“Here on earth, Christ as man came to reveal what prayer is. To pray in the name of Christ, we must pray as He prayed on earth, as He taught us to pray, in union with Him, as He now prays in heaven. We must study Him in love and accept Him in faith as our Example, our Teacher, and our Intercessor.”

Jesus has so much to teach us about prayer. He is our example, our teacher and the greatest intercessor throughout all of history. No wonder his disciples called upon Him to teach them to pray. He taught by example, He taught by passion, and He taught by words. The heartbeat of Jesus was for prayer and communion with the Father. Take a moment, be silent and imagine the King of Kings coming into your home and sitting down in your living room. Lean over carefully so as to catch His every word, and ask Him, “Jesus, what are the most important things we must personally learn about prayer? The following are nine lessons that Jesus wants you to personally incorporate into your own prayer life.

Prayer Lessons from Jesus

“‘Lord, teach us to pray.’ No one can teach like Jesus. A pupil needs a teacher who knows his work, who has the gift of teaching, who in patience and love will descend to the pupil’s needs. Blessed be God! Jesus is all this and much more. It is Jesus, praying Himself, who teaches us to pray. He knows what prayer is. He learned it amid the trials and tears of His earthly life. In heaven it is still His beloved work. His life there is prayer. Nothing delights Him more than to find those whom He can take with Him into the Father’s presence, clothing them with power to pray down God’s blessing to those around them, training them to be His fellow workers in the intercession by which the Kingdom is to be revealed on earth.”

Here are nine fantastic lessons on prayer by Jesus. He was the greatest, most outstanding example of prayer for all of us. His life and His words on prayer are vital for a victorious prayer life. It would do us much good to practice these lessons. If Jesus taught them, they are absolutely critical to a successful prayer life.

· Pray with Sincerity - We must pray in spirit and truth to God. The Pharisees did not pray from the heart but only to be seen by man. Their lives contradicted their prayers.

God wants us to pray with sincere hearts.

“Yet a time is coming, and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23-24).

· Pray in Humility - God hates pride and selfish ambition. He loves the meek and lowly.

A good example of both the proud and the lowly is the story about the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. The Tax Collector found favor with God.

“But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ ‘I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted’” (Luke 18:13-14).

· Pray with Faith - God wants us to pray in faith. Without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Great intercessors are those who pray with great faith without doubting.

“But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does” (James 1:6-8).

· Pray with a Forgiving Heart - We can’t expect to be forgiven by God unless we are willing to forgive others. Forgiveness was a major theme in the teachings of Jesus.

“For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins (Matthew 6:14-16).

· Pray with Persistence - God wants us to pray with determination. We should have the attitude that we will pray persistently until God answer. This can be seen by example in Luke 11:5-10 and in Luke 18:1-8.

“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up…” (Luke 18:1-8).

· Pray in Privacy - Jesus often went away to lonely places to pray to His Father in solitude. Often He would go out into the hills to pray (Luke 6:12). We must also do the same and cultivate that alone time with the Father.

“When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you” (Matthew 6:6).

· Pray in Accordance with God’s Will - We must know God’s will when we pray. If we abide in Him and His words abide in us, we can pray with assurance and know that He will answer our prayers.

“This is the assurance we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us - whatever we ask - we know that we have what we asked of him” (I John 5:14-15).

· Pray in the Name of Jesus - We should pray to the Father, in the Spirit, through the Son. Praying in Jesus’ name means that we are praying as he would pray if in our place.

“And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it” (John 14:13-14).

· Pray with Fasting - Jesus emphasized fasting with prayer as a means of power in the spiritual life. Every believer should practice some form of secret fasting.

”When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you” (Matthew 6:17-18).

“Lord Jesus, enroll my name among those who confess that they don’t know how to pray as they should, and who especially ask You for a course of teaching in prayer. Lord, teach me to be patient in Your school, so that You will have time to train me. I am ignorant of the wonderful privilege and power of prayer, of the need for the Holy Spirit to be the spirit of prayer. Lead me to forget my thought of what I think I know, and make me kneel before You in true teachableness and poverty of spirit.”

