The Sermon Prayer - More Than A Bargain by David McGee
Sep 29, 2013
Prayer - More Than A Bargain (38:12)
Referenced Scriptures: Romans 12:20; Psalm 119:98; Acts 7:51-60; Matthew 5:44
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The scriptures below are from the WEB Bible.
Romans 12:20
20) Therefore "If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him a drink. For in doing so, you will heap coals of fire on his head."
Psalm 119:98
98) Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies, For your commandments are always with me.
Acts 7:51-60
51) "You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit! As your fathers did, so you do.
52) Which of the prophets didn‘t your fathers persecute? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One, of whom you have now become betrayers and murderers.
53) You received the law as it was ordained by angels, and didn‘t keep it!"
54) Now when they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.
55) But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
56) and said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing on the right hand of God!"
57) But they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and rushed at him with one accord.
58) They threw him out of the city, and stoned him. The witnesses placed their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59) They stoned Stephen, as he called on the Lord, saying, "Lord Jesus, receive my Spirit!"
60) He kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, "Lord, don‘t hold this sin against them!" When he had said this, he fell asleep.
Matthew 5:44
44) But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,
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They were speaking on prayer is more than a bargain prayer is more than a bargain. It's interesting whenever you are speaking with people who have very little knowledge of God, and it and it shows whenever they start talking about their ideas of God and their ideas of prayer and how that the economy outlined their approach to God as if I was if they were more intelligent than men, God, and that we're a young, we as humans are going to strike up a bargain with Almighty God, you know who sometimes we think is just a few bricks shy below, you know that God does and doesn't quite have it all figured out about how life really works and so we're going to get one over on himself. We believe these individuals start with a of the smarter than God mentality and they realize, you know, we've got a sinking ship here and who can we get the balance out else almost like I I've got nothing left to offer my sink his ship my sink is shipping my sink is shipping and my ship is sinking like I want to the info box but the so as our ship is sinking were wondering who can I sell this to hell I thought I'd bargain more get out of this before it sinks so we pray to God to save our ship, then you know how that yet. We can somehow bargained were going to give it to him. Whenever God will give you are shared and you can somehow get us out of this yell somehow take care of us whom God take care of us in our ship feel like that one that ran aground. They finally got a raise up after what you first, though, and they are rioted and of a known lunatic at the salvage yard if I can imagine the captain after he had hit the rock saying while God. The NL while he was out of there. He jumped ship, but the and in our lives. I think sometimes were like that were no people who have very little knowledge of God, and they're looking a guy thing Leo God can you know you want to salvage this year and get something out of it. And if, as if God exists, like the simpleminded individual who doesn't really understand what are good bargain. He's getting here with buying my sinking ship. So the first thing we have to do is to get those ideas with the blow. The model water. Okay, where to get rid of those ideas that God somehow doesn't know what's going on and that somehow were going to offer him a bargain at bargain rates. You can get our ship while you ever we could get rid of the way that if we devoted every moment. Think of it in the concept. If we devoted every moment of our life. Every thinking working doing moment. If we dedicated entirely to God. We devoted a whole life of service to God, and that our ship is aware, were perfectly clean top notch. The accomplished very well that everything that we we would somehow God would be happy with us and that every will be writing in reality, we can't offer God anything he doesn't already own. So it's kind of irrelevant that if we have given an entire life and made it perfect, shipping/ shipping sink if we have a ship that is thinking is irrelevant to the point that somehow were to strike up a bargain this is not a merit system that I've been good. You only or I'm losing everything. Can you buy this in salvage it from me. The life of serving God is for our benefit. The life that we have been serving God is one in which we are going to be blessed. Not that were offering got some bargains and that in serving God, we find that while that God quality in our life, we find that God quality inside of us that is different that is unique to our nature. Our old nature. It is not unique to the God of nature, but it is unique to our old nature, you need to honor concepts that are based upon our individuality are thinking argument list of what God is like Paul spoke of it in Romans ten to twelve verse twenty says if your enemies are hungry, feed them if they are thirsty, give him something to drink. So here we have Paul looking at any of you know, if we think about life in the sinking ship. Sometimes we would think while our enemies have done this to us. I at least have robbed us of our enemies have hurt us. And Paul tells us if your enemies are hungry, feed them if they are thirsty, give him something to drink the gift that we had in giving to our enemies and feeding those who are hungry water to those who are thirsty, the gift is realized is realized in the giving. It is ing to the needy that we find the greatest gift is very contrary to our human nature that if I get something I don't have it anymore. That's that's kind of our concept. You if I give you something. I don't have it, while in the in the kingdom of God. When God gives us something when God gives us his salvation. When God gives to us. There is no depletion of his resources is not a pollution in God 's kingdom that whatever we give something front mail from the heart of God, and we give it to other people, it doesn't diminish us, it becomes greater in our life to become something more than what we could ever accomplish on our own. And so the biblical principles are different than our societies, principles, so the gift is realize that when we give it. It is it is not diminished, it still comes back to last the Scripture says, pressed down, shaken together, and running over somehow God is going to bring this blessing back into our life. So as we bind up the wounded as we help heal those who are in pain and sorrow, we