Culture promised so much but delivered nothing. We were told that happiness comes from faster internet, more entertainment options, the sexual revolution, changing pronouns, legalized drugs, more alcohol, more credit, less work, and so on. But despite the promises, we’re still stressed and bubbling with anxiety. Happiness is elusive and, when found, so brief. Like an endless train of zombies stumbling into a dark tunnel, we wander, hoping that fulfillment and satisfaction are just ahead. They’re not. Culture has failed. What now?
Promises from cultural, political, and societal leaders haven’t delivered. Your station in life has changed little from where you stood ten years ago. Would you keep the same internet provider if they couldn’t meet their promises? Would you change your cell phone provider if you experienced spotty coverage despite their lovely blue and purple maps?
Culture is saying that religion is bad, that there is no God, and it’s all a scam. Maybe their thoughts on faith are as useless as a pretty blue map with only a rare gap. It’s time to reconsider.
2. Consider Jesus.
Now, wait. Before you click away, read just a little further. The next 60 seconds could be life-changing.
Jesus is the greatest teacher who ever walked. Initially, I am only asking that you consider his words. For the moment, let’s forget his miracles and his divine claims. Just focus on what he taught.
In a single lesson (Matthew 5, 6, and 7), Jesus declared the “Golden Rule,” “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them… (Matthew 7:12). He declared the uselessness of worry and anxiety (Matthew 6:25-29) while reminding us to focus on the day, not tomorrow (Matthew 6:34). Jesus declared that we should not only love our neighbors (Matthew 22:39) but even our enemies (Matthew 5:43-47).
By any measure, these teachings are world-changing! Culture has failed. Try something new.
3. Focus on Jesus, not His disciples.
You’ve seen hypocrites. Preachers who are greedy cheaters. Church leaders who are sexual abusers. Double-talking Christians who would embarrass a crusty old sailor. Hypocrites are real, and they are found in the church.
There is a difference between Jesus and broken Christians.
Peter, who struggled with his own set of sins, always pointed to Jesus and not to himself.
“…but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy”
1 Peter 1:15, 16
Should you take up the mantle of faith, you will follow Jesus and no one else. And, you will stumble.
4. Expect from Jesus what culture has failed to deliver.
Jesus changes our outlook and our thinking. He transforms our minds through his message (Romans 12:2; 2 Corinthians 3:18). We come to know real and abiding peace. We think less about this world and focus on eternity. Your boss, bank, and neighbor become less irritating as you grow deeper in Christ.
Despite what some money-grubbing preachers will tell you, prosperity is never assured. But that’s ok because our view of money is downgraded. It is no longer a goal but a tool to help others. You will not suddenly become rich. You won’t find “$56,000 in the mail.” But you will find peace and a release from the anxiety vexing you. It’s not instant, but it is real.
I have one goal with this message. I hope you will turn to Jesus to find what culture failed to deliver.
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What is a Christian you ask? Good question. There are many fake Christians. They use the name of Christ freely but bear little resemblance to Jesus. These phony people do more harm than good. Do not be deceived by their self-centered lives. I cannot be the judge, only God is. However I can observe certain Biblical traits that are clearly associated with the real Christian life.
If you want to know what a Christian really is, look to the Bible. Bear in mind that we are all a work in process. We are unfinished, incomplete, and sometimes a real mess. But every person who claims to be a Christian should be learning and trying to model these qualities.
1. A Real Christian Surrenders to Jesus
Christians surrender to Jesus just as Jesus surrendered to the Father.
A clear mark of a disciple is that he surrenders himself to the will of another, in this case, Jesus. Our Lord set the standard by his surrender to the will of the Father. Consider this exemplar from Luke 22:42:
“Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”
These humble words were uttered in Jesus’ Gethsemane prayer. As he struggled between heaven’s mission and earthly fears, Jesus fully surrendered to God’s plan (Acts 2:23). Paul writes that he humbled himself and “became obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross” (Philippians 2:8). Jesus did more than talk about submission. Jesus was a living example of it.
Consider the words of Paul.
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)
Symbolically, Paul died with his teacher. But then he exchanged the entirety of his life for that of his teacher. In a sense, Paul no longer existed. Jesus had claimed his life, and Paul had willingly given it. He had surrendered to Jesus.
Later, the apostle would write: “You are not your own, for you were bought with a price” (1 Corinthians 7:19, 20). The idea of being bought suggests slavery. It’s not surprising that Paul spoke of himself as a servant of Jesus. Paul was owned by Jesus.
