Tune and Prepare!

We often sing: "Jesus, we enthrone you.. We proclaim you are king And as we worship fill the throne Come lord Jesus and take your place" Don Moen — Jesus, we enthrone you However, we are moving beyond the beautiful and emotionally charged melodies of the 1980s and 1990s. These were rare moments at the start of this century and served as a genuine source of inspiration for many generations. Yet The Worship is not merely a product of the moment, nor is it confined to a specific festive aspect of Christian culture. Our forefathers, the Apostles, were not musical expert lads (don't forget, their average age couldn't be over twenty-something) A fisherman can play on guitar or gusla, but it's quite hard to imagine this among the Jewish twelve. Their followers were no exception. But. After the Pentecost They were so immersed in the Holy Spirit that they attracted hundreds and triggered a nervous, later furious reaction from the R...

excerpt I'd like to emphasize this note as my favorite, a key approach among the others. During his active earthly ministry, Jesus worked in two phases. Every step he took, every decision he made, and every action he carried out in the Holy Spirit began with consultation with the Father. He took advantage only of those situations and carried out only those steps and battles that had already been determined in heaven. Now let's see how: ... Jesus often used the "2 phase prayer model" too. We, sometimes call it: "Tabernacle of David" ..or 'Davidic' prayer-tent. Pls. don't forget, this is Jesus' very own family-heritage, the Davidic lineage. Practically this is the technical implementation of the outline model: Inside - briefing Outside - Action & Mission* *(avoiding the seemingly good things.) This is not a modern, nor "Early Christian" invention. We have numerous psalms ...

"We have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly, and rebelled, even turning aside from Your commandments and ordinances... We have not listened to Your servants the prophets... Open shame belongs to us, O LORD... because we have sinned against You... Indeed all Israel has transgressed Your Law and turned aside, not obeying Your voice... Your people have become a reproach to all those around us" Dan. 9:5-16 In verses 5-16 Daniel identifies with his people and intercedes on their behalf. That's a common practice in Scripture. For example, Moses interceded for the Israelites after they sinned by worshiping the golden calf (Ex. 32:11- 13). All Paul's recorded prayers are intercessions. In Ephesians 6:18 he instructs us to "be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints." In 1 Timothy 2:1-4 he says, "I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for k...

Online Church Service – Devoted to Prayer - Part 2 by Adam Bream We’re now on our 9th and FINAL instalment of our ‘Devoted’ series. It’s been quite a journey! A series exploring the impact that the Holy Spirit HAS on followers of Jesus and how He affects our devotion towards several very specific aspects of life. At the end of Acts 2, we have a handful of verses that give us quite a short but powerful example of what God wants His Church to look like and to be prioritising. Devoted to, in fact. Not just for the 1st generation Church, but for EVERY generation following = including ours today. Where it’s easy to get distracted by our own personal likes and dislikes , it’s MORE important that we see what God wants / WHAT HE has planned for HIS Church to enjoy. When builders are building a home, they refer to the drawings that the architect has created. The blueprints. Acts 2:42-47 are like the blueprints for the Church. As these ordinary men and women began encount...

I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies 18:3 Since the Mighty Holy Spirit of God is working around - by prayer by the father's grace & will - the great fight is quite different from the OT type situation. God's glory is fearful and unbearable for the Evil one. We represent His glory - we, believers are the fruits, results of His glory as we stand: justified by the work of the blood of the lamb. Our glorious, intimate heritage is incomparable to the old, religious conditional system we can see in the Holy & devoted tasks of the Levitical priesthood. Our heritage comes from the Ultimate High Priest of Gd Most High. Our priesthood works in righteousness. It has infinite power-background for deliverance, for caring, for the representation of glory in Christ, by the glory of God. Let us see some examples: For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, the ministry of righteousness must far exceed i...

Dr Martyn Lloyd-Jones I should like to call your attention this morning to some four of the verses which we have read just now in the 10th chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews. Let me read them again from verse 19 to verse 22,: “having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which he hath consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say his flesh, and having an high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” Heb 10:19-22 Now these words were written, as you remember, as indeed was the whole epistle to a number of Christian people who were in a condition of discouragement and indeed of despondency. They were, as the title to the Epistle reminds us, Jews, Hebrews, who had been brought up in the old Jewish religion but who having heard the gospel had believed it an...