find that who is great. It was it was the greatest. What is the greatest need around us. It's generally with the people who dislike us the greatest need is generally with our enemy. Those who are spitefully using us or whatever, that our greatest need is with those who are against the kingdom of God, and against what we stand for, and their ship is sinking, the old nature that we live by is blowing holes in our ship and it is causing us to say and the old nature would say to Oscar finish them off, you know, blow them out of the water and sink their ship and get it over with. And so we try to do that sometimes with our words and our attitudes and you know what we would say against people to try and think their ship while the new nature in Christ says rescue the new nature in Christ says deliver and the old nature is counterproductive. The all nature doesn't want to rescue our enemy are all nature doesn't want to pray for those who spitefully use us. You know the all nature is basically kick them while they're down the old nature is take advantage of those who are less fortunate and that if we help them get out of their distress, their lame-duck taking from us. Psalm one eight one nineteen someone nineteen verse ninety eight, says your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies of God 's commands make us wiser than our enemies for your commandments are always with me. The Commandments that God speaks to our life makes us wiser than our enemies. So, when God wants us to pray for our enemies when he and our old nature would look at that and say not to do that, but God 's command makes us wiser in a sense we don't see what's coming. We only see what has happened and our life is forward focused, not backward focused our life is forward in our relationship with Christ and God is doing a new thing and honest God is doing a different thing in our life based on our new nature based upon the new Internet is in Christ, so what do we fear most from those who we call our enemies may not live. What's with your mouse from those IR enemies while I think we fear they will destroy us will take advantage of us will take what is ours and so the struggle than if the key. The struggle that we face when our enemies. Is there trying to take something from us. That is our and the struggle to keep what we have turned into this paying this. This heart that they have taken from me, which then turns into anger and resentment. I want to get them. I want to get even with them, and then finally that pain turns anger with anger turns to fear, we have fear that something evil something that is really going to happen and there is a struggle and the old nature is telling us censorship and your hurt them before they hurt you teach them a lesson. Let them to let them drown in their sorrows looking from in the things that they've done wrong. But our old nature, but the new nature the new life in Christ makes us wiser makes us wise is a reason we do it we do every time God commands us assets requires us to do something, it's because he has something better in store for us. God has a different way of looking at things, you know, think about how many times you had an idea and you know didn't work. Why while we did have a complete picture. We only saw part when we only ended up being incomplete in our analyses and are putting things together. I've done this a thousand times no. I was really clear picture and run with alliances. What about this one. Plan up and I perfectly laid out plan is usable. What about this. It's obvious are the first part missing in all and I'm saying we'll leave that aside at work. Without that, you know, it didn't work. Without that, I needed that you know and ill. So we we look at these things and remember our new life in Christ. Our new life in Christ. We live the Christian life by godly principles. We live the Christian life by God influence in his Spirit in our lives. So God 's commandments make me why God 's commandments make me wise say that God 's commandments make me why wisdom is the application of truth to life. No, we sometimes called common sense. There's nothing common about common sense is not there. The wisdom of God is the wisdom that helps us see things and make applications. These God commandments are not a choir too soon old, too late smart Amish proverb, so the God Commandments units. We can't live long enough to experience everything. That's why we read books know what we've got to read books but you know you can read all the books you want about driving a car, but until you get behind the whale you don't know what it's like an essay that happens, we have knowledge and people have people that have a lot of knowledge that they don't make the application this morning there is a I was speaking with Jody and and she was telling about how that they have no waitresses, many waitresses that they're trying to bring into the store to the restaurant. Third up at the restaurant and the energies on about how that there was this one individual that came to work and I don't because I know who it is man or woman, I have no idea. So okay, but it now they couldn't find them, and they would anywhere be in the bathroom, texting, and they went and got the individual bottom out and they would work for a few minutes. Serve stand around for a few minutes and then they were gone. You can find them there back in the bathroom, texting, and about six or seven hours of this, they told him to go home. I saw me know if I dare their concept of work was hiding somewhere in texting on their phone. Their work was interfering with their life. They couldn't happen, you know. Okay, so anyhow, the ideas week we look at the end and there are with the wisdom, the application of life as his godly principles that were not going to be hiding somewhere texting are doing something and and forget about moving seat seeming the laws of love and forgiveness in prayer, praying for our enemies. These are wise to us so that we struggle against things because were afraid or is it the other way around. We get afraid because we struggle to a struggle against things because we're afraid or is it that we get afraid because we struggle some Christians believe that because I am serving God. I won't have any struggles that everything is going to go just perfect and when difficulties come we become afraid and perfect love displaces fear God 's love helps us set aside fear and we are going to have struggles, but the struggles are not about success or failure struggles are about the application of truths to our life, the application of biblical truths to our life that we are not going to live in fear. We're not going to live that somebody is going to take from us, what really is in ours. In the first place. We are good stewards of the kingdom of God, and the stewardship is I will displace God does so therefore he has put me in charge now I need to be careful. I need to make sure that people don't raid that no raid the place and steal things I've got to be a good steward Albert, but alternately it's not