As you study these lessons, carefully evaluate where you are in your prayer life. Are you like Jesus? Which one does God want you to personally work on this year? Let us each pray and ask God to help us to become better prayer warriors and worshippers for the glory of God and the furtherance of His Kingdom.

Lord, teach us to pray. May we grow deeper in prayer this year than we ever have grown before. You are showing us how important it is to pray. We are experiencing a greater grace for prayer, and you are bringing us into higher dimensions. Teach us to pray according to your will. Teach us to pray with sincerity and in humility. Help us to be forgiving towards everyone. Help us to be persistent in our prayers and never give up. Increase our faith to pray big prayers, supernatural prayers in Your name. Give us the discipline to get alone with you even when others don’t. Help us to practice fasting on a regular basis. Lord, teach us to pray, and help us to teach others to pray by example and words. We ask this in the Name of Jesus. Amen

“Christ’s life and work, His suffering and death were all prayer. They were all dependent on God, trust in God, receiving from God, surrender to God. Your redemption, believer, is a redemption brought about by prayer and intercession, because your Christ is a praying Christ. The life He lives for you, the life He lives in you, is a praying life that delights to wait on God and receive everything from Him. To pray in His name is to pray as He prayed. Christ is our example because He is our head, our Savior, and our Life.” Quotes by Andrew Murray

This is the opening statement of Mr. Jonathan Alter, a Newsweek columnist, in his article “What’s Not To Like” published July 31, 2009.

I could understand those who oppose health care reform because insurance companies are bound to lose a big chunk of business. Maybe they are employed by insurance providers and they are just trying to hold on to their source of income. And for those who sit in Congress, they are just protecting the millions of lobby money flowing down Capitol Hill from insurance companies. Plain and simple – their reason is insecurity and maybe greed for some.

But for Mr. Alter and the rest of the conservatives who share his “I don’t give a damn about the 47 million suckers“ point-of-view, they are just plain selfish jerks. They should all be brought to the uninhabited Palmyra Atoll to live among themselves. Let them start their own commune and maybe, just maybe, they will learn that John Donne was not being poetic when he said that “no man is an island… any man’s death diminishes me.” All human beings, regardless of creed and religion, of nationality and ethnicity, or of culture and upbringing embrace this concept. And anyone who doesn’t is no better than a savage who eats his kind, thinking that this is the only way to survive.

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“Call yourself a Christian! “…… “What kind of a Christian are you? “…..”Hypocrite “…”He is not a good Christian “…..”She is so proud but she goes to church “……”I can’t believe he is a Christian “…..”Such a disgrace to Christianity “…..”Lousy Christian “…….”He is so rude but he goes to church “…… “Worldly Christian “……”I was so shocked to find out she is a Christian! “….. “Sometimes Christians can be the worst”…..”I had a bad experience with that Christian “….”He is not fit to be a Christian “….”What kind of a Christian leader is he? “…..”He is a Christian but he smokes “….”She gossips about people and she goes to church “…. “I’m so ashamed to call him a Christian”…..”He is a Christian but speaks a lot of vulgar words “…”They are not good Christians “…”What kind of testimony does he carry as a Christian “…”She is a Christian who does not go to church “…”She is not worthy to be a Christian “…”So shameful, they are from a Christian family “.. “She wears so much of make-up just to go to church”…..”They attend church but they are homosexuals”……

Sounds familiar?

Oh, I could go on and on but these are the words that are used to condemn Christians for many years. Why is there such a heavy burden for Christians to prove themselves? You rarely or would have never heard these words spoken of people from other religions. If they do or say something wrong, most of the time he or she as an individual would be criticized but not their religion. But when a Christian does or say something wrong, they and their religion are being criticized and condemned. Is there a very high expectation on Christians? Is Christianity that hard to live by?

