now gazed on the landscape far and near,
Then, impetuous, stamped the earth,
And turned and tightened his saddle-girth;
But mostly he watched with eager search
The belfry-tower of the Old North Church,
As it rose above the graves on the hill,
Lonely and spectral and somber and still.
And lo! as he looks, on the belfry’s height
A glimmer, and then a gleam of light!
He springs to the saddle, the bridle he turns,
But lingers and gazes, till full on his sight
A second lamp in the belfry burns!

He was watchful and ready and was able to bring the message that “the British [were] coming”.

Another Revolution

Things happened much differently on the eve of another Revolution. Listen how it happened another night:

They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”
Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”
Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him. Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!” -Mark 14:32-42

Here were the disciples on the eve of the greatest revolution in the world and they couldn’t keep watch for an hour. Jesus said they were to watch and pray so that they wouldn’t fall into temptation.

What temptation were they facing at that time?

• Prayerlessness
• Faithlessness
• Test of Faith in who Jesus was
• Test of Faith in their ability to follow
• Despair vs. Hope

Because of all this, Jesus told them to watch and pray.

Our passage in Isaiah talks about watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem. In ancient times, watchmen were posted on the walls of a city or in a tower to basically watch for two important things:

Approach of the Enemy

If the watchmen saw the enemy approaching they would sound the alarm and the soldiers would prepare for battle. They would clothe themselves in their armor and take their post, ready to fight. The rest of the people would prepare for a siege. Not everyone lived inside the city walls. The watchmen’s warning would give people time to gather their families and needed supplies and belongings and find a place of safety within the walls.

Return of the King

If the watchmen saw the banner of the king far in the distance they would have the privilege of announcing the king’s return. It would be a time of celebration as the people gathered to welcome him back to the city.

The watchmen had an important task. They were to be ever vigilant and alert. Sleep was not an option.

The watchmen in Isaiah are never silent day and night. Why? What are they announcing? Is it the approach of an enemy or the return of the king? In this passage it is the return of the king. The Savior is returning to restore Zion, the city of the Lord.

The LORD has made proclamation to the ends of the earth: “Say to the Daughter of Zion, ‘See, your Savior comes! See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him.’ ” They will be called the Holy People, the Redeemed of the LORD; and you will be called Sought After, the City No Longer Deserted. -Isaiah 62:11-12

Our King, Jesus is returning. Are you watching for him? Are you eagerly awaiting his arrival. The Revolution is almost over. The end of the war against evil is at hand. The hour has come. However, we must still be vigilant, on guard, on watch for the enemy. Because as the end approaches his strategy becomes more desperate and daring.

So what are we supposed to do?

As we look at these watchmen in Isaiah they are praying, calling out to the Lord. Look how they pray. They are:

• Never Silent
• Give Themselves No Rest
• Give God No Rest

They are praying continually. 24-7. Never silent, never resting, continually calling out to God. They know urgency; the Savior is returning. Throughout history there have been many who have taken up this call to pray continually, to be watchmen for their land.

24-7 Prayer

• Roughly a thousand years before the birth of Jesus, King David set the Ark of the Covenant in a tent that became known as the Tabernacle of David, a place of continual prayer and worship for 30 years. David appointed 288 skilled prophetic singers and 4,000 skilled musicians to minister before the Lord. Periodically over the next several hundred years of Israel’s history, leaders re-established this davidic order of worship in the temple.
• The early church “joined together constantly in prayer.” (Acts 1-14)
• Pentecost came when the disciples were meeting regularly for prayer. It began the spread of Christianity around the world in a miraculous way.
• Paul urged the Thessalonians to “pray constantly.”

But those were Bible times…

• In 522 A.D., The St. Maurice Abbey, located in present-day Switzerland, instituted Laus Perennis or perpetual prayer. Choirs of monks sang continually day and night, with one choir relieving the previous one. This practice went on until approximately 900 A.D., impacting monasteries all over France and Switzerland.
• Forty years after the St. Maurice Abbey began its effort, a monk by the name of Comgall instituted a rigid monastic rule of continual prayer and worship in Bangor, Ireland. The Bangor Abbey attracted thousands of monks who either joined there or joined other abbeys associated with Bangor. At the time of Comgall’s death in 602 A.D., it is said that 3,000 monks looked to him for guidance. The continual prayer and worship lasted at Bangor for two and a half centuries.
• In the 15th century, the pope decreed continual prayer in certain locations.
• In 1722, a perpetual prayer meeting began in Germany. Count Nicholas Ludwig Von Zinzendorf allowed a group of persecuted Protestants – Moravians – to find shelter on his estate. They named their settlement Herrnhut, which means “The Watch of the Lord.” It soon became a thriving community, growing to more than 300 residents. In 1727, they experienced a massive outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Soon afterward they established 24-hour-a-day prayer. Many of the community left to preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth, some even selling themselves into slavery in order to fulfill the Great Commission. By 1776, some 226 missionaries had been sent out from the community at Herrnhut. This prayer meeting went non-stop for the next 100 years and is seen by many as the spiritual power behind the impact that the Moravians had on the world.