my. And so when people lie to you and I Christian, but lying to God when people try to hurt a Christian they are hurting God because he hurts for us. He's there with us. So they are and they are the events and struggles are not there to make us afraid because we can't lose what we don't know what we own is what God has given us, and it is very in God 's presence that we take what we have before God, and we ask for wisdom as to how we should deal with all of this and those that are trying to steal or take the kingdom of God. We need to pray for them versus mountain climber. The story is a will joke it is my pharmacist David was planning on and nice timing, but Roxanne needs going up, and even loses track of time and it darkness comes starring times it's jet black. You can't see any, I can't see where is going against his way back down and has these trying to send. He slips and falls, and goes down and comes the jolt and wrote constant antes hanging there a chance he worries that you can't tell where the ground is he can't tell where anywhere opportunities just totally lost and begins to pray and day Moses be one of bargaining prayers go out to get me out of here. I'll give you my life beautiful product in my rope. Okay, so give it to God in. So anyhow they praise God shall help me, Oregon, are you up there and yell while he's hanging their years. His voice. Yes, I'm up here woollies quite excited. God is that yes& yes, my child, it's me. While God can you get me out of here. God says you're only two feet from the ground, cut the rope rises are you sure I'm only do they from the ground and noon God replies yes, my son. I I'm sure that your two feet from the ground, cut the rope insolvent mountain climber pulls out his gun and pulled out his knife. These rate cuts represent Israelite house up there at the enough and sometimes our life is like that we hear what God is saying anything is it some other way that I can do that. Still praying for my enemies is not exactly what I had in mind so we find that God is there and you know he wants I do not looking for bargains in the looking for us to wait until we fail, he's looking frost and every, every part of our life is not waiting for us to hit the end of the rope. We want to have to company and wrote before we finally decide that we are looking for God and God is not bargain shopping blue light special CNL big sale this weekend. Lots of people are failing enough as not that kind of a life that God is looking for a looking for a life that comes to him from their heart and from their desires. If we hit the end of the rope, or we come to the place where our ship is sinking, God is there it is, and he hasn't trialed in the sense that while you know I'm going to let you fall in the floundering until you can yell to get bad enough, the new company. As if God were in some type of the struggle with evil. God is not struggling with evil. Evil is already defeated where the one struggling between good and evil. God has provided us the victory in Christ yell everything is changed, all things are new. Our old life 's pathway and and a new life is coming Christ. God caused Aussie reaches out and he is there to help us conquer our failures and God will have us give us the strength and show us the way that we should go. We are afraid because we struggle and we think maybe God has abandoned us in the midst of our struggles and that's not true. He will never leave us nor forsake us using there is a difference between a bargain and a prayer. There's a difference between bargaining with God Anderson's there, and a sincere prayer to God. The bargain is somehow on the give something to God that he doesn't have additions since they are prayer is I'm going to receive from God, something I do not have. I'm going to receive from God, something that I do not have. I don't have a piece, I don't have a forgiveness. I'll have strength. I I I have a need here, but God only, you can you can meet that need, not a bargain seat in Stephen's prayer and ask chapters seven, we have Stephen has on been arrested, and Stephen's death is one of those situations in the New Testament it is, it seems totally out of place in our statement is this writes brilliant young man. He's waiting on tables, he's taking care of people is doing all the right things for the right reasons and he gets halting before the religious rule rollers and and he have to give an account for what he's been doing and they want to try and stop him from doing all the good that he does inform his preaching and in the miracles that are happening in his own life, and it reminds them of Jesus and Stephen go through the the Scriptures and starts reading, recounting how the God has been with the nation of Israel, God has worked with the nation of Israel and any come to verse fifty one aces and you continue so bullheaded Aesop into the religious rulers calloused in your hearts, flags on your ears. The Flats on years you got earmuffs on no deliberately ignoring the Holy Spirit. You're just like your ancestors was there ever a prophet who didn't get some treatment get the same treatment. Your ancestors killed everyone dear talk about the coming of the just one, and you kept up the familiar tradition, traitors and murderers all of you that God 's law handed to you by Angels get wrapped and you squandered at that point, people who were listening to Stephen went while a writing mambo catcalls and whistles and and and and invective advice, even for the Holy Spirit hardly noticed. He hardly noticed what was going on. He was full of the spirit. He recognized something greater is happening here than all these people being against me. There was something else granaries full of God 's Spirit, and he any good. I didn't hear all of these jeers and criticism, and I'll let you know what they were planning to do with him, and the arty knows he only had eyes for God, whom he saw in all his glory with Jesus standing at his side. He and he said all I see heaven wide open and the Son of Man standing at God 's side. So, in the midst of all these people you cheering and screaming at him and and coming at him, and they hardly notice such yelling at missing the mom grounded him out now in full stampede. They dragged him out of town and told him with rocks, thou ringleaders took off their coats and as a young man named Saul to watch them as the rocks rained down, Stephen prayed Master Jesus, take my life. Then he knelt down praying loud enough for everyone to hear master don't blame them for this since his last words he prayed for his enemies there is with them in the Commandments of God. It makes us why this Stephen was able to as a work stand alongside on his enemies. They were telling him and pray for them because he saw God and make the things different in his life. There is this man named Dietrich von offer and I've been reading some of this is the devotionals and he is a minister who returned to Germany, all with the outbreak of war and just prior to the outbreak of the war and he went there to take care of his