When you meet a true Christian, you will see someone motivated by a desire to be like Christ and serve him. Over time, for it is a process, that person will become more and more like his teacher.
2. A Real Christian Loves Like Jesus
Love may not be what you think. The Bible’s definition of Christ-like love has little to do with feelings and instead focuses on commitment. Jesus fully committed himself to all of mankind before the world was created (Ephesians 1:4). The Father loved us so much that he gave Jesus as a sacrifice for our sins (John 3:16; Romans 5:18). There were no “warm and fuzzy” feelings on the cross, just pain and humiliation.
There’s a penetrating statement in Ephesians 5:25, “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her…” A Christian loves like Jesus because he shows true love, and true love means surrendering to another, giving your life for them.
The love command in John 13:35 that became the identifying characteristic of Jesus’ disciples.
By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
What is a Christian? A Christian is one who loves like Jesus. That’s how we can identify disciples of our Lord.
3. A Real Christian Serves Others Like Jesus
Serving lies at the heart of the Christian life. It is impossible to be a Christian and not serve.
For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45)
There has never been one more worthy of serving than Jesus. Yet, his mission was to serve others, even giving his life for people who hated him. The last phrase is incredibly important. Jesus came to serve “and to give his life as a ransom for many.” His service included dying for us. Paul says he died for people who actually hated him: “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Now that is service!
In John 13, Jesus washed the disciple’s feet. A dozen pairs of nasty, sweatyIt was an object lesson of servitude that the Lord taught his followers (John 13:12-15).
When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.
A true follower of Jesus would learn this lesson of humility and service and would quickly duplicate the Lord’s example in his own life.
4. A Real Christian Is Not Perfect
I have a close friend who owns automobile body repair shops. He takes a terribly damaged car and makes it like new again. But it doesn’t happen overnight. He must assess the damage, order the new parts, tear away the damage, look for underlying, hidden damage, install new parts, paint the new parts, polish the new parts, detail the car and then return it to the owner. He’s efficient, but he will not rush. It just takes time. It’s the same with a Christian.
David was an adulterer and a murderer (2 Samuel 11). Peter struggled with prejudice (Galatians 2:11-14). Paul was constantly fighting his own demons (Romans 7:13-25). Today, true Christians are no different.
There is no such thing as a perfect Christian. Apart from the blood of Jesus, we are sniveling, whining creatures of wrath.
Tell me. Do you know an athlete that has never missed a shot? Do you know a musician who never misses a note? A physician who has never erred? You have also never met a Christian who was perfect. Major League Baseball has seen only 23 perfect games in its modern history, and no pitcher has done it more than once. As of this writing, it has been 10 years since the last perfect game.
We all sin (Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8). While we want to do better, we often fail. A Christian is not perfect.
Many claim to be Christians, yet their words are hollow and their actions contrary to the claim. Maybe they want to be a disciple, maybe their want to follow Jesus but not enough to do the hard work of surrendering, loving, and serving.
Jesus tells, and Luke records, the Lord’s rebuke of those who talk but are unwilling to act. Read Luke 9:57-62. Three people with three seemingly reasonable reasons to delay following Jesus. One wanted stability, but the Lord could not promise that. The second wanted to give his father an honorable burial. Jesus said, “Let the dead bury the dead.” The third wanted to say goodbye to his family. Jesus said no. Jesus must come first (Matthew 6:33). Some are just not willing.
A true Christian, a true disciple of Christ, is a person of action. Those actions fit the example of Christ. Do not be deceived by those claiming to walk after Jesus. Check their actions.
One final warning, my friend. Do not assume that counterfeit Christians represent true Christians. It is unfair to paint with so broad a brush. Real Christians are out there. They are in the minority, but they are there. Seek them out.
For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
Galatians 5:14
The heart of Jesus’ message is love. First, we see his love toward us (John 3:16; Romans 5:8 et al). His insistence to his disciples to love your neighbor as yourself is also clear. If we would wear the name Christian, we must learn to love as Jesus did.
Love Your Neighbor As Yourself May Be Very Hard
The command, also given in Matthew 19:19, 22:39; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27; Romans 13:9; and James 2:8, is very easy to say but so hard to do.
First, biblical love is more than a feeling. Feelings come and go, rise and fall but Christlike love is a commitment. Sometimes, as a husband, my wife may not like me. But she always loves me. We made a commitment decades ago to love one another “’til death do us part.” We are committed to one another regardless of some circumstance or trouble. There is a statement in Romans 5:8 that underscores the Lord’s commitment to us.
