Category Archives: Prayer

A Prayer for Gospel Snobs and Scribes, Like Me

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And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.” Mark 7:5-8

Scotty Smith writes out a prayer – one that I am praying myself:

“Dear Jesus, we tremble at the thought of you speaking these words to us. What could be more sobering and painful than to hear you say, “You talk about me a lot—using multiple Scriptures and well crafted theological language. You’re quick to recognize and correct false teaching, and you’re quite zealous to apply what you know to others. But your heart is far from me.”

It would be one thing to garner such a rebuke for mimicking the worse Pharisees and the Galatian Judaizers (Gal. 2:11-21)—putting people under the yoke of performance-based spirituality, and failing to acknowledge your work as the sole and sufficient basis for our salvation. But it would be an altogether different thing to be chided for being a gospel snob and scribe. Have mercy on us, Jesus, have mercy on me.

Forgive us when our love for the truth of the gospel and the doctrines of grace is more obvious than our love for you… as impossible as that may seem.

Forgive us when we enjoy exposing legalistic, pragmatic and moralistic teaching more than we crave spending time with you in fellowship and prayer.

Forgive us when we invest great energy in defending the imputation of your righteousness but have very little concern for the impartation of your transforming life.

Forgive us when we are quick to tell people what obedience is not, but fail to demonstrate what the obedience of faith actually is.

Forgive us when we call ourselves “recovering Pharisees” or “recovering legalists,” but in reality, we’re not really recovering from anything.

Forgive us when talk more about “getting the gospel” than we’re actually “gotten” by the gospel.

Forgive us for being just as arrogant about grace theology as we were obnoxious about legalistic theology.

Forgive us when our multiplied uses of the word “gospel” in our conversations does not translate into multiplied evidences of the power of the gospel in our lives.

Forgive us when we don’t use our gospel freedom to serve one another in love, but rather use it to put our consciences to sleep.

Forgive us for creating gospel-fraternities and gospel-posses which taste to outsiders like ingrown tribes or “clubish” elitism.

Forgive us for having a PhD in the indicatives yet only a kindergarten certificate in the imperatives of the gospel.

Forgive us when our passion for the gospel does not translate into a passion for holiness and world evangelism, and caring for widows and orphans.

Lord Jesus, with convicted and humbled hearts, we ask you to change us, by your grace and for your glory. So very Amen, we pray, in your magnificent and merciful name.”

Please continue to pray

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Jim, with his 15 year old daughter Alisa

Jim Maestri is a very dear friend of mine. It is actually amazing that he is alive. He is only 43 but has already had six heart attacks, his issues being genetic – Jim’s father died before he (Jim) was even born, from the very same thing.

I was out in Brazil on the recent trip (returning just yesterday) and was informed while I was out there that Jim was going into hospital for the sixth time this year. My heart sank. Yet a few days later, I was told that his heart actually stopped beating for 15 minutes. Though he revived, doctors were very concerned that a vast amount of brain damage had occured. Jim’s survival prospects were around 20%.

Then more issues emerged – his liver was not functioning – his readings were “completely off the charts” in terms of the seriousness of the issue and that for him to survive, doctors said he would need a liver transplant. Yet because Jim was far too unstable, heart wise, even this was not considered a wise course of action.

Of course – I prayed.. and many others did. Much of my time in Brazil was spent trying to get updates on Jim’s condition over the internet. He was constantly on my heart and mind.

Then I was told the doctors were stunned by the liver function returning – that they had NEVER seen such a dramtic turn around.

This was so encouraging, of course.

Late last night I received an update from Jim’s sister, Cathy. Apparantly, she is an agnostic, but wrote the following:

I know this sounds crazy, but this afternoon they took jim off sedatives and off the vent to see if he could breathe on his own for an hour or so. not only did he wake up, within half an hour he was speaking (very weakly), insulting me, correcting me, demanding stuff (mainly pepsi) and trying to make the nurses laugh.

This evening he’s complaining of chest pain and trouble breathing (now that all the drugs are wearing off, he’s probably feeling what must be cracked ribs from CPR and the coughing fits that would appear to have blown out his hernia.) What’s more, he’s afraid to go to sleep for fear he won’t wake up. The nurse just gave him some morphine and a third popsicle, and I promised to stay the night.

He’s still pretty darn ill — i have to assume they’d still categorize him as critical — but today has been absolutely mind-blowing.

Thanks for all your thoughts and concern and prayers and e-mail. We both REALLY appreciate it!

Cathy

Please keep my friend Jim in your prayers. There is nothing too hard for the Lord.

But I have prayed for you…

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Luke 22: 31 “Simon, Simon, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, 32 but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”

Peter is about to face his greatest ever crisis. He would indeed be sifted, almost to utter breaking point, yet in the midst of his darkest despair and greatest moments of anguish, he would find great comfort knowing that His Master had prayed for him.

The result of Jesus’ prayer was certain, for it is not a question of “IF” Peter turns again but “WHEN.” Jesus will get His prayer answered; Peter will turn again and when that happens, he is told to strengthen his brothers around him. When at his weakest moment, feeling so cut off from God, feeling he had blown it so severely that there was no hope for him left at all; what a deep abiding comfort it would have been to know that Jesus’ prayers would avail. One day, very soon, he would be used by God again to help fortify the faith of others. It seemed impossible to believe, but Jesus never gave a false promise, and His words were to be trusted. What a vision to keep in view in the midst of his darkest hour. On Christ the solid Rock he could stand, believing the words spoken personally to him, for as he was about to find out, all other ground would indeed be sinking sand. There would be nothing else to hold on to – nothing sure, nothing stable, outside of the promises of God.

I find it very interesting that He told Peter this, informing him of His intercession for him. Yet in contrast, there’s no record that he had this kind of a conversation with Judas. There’s the concept of divine election right there.

And what happened? Well, we know what happened, don’t we? Peter denied Him, Judas betrayed Him.

Peter came back… Judas never did, for he was never one of His (Jesus called Judas a devil – John 6:70).

And more than this, such is God’s grace that it was not a 10 year probation period before Peter was ever used by God again, but instead, just a few weeks later, in the very same city where he had denied him, he was the FIRST preacher on the day of Penetecost, and 3,000 souls were added to the Church. Astounding!

In Hebrews 13:5, our English Bibles contains the simple statement, “I will never leave you or forsake you.” Yet in the original Greek text, it says far more than this. There is a 4 time repetitive statement of denial.

The Amplified Bible gets closest to the original:

Heb 13: 5 for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!]

There are times when it seems we are so battle weary that there is seemingly no strength left to pray. I have been there, and I know I am not alone in that. What a comfort it is to know that we have been given a supreme gift in our Great High Priest and His prayers of intercession for us.

“It is a consoling thought that Christ is praying for us, even when we are negligent in our prayer life; that He is presenting to the Father those spiritual needs which were not present to our minds and which we often neglect to include in our prayers; and that He prays for our protection against the dangers of which we are not even conscious, and against the enemies which threaten us, though we do not notice it. He is praying that our faith may not cease, and that we may come out victoriously in the end.” (Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology p. 403)

“If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for me.” – Robert Murray M’Cheyne

John 17: 9 I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.

Romans 8: 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. 31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written,
“For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

Hebrews 7: 22 This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant. 23 The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, 24 but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. 25 Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

Can you hear the words of the Master today? Whatever it is you face, hear Him say, “but I have prayed for you!”