Topic: Pray Without Ceasing
Memorise
And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. – Luke 22:40
Read: Luke 18:1-8
18 And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
2 Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
3 And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
4 And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
5 Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.
6 And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.
7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
8 I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
RCCG Open Heaven 7th August 2021 Saturday Message:
The statement “pray without ceasing” in (1 Thessalonians 5:17) is not a piece of advice or suggestion. The importance of this statement is revealed in the words of Jesus Christ to His disciples in our memory verse of today. Luke 22:45-46 says further: And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow, And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.
The arm of flesh will always fail according to Jeremiah 17:5. This brings to mind the common saying “A prayerless Christian is a powerless Christian”. A life of prayer is indeed a blessed one.
In the story of the widow in our text of today, there are many lessons we can learn. One, the judge avenged the widow of her enemies simply because, by her prayer, she compelled him to. Two, this woman did not change her prayer – she was consistent in her request. Many people gamble with their prayer lives, either not knowing or not asking for the specific things they need. They are unstable like the wave of the sea being driven with the wind and tossed (James 1:6).
James 1:7-8 further says: For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. Such people don’t even know who to give the glory to if or when they get their miracle. They have alternatives to the miracle-working power of the Almighty, hence, they pray to God, but also seek the assistance of the arm of flesh. The result of people’s reliance on the arm of flesh is that they fail to ask earnestly and so do not have.
Ye lust, and have not: ye kill and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. – (James 4:2). Our Lord Jesus Christ in today’s text assures us that our Heavenly Father, unlike the unjust judge, will answer us speedily on one condition: if we will pray in faith and trust in Him. As you ask in faith today, may you receive blessings beyond your wildest imaginations, in the mighty name of Jesus.
ACTION POINT: Pray Until Something Happens (PUSH) today.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Job 35-56
HYMNAL: HYMN 16 – O GOD, OUR HELP IN AGES PAST
1. O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home.
2. Under the shadow of Your throne
Your saints have dwelt secure;
Sufficient is Your arm alone,
And our defence is sure.
3. Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting You are God,
To endless years the same.
4. A thousand ages in Your sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.
5. The busy tribes of flesh and blood,
With all their lives and cares,
Are carried downward by your flood,
And lost in foll’wing years.
6. Time, like an ever-rolling stream,
Bears all its sons away;
They fly forgotten, as a dream
Dies at the opening day.
7. O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come:
Be Thou our guard while troubles last,
And our eternal home.
Also Read: MFM Daily Devotional 7th August 2021 – Are You Tried And Tested?
RCCG Open Heaven 7th August 2021 Saturday Devotional Guide was written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, one of the largest evangelical church in the world and also the President of Christ the Redeemer’s Ministries
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