congregation and he suffered great persecution was eventually killed by the Nazis in Matthew chapter five, verse forty four. Jesus is love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. There is wisdom. We have different way of a wisdom that is different because of what God has given us in his commands. You said Bono percent in praying for your enemies. We go to our enemies to stand at their side. We are with them near them for them before God, and I was thinking of this devotional and I'm thinking of Steve and I was thinking up people and how that we have this bargaining that mentality and how that these things. It's occupied too much of our time. The bargaining mentality. We are to see the wisdom that is in the Commandments to pray for what God wants to do in the lives of people who are our enemies, and Stephen a says master don't blame them for this statement is that we are with them. They are then four then before God. Stephen was looking at God and pray for the people who were stoning him, as it were, standing beside them, praying for what they didn't have the ability to see God. Jesus does not promise us that the enemies will love us that they will bless us and they will change it doesn't tell us that at all. Jesus on the cross trade father, forgive them, they don't know what they do pray for our enemies is praying for people who don't see God, and who have not understood the wisdom of God 's commands. Pray for our enemies is not pray, God bless them, you now bless them to the point no God touch their lives to the point that they can see you this. Let's even pray for this is what Jesus prayed forth across a prayed that they would, they would see him differently, they would see things differently and he stands beside them is aware in a spiritual manner praying for them. We are doing for them in action. What they can't do for themselves. Years ago there was this note. Corrie ten boom was an individual who was in Nazi Germany and her family, they were all taken to a concentration camp and by mistake. Corey was left goal from the camp. Her entire family was killed by the Nazis in Germany. Death can. After the war, Corey would go around speaking about how to deal with all of the hatred and bitterness that was left in the lives of survivors because please had taken everything they own little poolside like your Hitler before the war did an assessment of all the Jewish people. He wanted to know all of their wealth. All of their holdings. All of their gold, silver, that whatever was of value. He wanted an assessment of that so that he could protect them after he had all of their assets in place. He then declared veiled nothing. He confiscated the entire wealth of all of the Jewish people to pay for the war that he was about to bring and it was a very well for the Jewish people that he used to build the camps that killed them. This is evil in this height, Corey. After the war. After her family was killed in and on all the Holocaust in all the tragedies she would go around and speaking churches and wherever that the only way to deal with the atrocities of the Nazi was to forgive them to pray for them. Pray for your enemies. There is a wisdom that God gives us that his commands that make us wise beyond those who are our enemies and Corey was speaking about forgiveness, and after one of her presentations are speaking her messages. She was walking down the aisle and someone stepped out is that Fräulein, I have found Jesus as my Savior and he reached out his hand to shake her hand and it was the guard of the camp that had exterminated her family for life. I found Jesus. She shook his hand. She had forgiven him of what he has done praying for our enemies is not something that we muster up the strength to do it is like Jesus on the cross. Father forgive them for they know not what they do. It is like Stephen being stoned do not lay this sin to their account. We are praying that God would touch their lives, and it doesn't mean that there got to stop their persecution. It means that we are establishing a relationship with God that is greater than our struggle. They are struggles make us afraid. Why are we afraid in our struggles because somehow weren't supposed to have them now. We are afraid that we're going to lose something that we don't even know where afraid ever going to learn something that doesn't even belong to us. Our life, our life belongs to God. We are bought with a price. We belong to him. Our name is in his book of life, and so we believe his commandments and his commandments. Make us wise wiser than our enemies. And so our enemy may tell us, but they cannot destroy you and one other thing always wondered why people curse so much you know some people occurs all the time that whenever we are praying for our enemies. We are praying for them in the way that we are representing them before God in the way that they can't represent themselves. Jesus does the very same thing with each of us with all in all, God is not willing that any should perish, but all should come to repentance. Jesus is beside every living person praying for them, walking with them nudging them, and I think this is a day biggie is I didn't read it somewhere, or whatever. I thought of it that when Jesus is praying for these individuals. There is a spiritual part that touches their life and it's like something this good is trying to get into their life and they are going to curse the moment they feel that anything isn't that God has abandoned them. But God is there, God is there with them, and they are rebelling against. We as Christians recognize that when we are in the struggle. We should not be afraid, but we should go to God in prayer in our prayers and not to some elaborate thing Stephen and his dying though hold this against them. I'd elaborate prayer he sees Jesus standing at the right of the father is not preoccupied with the struggle. He is focused on the one who's going to keep him in our lives. We are focused on the one who's going to keep us, not the struggles, not the difficulties in life may never change, but we're going to keep seeing what's in front of us knowing where we are going. Pray for those who persecute us pray for our enemies. Why, because it is a commandment of God and his commandments. Make us wise his commandments. Make us wise in what is wisdom. The application of truth to our everyday life. He will help us be wise in living for him, and then withstand selling so what enemies should we pray for what people should only be done. I don't have to than as a visitor to pray for. I think we pray for Salazar, you know they'll like me. Now we need to not be caught up in the struggle, but the economy. We are living for our relationship with Christ and that relationship will heal the brokenhearted, will set the captive free. He will make us why this and how that we live life. We don't have to get even. We have to get close to God. And as we do we become our prayers are more for restoration and are more for helping people be connected with God rather than afraid that they're