A Great Reminder On An Important Historic Anniversary

"Also draw out the spear, and stop those who pursue me.  Say to my soul, 'I am your salvation.'" (Psalm 35:3)

This is a "legitimate" prayer because it is a Bible prayer.  The Global Community of the Followers of Jesus need to continually pray this prayer because it applies to absolutely every facet of our lives, political, vocational, educational, economics, etc., and the accompanying reminder that Jesus Christ Alone is, "your salvation."  Remember that the Hebrew word translated here, "salvation," is the word, "Yeshuah," which means "deliverance, help, prosperity, save, security, victories."  Take the word, "salvation," out of the confines of traditional evangelicalism and it is amazing the scope of our, "salvation."

25 years ago this coming Sunday, November 9,  1989, I was in Vienna, Austria.  The news came through that night that the border between East and West Berlin was open; I was stunned.  Really, that for which I had prayed but deep down really did not expect to see it in my life time?  Yes, I had laid hands on the Wall, prayed at the wall as did thousands of others, and countless others throughout the world had prayed for the deliverance of the Church in East Europe.  Now it was a reality.  Within days of the revolutions in East Europe people were preaching on the streets, handing out tracks.  It was a great "season."  

Within a few days of the demise of the Berlin Wall I was in Berlin.  Then a couple of months later I was back in Berlin going unhindered through border crossings, visiting guard towers, watching parts of the Wall still coming down.  President Bush said publicly that the revolutions in Eastern Europe were not political; they were spiritual.  In Czechoslovakia, it started with a prayer meeting of hundreds of thousands in a large open area in Prague.  In Romania, it started with 4000 Followers of Jesus praying for over 24 hours in the rain.  And the stories could go on.  

We too in the United States have recently seen evil leaders removed from key positions.  While the proverbial "verdict is still out," there is a chance in the US now for people who know Jesus and have surrendered their lives to Jesus (some of which I have met personally) to be in very key positions in the US Government.  In it all and through it all, through all of human history, the people who have inevitably triumphed and who will triumph in, "That Day," are not those who look to man or his institutions for salvation, but rather those those who have said to the Lord Jesus Christ, "'Say to my soul,' remind my soul continually, never let my soul forget and never let me cease to say and live by Your great promise, 'I am your salvation.'"

Father, in Jesus' Name, forgive me if for one moment I have not rested in, "I Am your salvation."  Amen.

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Read Article about the 25th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall:  jhs58.blogspot.com

When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"

"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2

"Whoever Desires...Take Up His Cross"

"Whoever desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."  (Mark 8:34, From today's Gospel Reading)

Well, we did it.  I repeat, it never ceases to amaze me at how most Americans do not vote "principle."  They vote "me."  Case in point is Illinois; they elected a Republican Governor and put Dick Durbin back in the Senate, a staunch advocate of "abortion rights."  I really cannot say what must go through people's minds who do this.  The issue is always bigger than what you and I "feel."  It is Biblical Principles, what political position most reflects Jesus Christ and His Kingdom.  Of course both Democrat and Republican parties reflect humanism, but there are more positions in the Republican Party which reflect the Kingdom of Heaven than in the Democrat Party.  This Theology must govern my life and your life. 

You and I will have from time to time feelings, perhaps even "beliefs" which will not align with the Word of God.  This is where the Church comes in.  This is where Church discipline, correction comes in.  It is something which you and I need to keep current in our lives, viz., Is this position consistent with the reign of Jesus Christ in my life, the nation, the earth?

Our text too often is just used in a "Sunday School" manner, i.e, religious confines of a religious agenda.  The assertion here of our Lord Jesus is to, "deny," and, "follow," and is a call, yea, a command to, "deny," and, "follow [Jesus]," in every area, every facet, of my life, no matter my gender, my culture, or "ethnic origin."  This does not come "easy" to man in this present age.  

Our text is one of the most "familiar" of Holy Writ, and because it is, it is too often just nodded to.  I feel more and more that the Holy Spirit is saying and convicting that the Church must never see this as an evangelistic altar call.  It is a daily call, a moment by moment call.  It is Jesus saying to you and me continually, in the home, the shop, the office, the market place, the school, everywhere and at all times, "If you want to continue, 'to come after Me,..deny [your]self, and take up [your] cross, and follow Me,'" as Luke adds, "daily." This is not only the only safe "journey;" it's the only peace journey.

Father, in Jesus' Name, I pray You, Holy Spirit, to keep these, Your Words, before me, in me, and written in my mind and heart.  Amen. 

When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"

"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2

Voting Day In The United States: "You Give Them Something To Eat?"

"Arise, O Lord, confront him, cast him down; deliver my life from the wicked with Your sword."  (Psalm 17:13)

Americans have something no other nation had from its beginning; they choose their government.  If it's bad government, we are responsible.  If it's good government, we are responsible.  All the talk shows, pundits, and political scientists can talk, talk, talk, complain, complain, complain, but when all the noise dies down, it is you and I who determine the kind of government we have.  Now don't get all Calvinistic on me.  What is going on in America is not God.  It is the American people abandoning whatever morality that was passed on to us by previous generations.  Bible reading in the schools------GONE.  Prayer in the schools----- GONE.  Nurturing of life-------GONE in Roe v. Wade.  Christendom slept; the enemy sowed tares.

The Church in the United States of America can, "Confront him, cast him down...."  But the "church" does not.  Now the more spiritual among us will say that David is praying for this to happen; he is, and, needless to say, so should we.  But can you not see in Scripture that so many times the Lord God gives you and me orders for us to, "Confront," and, "cast down"?  Talk of prayer and, "Well, God has everything under control," is far too many times a cope out of God-given responsibility.  Oswald Chambers once said, "The paralysis of refusing to act leaves a man exactly where he was before...."

There are indeed times when we need to pray, "Deliver my life from the wicked with Your sword."  But God always did this by David's sword and the swords of the Hebrews.  "Your sword," was an acknowledgment that whatever David did with his sword was by the power of the Living Triune God in Jesus Christ, "The Commander of the armies of Heaven."  In the Scriptures, the times of, "Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord," are relatively few.  Most of the time the command of God to His People is the same as when the disciples said to Jesus, "Send them away, that they may...buy themselves bread."  Jesus told them, "You give them something to eat."  It is similar to the man who said to Jesus, "If you can do anything," to which Jesus replied, "If you can."

What happens in the United States of America today will be determined by those who want to prevail.  If Christendom stays home, the enemies of the Cross will prevail.  Today, our prayer on this Election Day in America cannot be, "Send them away, that they may...by themselves bread."  If we do, our Lord Jesus will simply reply to us, "You give them something to eat."  Jesus is saying to the Church in America as He said to Moses when Moses thought he was powerless to do anything, "What is that in your hand?" !!

Father, in Jesus' Name, heal me from any "paralysis of refusing to act."  Amen.

When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"

"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2