Day 12—Praying in the Spirit.
Is it possible that one can pray and yet not be praying in the Holy Spirit or within God’s will? Is there any truth to the notion that every Christian is involved in warfare with the enemy with eternal consequences at stake? The answer to both questions is a resounding yes. This battle is not only between man and the enemy; it is a battle between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness, Ephesians 6:12.
In verse 18 of the same chapter, Paul commands the Christian to pray “always.” What does that mean? According to Smith, the prevailing Christian will pray persistently and consistently. This prayer is only possible in the Spirit. You may be asking the question as to what does it mean to pray in the Spirit? A simple definition from the author suggests that one prays in the Spirit when the prayers are prompted by the Spirit. Why do you pray when you pray? It is the Spirit that should direct the when and the what. A longing for powerful results is synonymous with an absence of the Holy Spirit in your presence.
It is a good thing to know that Christ makes intercession on our behalf. “We must not only pray in Christ’s name but by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. This explains what is meant when it is said that the Spirit ‘maketh intercession for us, with groanings which cannot be uttered.” Romans 8:26. Such Prayer God delights to answer” (Christ Object Lesson, p. 147). What is weighing on your mind? It may be that you are being prompted by the Spirit to pray. If you want substantial, long-lasting results, heed His pleadings and follow Him. Let us pray….
Day 11—Why is Prayer Necessary?
What is the difference between important and necessary? This is a question that many Christians privately struggle with and publicly lie about. For many, prayer is important but not entirely necessary. After all, why do we need to tell God to do what He already will do since He is God? The fact is it is necessary for us to pray. If it were not important, God would not have said—“after this manner you should pray,” Matthew 6.
Why do you pray? According to Smith, “If believers do not pray, God’s desires will not be carried out in this earth.” A very bold statement you say. Prayer is necessary because from the beginning, god intended to work through humans, not independent of them in carrying out His will on earth. God indeed works through the prayers of His people—Matthew 6:10, 11.
Even in the very act of soul-winning, God solicits our request in prayer. It is God’s Kingdom and it is His responsibility to populate His territory. However, it becomes necessary for the Christian to ask Him to do this. To you it may not make sense but to the person who understands partnership and the way God wants to be co-laborers with us, the idea is clear. It is a fact that was not lost with Paul—he asked believers to pray for the advancement of the gospel, II Thessalonians 3:1. Ultimately, though an item may be an element of God’s will, it is necessary to pray because it releases God’s power to carry out His will on this earth.
Your prayers are essential for God’s will to be done in your life and in the lives of those for whom you pray. Who and what are you praying for? You should also be aware of the fact that the thing that most rests on your mind may be waiting to be released in the hand of God through prayer. This may be a perfect opportunity for you to pray for someone or something on your mind. Let us pray….
Day 10—Jesus’ and the Disciples’ Example of Prayer.
After a long day’s work or a journey across the terrain and even a day with the kids, you feel exhausted. What do you do after such an adventure?—rest. When a Christian has been through the ringer with the enemy and is spiritually dehydrated, what should you do?—Go back to the closet of prayer. Isn’t that what Jesus did?—Luke 5:16.
An interesting fact should never be lost in translation. We do not see Jesus running off to find a place to pray when He is faced with adverse attacks from the enemy. The reason He does not find that necessary is due to the fact that before the attack comes, prayer has to be ascended to prepare you for the adventures at hand. The mistake Christians make is that we wait for an attack to run to the throne but sometimes it is too late, we may never get there. The best investment advice I could give you is to deposit prayer in the bank. This is worthwhile so that when you arrive for a withdrawal it does not say NS, not sufficient. The investment can be made today for tomorrow beginning now.
The early believers, disciples and apostles were all people of prayer. Their power was derived from prayer. If we are going to do exploit for the Lord, we must become people of prayer. It is in those moments when you are locked and loaded with the rifle of prayer that you will be able to execute attacks on the enemy and eventually defeat his plans. The question still stands—how is your prayer life. It is clear that the level of power in your life is magnified by the level of prayer. It is true, seven prayerless days makes one weak. Do you want to be strong, start praying today! Let us pray…
Day 9—A Spirit-given Desire to Pray
“I just do not feel like it,” have you ever said that when the thought of prayer comes to mind? “I can’t help it, I pray all the time.” What is the difference between those two viewpoints? The answer is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. After receipt, a deep, inner desire will begin to develop within us to be more in prayer to our heavenly Father.