going to hurt us are harmless when not preoccupied with what is being done. We are preoccupied with what God wants to do right. We're not focused on what's going wrong were focused on what God wants to do in our life and that is always forward, but always to the future God is in charge, leading to a man. Thank you Lord for hearing our prayers knowing our hearts, Lord, inspire us by your spirit and your words give us your commands, because in them. We find life we find forgiveness. Lord we find wisdom, but your wisdom be part of us, Lord, as we pray, pray one for another, as we hope, uphold our needs and bring them to you, Lord, we pray for them and for our enemies. We come alongside of them. And we pray for them. We pray for them what they cannot do for themselves. We will do for them. As you oh God have done for us. Everyone said amen, I bless you forThey were speaking on prayer is more than a bargain prayer is more than a bargain. It's interesting whenever you are speaking with people who have very little knowledge of God, and it and it shows whenever they start talking about their ideas of God and their ideas of prayer and how that the economy outlined their approach to God as if I was if they were more intelligent than men, God, and that we're a young, we as humans are going to strike up a bargain with Almighty God, you know who sometimes we think is just a few bricks shy below, you know that God does and doesn't quite have it all figured out about how life really works and so we're going to get one over on himself. We believe these individuals start with a of the smarter than God mentality and they realize, you know, we've got a sinking ship here and who can we get the balance out else almost like I I've got nothing left to offer my sink his ship my sink is shipping my sink is shipping and my ship is sinking like I want to the info box but the so as our ship is sinking were wondering who can I sell this to hell I thought I'd bargain more get out of this before it sinks so we pray to God to save our ship, then you know how that yet. We can somehow bargained were going to give it to him. Whenever God will give you are shared and you can somehow get us out of this yell somehow take care of us whom God take care of us in our ship feel like that one that ran aground. They finally got a raise up after what you first, though, and they are rioted and of a known lunatic at the salvage yard if I can imagine the captain after he had hit the rock saying while God. The NL while he was out of there. He jumped ship, but the and in our lives. I think sometimes were like that were no people who have very little knowledge of God, and they're looking a guy thing Leo God can you know you want to salvage this year and get something out of it. And if, as if God exists, like the simpleminded individual who doesn't really understand what are good bargain. He's getting here with buying my sinking ship. So the first thing we have to do is to get those ideas with the blow. The model water. Okay, where to get rid of those ideas that God somehow doesn't know what's going on and that somehow were going to offer him a bargain at bargain rates. You can get our ship while you ever we could get rid of the way that if we devoted every moment. Think of it in the concept. If we devoted every moment of our life. Every thinking working doing moment. If we dedicated entirely to God. We devoted a whole life of service to God, and that our ship is aware, were perfectly clean top notch. The accomplished very well that everything that we we would somehow God would be happy with us and that every will be writing in reality, we can't offer God anything he doesn't already own. So it's kind of irrelevant that if we have given an entire life and made it perfect, shipping/ shipping sink if we have a ship that is thinking is irrelevant to the point that somehow were to strike up a bargain this is not a merit system that I've been good. You only or I'm losing everything. Can you buy this in salvage it from me. The life of serving God is for our benefit. The life that we have been serving God is one in which we are going to be blessed. Not that were offering got some bargains and that in serving God, we find that while that God quality in our life, we find that God quality inside of us that is different that is unique to our nature. Our old nature. It is not unique to the God of nature, but it is unique to our old nature, you need to honor concepts that are based upon our individuality are thinking argument list of what God is like Paul spoke of it in Romans ten to twelve verse twenty says if your enemies are hungry, feed them if they are thirsty, give him something to drink. So here we have Paul looking at any of you know, if we think about life in the sinking ship. Sometimes we would think while our enemies have done this to us. I at least have robbed us of our enemies have hurt us. And Paul tells us if your enemies are hungry, feed them if they are thirsty, give him something to drink the gift that we had in giving to our enemies and feeding those who are hungry water to those who are thirsty, the gift is realized is realized in the giving. It is ing to the needy that we find the greatest gift is very contrary to our human nature that if I get something I don't have it anymore. That's that's kind of our concept. You if I give you something. I don't have it, while in the in the kingdom of God. When God gives us something when God gives us his salvation. When God gives to us. There is no depletion of his resources is not a pollution in God 's kingdom that whatever we give something front mail from the heart of God, and we give it to other people, it doesn't diminish us, it becomes greater in our life to become something more than what we could ever accomplish on our own. And so the biblical principles are different than our societies, principles, so the gift is realize that when we give it. It is it is not diminished, it still comes back to last the Scripture says, pressed down, shaken together, and running over somehow God is going to bring this blessing back into our life. So as we bind up the wounded as we help heal those who are in pain and sorrow, we find that who is great. It was it was the greatest. What is the greatest need around us. It's generally with the people who dislike us the greatest need is generally with our enemy. Those who are spitefully using us or whatever, that our greatest need is with those who are against the kingdom of God, and against what we stand for, and their ship is sinking, the old nature that we live by is blowing holes in our ship and it is causing us to say and the old nature would say to Oscar finish them off, you know, blow them out of the water and sink their ship and get it over with. And so we try to do that sometimes with our words and our attitudes and you know what we would say against people to try and think their ship while the new nature in Christ says rescue the new nature in Christ says deliver and the old nature is counterproductive. The all nature