The Prayers of the Bible, from the book: "Prevailing Prayer" by D. L. Moody T hose who have left the deepest impression on this sin-cursed earth have been men and women of prayer. You will find prayer has been the mighty power that has moved not only God, but also man. Prayers of the Faithful Throughout history, all God’s people have been praying people. Look, for instance, at Richard Baxter.[1] He stained his study walls with praying breath, and after he was anointed with the Holy Spirit, he sent a river of living water over the city of Kidderminster in England, and converted hundreds. Martin Luther[2] and his companions were men of such mighty pleading with God that they broke the spell of ages, and laid nations subdued at the foot of the cross. John Knox grasped all of Scotland in his strong arms of faith; his prayers terrified tyrants. George Whitefield,[3] after much holy, faithful, closet pleading, went to the Devil’s fair, and took more t...

The Prayers of the Bible, from the book: "Prevailing Prayer" by D. L. Moody T hose who have left the deepest impression on this sin-cursed earth have been men and women of prayer. You will find prayer has been the mighty power that has moved not only God, but also man. The prayers of Jesus I want to call special attention to Christ as an example for us in all things – in nothing greater than in prayer. We read that Christ prayed to his Father for everything. Prayer preceded every great crisis in his life. Let me share a few examples from Scripture. I never noticed until a few years ago that Christ was praying at his baptism. Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove (Luke 3:21-22) . Another great event in his life was his trans­figuration, when Jesus took along Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while He was praying, the appearance...

The Prayers of the Bible, from the book: "Prevailing Prayer" by D. L. Moody T hose who have left the deepest impression on this sin-cursed earth have been men and women of prayer. You will find prayer has been the mighty power that has moved not only God, but also man. New Testament Prayers In Acts 10, Cornelius, who was a centurion in the Italian regiment, prayed to God regularly. During one of those prayers, he had a vision and saw an angel of the Lord. The angel told him to summon the apostle Peter. When Peter arrived, Cornelius said, Now then, we are all here present before God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord (Acts 10:33). Although Cornelius was a worshipper of the true God, he lacked faith in Christ. Peter taught the truth about how Jesus had been crucified and raised from the dead. While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. All the circumcised believer...

The Prayers of the Bible, from the book: "Prevailing Prayer" by D. L. Moody T hose who have left the deepest impression on this sin-cursed earth have been men and women of prayer. You will find prayer has been the mighty power that has moved not only God, but also man. Old Testament prayers Abraham was a man of prayer, and angels came down from heaven to converse with him. Jacob’s prayer was answered when he wrestled with God at the place he named Peniel, which means “face of God.” His meeting with the Lord resulted in Jacob having a mighty blessing, and even his brother Esau’s heart was softened towards him. The Lord gave Samuel as an answer to Hannah’s prayer for a child. Elijah’s prayer closed up the heavens for three years and six months, and when he prayed again, the heavens gave rain. The apostle James calls the prophet Elijah a man with a nature like ours. James also says, the effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much (James 5:16-17). El...

The two first and essential means of grace are the Word of God and prayer. Conversion comes through these, for we are born again through the living and enduring(abiding) word of God (1 Peter 1:23), and whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:13). By the Word of God and prayer, we also grow. Scripture tells us we should desire, or crave, the pure spiritual milk of the Word so we may grow by it (1 Peter 2:2), and we cannot grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ unless we also speak to him in prayer. It is by the Word that the Father sanctifies us (purifies and sets us apart) but we are also instructed to watch and pray to avoid falling into temptation. These two instruments of grace must be applied in the right proportion. If we read the Word and do not pray, we may become puffed up with knowledge, without the love that builds others up. If we pray without reading the Word, we will be ignorant of the mind and will of God, an...

Jesus on stress Phil Moore, London Most people don’t find {Jesus’ teaching on rest} very controversial. That’s because they haven’t understood it. They think that Jesus’ teaching about stress and worry is nothing more than fortune-cookie wisdom, nothing more than a first-century version of the Bobby McFerrin song, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”. But it isn’t. It is much, much more radical than that. It tells us that stress is the chief symptom of our idolatry and self-worship. When we understand what Jesus said about stress and worry, it’s easy to see why it got him killed. The gospel writers tell us that the issue of stress and worry was a recurring theme in Jesus’ teaching. Luke tells us what he taught in the autumn of 29 AD, only five or six months before his enemies crucified him: Do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or ...

Prayer, Fasting, lent and other devoted events before Gd Almighty Below, I would like to briefly and concisely highlight a practice that has become widespread in recent times, one that is clearly distinguishable from the biblical teachings on prayer and fasting. We can see various religious special days, pilgrimage, festivals and special events around us and I think this little study will surprise you. The 3rd century saw many changes in the then "Catholic" Church, which was in her new power in the Earthly domain. And new power means : carnal, political power-circles. In this way the "church" & the leaders significantly rethought (or over thought?) then "adjusted" and eventually replaced the original apostolic practice, which was based on Christ's teachings. The more religious pious people earned acceptance and benefit in the pagan Roman world the more spectacular and pompous ceremony took place around the church. Jesus Christ is...