As we begin section two of this 40 Day adventure in spiritual development, we hope to experience the deep things of God. To achieve this, we must yield to this desire to pray. In examining your life, are there successes that may have been achieved that have not been due to your lack of prayer? No doubt we can point to great moments on our journey when prayer was pivotal. However, after the crisis abates the prayer ceases. No wonder some of us struggle with so many problems—had it not been for the problems, we would be further adrift from God. Sometimes we even choose to depend on the “flesh” to do God’s work. Where is your dependence factor firmly focused?
The best example in all Christian practices, including prayer, is always with Jesus. How did He obtain such closeness with God? We can see a hint in Luke 3:21, 22 after His prayer. In answer to His prayer, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him and He was led into the wilderness for 40 Days and nights, fasting and praying, Luke 4:1, 2. After this, He was empowered to be victorious over Satan and to ultimately defeat him. It is partially due to this practice that we are now on the empowerment challenge. My wish is that we can all experience empowerment to be more victorious. Is that something you are praying and wishing and hoping for? It can happen and can begin today. Let us pray….
Day 8—Spirit Baptism and Christ Return.
Flooding in Pakistan; Fires in British Columbia; Earthquake in Haiti; Tsunami in Asia—all discouraging signs of the time. Just thinking of the news is enough to give us a brain seizure, watching is sometimes a death sentence. What is the good news—Jesus is coming back soon! You have heard it before but one day you will hear it for the last time. The key is to be ready.
A thorough scrutiny of the last verse in Revelation 6 coupled with the first three verses of Chapter 7 reveals some startling scenes. Only those who have received the Seal of God will be able to survive the second coming of Christ. You just asked, “How do you receive the seal?” Thanks for asking, the Bible answers categorically that we are sealed by the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 4:30. It is now clearer to you why the baptism of the Holy Spirit is so important. The truth is God is waiting for a manifestation of Christ in the members of His Church—when this is done, He will come to claim His own. Are you in that group? If not, today is a great time to enlist and stay enlisted.
However, we must overcome and avoid the dreaded danger which is perilous to anyone’s spiritual development. When we think that security comes from knowledge of the doctrinal requirements and attendance at Church, we tread on dangerous turf. Knowledge alone will never save you. Today, now, this minute God is calling you to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit in order to become just like Jesus.
Our goal now should be singular in disposition: let Jesus into our lives more fully. How do you do this? An old lady once wrote in the Review and Herald, “We must have a living connection with God. We must be clothed with power from on high by the baptism of the Holy Spirit that we may reach a higher standard; for there is help for us in no other way.” It is difficult to dispute that fact. What is your goal today? Have you let Jesus fully into your life today? If not, why not now? Let us pray….
Day 7—Spirit Baptism and the Latter Rain.
Rain! Just the thought of the word evokes memories, some precious, some perilous. Within the sphere of Adventism and in Christendom is a common and sometimes complex understanding of both the Former and Latter Rain. You may be asking, “What does this have to do with a bucket of water?” Nothing but everything to do with your eternal salvation! Well the Former Rain has to do with the baptism of The Holy Spirit as evidenced on the Day of Pentecost—Acts 2:16-18. The Latter Rain is then a preparatory manifestation for the Christian to face the final crisis and Christ’s return.
Satan would hope to deceive mankind into believing that it is not necessary to take seriously the sin problem in our lives, Acts 3:19. The key then to victory over temptation is in learning how to let Jesus live out His life of victory in, and through, us. When that level of spiritual maturity is reached, you are prepared for the Latter Rain. The great risk is if one is not familiar with the Former Rain, the possibility exists that you may not recognize the Latter Rain.
If you have not received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, don’t delay another day, your future depends on it. Your former life does not have to dictate your latter life but the Former Rain will definitely dictate the Latter Rain. What kind of a rain are you prepared for, precious or perilous? Remember you still have time to make a positive adjustment. Let us pray….
Day 7—Spirit Baptism and the Latter Rain.
Rain! Just the thought of the word evokes memories, some precious, some perilous. Within the sphere of Adventism and in Christendom is a common and sometimes complex understanding of both the Former and Latter Rain. You may be asking, “What does this have to do with a bucket of water?” Nothing but everything to do with your eternal salvation! Well the Former Rain has to do with the baptism of The Holy Spirit as evidenced on the Day of Pentecost—Acts 2:16-18. The Latter Rain is then a preparatory manifestation for the Christian to face the final crisis and Christ’s return.