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28 “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest… [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.] ”

We think that Christians have to be good in thoughts, deeds and words all the time. This could be our idea or other people’s perspective of Christians - JESUS IS GOOD so we have to be good. We have to be a good example of JESUS; we are the Ambassadors of CHRIST. We, Christians, have to be loving, kind, patient, generous, respectful, obedient, responsible, soft spoken, gentle, joyful, well mannered, faithful, etc. all the time. Many Christians suffer from great condemnation within, because they think they have to be consciously good and moral most of the time to show that they are good Christians.

They think that Christianity depends on their moral deeds and when they can’t cope up to that standard, they condemn themselves, and moreover, people condemn them. The accuser Satan also condemns them. Usually most Christians who feel condemned leave the church or back slide.

There is nothing wrong with being good or moral. I will show you that you don’t have to try to be good to be a real Christian. A real Christian’s goodness is through Jesus Christ and the help of the Holy Spirit.

So who are Christians?

And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me [essentially and perfectly morally] good? There is no one essentially and perfectly morally good–except God alone”- Mark 10:18

Christians are not the good ones, the moral ones or the perfect ones. “Christians” simply means the Anointed Ones.

(CHRIST - ORIGIN Greek Khristos meaning Anointed one)

“True Christians are Anointed ones; their names express this: they are Anointed with GRACE, with gifts and spiritual privileges, by the Holy Spirit of Grace” — (Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible)

“It is God Who confirms and makes us steadfast and establishes us in joint fellowship with you in Christ, and HE has consecrated and Anointed us, enduring us with the gifts of the Holy Spirit” - 2 Corinthians 1:21.

We are Anointed to be moral and good in thoughts, words and deeds. You know what I’m talking about. There was a time when you used to have a certain bad habit (being rude, selfish, proud, vulgar, impatient, hot tempered, gossiping, lustful, ignorant, inconsiderate, lazy, etc.). And now “suddenly” or “out of nowhere”, you don’t have it anymore or it is less active in your life.

Most of the time we don’t know how to explain this change within us. We never even expected to become the person that we are now. It is the Holy Spirit who changed us. The bible says that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness…. - Galatians 5:22 (NIV). Have you noticed it says ‘ the fruit of the Spirit….. ‘ It does not say the fruit of your spirit. It is the fruit of the Holy Spirit which is in you that gives you the qualities or the abilities to be good, do good and talk good. JESUS Himself was Anointed by GOD. “How God anointed and consecrated Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit with strength, ability and power; how He went about doing good….”-Acts 10:38.

Relationships take time.

Many of us venture to say that Christianity is not a religion but a relationship. Did you know that a relationship takes time? God wants to transform us unto His image in our Christian walk of life. Walking is a journey and a journey takes time to finish. We thought that once we become a Christian, we immediately have to leave behind our bad habits, be holy, stay away from worldly people, worldly songs, movies, books and not dress up like the world. We even quote scriptures like “we are in this world but not of the world”. We are expected to change as soon as possible.

Now as a Christian we have to read the bible, pray for many hours, go to church, lift up our hands, say “hallelujah” and start tithing. We also think that since we are “good, moral and faithful” people of God, we need to serve GOD. Once again, nothing wrong with all of these but if you have to do it or if you are obligated because this is your perception of being a Christian, then it’s nothing more than religion and behavior modification. GOD does not want that. HE wants a relationship and a life transformation.

That’s why HE gave the Holy Spirit to help us live our lives. Whatever happened to this verse “It is no longer I who live but it’s Christ who lives through me”? I love what Jesus said in John 16:7, “I am telling you nothing but the truth when I say it is profitable (good, expedient, advantageous) for you that I go away. Because if I do not go away, the Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Advocate, Intercessor, Strengthener, Standby) will not come to you into close fellowship with you; but if I go away, I will send Him to you to be in close fellowship with you” - John 16:7.

JESUS wants to have a close fellowship with us. We don’t Need (obligated) to read the bible but we Want to. We will start doing things that we WANT to, not need to. In other religions, followers need to do their prayers, devotions and many other stuffs for their gods but we, as Christians, don’t need to. We want to. We can’t help it. We are in love with our God who lives inside us. Christianity is not a religion but a relationship based on love.