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8
This passage is remarkable because it describes true love from God. We love because of him (1 John 4:10, 19) so we should peer deeply into his love so that we might learn to love like him. What do we learn here? We learn that we should love in spite of others! That is, we love the very people who do not and will never love us.
Christ died for us.
We were sinners.
We were enemies in rebellion.
He still died for us.
He died for us because he loved the unloveable: Me.
I would die for my family. I would die for my close friends. Would I die for the person who hates me and tries to do me wrong? Honestly, I hope so but I am not so arrogant to say yes.
But Jesus did.
He died for the very people who put him on a cross. Meeting the needs of enemies is biblical love.
But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
Matthew 5:44
For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
Matthew 5:46, 47
Love always involves actions and that makes it so hard.
CHALLENGE: Pick out the person who causes you the most grief, the one who hurts you the most. Do something good for them within the next 7 days.
“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.”
John 14:1 – 4
The return of Jesus to claim His own is more certain than tomorrow’s rising of the sun. While Jesus set no date, the promise to return is unquestioned.
Some have been lured into thinking that Jesus would make two trips to reclaim the faithful. First, a secret “rapture” of the righteous followed by a very public return to lead his people against the armies of evil. After that victory, Jesus will rule for a thousand years, and only then will he take the righteous to eternal glory. This claim, this system, is most curious and quite fanciful. But it clashes with clear and unambiguous Bible teaching. Simply, we don’t know when Jesus will return.
One Life, One Return
The Rapture idea is dangerous. His return is no longer about judgment and eternal life or condemnation. According to Rapture adherants, his first return (Rapture) is about avoiding a defined period of tribulation, which lasts seven years. Logically then, the time of Jesus’ final return is knowable because the period of tribulation has a defined ending, after seven years.
But what does the Bible say?
“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.
Matthew 24:30
Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.
Matthew 24:42
Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
Matthew 25:13
For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief.
1 Thessalonians 5:2 – 4
The passage from 1 Thessalonians is especially instructive. Notice that Jesus returns at a time when people do not expect Him. He comes at a time when people are saying “[T]here is peace and security.” There is no tribulation, only “peace and security.” It is at this time that “sudden destruction” comes upon them. It is not the beginning of destruction that takes seven years, but sudden or immediate destruction. There is no reason to take the word “sudden” to mean anything other than what it usually means.
So what shall we say about any teaching that slows or delays the Christian’s preparation for Jesus’ return? As Jesus said in Matthew 24, “stay awake.” Because we do not know when Jesus will return.
Part three of the Come Lord Jesus series on the final return of Christ at the end of time.
The Raptureis the idea of a secret, preliminary return of Jesus to take his saved away from the earth. It is an integral part of dispensationalism. The idea is novel and has no recorded basis in the Bible itself. There are, however, some early threads of dispensational thought in the second century. The Rapture was popularized by the Scofield Study Bible (1909), The Late Great Planet Earth (1970), and the Left Behind series of books (1995). Today, it is the subject of innumerable memes and posts on social media. Interest in the subject tends to rise in times of distress, such as the present COVID fears and political disruptions. Despite its appeal, it does not square with Biblical teaching on the return of Jesus.
Believers suggest that at some unspecified time, Jesus will return and suddenly take away believers. This they call The Rapture. Images of driverless cars, pilotless aircraft, and missing masses are common. Various flavors of dispensational teaching differ on what comes next, although the most common is seven years of incredible tribulation and suffering for those not taken away. After the seven years, Christ will return and wage battle against the forces of the antichrist. After a great battle, Armageddon, the victorious Christ will reign on earth for 1,000 years. We will study each of these ideas in coming articles.
Rapture Secrecy
1 Thessalonians 4:17 is a key verse for Rapture adherents:
“Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.”
The doctrine teaches that Christ takes his people away from the earth but does not appear to anyone other than the saved. Is that what the Bible teaches? No. Let us observe the context of the very verse they hold dear. The preceding verse (1 Thessalonians 4:16) describes the Lord’s coming:
“For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.”
The Bible uses words like “cry,” “voice,” and “sound of the trumpet.” Instead of being a secret arrival of Jesus, as taught by the Rapture, it is a thunderous and public arrival. There is nothing to suggest any secrecy here!
A close parallel to 1 Thessalonians 4:17 is Revelation 1:7.
“Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.”
I say this is parallel because in both cases, Jesus is coming in the air (air = 1 Thessalonians 4:17; clouds = Revelation 1:7). Please note that everyone will see his return, even the wicked men who nailed him to a cross. “[E]very eye will see him.”
The only way this secret return of the Rapture can be sustained is if this coming is not related to the end of time and if there is a third coming of Jesus at the very end. To get around this, dispensationalists argue for a preliminary coming of Jesus. In our next article, we will examine the multi-return teaching.
Good people struggle with knowing when Jesus will come again. Stressful times make us long for the shattering of earthly chains and the flight to unknown realms. Like a child waiting to be picked up by his parents after a first overnight away from home, we are increasingly homesick as we await the Lord’s coming. Some people call his return The Rapture, although that term is not in the Bible. We are certain that Jesus will return, but we just wish we knew when he would show up.
Jesus is with us right now. He promised the disciples that he was with us always (Matthew 28:18, 19). But he also told us of another return, one that would swiftly take us to glory (John 14:1 – 4). He alone is the way to the Father – there is no other path (John 14:6). But because we do not know the time and date of his return, we must work in his kingdom until we see him come.
When is Jesus’ Return?
This is where we stumble. In our breathless anticipation of his victorious return, we assume too much. “These are signs of the times,” friends say, or “it’s time for Jesus’ to return!” Self-styled prophets declare a date certain for the end. People have been saying these things for millennia, and they have all been wrong.
Avignon, France, was a lovely village in 1348. It lies on the Rhone river, about 50 miles from the Mediterranean Sea. During the late Spring, the Black Death, Bubonic Plague, swept through the town.
“When Avignon ran out of ground, Clement consecrated the Rhone; each morning that plague spring, hundreds of rotting corpses would flow down the stream like a mysterious new species of sea creature.” So wrote John Kelly in The Great Mortality. He also reports that 7,000 homes within the city lay vacant because everyone inside was dead. One resident estimates 62,000 people died in the first four months of the year. (Kelly, pg 150). Many believed that the plague was mentioned in the Bible and was a sign of Jesus’ impending return or the Rapture.
But Jesus didn’t come then.
At about the same time (1337 – 1453), the so-called Hundred Years’ War (actually 116 years) claimed close to 3,000,000 dead. In recent history, World War II claimed close to 100,000,000 across six years of combat capped by the final detonation of two atomic bombs in Japan. Indeed such a deadly war with such a horrendous climax must signal the Lord’s return! J. Robert Oppenheimer, who lead the American project to develop atomic bombs, shed a tear when remembering the testing of those bombs. He quoted from the Hindu holy book, Bhagavad-Gita, “I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.
But Jesus didn’t come then either.
William Miller, a founder of Seventh Day Adventism, announced that Jesus would return on October 22, 1844. Many believed his false teaching, disposed of their possessions, and sat down to await the Lord’s return. When the day passed, such sadness followed that the date has come to be known as The Great Disappointment. Miller and those who followed him became targets of jokes, taunts, and even violence. The people who followed Miller were ordinary, everyday people. They were good folk who worked hard and attended church services. They were true believers of Miller. They were confident.
But Jesus didn’t come.
When we declare the coming of the Lord or declare so-called “signs of the times,” we give the world one more reason to laugh and hold us in derision. That may not matter to your faith, but it could throttle those considering coming to Jesus. Let us stick with what we know and accept what we do not. I know Jesus is coming, I don’t know when, but he will come.
John was waiting for Jesus when he penned the above words from Patmos in Revelation 22:20. Aside from being exiled to a small island in the Aegean Sea, he was privileged to see a series of revelations about the past and the future. John saw a vision of heaven and saw the enthroned Creator and innumerable worshippers around him. But the images ended. He looked around and was still on the same rocky isle as before. “Come, Lord Jesus” was his cry. The contrast between heaven and Patmos must have been astonishing. John longed for Jesus’ return.
A desire for our heavenly home is good. Paul felt it (Philippians 1:18 – 26, esp vs. 23), and we should too.
We are Confused About Jesus’ Return
But I am concerned that some have confused a desire for heaven with a human doctrine of dispensationalism. I see it on social media when people assert that the end times must be near because of our troubles.
