Author: hillturnfs

My goal every year is to read the entire Bible. Every January I revisit my goals to see if they need to be renewed or updated. I’ve read the Bible multiple times and what I’ve realized is some Old Testament books I dread reading and some books are always on my mind and I long to return to them more often, like the gospels. It’s up to each of us to keep up our end of the conversation with God by daily prayer and daily Bible reading. How we do that depends on our personal preferences. We’re responsible for keeping our faith alive and the Bible tells us faith comes from reading, hearing and speaking God’s Word and this is especially true where the gospels are concerned. Think of the Bible as a spiritual battery charger to keep our faith fully charged. God’s eternal power is focused on us through his Word and distributed to us through the Holy Spirit as we read, hear and speak Scripture. When our faith remains strong our relationship with God deepens, our sanctification by God proceeds quicker because we’re more spiritually receptive and we’re less susceptible to the lies and temptations of Satan. When we’re walking humbly with God we have his protection.

Mark 1:15 – (Jesus speaking) – The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand, repent, and believe in the gospel.

Romans 10:17 – So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Romans 15:4 – For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.

I’ve looked at numerous, “read the Bible in one year,” formats but none of them work for me. I can’t read a few chapters and stop if I’m really into the story. I’m task oriented and I must complete what I start before I can rest easy. If you’ll notice in my blogs, once I start on a topic I can’t stop until I’ve exhausted all I have to say. Then I can stop and catch my breath. Getting back to my Bible reading plan, I’ve decided to make my own schedule which I think is much better because it puts more emphasis on the books in the Bible I consider more important. The focal point of the Bible is the four gospels of Christ. It’s the most important story in human history.

1 Thessalonians 1:5 – For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance.

2 Thessalonians 2:14 – To which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 4:15 – For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.

I’m not content with reading Mark, Matthew, Luke and John once a year. Why should I be? One of the spiritual laws of God is that whenever someone receives God’s Word the Holy Spirit will always be present. When someone receives the gospel of Christ the Holy Spirit is present abundantly! I don’t think any believer should be more than a month away from the gospel message of Christ and being refreshed by the Holy Spirit of God. The rest of the New Testament is epistles (letters) providing further explanations and interpretations about the Christian faith in general and the gospels in particular. The Old Testament is the necessary historical backdrop that provides us with the background for the coming of Jesus. If it got right down to it, we could depend on the gospels alone for salvation and be just fine. Spend more time in the gospels and less time with the supporting information.

Romans 1:16 – For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes; for the Jew first, and also for the Greek (Gentile).

Ephesians 1:13 – In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.

Ephesians 6:19 – And for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel.

What I’ve done is break the Bible into monthly segments. Every month I read a new gospel and I then repeat so that I read each gospel three times a year. Now I have the right amount of focus on what’s important. Repetition is good for the soul. It keeps our faith alive and our salvation before our eyes. I allow the first week of each month for gospel reading. The second week of each month I read the New Testament epistles and I try to space it out evenly over twelve months. The third week of each month I allot to Old Testament reading using the same parameters. Week four is for tying up loose ends and researching additional information on the books being read that month.

I intentionally left out the Old Testament books of Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy because they’re boring and deal primarily with God’s relationship with the Israelites during their forty years of wandering in the wilderness. When your focus is brought back to the gospel of Christ on a monthly basis you’re in God’s wheelhouse. You’ll be in your “sweet spot” with God the Father and you’ll be blessed by the Lord. You can always use a Bible commentary to brush up later on those three Old Testament books I removed from my annual Bible study. There you have it; 27 New Testament books and 36 Old Testament books being read in one year if we have the discipline. The outline below will keep you on track and keep you interested in reading your Bible:

TWELVE MONTH BIBLE READING OUTLINE BY WEEKS (1 TO 4):

January: `1. Mark 2. Acts 1-13 3. Genesis and Exodus 4. Research books; who wrote it, where did he write it, when did he write it and why did he write it, etc.