“For without Me you can do nothing” - John 15:5 (NKJV)

Only JESUS can make you be the person that HE wants you to be. You can’t do it by yourself. “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. - John 15:5 (NKJV). Don’t be baffled or disappointed when a Christian does or say something wrong. They are just Anointed Ones. Christians have the Anointing to be better people. If we say that being ‘in this world and not of the world” means to be good and moral, then I know a lot of people from other religions who are good and moral or even better behaved than Christians. So are we trying to say that they are also in the world but not of the world?

The only thing that we, Christians, have that makes us ‘not of the world’ is the Anointing of the Holy Spirit. That’s the only explanation that can’t be argued. Anything else but this truth could be compared to people of other religions. We have the Anointing of God’s Spirit. I have heard people saying that you have to be very nice, friendly and loving so people will know that you are a Christian. So does Christianity depend on our goodness? People are attracted to Christians not because of their goodness but because of the favor of GOD and HIS goodness that is in them.

For some reason, people like Christians. It’s a supernatural attraction. They are attracted by God’s supernatural Favor or Grace.

Anointed to be Capable….

The bible is not a cookbook. If you don’t follow the recipe according to the cookbook then the food would not be good. Likewise many of us think that if we don’t follow whatever the bible says then we are not good Christians. The bible is not meant to be followed. If we just need a book to tell us what to do and what not to do then JESUS does not have to come and die for us. We could have just followed the Torah or the laws of the Old Testament.

Someone might argue by saying that there are many scriptures in the Gospel that tells us to follow like:
“Love our enemies and do good to those who hate you” - Luke 6:27.
“Let not your heart be troubled…” - Matthew 6:34.
“Casting your cares upon HIM….” - 1 Peter 5:7. ”
“In the world you have tribulation, trials, distress and frustration; but be of Good cheer…” - John 16:33.
“Let all bitterness and wrath (passion, rage, bad temper) and resentment (anger, animosity) and quarreling (brawling, clamor, contention) and slander (evil-speaking, abusive or blasphemous language) be banished from you, with all malice (spite, ill will, or baseness of any kind). And become useful, helpful and kind to one another, tenderhearted (compassionate, understanding, loving-hearted), forgiving one another [readily and freely], as God in Christ forgave you” - Ephesians 4:31-32. And many other verses that instruct us on what to do. Or even when we are in church, our Pastor tells us things to do or to follow.

Thank GOD for all these verses - but they are not meant for us to follow. We need to understand that the bible is not a book of rules and regulations to follow (law) but it is there for us to know who we are in Christ, what we have in Christ and what we can do with Christ in us. When you read verses like “Let not your heart be troubled”, “Casting your cares to the Lord” and other verses from the Gospels, the bible simply means that you are capable of doing it. You are capable of forgiving, casting your cares, not letting your heart be troubled, not worrying, and many other things that the bible tells us we can do. We are capable of doing them because we are Anointed. The Holy Spirit helps us to do them. The next time a Pastor tells you to believe, to confess, to rest, to pray, to forgive - GOD is trying to tell you through your Pastor that you are capable of doing these actions because His Spirit is in you and HE will make you do it.

You don’t have to follow it (obligated) because the Holy Spirit will help you and teach you. “But the Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, Standby), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name [in My place, to represent Me and act on My behalf], He will teach you all things. And He will cause you to recall (will remind you of, bring to your remembrance) everything I have told you. - John 14:26.

You don’t have to stress yourself by thinking of how to follow what the bible says or what your Pastor says. You are capable of doing it because the Holy Spirit is inside you.

Let’s say a billionaire marries the daughter of a beggar. She doesn’t need to try to become rich. She has no choice but to become rich. She will start to walk, talk and dress like a rich person. She will be a different person in no time. As time goes on, she no longer thinks as a daughter of a beggar but as a wife of a billionaire. How much more when the Holy Spirit lives in you. As time goes on, we start to think, talk and act like Jesus.