doesn't want to rescue our enemy are all nature doesn't want to pray for those who spitefully use us. You know the all nature is basically kick them while they're down the old nature is take advantage of those who are less fortunate and that if we help them get out of their distress, their lame-duck taking from us. Psalm one eight one nineteen someone nineteen verse ninety eight, says your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies of God 's commands make us wiser than our enemies for your commandments are always with me. The Commandments that God speaks to our life makes us wiser than our enemies. So, when God wants us to pray for our enemies when he and our old nature would look at that and say not to do that, but God 's command makes us wiser in a sense we don't see what's coming. We only see what has happened and our life is forward focused, not backward focused our life is forward in our relationship with Christ and God is doing a new thing and honest God is doing a different thing in our life based on our new nature based upon the new Internet is in Christ, so what do we fear most from those who we call our enemies may not live. What's with your mouse from those IR enemies while I think we fear they will destroy us will take advantage of us will take what is ours and so the struggle than if the key. The struggle that we face when our enemies. Is there trying to take something from us. That is our and the struggle to keep what we have turned into this paying this. This heart that they have taken from me, which then turns into anger and resentment. I want to get them. I want to get even with them, and then finally that pain turns anger with anger turns to fear, we have fear that something evil something that is really going to happen and there is a struggle and the old nature is telling us censorship and your hurt them before they hurt you teach them a lesson. Let them to let them drown in their sorrows looking from in the things that they've done wrong. But our old nature, but the new nature the new life in Christ makes us wiser makes us wise is a reason we do it we do every time God commands us assets requires us to do something, it's because he has something better in store for us. God has a different way of looking at things, you know, think about how many times you had an idea and you know didn't work. Why while we did have a complete picture. We only saw part when we only ended up being incomplete in our analyses and are putting things together. I've done this a thousand times no. I was really clear picture and run with alliances. What about this one. Plan up and I perfectly laid out plan is usable. What about this. It's obvious are the first part missing in all and I'm saying we'll leave that aside at work. Without that, you know, it didn't work. Without that, I needed that you know and ill. So we we look at these things and remember our new life in Christ. Our new life in Christ. We live the Christian life by godly principles. We live the Christian life by God influence in his Spirit in our lives. So God 's commandments make me why God 's commandments make me wise say that God 's commandments make me why wisdom is the application of truth to life. No, we sometimes called common sense. There's nothing common about common sense is not there. The wisdom of God is the wisdom that helps us see things and make applications. These God commandments are not a choir too soon old, too late smart Amish proverb, so the God Commandments units. We can't live long enough to experience everything. That's why we read books know what we've got to read books but you know you can read all the books you want about driving a car, but until you get behind the whale you don't know what it's like an essay that happens, we have knowledge and people have people that have a lot of knowledge that they don't make the application this morning there is a I was speaking with Jody and and she was telling about how that they have no waitresses, many waitresses that they're trying to bring into the store to the restaurant. Third up at the restaurant and the energies on about how that there was this one individual that came to work and I don't because I know who it is man or woman, I have no idea. So okay, but it now they couldn't find them, and they would anywhere be in the bathroom, texting, and they went and got the individual bottom out and they would work for a few minutes. Serve stand around for a few minutes and then they were gone. You can find them there back in the bathroom, texting, and about six or seven hours of this, they told him to go home. I saw me know if I dare their concept of work was hiding somewhere in texting on their phone. Their work was interfering with their life. They couldn't happen, you know. Okay, so anyhow, the ideas week we look at the end and there are with the wisdom, the application of life as his godly principles that were not going to be hiding somewhere texting are doing something and and forget about moving seat seeming the laws of love and forgiveness in prayer, praying for our enemies. These are wise to us so that we struggle against things because were afraid or is it the other way around. We get afraid because we struggle to a struggle against things because we're afraid or is it that we get afraid because we struggle some Christians believe that because I am serving God. I won't have any struggles that everything is going to go just perfect and when difficulties come we become afraid and perfect love displaces fear God 's love helps us set aside fear and we are going to have struggles, but the struggles are not about success or failure struggles are about the application of truths to our life, the application of biblical truths to our life that we are not going to live in fear. We're not going to live that somebody is going to take from us, what really is in ours. In the first place. We are good stewards of the kingdom of God, and the stewardship is I will displace God does so therefore he has put me in charge now I need to be careful. I need to make sure that people don't raid that no raid the place and steal things I've got to be a good steward Albert, but alternately it's not my. And so when people lie to you and I Christian, but lying to God when people try to hurt a Christian they are hurting God because he hurts for us. He's there with us. So they are and they are the events and struggles are not there to make us afraid because we can't lose what we don't know what we own is what God has given us, and it is very in God 's presence that we take what we have before God, and we ask for wisdom as to how we should deal with all of this and those that are trying to steal or take the kingdom of God. We need to pray for them versus mountain climber. The story is a will joke it is my pharmacist David was planning on and nice timing, but Roxanne needs going up, and even loses track of time and it darkness comes starring times it's jet black. You can't see any, I can't see where is going against his way back down and has these trying