February: 1. Matthew 2. Acts 14-28 3. Joshua and Judges 4. Research

March: 1. Luke 2. Romans 3. Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel 4. Research

April: 1. John 2. 1 & 2 Corinthians 3. 1 & 2 Kings 4. Research

May: 1. Mark 2. Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians 3. 1 & 2 Chronicles 4. Research

June: 1. Matthew 2. 1 & 2 Thessalonians and 1 & 2 Timothy 3. Ezra, Nehemiah, Ester, Job 4. Research

July: 1. Luke 2. Titus and Philemon 3. Psalms 4. Research

August: 1. John 2. Hebrews 3. Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon 4. Research

September: 1. Mark 2. James 3. Isaiah 4. Research

October: 1. Matthew 2. 1 & 2 Peter 3. Jeremiah 4. Research

November: 1. Luke 2. 1 & 2 & 3 John and Jude 3. Lamentations, Ezekiel and Daniel 4. Research

December: 1. John 2. Revelation 3. Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Zechariah and Malachi 4. Research

The most important event in human history occurred at Calvary when Jesus died on the cross for our sins and with his blood purchased our salvation. Jesus is Christianity. Christianity is Jesus. Belief in Jesus is our only hope salvation. God is the author of history and he knows beforehand what will happen. God has chosen those to be saved unto eternal life. God didn’t make anyone with the express intent of sending them to hell. That’s not God’s nature. However, God knew those who would reject him so, in a sense, the unbeliever has chosen to go to hell themselves. God is also not the author of sin, but he permits it as an expression of free will. Keep in mind God cannot do anything which is unreasonable or unfair so we must interpret anything God does by who he is. Never lose sight of the fact that God is good and God is great.

Satan tries to convince us salvation isn’t permanent and that we can lose eternal life at any time. Satan tells us we’re not worthy of heaven and he’s right about that one point. One of Satan’s favorite tactics is to speak to us in half-truths that on their face appear reasonable but will be then twisted around and cause us to doubt the truth of God and his Word. Don’t listen to Satan! Salvation isn’t about what we deserve, it’s about what Jesus has done on the cross because of his love for us. Satan tells us because we sin God couldn’t love us. The fact that God sent his only Son to die for us while we were yet sinners is proof Satan is a liar. Satan wants us to be insecure in our salvation and fearful. If you believe in God, Jesus Christ and the infallibility of the Bible then rest assured that once saved you’re always saved. God cannot lie and God is always faithful. If you’re a believer and you’ve accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior let the certain knowledge of your salvation give you the peace of God. The Bible contains numerous proofs of our salvation and eternal security. All three persons of the triune Godhead repeatedly confirm in Scripture that all believers belong to God forever.

God has a salvation plan to gift eternal life to those he calls to be conformed into the image of Christ. Is God going to go to all the trouble of making us like Jesus just so he can turn around and kick all believers out of heaven? God will glorify all believers who go to heaven. Will God then change his mind and undo our glorification? Will God take back the resurrection body he has given us? What will replace it? Will God change his mind about us being in heaven at all? God is love and he loves us. Will God then change his mind and renounce his love for us and bar us from heaven? God has adopted us as sons and will our father now rejects his children? The answer to all the above questions is emphatically, “no”. Remember who God is and base any possible actions by God by who he is. God can never be unfair or unreasonable.

Romans 8:29 – For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Ephesians 1:6 – To the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

Colossians 3:3 – For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

Jesus came to earth to die so we could go to heaven. Will Jesus now forsake that sacrifice and return us to earth? Will God make the the death of Jesus in vain? Will Jesus renege on his promise to prepare a place for us in heaven so we can be with him? The Bible says Jesus is in heaven interceding with God on our behalf. Will Jesus stop praying for us? Will Jesus stop being our advocate before God? The answer to all the questions above is a resounding, “no”. Jesus is God and God does not change his mind. Once our name goes into the book of life it is never removed.

Matthew 26:28 – (Jesus speaking) – For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Romans 8:34 – Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.

John 6:37 – (Jesus speaking) – All that My Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me, I will by no means cast out.

At salvation the Holy Spirit gave us a new spirit. Shall we at any time be required to return it? The Holy Spirit baptizes the believer into the body of Christ and thus we become bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh. Shall we then one day be surgically remove from the body of Christ? At salvation the Holy Spirit seals the believer as God’s own possession. Shall God then cast off what he has promised to hold and be revealed as a liar? The answer to all the above questions is unequivocally, “no”. If we are not secure in heaven then God is not real, Jesus is not God, and the Bible is just a book, and our salvation is a lie. If Satan can make us doubt one truth then all truths become suspect which is one of Satan’s favorite tactics. If any truth of God falls then Christianity itself falls. That’s why we can’t let Satan get his foot in the door. Don’t let Satan drive a wedge between us and the truth of God. Trust in the Lord, for he is our strength. Learn the wiles of the devil so we can know his voice. Use God’s Word to defeat Satan in your life.