We are capable of becoming healthy, wealthy, moral and many other things that that bible says we can be. You don’t have to try to be good, you have no choice but to become good because the Good Shepherd lives inside you. You will start doing good and moral things out of HIS goodness that HE has placed and stored in your heart. “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart “- Luke 6:45

“And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby) I will not leave you as orphans [comfortless, desolate, bereaved, helpless] ” - John 14:18

Relax and let Christ live through you, Amen.

One of the simplest ways to destroy a church is to put up a sign that says, “No Pruning Allowed!”

When you see slight deviations from the Word of God, little sins here and there – just let them alone. After all, they’re small. No big deal. Nothing to get up in arms about.

Ignore the words of James where he writes, “when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death” (James 1:15). Surely, that is an overstatement, even though he follows it up in the next verse with the warning, “Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren!”

The fact is, sin never stays the same size. Like a hardy vine, it grows, spreading its tendrils into all areas of life:

• A little gossip here, a little whisper there, and suddenly people’s reputations are destroyed, lies are spread, and relationships severed.
• A little pride here, a little conceit there, and suddenly preaching becomes a stage where the pastor is the celebrity.
• A little coveting here, a little greed there, and suddenly the church is sporting a new gymnasium while children go homeless on the streets outside.

There is a cure for that, of course. And that is to nip sin in the bud.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus talked about the seriousness of sin – even sins that look small to us. He said that anger was akin to murder. That lust was the same as adultery. Why? Because the big sins are inextricably linked to the small sins. No one ever murdered unless he was first angry. No one ever committed adultery before he first lusted in his heart. The cure? Nip sin in the bud – stop it before it has a chance to grow strong and bear its evil fruit in your life.

Jesus commanded sheer ruthlessness when it comes to dealing with sin. His words shake us to the core in Matthew 5:29-30:

“If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.”

Are we willing to nip sin in the bud? Will we take whatever steps are necessary to root up evil and cast it out of our lives?

Until we are, our churches remain at risk. “Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren … when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.” Nip sin in the bud. Now.

© 2008 Paula Marolewski

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” - Edmund Burke

If you really want to destroy your church quickly, here is the number one rule: zip your lips when you see something wrong.

Got that? Don’t say anything. Don’t speak up. Don’t voice your concerns. Don’t make waves.

Instead, when you see something wrong - when you observe sin, when you become aware of division, when you discern that people are dividing into camps, when you hear the whisper of rumor and slander - keep your mouth shut. Just ignore everything and pretend a) it will all go away on its own, or b) someone else will deal with it. But you, just keep your lips zipped and mind your own business.

Definitely don’t take seriously the words of Hebrews 5:14, which command each and every individual to “have their senses trained to discern good and evil”. And don’t read Galatians 6:1 where Paul states clearly “if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness.”

In fact, you should ignore the example of Paul entirely, since he made a habit of confronting churches - from the person in the pew to the leaders at the top - when they were stepping off the narrow way. Oh - and don’t read the first three chapters of Revelation, or you might find Jesus himself, the Alpha and Omega, calling churches to task for condoning sin, being comfortable in complacency, and putting their noses in the air with pride.

Just keep quiet and pretend that everything is okay.

Of course, if you see something wrong and you don’t want your church to go down the tubes, then you’ll have to speak up. It’s a dangerous course - you could offend the people in power, you could find yourself on the bad end of a slander campaign, and you could start some serious fire. But if the fire is the Spirit of God, that’s a good thing: even if some people get burned in the purifying process.

If you choose to go that dangerous route, then keep two words foremost on your mind, in your heart, and on your lips: kindness and truth. Proverbs 3:3 is the best advice on this topic ever written: “Do not let kindness and truth leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.”

Without kindness, truth is a harsh sword that cuts and kills. We’ve all known people who spoke the truth without love - and left only broken bodies in their wake. But without truth, kindness is nothing more than a pat on the head and a platitude in the ear. Kindness by itself doesn’t have the iron to effect real change.

But kindness and truth working together… that is where transformation begins. When bold and humble saints of God are willing to risk “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15), then the Word of God is released to “pierce as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow” and will “judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12) … and love will gently call the sinner home.

© 2008 Paula Marolewski

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