Dispensationalism is a collection of end-of-time ideas that have been popularized since John Darby in the 1800s. In our time, author Hal Lindsey penned The Late Great Planet Earth in 1970, seeming to forecast the “rapture” in the 1980s. Jerry B. Jenkins (no connection to Jerry Jenkins of Roebuck Parkway) and Tim Lahaye published the Left Behind series of books. These stories present a fictionalized account of the return of Jesus. The rapture, AntiChrist, and an earthly reign of Jesus on a throne in Jerusalem are all part of the novels. Dangerously, these books, and similar social media posts, suggest a way to know when the Lord is coming. That’s an idea specifically refuted by Jesus himself.
We are waiting for Jesus, knowing he’s coming but unsure of when.
In the coming weeks, we will examine these various teachings and demonstrate from the Bible why they are in error. We will establish a biblical approach to these topics. We will point to something firm to stand upon when dreaming of heaven. Let’s start with timing.
His return date is not known
Jesus walked with his disciples in Jerusalem. Herod’s Temple was the centerpiece of Herod the Great’s building program. It was an imposing and magnificent edifice. The disciples were speaking of it when Jesus said, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down” (Matthew 24:2). The following discussion, commonly known as the Olivet Discourse, includes this remarkable statement concerning Jesus’ second coming:
“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only”.
Matthew 24:36
Jesus is speaking of his return. Previously, he told them precisely what to watch for and when to flee. He warned that the terrible things in verses 3 – 35 would occur in the lifetime of that present generation (Matthew 24:34). About 40 years later, Rome destroyed Jerusalem.
In verse 36, Jesus answers the second part of the question asked in verse 3: “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” There is no answer to that question because Jesus himself did not know! If Jesus doesn’t know, I am confident no one posting on Facebook knows.
He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
1 John 2:2
You have never received a gift comparable to Jesus Christ. He is beyond imagination. The wealth flowing from His presence is immeasurable. The dimensions of his gift cannot be known by mortals, at least not now. The verse above is probably the most succinct description of his endowment to men.
Propitiation
Propitiation is not a common word in the Bible. It occurs only four times (Romans 3:25; Hebrews 2:17; 1 John 2:2; 1 John 4:10). In the broader Greek writings, it is considered a rare term when used as a noun as it is here. So, we must use the Biblical context to appreciate the use of the word by John.
Propitiation is closely associated with sin, more specifically, the removal of sin. Every New Testament verse that includes propitiation also includes the word sin. Paul links the word with Jesus’ blood and the resolution of God’s forbearance (Romans 3:25). The writer of Hebrews also connects it with sin and Jesus’ action of resolving the people’s sins.
Recalling that Hebrews is written to a Jewish community well-versed in the Law of Moses, we must see this propitiation of Jesus as linked to the sacrifice on the Day of Atonement. Consider John the Baptist’s exclamation, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29). Isaiah’s prophecy is on point here, for he says, “with his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). The prophets use of words like “stricken” (vs. 4, 8), “afflicted” (vs. 4), and “crush” (vs.10), point to the horror awaiting the Savior. We also note Isaiah’s inspired claim that all of this was done by the Lord, “Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; (Isaiah 53:10). This statement parallels Acts 2:23 that Jesus was “delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.”
Wrath
We conclude that God planned the suffering of Jesus. But why? When you and I view the cross and all the attendant events, we are peering into the wrath of God against sin. Wrath, unlike propitiation, is not a rare word. It occurs over 200 times in the English Bible. We understand wrath as powerful anger directed against an enemy. Because this wrath comes from God, we may say it is a divine or righteous wrath. This is no temper tantrum, but the outpouring of appropriate and holy retribution for that which spoiled the perfect creation – sin.
Concerning the mistreatment of widows and orphans, God says, “my wrath will burn…” (Exodus 22:24). We may think such a response is harsh, but we understand that His divine wrath is directed at evildoers. But why Jesus?
Nahum offers, “Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken into pieces by him” (Nahum 1:6). The obvious answer is that no one can stand before God’s wrath, for none are innocent (Psalm 14:1 – 3).
Following these verses, we discover that we are all lost and have only a fearful expectation of destruction from before the holiness of God. We need a shield, an absorber, to soak up the wrath of God and protect us. We need a propitiation. We need Jesus. As a shield, Jesus stands between us and the wrath of God. Our sins are removed, and we no longer fear destruction
In some unimaginable way, the same God that destroys in his wrath finds a way to save the objects of his love by focusing his wrath upon Jesus. Thank you, Lord, for this unspeakable gift!
Jesus is the gift for all. Sadly, most will never accept the gift. We must proclaim the nature of the gift to all the world. It awaits for all men. Let us all be heralds of this wonderful gift!