Ephesians 1:13 – In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.

1 Corinthians 3:16 – Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

Galatians 3:27 – For as many of you who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Titus 3:5 – Nor by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit.

God is the Creator and sustainer of the universe. As the King of the universe, any definitive statement made by God is law. When God issues a command it is the law. When God formalizes what he says into a decree it’s also the law. One of the reasons God has given us the Bible is so we can know his laws and obey them. In the Bible God say, “no one can oppose what I do,” and nobody can. The Holy Bible also says, “everything happens to the good pleasure of His will,” and it does. Since we can’t oppose or avoid God and his laws we have only two choices, obey and live or disobey and die. To obey Almighty God means an eternity in heaven being showered with untold riches by a loving father and to disobey God means spiritual death; separation from God in the lake of fire and brimstone suffering in constant pain and agony forever.

What a stark contrast! Who in their right mind wouldn’t choose what’s behind door number one? Let me give you an example of the vast gulf between heaven and hell. For believers, life in heaven is going to be so wonderful that’s we’ll one day look back on our lives here on earth as the only hell we will have ever known. The only rough patch of an otherwise wonderful existence. Unbelievers, on the other hand, will go to hell when they die and be in pain and torment forever. As they’re bobbing up and down in the lake of fire screaming in pain the memory of their life on earth will be the only heaven they’ll ever know. Do you remember the movie, “Terminator: Judgment Day”? At the end of the movie the liquid metal guy winds up in a steel mill vat of molten steel flailing around and bobbing up and down in 3,000 degree Fahrenheit molten metal. Whenever I see that movie scene I think to myself, ‘that’s what it must be like in hell.”

What is a decree of God? A decree of God is his eternal purpose, according to his will, and for his own glory so that he has foreordained whatever comes to pass. Let’s examine the qualities of a decree from Almighty God:

1. They are founded in divine wisdom. God has perfect knowledge of what will happen and perfect knowledge of what could happen. God is perfect in all he does. God doesn’t make mistakes.

Psalm 104:24 – O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your possessions.

Proverb 3:19 – The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding He established the heavens.

2. They are eternal. While decrees relate to things outside God, the fact that they are an act within the Divine Being makes them eternal because God is eternal.

Acts 15:18 – Known to God from eternity are all His works.

1 Timothy 1:9 – (God) – Who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.

3. They are effective. Whatever God decrees will come to pass. Failure to do so would make God a liar and the Bible untrue. Christianity would become null and void. God would not be God. We would all die in our sins and there would be no heaven.

Isaiah 46:10 – My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.

Psalm 33:11 – The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations.

4. They are immutable. The decrees of God don’t change. Since God has perfect knowledge there is nothing deficient and no information lacking that would make a change in a decree from God necessary. God doesn’t change his mind.

Malachi 3:6 – For I am the Lord, I do not change.

5. They are unconditional. A decree of God is not dependent on outside conditions There’s nothing in the world that’ll change a decree of Almighty God.

6. They are universal. The decrees of God cover all things in heaven and on earth. The entire universe obeys the decrees of God.

Ephesians 1:11 – In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to counsel of His will.

Proverbs 16:4 – The Lord has made all for Himself, yes, even the wicked for the day of doom.

7. They are permissive. God’s decrees allows his creatures the free will to obey or disobey, with the prescribed penalties for disobedience and rewards for obedience.

Psalm 106:15 – And He gave them their request, but sent leanness into their soul.

Acts 14:16 – (God) – Who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own ways.

Acts 17:30 – Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent.

All believers go through a three step process known as justification, sanctification and glorification. These biblical terms are mentioned often in the Bible so it’s important we understand their meaning. “Justification” is the legal act of God where our status is changed from unsaved sinner to saved believer. God is the righteous judge of creation who gets to decide our fate and he does it based on our faith in, and acceptance of, Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. At the moment of our salvation we are also justified. The two terms are equivalent and I use them interchangeably in my blog. Justification (salvation) is a one time event where our eternal destiny is irrevocably changed from hell to heaven, forever.

When we’re justified before God our sins have been removed (forgiven), our fellowship with God has been restored and the righteousness of Christ has been imputed to us by his death on the cross. Abraham and David were two great Old Testament examples of justification by faith. Both men were aware of, and believed in, the coming Messiah and the righteousness of Christ was imputed to them. Men aren’t justified on the basis of what they’ve done but on what Jesus has done for them. Jesus died on the cross in our place so that our sins might be forgiven.