But that was a long time ago…

• 24-7prayer started by accident in September 1999, with a bunch of young people in England who got the crazy idea of trying to pray non-stop for a month. God turned up and they couldn’t stop ’til Christmas! From there the prayer meeting has spread into many nations, denominations and age-groups. Hundreds of non-stop prayer meetings now link up here on the web to form a unique chain of prayer.

There is a movement of prayer spreading throughout the world. The passion of youth and young adults are leading it. It is changing lives and communities with the gospel.

I would like to close this message with a challenge. I would like to challenge us as Faith Baptist church to pray 24-7 this next week. Honestly I’ve struggled on whether to ask this of the church. It would be exciting to see the church pray like this, but I wonder how deep the apathy that affects American Christianity runs. Surveys show that the average Christian prays only 15-30 minutes per week. However, I know it is possible for us to do it. It would involve sacrifices as some would have to give themselves no rest to pray during the night watches. Although that may be the only time in your week that isn’t scheduled. Logistically, there are 168 hours in a week. When you start dividing that up you would only have 2-3 shifts to cover. I realize that this would be a stretch for many of you, but take on the challenge as a sacrifice to the Lord. I’ve put a sheet back on the secretary’s desk. Sign up there and give yourself some accountability. I think it would be great if you could make it to the church to pray. It would be like going to David’s tabernacle.

Even if we can’t cover the whole week, at least sign up for an hour. Jesus was disappointed that his disciples couldn’t keep watch for an hour.

Let’s be watchmen this next week. We need to watch out for the approach of the enemy. And maybe we might have the opportunity to announce the return of our King.

I’d like to leave you with a few verses:

Look at the nations and watch— and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told. – Habakkuk 1:5

But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. -Matthew 24:42

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. -Colossians 4:2

Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man. -Luke 21:36

21″You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.”

…and…

27″You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ 28But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

However, it is important to realize that sins like murder and rape do not “just happen”. If someone holds on to anger or lust in their hearts and continue to dwell on it, they will eventually act on those thoughts. Desire will not remain merely desire forever. If it continues to be fed it will grow until action becomes inevitable. Listen to James in chapter one:

14″but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”

That is why it is so important to “take captive every thought” (2 Cor. 10:5) and to “guard your heart” (Prov. 4:23). One Christian put it this way:

“There are two dogs inside of me. One is good, one is evil.
These two dogs are always fighting a constant battle.
Which dog wins? The one I feed the most.”

No one immediately commits one of these serious sins. There is always a gradual process. A compromise here. A “small” sin there. Before the person knows it they are entrenched in a sin they can’t seem to break free from and the sin is growing in severity, intensity, and frequency. It is the same for lying, lust/sexual sin, anger/murder, stealing…the list goes on. Many of the worse criminals in the world have admitted to this gradual process of “small” sins before the unspeakable sin was committed.

Convicted homosexual pedophile and murderer of five boys, Gary Bishop, admits “Pornography was a determining factor in my downfall….For me, seeing pornography was lighting a fuse on a stick of dynamite. I became stimulated and had to gratify my urges or explode….My conscience was desensitized and my sexual appetite entirely controlled my actions.” Also, Ted Bundy, one of the most well known serial killers, said “You are going to kill me, and that will protect society from me. But out there are many, many more people who are addicted to pornography, and you are doing nothing about that.” Both these men point to a path that was gradual and ended in tragedy.

In my own experience assisting with a jail Bible study, the leader told me that many of the men in the study wouldn’t have been there without the effects of drugs and alcohol. Drugs and alcohol remove inhibitions that normally keep people from acting on any desire that crosses their mind. They exhilarate the path to serious sin by making the path much steeper. But in the beginning, it is always that unchecked desire, the sinful thought that is not placed under Christ’s authority, that results in the most grievous of sins.

The recent events at church reveal to us how a good man can do a very evil thing. It should cause us to examine our own heart and reexamine our own thought patterns. Where have we allowed sin to take root? Where is the devil getting a stronghold? We justify sin and deceive ourselves into saying that “it’s not that bad”, “we can stop anytime”, “it’s not hurting anyone”…all lies. We must deal swiftly and thoroughly with sin, even “small” sins. We must feed “the good dog” with the Word and with Prayer. Only by dealing severely with sin will we avoid those severe sins.

Churches are more likely to grow when:

• A church is multiracial.

• Men make up at least 60 percent of regular participants.

• Leaders describe worship as “slightly to not at all” reverent.

• Drums or percussion are always used in worship.

• Churches are located in new suburbs or downtown metropolitan areas.

• Churches have started or maintained a web site in the past year.

• Children are involved in worship.

• A church holds more worship services.

• There is an absence of serious conflict.

(taken from a report of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research)

These are not necessary the main reasons churches grow, but are some interesting correlations. The one most shocking to me is the “irreverent worship”. Do we take this as not serious worship that is a mockery to our great and holy God or is it representative of a childlike faith without pretenses? hmm…
I guess I’ve taken a step in the right direction in getting my church a place online at MyChurch.org.