Jesus taught his students to pray and made some pretty remarkable claims about the power of prayer.
Are we afraid to pray boldly? We’ve been assured that grace awaits. “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). Some translations have us drawing near with boldness. We can step boldly come before God’s throne for help. James writes, “The prayer of a righteous person has great effectiveness” (James 5:16, NET translation). So, three big promises, and there are more, that assure us of effective prayer.
But what if we don’t pray?
When was the last time you prayed? Don’t count a fast “blessing” over a meal or a quickie prayer after that mindless guy almost ran over you in the Walmart parking lot. Those are good and important prayers, but I want to know when was the last time you had an intense conversation with God?
Jesus prayed early in the morning – Mark 1:35.
Jesus prayed so intently his sweat was like drops of blood falling – Luke 22:44.
Jesus didn’t get everything he wanted – Luke 22:42.
Wait! What?! I never thought of that. Jesus did not always get what he wanted, but he prayed anyway. That’s pretty astonishing. Sometimes, God said no to Jesus.
Here’s my point: Our prayers are weak because we don’t believe prayer works. We don’t believe prayer works because we don’t get everything we want. But that is the exact opposite of the Teacher. Jesus didn’t get everything he wanted, but he kept praying anyway. So should we!
When Jesus’ disciples saw him praying, they asked him to teach them. Luke 11:1 – 4 offers the Lord’s model prayer. But his discussion of prayer doesn’t end in verse 4. He continues teaching them in Luke 11:5 – 13. In this passage, Jesus teaches that we must persist in prayer. In this parable, a woman is seeking justice from an unrighteous judge. Unabated in her requests, the judge gives her what she wants – justice.
Too often, we pray once and done prayers. Once is enough. Don’t bother God. But God wants to be bothered. He desires to hear you give voice to your needs and desires. We can and must empower our requests through steady and consistent prayer. Obviously, God’s will must always prevail, but we should press our case before God as if he was our last hope because really, he is.
Nobody ever said righteousness was easy. No one ever claimed holiness was a breeze. The pursuit of godliness is probably the hardest thing you will ever attempt. What’s the old saying, “If it were easy, everyone would do it?”
Abraham struggled with honesty, as did his son, Isaac.
Noah got drunk.
David cheated with another man’s wife and then had him killed.
Peter was two-faced, and Paul was the foremost sinner.
It’s hard to do right. You may look at those guys and think, “Hey! I’m better than them!” Maybe. In some ways. But it’s not about us vs. them. It’s about Jesus and how well we mirror his image. That’s the idea, right? We are to be like him. Look at 1st Peter 1:15. Peter says, “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.‘”
Even preachers struggle. It’s nice to preach about love, hope, heaven, and glory, all sound biblical topics. It’s much harder to talk about sin, repentance, and hell, but those are biblical too and must be a part of any preacher’s repertoire. Why? Because that’s part of living godly. because it’s as much of God’s word as the easy stuff.
Have you ever repaired or installed drywall or sheetrock? Turn out the overhead light and shine a lamp at a sharp angle onto the wall. The slanted light will reveal every flaw in your work. That’s like the Bible. Scripture makes us uncomfortable because it reveals our failings and shortcomings. It is a bright light on our imperfect lives.
“Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.”
Luke 12:3
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
Psalm 119:105
“For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life”
Proverbs 6:23
On the other hand, the world calls gently to us, demanding nothing now but taking souls in the life to come. As Jesus said, Satan “is a liar” (John 8:44). His promises are sweet and pleasing to our ears. He tenderly convinces us that we are free to do as we please. His bite comes at the end, and we lose our souls eternally.
Consider Eve. Satan lied to her in Genesis 3:4. Look what happened.
Don’t forget. We are not alone in our pursuit of righteousness and holiness. Jesus walks with us daily – if we let him – and strengthens us in our battles. His power works in us to purify, sanctify, and consecrate us to his service (Philippians 1:6, 2:13; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; Hebrews 13:21).
No warrior ever walks alone. He is strengthened by training of those before, the memories of those who have fallen, and the spirit of his comrades. You are not alone. Jesus trains you through his word, has been here before, and walks alongside you today.
My purpose is to tell you not to give up. Do not surrender to your sinful desires. Reject the whispers of failure and inadequacy. Let those times of greatest temptation become times of greatest prayer and humility. Life is so hard. Lean on Jesus!