Romans 5:1 – Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 4:5 – But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.

Sanctification is the lifelong process of growing in grace and spiritual maturity. It starts the moment we’re saved. Sanctification is mentioned 1060 times in the Bible, 760 times in the Old Testament and 300 times in the New Testament. Sanctification means, “to set apart.” God sets us apart from the unbeliever and begins the process of making us more holy; more like Jesus over time. Sanctification is something God does in our lives but we can help speed up the process by daily prayer and the daily reading of God’s Word. God will do 80% of the work if we’ll give 20% of the effort.

1 Thessalonians 5:23 – Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

It helps to understand the difference between justification and sanctification if we contrast them:

1. Justification deals with our standing before God (saved), while sanctification deals with our current state of spiritual growth.

2. Justification is that which God has done for us (salvation), while sanctification is that which God does in us.

3. Justification is a one time act (salvation). while sanctification is a continuing work by God.

4. Justification is the means (salvation), while sanctification is the desired end.

5. Justification makes us safe (saved), while sanctification makes us sound,

6. Justification declares us good (believers), while sanctification makes us good.

7. Justification removes the guilt and penalty of sin, while sanctification checks the growth and power of sin in the life of the believer.

8. Justification furnishes the track which leads to heaven, while sanctification furnishes the train to heaven.

Glorification is the final process for the believer and it occurs once we get to heaven. God also completes the justification and sanctification process in heaven. Glorification refers to the ultimate and absolute physical, mental, and spiritual perfection of all believers that we receive from God once we get to heaven. Our new resurrection body will be a part of this glorification. Scientists have determined that man only uses 10% of his brain. When Adam fell from grace in the Garden of Eden God reduced man’s mental capacity by 90%. When we’re glorified by God in heaven we’ll get all our brainpower back.

We’ll be without sin when we enter heaven and because of our glorification we’ll be unable to sin once we’re there. There’ll be nothing in heaven to tempt us to sin and we’ll be indwelt by the Holy Spirit for all eternity. God doesn’t make it clear in the Bible if glorification is a one time event like justification or whether it will be an ongoing process like sanctification. We don’t know all that we’ll become in heaven but what we do know is it’ll be wonderful beyond our wildest imagination.

God doesn’t require us to pray on our knees; any position will do and any time is the appropriate time for prayer. We could pray while sitting in the doctor’s office or in our car on the way to the grocery store. We can talk to God in plain language just as if he’s sitting in the seat next to us, because he is. There are a few things we need to be aware of that’ll block or at least hinder our prayers to God. Unforgiven sin could block our prayers. I sin every day, we all do. In the Bible God promises to forgive our sins if we ask him which is why every night I ask God to forgive any sins I’ve committed that day. When my eyes close at night I want to know my sins are forgiven and I have a clean slate for the next day.

Psalm 66:17-18 – I cried to Him with my mouth, and He was extolled with my tongue. If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear.

Coming before the throne of grace with pride and arrogance will stop our prayers cold. God loves a humble heart but despises the prideful. If we refuse to obey the teachings of God’s Word our prayers are unlikely to be heard. God is not inclined to hear the prayers of those who don’t read the Bible. If we don’t have compassion for the poor and think only of ourselves then God doesn’t want to hear from us. And finally, if we refuse to show mercy by forgiving others or even ourselves, God will have no dealings with us.

Luke 18:14 – (Jesus speaking) – For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

Proverbs 28:9 – One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination.

Proverbs 21:13 – Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be heard.

Matthew 16:14 – (Jesus speaking) – For if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

In the previous blog we discussed the need for prayers to be humble, sincere and said in faith before God. In addition, prayers should also be simple, in accordance with Scripture and prayed persistently to the Father. Another thing, vague and indefinite prayers are worthless to God because no actionable items are mentioned. If we ask God to save all sinners God can’t help us. If we ask God to save John Doe, God can work with that. The most important thing of all is that prayers take time to work because God’s timetable is different from ours. Keep praying persistently until God answers our prayers as he has promised to do.

Matthew 6:7-8 – (Jesus speaking) – And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.

Psalm 27:4 – One thing I have desired of the Lord, that I will seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.

1 John 5:14 – Now this is the confidence that we have in him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.

Colossians 4:2 – Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving.