to send. He slips and falls, and goes down and comes the jolt and wrote constant antes hanging there a chance he worries that you can't tell where the ground is he can't tell where anywhere opportunities just totally lost and begins to pray and day Moses be one of bargaining prayers go out to get me out of here. I'll give you my life beautiful product in my rope. Okay, so give it to God in. So anyhow they praise God shall help me, Oregon, are you up there and yell while he's hanging their years. His voice. Yes, I'm up here woollies quite excited. God is that yes& yes, my child, it's me. While God can you get me out of here. God says you're only two feet from the ground, cut the rope rises are you sure I'm only do they from the ground and noon God replies yes, my son. I I'm sure that your two feet from the ground, cut the rope insolvent mountain climber pulls out his gun and pulled out his knife. These rate cuts represent Israelite house up there at the enough and sometimes our life is like that we hear what God is saying anything is it some other way that I can do that. Still praying for my enemies is not exactly what I had in mind so we find that God is there and you know he wants I do not looking for bargains in the looking for us to wait until we fail, he's looking frost and every, every part of our life is not waiting for us to hit the end of the rope. We want to have to company and wrote before we finally decide that we are looking for God and God is not bargain shopping blue light special CNL big sale this weekend. Lots of people are failing enough as not that kind of a life that God is looking for a looking for a life that comes to him from their heart and from their desires. If we hit the end of the rope, or we come to the place where our ship is sinking, God is there it is, and he hasn't trialed in the sense that while you know I'm going to let you fall in the floundering until you can yell to get bad enough, the new company. As if God were in some type of the struggle with evil. God is not struggling with evil. Evil is already defeated where the one struggling between good and evil. God has provided us the victory in Christ yell everything is changed, all things are new. Our old life 's pathway and and a new life is coming Christ. God caused Aussie reaches out and he is there to help us conquer our failures and God will have us give us the strength and show us the way that we should go. We are afraid because we struggle and we think maybe God has abandoned us in the midst of our struggles and that's not true. He will never leave us nor forsake us using there is a difference between a bargain and a prayer. There's a difference between bargaining with God Anderson's there, and a sincere prayer to God. The bargain is somehow on the give something to God that he doesn't have additions since they are prayer is I'm going to receive from God, something I do not have. I'm going to receive from God, something that I do not have. I don't have a piece, I don't have a forgiveness. I'll have strength. I I I have a need here, but God only, you can you can meet that need, not a bargain seat in Stephen's prayer and ask chapters seven, we have Stephen has on been arrested, and Stephen's death is one of those situations in the New Testament it is, it seems totally out of place in our statement is this writes brilliant young man. He's waiting on tables, he's taking care of people is doing all the right things for the right reasons and he gets halting before the religious rule rollers and and he have to give an account for what he's been doing and they want to try and stop him from doing all the good that he does inform his preaching and in the miracles that are happening in his own life, and it reminds them of Jesus and Stephen go through the the Scriptures and starts reading, recounting how the God has been with the nation of Israel, God has worked with the nation of Israel and any come to verse fifty one aces and you continue so bullheaded Aesop into the religious rulers calloused in your hearts, flags on your ears. The Flats on years you got earmuffs on no deliberately ignoring the Holy Spirit. You're just like your ancestors was there ever a prophet who didn't get some treatment get the same treatment. Your ancestors killed everyone dear talk about the coming of the just one, and you kept up the familiar tradition, traitors and murderers all of you that God 's law handed to you by Angels get wrapped and you squandered at that point, people who were listening to Stephen went while a writing mambo catcalls and whistles and and and and invective advice, even for the Holy Spirit hardly noticed. He hardly noticed what was going on. He was full of the spirit. He recognized something greater is happening here than all these people being against me. There was something else granaries full of God 's Spirit, and he any good. I didn't hear all of these jeers and criticism, and I'll let you know what they were planning to do with him, and the arty knows he only had eyes for God, whom he saw in all his glory with Jesus standing at his side. He and he said all I see heaven wide open and the Son of Man standing at God 's side. So, in the midst of all these people you cheering and screaming at him and and coming at him, and they hardly notice such yelling at missing the mom grounded him out now in full stampede. They dragged him out of town and told him with rocks, thou ringleaders took off their coats and as a young man named Saul to watch them as the rocks rained down, Stephen prayed Master Jesus, take my life. Then he knelt down praying loud enough for everyone to hear master don't blame them for this since his last words he prayed for his enemies there is with them in the Commandments of God. It makes us why this Stephen was able to as a work stand alongside on his enemies. They were telling him and pray for them because he saw God and make the things different in his life. There is this man named Dietrich von offer and I've been reading some of this is the devotionals and he is a minister who returned to Germany, all with the outbreak of war and just prior to the outbreak of the war and he went there to take care of his congregation and he suffered great persecution was eventually killed by the Nazis in Matthew chapter five, verse forty four. Jesus is love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. There is wisdom. We have different way of a wisdom that is different because of what God has given us in his commands. You said Bono percent in praying for your enemies. We go to our enemies to stand at their side. We are with them near them for them before God, and I was thinking of this devotional and I'm thinking of Steve and I was thinking up people and how that we have this bargaining that mentality and how that these things. It's occupied too much of our time. The bargaining mentality. We are to see the wisdom that is in the Commandments to pray for what God wants to do in the lives of people who are our enemies, and Stephen a says master don't blame them for this