Satan would hope to deceive mankind into believing that it is not necessary to take seriously the sin problem in our lives, Acts 3:19. The key then to victory over temptation is in learning how to let Jesus live out His life of victory in, and through, us. When that level of spiritual maturity is reached, you are prepared for the Latter Rain. The great risk is if one is not familiar with the Former Rain, the possibility exists that you may not recognize the Latter Rain.
If you have not received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, don’t delay another day, your future depends on it. Your former life does not have to dictate your latter life but the Former Rain will definitely dictate the Latter Rain. What kind of a rain are you prepared for, precious or perilous? Remember you still have time to make a positive adjustment. Let us pray….
Day 6—Grieving the Holy Spirit.
I can think of many moments in my life when I got upset at or by someone. You feel a sense of sadness, anger, disappointment and downright disrespect to a point of being unappreciated. With all that human conjecture, how does one comprehend the notion of grieving the Holy Spirit?
The fact is irrevocable; upon receipt of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, He will have greater impact in our life—isn’t that what the Christian should seek daily? As a spin-off, we want to pray more, study God’s words more, and ultimately begin to love righteousness more and hate sin even more. Paul has presented various practical counsels on how to avoid grieving the Spirit, see Ephesians 4:24-32; 1Thessalonians 5:14-19.
How do you know you have grieved the Holy Spirit? When one refuses to yield to the promptings of the Holy Spirit then the possibility is heightened. In the above verses it is clear that it is the Spirit that impresses on our hearts the desire to do right. Doing right is unnatural to humanity engulfed in sin. You should be very happy and hopeful when “something” tells you that what you are doing is wrong—that “something” could very well be the Holy Spirit.
If you find that in your daily activities the Spirit has been grieved, all hope is not lost. Do not be discouraged—ask God to forgive you and He will, 1John 1:9. After forgiveness, in order to avoid the same mistakes, ask for an infilling of His power and presence. If you have not done so, now may be a good time to pause and seek that infilling. Remember, “The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and plenteous in mercy…” Psalm 103:8-14. Let us pray….
Day 5—Spirit Baptism & Obedience.
You may have at some point wondered, baptism of the Holy Spirit—so what or for what purpose? There are two main imports aptly noted by Smith: One is to reflect Jesus fully in our life and the other is to receive a power for witnessing. Citing II Corinthians 3:13, a controversial yet relevant point is postulated—The same Holy Spirit who wrote the Ten Commandments on tables of stone will today Write God’s law on the heart of God’s Spirit-filled children. This is symptomatic of true allegiance and obedience.
When it comes to obedience two kinds will surface. One is External Obedience, an act that is adhered to just because God says so. Conversely, Internal Obedience occurs because of a deep, inner desire within the believer to obey God. It may be a good moment now to introspect and determine where you stand in the arena of obedience. The clear reality stated factually in Psalm 51:16, 17 undergirds the position that a “broken and contrite” heart is what the Lord requires.
So many times we do things out of custom and formality without true emphasis on purpose as it relates to the level of relationship with God. When one is in a right relationship with God through the infilling of the Spirit, obedience springs naturally and spontaneously from the heart without even thinking about it. Do you find yourself being forced by your formalism or coerced by your custom? Is a spiritual matter only significant to you when it gives others an impression that you are “holy?” Are you reading this devotional because it will impress someone and not invoke a closeness that you seek with God? If you answer yes to any of these questions, it may be a good occasion to check your obedience indicator. Remember, “All true obedience comes from the heart.” Let us pray….
Day 4—Christ In You
What’s a great way to receive Christ more fully in your life?—by receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Jesus reminded his disciples when He told them He would not leave them comfortless—the Comforter is the Holy Spirit that dwells in us, John 14:16, 17.
You may have wondered how can I become like Jesus, the bible literally means “just like” Him. This happens through the daily baptism of the Spirit. To this Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20, Christ will divinely live within us. All aspects of Christ become a part of our being and doing. The only way to have every virtue and quality of Christ is to have Christ dwell in us.
When Christ lives in us through the infilling of the Holy Spirit, His character is fully developed in us. What character would you like to display? Do you long to see a revelation of Christ’s glory? Christ in us is the only hope for this manifestation—and this is what the whole creation waits for. Why don’t you place that on your list of request today? Let us pray….