We’ve established in the previous blog that prayer is best defined as, “having fellowship with God.” We know God commands us to pray and that prayer is essential for our salvation. We also know we should be praying to God continuously about anything and everything. What isn’t clear and what we must know is how to pray. What are the elements of a successful prayer to God? Nine out of ten people wouldn’t know if we asked them. If we’re going to talk to God at least understand the general guidelines even if we don’t always follow them. We have the honor of unfettered access to the throne of Almighty God so at least do him the honor of praying the right way; the way God has prescribed.

If you remember your English composition class, every story has a beginning, a middle and an ending. Prayers to God are the same way. We usually come before the throne of grace to confess our sins or to ask for something from God. That’s the middle part of a good prayer. At the beginning and ending of a prayer are what I call the protocol items that are necessary for God to hear and act on our prayers. If we’re going to talk to God we need to know the general outline of a standard prayer and the rules to abide by. Let’s use the Lord’s Prayer as our model as we explain the key elements. Keep in mind Jesus threw everything into his model prayer and our prayers may not need every element listed.

THE LORD’S PRAYER:

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

1. Establish a personal relationship with God – Using the word “Father” signifies a relationship between God and believer. The word “our” signifies the relationship between all believers. The Bible declares our sonship so claim it in prayer. The Bible declares all believers are brothers so claim that in prayer too.

2. Establish faith in God – Using the words “in heaven” establishes our faith in God. Prayers are worthless without faith. Prayers won’t work unless you believe God exists and that he hears our prayers and answers them.

3. Worship God – Before we ask anything of God we first have to acknowledge him and worship God him as the King of the universe. Using the phrase, “hallowed be thy name,” does that. Hallowed means “made holy” or “greatly honored and respected.” God may be our Father and friend but prayer time is serious business and formalities must be observed. Any show of disrespect will void our prayers.

4. Submission – In all prayers we must come before God with humility to show our submission to God’s authority. God hates pride and haughtiness and will turn those people aside. God loves humility and dispensing mercy. The phrase, “thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” indicates the acceptance of God’s authority.

5. Petition – (optional) – This is the middle part of the prayer where we ask something from God if that’s what we came for. “Give us this day our daily bread,” asks God to supply all our needs daily. This is where you don’t have to be formal and you can pour your heart out to God in your own words, whatever your request is.

6. Confession – (optional) – This is also the middle part of the prayer where we come to God to confess our sins and ask for forgiveness. You can petition God and confess to God in the same prayer if you want to. Only confessed sins can be forgiven hence the phrase, “and forgive us our debts.”

7. Exaltation – (optional) – This is another middle part of the prayer where we come to God for no other reason than to give honor, praise and glory to the Lord. Prayers of exaltation to God were rare even in Old Testament times but today they’re pretty much nonexistent. In our fast-paced world Christians have less and less time for God and prayers are usually cursory at best and based only on our needs at the moment. We don’t take the time to luxuriate in God’s love and I’m as guilty as anyone. Everyone has their favorites. When I read the Bible I can tell King David was God’s favorite. God said David was, “a man after my own heart.”

What separated David from everyone else in God’s eyes? David cultivated an intense personal relationship with God all his life and the Holy Spirit never left him. David probably had a better prayer life than any believer who ever lived and many of his prayers were simply prayers of exaltation to God. Read David’s prayers to God in the Psalms and you’ll see what I mean. Who wouldn’t love someone like that, who shows so much emotion and devotion? King David has set a good example for us to follow in our prayer life if we want to be close to God. By exalting God our light will shine brighter before the Lord. We can please God. We can make God smile.

8. Compassion – (optional) – “As we forgive our debtors,” is a show of compassion. It may not be applicable in all prayers but understand God loves dispensing mercy and he requires the same from us toward others or our sins won’t be forgiven.

9. Dependence – We must throw ourselves on God’s mercy for his protection. We must be totally dependent on God and the phrase, “and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,” shows we are dependent on God’s provision for us. God won’t keep us from temptation but he does promise to help us through it. When we throw ourselves on God’s mercy he’ll never fail us. God hasn’t failed anyone yet and he never will.

10. Acknowledgment – Always wrap up any prayer by acknowledging God’s sovereignty over his creation and acceptance of God’s will in your life, whatever that may be. Leave everything in God’s hands. “In Jesus’ name we pray,” is a customary prayer ending that does this for me.

Prayers don’t have to be cookie-cutter and formal and they can be long or short. In the Bible King Solomon had a prayer thirty verses long and the Apostle Peter had a prayer three words long (Lord save me!). Make your prayer format fit the occasion. Give your prayer life with God a little thought. During the day make a list of things you want to discuss with God in prayer. Don’t pray to God using only repetitious phrases and expect to impress God. In your prayers to God he’ll overlook the formalities if you’re sincere. God cares more about what’s in your heart than following a set of rules. As with anything, practice makes perfect. Receiving prayers is the highlight of God’s day.