statement is that we are with them. They are then four then before God. Stephen was looking at God and pray for the people who were stoning him, as it were, standing beside them, praying for what they didn't have the ability to see God. Jesus does not promise us that the enemies will love us that they will bless us and they will change it doesn't tell us that at all. Jesus on the cross trade father, forgive them, they don't know what they do pray for our enemies is praying for people who don't see God, and who have not understood the wisdom of God 's commands. Pray for our enemies is not pray, God bless them, you now bless them to the point no God touch their lives to the point that they can see you this. Let's even pray for this is what Jesus prayed forth across a prayed that they would, they would see him differently, they would see things differently and he stands beside them is aware in a spiritual manner praying for them. We are doing for them in action. What they can't do for themselves. Years ago there was this note. Corrie ten boom was an individual who was in Nazi Germany and her family, they were all taken to a concentration camp and by mistake. Corey was left goal from the camp. Her entire family was killed by the Nazis in Germany. Death can. After the war, Corey would go around speaking about how to deal with all of the hatred and bitterness that was left in the lives of survivors because please had taken everything they own little poolside like your Hitler before the war did an assessment of all the Jewish people. He wanted to know all of their wealth. All of their holdings. All of their gold, silver, that whatever was of value. He wanted an assessment of that so that he could protect them after he had all of their assets in place. He then declared veiled nothing. He confiscated the entire wealth of all of the Jewish people to pay for the war that he was about to bring and it was a very well for the Jewish people that he used to build the camps that killed them. This is evil in this height, Corey. After the war. After her family was killed in and on all the Holocaust in all the tragedies she would go around and speaking churches and wherever that the only way to deal with the atrocities of the Nazi was to forgive them to pray for them. Pray for your enemies. There is a wisdom that God gives us that his commands that make us wise beyond those who are our enemies and Corey was speaking about forgiveness, and after one of her presentations are speaking her messages. She was walking down the aisle and someone stepped out is that Fräulein, I have found Jesus as my Savior and he reached out his hand to shake her hand and it was the guard of the camp that had exterminated her family for life. I found Jesus. She shook his hand. She had forgiven him of what he has done praying for our enemies is not something that we muster up the strength to do it is like Jesus on the cross. Father forgive them for they know not what they do. It is like Stephen being stoned do not lay this sin to their account. We are praying that God would touch their lives, and it doesn't mean that there got to stop their persecution. It means that we are establishing a relationship with God that is greater than our struggle. They are struggles make us afraid. Why are we afraid in our struggles because somehow weren't supposed to have them now. We are afraid that we're going to lose something that we don't even know where afraid ever going to learn something that doesn't even belong to us. Our life, our life belongs to God. We are bought with a price. We belong to him. Our name is in his book of life, and so we believe his commandments and his commandments. Make us wise wiser than our enemies. And so our enemy may tell us, but they cannot destroy you and one other thing always wondered why people curse so much you know some people occurs all the time that whenever we are praying for our enemies. We are praying for them in the way that we are representing them before God in the way that they can't represent themselves. Jesus does the very same thing with each of us with all in all, God is not willing that any should perish, but all should come to repentance. Jesus is beside every living person praying for them, walking with them nudging them, and I think this is a day biggie is I didn't read it somewhere, or whatever. I thought of it that when Jesus is praying for these individuals. There is a spiritual part that touches their life and it's like something this good is trying to get into their life and they are going to curse the moment they feel that anything isn't that God has abandoned them. But God is there, God is there with them, and they are rebelling against. We as Christians recognize that when we are in the struggle. We should not be afraid, but we should go to God in prayer in our prayers and not to some elaborate thing Stephen and his dying though hold this against them. I'd elaborate prayer he sees Jesus standing at the right of the father is not preoccupied with the struggle. He is focused on the one who's going to keep him in our lives. We are focused on the one who's going to keep us, not the struggles, not the difficulties in life may never change, but we're going to keep seeing what's in front of us knowing where we are going. Pray for those who persecute us pray for our enemies. Why, because it is a commandment of God and his commandments. Make us wise his commandments. Make us wise in what is wisdom. The application of truth to our everyday life. He will help us be wise in living for him, and then withstand selling so what enemies should we pray for what people should only be done. I don't have to than as a visitor to pray for. I think we pray for Salazar, you know they'll like me. Now we need to not be caught up in the struggle, but the economy. We are living for our relationship with Christ and that relationship will heal the brokenhearted, will set the captive free. He will make us why this and how that we live life. We don't have to get even. We have to get close to God. And as we do we become our prayers are more for restoration and are more for helping people be connected with God rather than afraid that they're going to hurt us are harmless when not preoccupied with what is being done. We are preoccupied with what God wants to do right. We're not focused on what's going wrong were focused on what God wants to do in our life and that is always forward, but always to the future God is in charge, leading to a man. Thank you Lord for hearing our prayers knowing our hearts, Lord, inspire us by your spirit and your words give us your commands, because in them. We find life we find forgiveness. Lord we find wisdom, but your wisdom be part of us, Lord, as we pray, pray one for another, as we hope, uphold our needs and bring them to you, Lord, we pray for them and for our enemies. We come alongside of them. And we pray for them. We pray for them what they cannot do for themselves. We will do for them. As you oh God have done for us. Everyone said amen, I bless you for