When we look at Jesus, do we see Him sitting at the right hand of God radiating light, do we see Him hanging on the cross at Calvary, or do we see Him bleeding and moaning as He is carrying, and dragging His Cross down the Via Dolorosa? What is the Cross of Jesus Christ to us? Is it a symbol of man’s anger and hate, or of God’s love? If we really don’t know, then we had best decide, because it is after picking up our own Cross that we are told to follow Jesus.
Have you sought to receive the blessing of Pentecost and yet it has eluded you? Have you prayed, wept, and pleaded for the Holy Spirit to reveal himself to you through healing, discernment, tongues or other gifts... yet somehow you feel unfulfilled? Or, maybe, you have suddenly felt separated from the Spirit. When this happens it is not necessarily that you are unworthy, or no longer the child of God, but that the Lord has a lesson for you that can only come by a continued and determined seeking for Him.
Can we pray like Elijah? Do our prayers have the ability to reach up to the heavens and let not just drought come and go, but all sorts of answered prayers rain down? Well, scripture tells us that Elijah’s nature is the same as ours... so how is it that his prayers are so powerful? Elijah had one more characteristic... righteousness. When we pray, do we possess that same righteousness and fullness of faith? How are we in these things? How is our prayer life?
When we gave our life to Christ, did we become changed people? Did we join with all those who had come before us in reestablishing our lives, and allowing Jesus to give us a fresh start? Did we follow Jesus into righteous and holy lives of worshipping God with all His saints? We are meant to leave behind those things that once defined us and become like Christ... Godly, righteous, and Holy. Are you still wandering alone?
Where does our help come from? Understanding the nature of God is more than simply important, and we can see this best in those things for which we praise and thank Him. The Psalms are a wonderful place to turn to as we look for God, and search out His impact in our lives. Do we praise Him enough? Do we see Him in every corner of our lives? Do even the most subtle nuances of his nature have major impacts on who and what we are?
“Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. [The Lord is faithful in all his words and kind in all his works.] The Lord upholds all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season.
Jesus is our sole path to eternity, and the bearer of God’s holiness, who, when dwelling in us brings that holiness to us. Are we ready to accept Him into ourselves? Are we prepared to allow Him to abide in us, and to take His body, and His blood as our sustenance? Many of us have not been, and have walked away; thus the question posed to us this morning is this... “Who are we?”, and not “Who is He?“
What gives us the comfort and power we need to testify of Jesus Christ, and how is it that we should witness to others? Some of us go into the world and powerfully deliver the gospel message verbally to those who haven’t heard it, or to those whose heart has been prepared to receive it, and then there are others of us who quietly go about preaching of Jesus simply by living out our day to day lives... witnessing to the world by how we live out our faith. Do we feel inadequate when it comes to saving souls? Well let’s look at how we have been equipped to do this.
Do we feel that we are being threatened because of our faith today? Are we treated as though our beliefs are weak and harmless, without danger to those who rule and practice worldly sinfulness with impunity, or perhaps we are placated by those who simply pretend to be friends of Jesus? Strong enemies are confronted carefully in battle by their opponent’s strengths, while subtle enemies must be overcome by discernment. So where do we stand as believers, and where does the Church stand today... not just within the world, but on the spiritual battlefields of righteousness? Are we hell-bent to enforce God’s perfect spiritual law in man’s fallen worldly courts?
Are we living for the here-and-now? So many people go through life looking at the world as if what is happening at this instant in their life is of the utmost importance. They might say that they plan, but are they really? Are they making short-term plans for tomorrow, or long-term plans for how they will live out their lives? Do their plans include what will happen to them beyond the grave? God wants so much more from us than a plan for this life on earth; He wants us to have a spiritual plan that includes spending eternity with Him. Do we have such a plan?
Are we waiting expectantly on the promised return of Jesus Christ? Do we rise every morning, and go to church throughout the week, in anticipation of His arrival? If so, what will we say to Him when He presents Himself? Will we even know for certain that it is Him? We like to believe that we will easily recognize Him, but will we? If He Doesn’t immediately lift us to join Him in the sky, or if we aren’t privy to some miraculous sign... will we know Him? Will we believe this man is Jesus? If an everyday carpenter dressed in work clothes introduced Himself... would you believe He was Jesus... or just think that he was disturbed?
We pray to our heavenly Father, the Holy Spirit guides us, and we make our requests in the name of Jesus. Have you ever felt so loved? Have you ever felt so cared for? Have you ever felt so pampered, and the fullness of such joy? In Jesus, our prayers are continued as He intercedes for us before the Father. Do you pray in His name when you enter your prayer closet? When we do this we are not just performing a formality, but are exercising His authority and obediently grasping hold of His promise. Then, when we say “Amen” are we claiming the words as our own and sharing the blessing within them?
“Is there a doctor in the house!? Is there a doctor in the house!?” These are words we all dread to hear, and especially if they are being called out on our behalf, but when Jesus came into the world that was exactly who He was; he was the spiritual doctor who had come to heal us of our sins, and pull us back from the brink of death! Do we need a doctor today? Do we need Him to come running into the room to treat us... to pull us back from death’s door?
Have you allowed Jesus to lead you into full and abundant life, or are you satisfied with merely existing in Him? Does He own you completely, and have full reign in your life, or have you only leant yourself to Him, and become like a sheep under the watch of a hired hand? Have you taken your place as His prized possession, or simply a servant; a sheep that is His to watch for a day, but in which there is no great joy of ownership? Are you a lost sheep that follows a stranger, or one that adores and follows a loving master who would lay down His life for you?
How do you treat your sexual body, and how does it impact your spirituality? The greatest bodily temptation is sexual immorality, and God understands this... He is no prude, and knows the desires that we have; after all, He created us with them. Sex is meant to be pleasurable, and by so being, to ensure procreation, but when Satan gets hold of it then it loses the purpose that God intended, and becomes misdirected and immoral. Do you have control over your body, your desires, and your sexuality?
How diligent are we in our faith? Do we only set aside enough time to study the Bible, and to pray undisturbed each day when we rise in the morning? If that is true, then I certainly hope that Jesus returns to claim us, His bride, in the morning. Routine times of study help us to ensure that we spend time in contemplation and prayer, but we should dwell on those things we have studied in the morning as we travel throughout our day. In this way we will remain at the ready, and those around us will see Christ in us all day long.