God has given everyone the free will choice whether to serve God or Satan. God isn’t going to give anyone eternal life unless they talk to him. The only way to talk to God is through prayer. Even Mother Teresa with all her good works couldn’t set foot in heaven without having a talk with God first. God talks to us through the Bible and we talk to God through our prayers. Communication is a two-way conversation which, in this instance, is between us and God. It takes two to fellowship. When it comes to our salvation, the sinner’s prayer is how we reach out to God to admit we’re a sinner, ask his forgiveness and accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. God talks to us through the Bible to assure us we are saved unto eternal life if we do what he asks of us.

Isaiah 1:18 – Come now, and let us reason together, says the Lord, though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

Philippians 4:6 – Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.

Ephesians 6:18 – Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.

1 Timothy 2:1 – Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men.

I know it sounds incredible but the Creator of the universe really does want to be our friend. God wants fellowship with his creatures and that involves a give and take conversation. God’s prescribed way of talking to him is by prayer. In fact, in the Bible God repeatedly commands us to pray to him so failure to do so is a sin against God. The Bible is God’s wisdom and in its pages we learn the right way to live, not only by what is said, but also by the examples set by Jesus and the giants of the Christian faith. All of us should study everything Jesus did during his ministry and model our behavior after Jesus as much as possible. If you’ll notice, Jesus constantly prayed to the Father. If even the Son of God prayed to God the Father how much more should we be praying also? The Apostle Paul was the greatest Christian who ever lived and he prayed constantly. I posit Paul’s success was due, in large part, because of his prayer life. We should all strive to be a prayer warrior like the Apostle Paul.

Romans 12:12 – Rejoicing in hope. patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer.

Colossians 4:2 – Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 – Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Timothy 2:8 – I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.

1 Samuel 12:23 – Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way.

I always cringe inside when I hear people pray to Jesus. I know Jesus is God but I also know the New Testament rule for prayer is that prayer should be made to the Father, through the Spirit, in the name of Jesus. The Lord’s prayer is a good model for us to follow but make it more personal to fit your situation. Never pray to Jesus, Mary, the saints or anyone else other than God the Father. I know Catholics direct their prayers to Mary but that’s a dry hole. Let me repeat myself. It’s not scriptural to pray to anyone other than God the Father so the prayers of all Catholics are falling on deaf ears. Have you ever heard a Catholic say their prayers were answered? I haven’t. God won’t hear prayers unless they’re directed to him. That’s the way the Bible says to pray and the Bible is never wrong. If God didn’t want it that way he wouldn’t have put it in the Bible. That’s just common sense. The Bible says God always hears the prayers of believers and so he does. God always answers the prayers of believers although maybe not as quickly as we’d like or with the answer we want.

Romans 8:26 – 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.

Luke 11:10 – (Jesus speaking) – For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

Psalm 102:17 – (the Lord) – He shall regard the prayer of the destitute, and shall not despise their prayer.

Matthew 7:11 – (Jesus speaking) – If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

I’m a detail person so I worry about the little things, like the mechanics of how we’re reborn. I know we’re reborn spiritually and it isn’t necessary I know how that’s achieved. Still, inquiring minds want to know. Does God just scrub off the old spirit to remove the stain of sin handed down to us from Adam or does God give us a brand new spirit? Is the new spirit identical to the old one or a new totally different spirit? My problem was always looking at it from a human perspective and not from God’s point of view. Each of us is born twice. We have our physical birth but before that we have our spiritual birth. We are born of God when he gives us a part of himself, an eternal spirit, at the moment of conception.

Titus 3:5 – Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit.

John 3:3 – (Jesus speaking) – Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

John 1:12-13 – But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor the will of man, but of God.

Over 385,000 babies are born every day so God is a very busy spiritual midwife. Over 108 billion people have lived on this planet since the beginning of human history so God has plenty of experience handing out eternal spirits. God can do anything so why would he do anything the hard way? God always chooses the easiest and most logical path to get things done. God accomplishes his will with a thought, a word or the lifting of a finger. Everything for God is easy as pie. In the Bible God usually uses very precise and literal language to get his point across. Where God does use symbolism it’s obvious like in the book of Revelation.

John 3:6-7 – (Jesus speaking) – That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, you must be born again.

