Excellent Article on when to pray and when not to pray! A small portion of the article.
From Remnant Report.com
The Symptoms Listed:
1. Stupidity:
Men can reach the point of sinning where God abandons them to His wrath. In the process they become "foolish" or stupid - they can no longer think or reason clearly.
Romans 1:21 says..."their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man, birds, four-footed animals, and reptiles" (HCSB).
2. Lesbianism & Homosexuality:
Another symptom of God's wrath of abandonment is that He gives unbelieving, foolish men over to homosexuality. Missler points out that this is a stunning revelation because God uses homosexuality as a "result" of sin - not a cause. Even women, who normally have strong instincts to raise and protect children, resort to lesbianism because they have been "given over" to their own dishonorable passions.
"For even their females exchanged natural sexual intercourse for what is unnatural" (Romans 1:26).
"The males in the same way also left natural sexual intercourse with females and were inflamed in their lust for one another" (Ro. 1:27).
3. Penalties for Immorality:
The second half of verse 27 plainly says, "Males committed shameless acts with males and received in their own persons the appropriate penalty for their perversion."
We don't need to go into great detail regarding AIDS or sexually transmitted diseases. It is self-evident.
4.Useless Minds:
God gives over atheistic men to have a useless, worthless mind. It is a sad, tragic state of affairs. Gone are the dreams to inspire men, to change a hopeless world and to perform worthwhile tasks while one is still alive. Instead, God says that
..."because they did not think it worthwhile to have God in their knowledge, God delivered them over to a worthless mind to do what is morally wrong..." (Romans 1:28-32, HCSB).
5. Good Shunned and Evil Exalted:
Romans 1:32 says that "although they know full well God's just sentence - that those who practice such things deserve to die - they not only do them, but even applaud others who practice them."
Many of us are aware, for example, that there are parents who applaud their drug-addicted or murderous kids but hate their Christian children. This is the environment where foot-washing basins for terrorists are provided in airports and yet a display of the Ten Commandments is removed from the courtroom. Everything is backward.
The prophet Isaiah appropriately gave an impassioned plea for this backward state:
"Woe to those who call evil good
and good evil,
who substitute darkness
for light
and light for darkness,
who substitute bitter for sweet
and sweet for bitter."
(Isaiah 5:20, HCSB)
Pray Not?
Should we "pray for these people anymore" when God has clearly delivered them to destruction? Does God tell us not to pray for certain people anymore?
It's a good question. But, we don't find any instance in the New Testament where Christians are commanded to quit praying for believers or unbelievers no matter who they are or what they have done.
God Lives in Eternity
Furthermore, God is beyond our space-time continuum. There is no past, present or future with Him. He is beyond our limited dimensional thinking of height, depth, width and one-half dimension of time (we can't go backwards in time yet). Isaiah 57:15 notes,
"For thus says the One who is high and
lifted up,
who inhabits eternity..." (ESV)
Only God inhabits eternity. Therefore, because of God's complete sovereignty over our lives we are told to be anxious for nothing and to pray for everything! (Philippians 4:6). We must continue to do so - to pray - until He tells us to do otherwise.
Tuesday, September 8, 2015
The Actions Prove The Heart Condition
There are many people who become incensed when we call sin what it is, claiming that we cannot know a persons heart. What they do not understand is which ever way we live, shows our heart. We cannot do in actions that which is not already in the heart.
It is out of the heart that evil thoughts come, as well as murder, adultery, sexual immorality, stealing, false testimony, and slander. For out of the heart come evil ideas, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
Matthew 15:19 "It is out of the heart that evil thoughts come, as well as murder, adultery, sexual immorality, stealing, false testimony, and slander. For out of the heart come evil ideas, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander."
The heart attitude is first then come the actions.
It is out of the heart that evil thoughts come, as well as murder, adultery, sexual immorality, stealing, false testimony, and slander. For out of the heart come evil ideas, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
Matthew 15:19 "It is out of the heart that evil thoughts come, as well as murder, adultery, sexual immorality, stealing, false testimony, and slander. For out of the heart come evil ideas, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander."
The heart attitude is first then come the actions.
Give God The Glory
Romans 12:1-8
"1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.
4 For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function,
5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
6 Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith;
7 if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching;
8 or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness."
"1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.
4 For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function,
5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
6 Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith;
7 if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching;
8 or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness."
The Idols Are Gone!
I stopped praying for my children for a couple of months and told people I was, because I have prayed for them for more than 40 years now and believe my prayers during that 40 years still count. I became weary of praying and praying and praying only to watch them get worse.
So I turned them over to God completely to do whatever He will, whatever it takes to bring them to their knees. I know God is going to work one way or another, that is up to Him.
I felt a need for a break from the continual cogitation on their problems, their rebellion and their disrespectful attitudes. Now that I have had that break, the joy has returned and I have begun praying again, only without the agony anymore.
Also the desire to show them their need has left me, the realization that they may never be in my life again is not a grief anymore. The Lord has given me peace, what He does with them is up to Him.
I was also convicted that in my grief, my children had become idols to me. I placed far too much importance on their lack of love for us. When I realized that I was courting idols in my life, I was transformed into a free woman. Bondage to idols, whether they be artifacts, statues or people, will take it's toll on our spiritual walk.
I have never lost my love for my children, that will never go away, but I no longer expect anything, all my expectations have been laid at the feet of Christ.
No more idols, no more expectations and no more desire to help them fix their own lives. However, until God fixes them, I have to keep my distance, to prevent the mistake of returning to idols.
Yep, there is still hope, but a calmer more joyous hope in Christ rather than in the children.
So I turned them over to God completely to do whatever He will, whatever it takes to bring them to their knees. I know God is going to work one way or another, that is up to Him.
I felt a need for a break from the continual cogitation on their problems, their rebellion and their disrespectful attitudes. Now that I have had that break, the joy has returned and I have begun praying again, only without the agony anymore.
Also the desire to show them their need has left me, the realization that they may never be in my life again is not a grief anymore. The Lord has given me peace, what He does with them is up to Him.
I was also convicted that in my grief, my children had become idols to me. I placed far too much importance on their lack of love for us. When I realized that I was courting idols in my life, I was transformed into a free woman. Bondage to idols, whether they be artifacts, statues or people, will take it's toll on our spiritual walk.
I have never lost my love for my children, that will never go away, but I no longer expect anything, all my expectations have been laid at the feet of Christ.
No more idols, no more expectations and no more desire to help them fix their own lives. However, until God fixes them, I have to keep my distance, to prevent the mistake of returning to idols.
Yep, there is still hope, but a calmer more joyous hope in Christ rather than in the children.
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