Category: Ministry

the work or vocation of a minister of religion

Our “Paraclete”

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The Holy Spirit

John 16:7 “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. (NKJ

The word Paraclete is a transliteration of the Greek word Parakletos, which means “one who speaks on behalf of or in favor of “as being an intercessor, advocate, counselor; a “helper”.

John 15:26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. (NKJV)

The Holy Spirit is part of the Trinity and has several functions in the life of a believer:

1. The Holy Spirit is a Paraclete (pair-uh-kleet) our helper who teaches and reminds.

John 14:26 “Jesus told his disciples, “the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you”

2. The Holy Spirit (lives) dwells in believers and fills them.

1st Corinthians 3:16 “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?”

3. The Holy Spirit is a (true) source of revelation, wisdom, and power.

1st Corinthians 2:10-11“These are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except for their own spirit within them? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God”

 Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

4. The Holy Spirit (leads) guides to all truth, including knowledge of what is to come.

John 16:13 “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.”

5. The Holy Spirit (freely) gives spiritual gifts to believers.

1st Corinthians 12:7-11 “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.”

6. The Holy Spirit, Paraclete (pair-uh-kleet) helps in a Christian’s weakness and intercedes for them.

Romans 8:26-27 “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27 Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.”

Lord Jesus, thank you for sending a helper that is a constant source of what is needed in our lives as believers, in Jesus name…Amen!

Continuing in His service…Rev

Power of Prayer

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Power of Prayer

Hands, Praying, Worship, Belief

Matthew 21:22″And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” (NKJV)

Prayer is one of the most powerful resources that a Christian has at their disposal. Because we serve the only one and true living God, that “neither slumbers nor sleeps”, we can go to Him at any time with prayer.

Psalm 121:4 “Behold, He who keeps Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep”

Many have asked different questions about prayer:

How do I pray?

When should I pray?

How often should I pray?

Is it OK to have others pray for me, and can I pray for others?

Will God hear and answer me when I pray?

A basic definition for prayer is “talking to God.” Prayer is the primary way for a believer to communicate their feelings and desires to God, and can also serve the purpose of giving thanks or praising God.

Praying is also fellow-shipping and building a relationship with God. When we pray, we are demonstrating our faith, trust and dependence upon God. Praying can be done in private or public and can be done audibly or in silence.

Acts 16:25-26 “But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.” (NKJV)

The power that a person has when they are praying is not limited to just them. That power can have an effect on others also. God not only freed Paul and Silas but the other prisoners that were in the jail with them were freed also. As we read down further is this passage of scripture, salvation also took place. The jailer and his family were all saved.

Acts 16:30 “And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. (NKJV)

“The effective, fervent prayers of a righteous man avails much” (James 5:16). Moses was a righteous man and the leader of God’s people. On many occasions, the people would turn to Moses in a time of need.

Numbers 11:1 and 2 records one of those occasions;

“Now when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused. So the fire of the Lord burned among them, and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp. 2 Then the people cried out to Moses, and when Moses prayed to the Lord, the fire was quenched.”

Prayer has the unlimited power to change things, I encourage you to not let that power go to waste.

Father in heaven, thank you for the awesome power of prayer in Jesus’ name…Amen!

Continuing in His service…Rev

The Heart

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The Heart

Proverbs 4:23 “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” (Life Application study Bible / NLT)

The (Life Application study Bible / NLT) translation instructs us to “guard” our hearts above all else, making sure we are watching and concentrating on those desires that will keep us on the right path.

Therefore we have to put “boundaries” on our wants and desires, and not go after “everything” we see.

Proverbs 4:23 “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” (NKJV)

To “keep” something is to make sure it is in a secure place so that it doesn’t get away, and that it is also safe from attack.

The Heart is our inner self that thinks, feels and decides. As we read scriptures in the Bible, the word “heart” has a much broader meaning than that it does to our modern mind. The heart is that which is central and connected to the mind. Many of the references to the human heart in the scriptures refer to some aspect of human personality.

The Bible gives several scriptures about our emotions that are experienced by the Heart:

Love and hate Ps. 105:25 / 1st Peter 1:22

Joy and sorrow Eccl. 2:10 / John 16:6

Peace and bitterness Ezek. 27:31 / Col. 3:15

Courage and fear Gen. 42:28 / Amos 2:16

Several thinking processes are also said to be carried out by the heart. Thus the heart may:

Think Esth. 6:6

Understand Job 38:36

Imagine Jer 9:14

Remember Deut. 4:9

Be wise Prov. 2:10

Speak to itself Deut. 7:17

Many decisions that are made are carried out by the heart:

Our purpose Acts 11:23

Our intention Heb. 4:12

Our will Eph. 6:6

Finally, the heart will often show a person’s true character or personality:

Purity or evil Jer. 3:17 / Matt. 5:8

Sincerity or hardness Ex. 4:21 / Col. 2:22

Maturity or rebelliousness Ps. 101:2 / Jer. 5:23

Luke 6:45 “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” (NKJV)

Lord Jesus, the bible tells us that you do not judge by a person’s outward appearance but You look at the heart. I pray that anything that is seen in our hearts that is displeasing in your eyesight be removed. Lord Jesus create in us a clean heart, and renew a steadfast spirit within us. In Your precious name. Amen!

Continuing in His service…Rev

No Limits

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Have you put God in a box?

1 Chronicles 4:9-10 “Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” 10 And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.” (NKJV)

Many times, when we pray, we put God in a box by what we ask for in prayer. When we take a look at the prayer of Jabez, one of the first things we notice is that Jaybez did not put a limit on what he was asking God for. Jaybez asked God to enlarge his territory, but did not ask for a specific amount. “And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying “Oh that you would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory”.  This kind of praying will take the limits off of what God can do for us.

Our thought life can have an effect on our prayer life. If we think small or continue to have small thoughts, then we will continue to pray small prayers.

Proverbs 23:7 “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he” (NKJV)  

Instead of praying and asking God for a new car, we can pray and ask God for a car dealership. This way when the prayer is answered, we not only receive a blessing for ourselves, but will be in a position to bless others also. We have enlarged our territory and have not put God “in a box”.

This kind of praying will require faith and believing, without having any doubt.

Matthew 21:21-22  “ So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. 22 And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” (NKJV)

We serve a God that has no limits; He is bigger than big and larger than large. God can do anything but fail. So when we come to him asking, we must believe that He hears and will answer our prayer.

Mark 11:24 “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them. (NKJV)

Jabez also reached out to God for guidance in receiving the enlarged territory. Receiving “enlarged territory” comes with having “enlarged responsibilities”, and a person has to be very careful with what God has blessed them with. Jabez wanted to be sure that he was being led by God in making the right decisions “that Your hand would be with me”, and also not to become greedy or hurt others with the blessing he received “and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!”  God heard the petition from Jabez and granted everything that was asked for “So God granted him what he requested.”

The prayer of Jabez is a powerful example of the kind of prayer that not only will take the limits off of God, but also will not put “God in a box”.

God I thank you for not being a God of limits. From this day forward, let the prayers of the righteous be without limits, and outside of the box. In Jesus name…Amen

Continuing in His service…Rev