Galatians 4:4-5 – But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

In Scripture God doesn’t say he cleans up our old spirit. God says we’re reborn; born again a second time. That means we’ll get the exact same spirit we now have but without the stain of sin on it. The only difference is we receive our sinless spirit not at conception but at the exact moment we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Our spiritual birth is a do-over like in the movie, “Groundhog Day.” We’re born again! Regeneration, our rebirth, is spiritual and not physical and it happens in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, so we don’t feel a thing. We know it’s the truth because God’s Word confirms it and God cannot lie. Believers are actually born three times in their lives, their first spiritual birth is at conception, then their physical birth nine months later, and finally their spiritual rebirth when they accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. Unbelievers are only born twice and are therefore condemned to hell for eternity.

1 Corinthians 14-15 – But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But He who is spiritual judges all things, yet He himself is rightly judged by no one.

Romans 4:8 – Blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.

Our regeneration (rebirth) is necessary to remove the sin from our spirit which all men have inherited from Adam after his fall from grace. As the first man, Adam was our patriarch and head of our household. Through the spiritual law of imputation Adam’s sin was imparted to all men. Jesus existed before Adam, Jesus has always existed, so when Jesus came to earth in the form of a man he automatically became our new patriarch and head of our household. Jesus replaced Adam. Jesus is the second Adam. By his sacrificial death on the cross in our place Jesus took our sins upon himself and imparted his righteousness to us by the same spiritual law of imputation. Jesus healed the breach between God and man which restored our fellowship with God. Each of us as individuals still have to accept God’s grace by accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It’s a two part deal. God died for our sins and now we must accept Christ or face spiritual death.

Romans 5:12 – Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned.

Galatians 4:19 – My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you.

We all have to pass through metal detectors at airports or we don’t get on the plane. We don’t get into heaven unless we can pass through the sin detector at the pearly gates. God won’t abide sin so God won’t let sin enter heaven where he dwells. Belief in Jesus is the only way to remove our sin, by the grace of God. No sinner after Adam has ever been saved apart from the threefold work of God’s Word, the Spirit of God and the man of God. Jesus is that man of God and the essential element of our salvation. Eternal life runs through Christ alone. The free will choice is ours to make, Jesus or sin, life or death, heaven or hell.

Romans 6:23 – For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

James 1:18 – Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.

Jesus is the judge of our eternal soul, the only judge, because only Jesus can decide to let you into heaven or keep you out. That’s what judges do, they let you in or keep you out. There are only two eternal destinations, heaven or hell. If Jesus keeps you out heaven that means you’re going to hell and vice versa. It’s one place or the other. It’s that simple. For those who have ears, let them hear and understand. If you’re reading this blog and you still haven’t accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior there’s still time for you to change your eternal destination. The Bible says now is the day of your salvation. Believe what God is telling you. Take action now.

1 Corinthians 4:15 – For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.

1 Peter 1:23 – Having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever.

I sometimes use similar terms interchangeably to keep my blogs from becoming too stale, boring or repetitive. While the meaning of such terms are usually very close, they aren’t always the same. When I talk about Jesus paying our sin debt sometimes I say forgiveness and sometimes I say remission. You can forgive someone for being late for dinner but remission doesn’t fit. Forgiveness is a feeling. You’re no longer feeling angry about an offense or mistake someone has made. Remission is the cancellation of a debt, charge, or penalty.

For example, let’s say we’re having an old fashioned duel of honor between two gentlemen from the seventeenth century. They use single shot dueling pistols. They stand back to back and step off ten paces before turning and firing. One duelist fires first and his shot misses. By the rules of engagement the second duelist is entitled to take his shot and his opponent must stand and take the shot. The second duelist is an expert marksman and knows he can easily kill his man. He aims at his target but suddenly lowers his arm and doesn’t take the shot he is owed. The duel is over. That’s remission. Remission is showing mercy where none is expected or deserved. Forgiveness, on the other hand, would be showing up on the field of honor and one man deciding not to remain angry any longer about the slight that precipitated the duel and calling off the duel before a shot could accrue any debt, charge or penalty. Forgiveness is deciding not to duel at all. Remission is the same as mercy. The two terms are equivalent.

Matthew 26:28 – (Jesus speaking) – For this is the My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Mark 1:4 – John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.

Hebrews 9:22 – And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission.

Acts 10:43 – To Him all the prophets witness that, through his name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.

Sometimes I’ve mistakenly used forgiveness in the place of redemption. Forgiveness is a feeling that costs us nothing. We were once angry and now we aren’t. We’ve let it slide. Redemption, on the other hand, always costs us something. With redemption there has to be a ransom paid to get back what is ours. For example, let’s say it’s three days before payday and you’re broke. You need groceries for the kids so you take your favorite shotgun and run down to the local pawn shop and borrow $50 against the shotgun, which the pawn broker holds for repayment. On payday you return to the pawn shop and pay $75 to redeem your shotgun. That’s redemption. Redemption always has a cost associated with it whereas forgiveness doesn’t.

Redemption is when someone holds something of value that belongs to us and we have to pay something (a ransom) in order to get it back. Our immortal souls have value. Our souls belong to God and are priceless in his eyes. Adam pawned our souls to Satan for a handful of fruit. The ransom paid by a just God to redeem our souls and keep us from the fires of hell was the death of his Son Jesus Christ on the cross. Jesus Christ is our redeemer because he paid the ransom price for our souls with his blood. It should’ve been us. That’s why we call Jesus Savior! That’s why we call Jesus Lord!

Romans 3:23-24 – For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is Christ Jesus.

1 Peter 1:18-19 – Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as a lamb without blemish and without spot.

Luke 1:68 – Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people, and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David.

Galatians 3:13 – Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us.

Revelation 5:9-10 – And they sang a new song, saying “You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth.

We need a better understanding of the word “repent”. If you look up the definition of repent in the dictionary it says, “to feel or express sincere regret or remorse about something bad or wrong that one has done.” While we can be remorseful before God for our sinning ways that won’t change our eternal destination. I always thought to repent meant to turn over a new leaf and stop sinning but that’s not it either. Repent also doesn’t mean to start doing good works. While all the things mentioned above are good things we should do to please God that won’t get us into heaven either. The biblical meaning of “repent” is a voluntary and sincere change in the mind of the sinner to turn from his sin and the only way to do that is to turn to Jesus. Anything other than that is still sin. We’re specifically talking sin (singular), the one all-important sin, which is the rejection of Christ.

In the Bible when it calls for sinners to repent it means to accept Christ, to turn to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. To turn “from” sin means to turn “toward” God and his Christ. That one little word “repent” sums up our mission in life. It’s what God put us here on earth to do. Repentance brings true conversion of the soul. It’s the only thing that will. All the other stuff we should do but it’s just icing on the cake. The act of “turning to” Christ we call faith. Man’s great sin, the only sin which God will not forgive, is the rejection of his Son Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. To reject Jesus is a spiritual death sentence that will result in the Judge incarcerating us in hell without parole.

2 Peter 3:9 – The Lord id not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

Acts 3:19 – Repent therefore and be converted. that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.

Luke 13:3,5 – (Jesus speaking) – Unless you repent you will all likewise perish.

Hebrews 11:6 – But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Romans 5:1 – Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

All men sin and one of the spiritual laws of God is, “the wages of sin is death.” God is referring here to only one sin, the great sin, the sin of rejecting of Jesus Christ. All other sins can be forgiven but the wages of rejecting Christ (the great sin) is spiritual death in the lake of fire for eternity. Spiritual death is the total separation from God forever. When Adam disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden it was a sin because it was a rejection of God’s law, God’s authority. Adam’s sin of rejecting God has been passed down to all men by the spiritual law of imputation because Adam is our patriarch, the first man and head of our family. Imputation is when something done by one person is added to the account or ledger of another. As the head of our household, Adam’s sin has fallen on all men who came after. We’re all born with the sin of rejecting God (Jesus) already on our books. The only way to clear our slate is to come to “repentance”, to stop rejecting Jesus Christ (by turning to our Lord and Savior).

2 Corinthians 5:18-19 – Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

Romans 4:23-25 – (about Abraham) – Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him (righteousness), but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.

The spiritual law of substitution allowed Jesus to be our substitute, to die in our place on the cross, to redeem us from our sins. The wages of sin required by a just God is a sinless blood sacrifice. Since all men sin God had to come to earth himself in the incarnation of Jesus to offer himself up as a sacrifice in our stead. Jesus’ death became the permanent substitution for all men on the cross, past, present and future. Because Jesus took away our sins on the cross we are reconciled to God if we have faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Where once we had enmity with God we now have a restored fellowship with God through our acceptance of his Son Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:20-21 – Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on God’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Ephesians 2:13 – But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

Ephesians 2:16 – (about Jesus) – And that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.