(Eph 4:22-24 NIV) You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
This morning we continue our series entitled, “Re-Energizing Your Prayer Life,” by continuing with our 10 Steps to Preparedness in Prayer. In our last message I gave you Step 2: Remove All Blessing-Blockers. Today we will discuss Step 4: Put on Righteousness.
We all have a past, every last one of us. Think of the most influential person you know in the Body of Christ and he or she has a past as well. Every person has memories of things they did or said in the past that they would rather forget, but the key is not judging your future by your past. If you allow the memories of a painful past to dominate your mind they will consume your present, and if you are not careful, they might even destroy your future. With this in mind Paul teaches us to put off our old self, which was corrupted with deceitful desires, in order to be made new in the attitude of our mind.
We were all born in sin and shaped in iniquity (Ps 51:5), we were all dead in our transgressions and sins (Eph 2:1), we all used to live in accordance with the ruler of the kingdom of the air (Eph 2:2), and we all operated with the spirit of disobedience and were by nature objects of wrath (Eph 2:3). However, this is exactly my point. Everything I am saying is in the past tense. As Born-Again believers we have been made new in Christ. Since we are in Christ we are new creatures (2 Cor 5:17), we have been made to be the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Cor 5:21), and our focus text tells us that we are “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” So as you prepare to pray you must remind yourself of who you are and whose you are. If you allow satan or a low self-esteem to cause you to entertain thoughts that paint a picture of you being less than who Christ Jesus made you to be, then you will not be in a position to pray, because you see yourself unworthy of approaching the Father. The devil knows he can’t stop you from tapping into the power of prayer, because you have direct access to the Father, but if he can get you to see yourself as unrighteous, then you stop yourself because an unrighteous mindset will keep you from praying effectively.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things:
1. Don’t judge your future by your past. God is in the business of making Holy garments from flawed material. He wants to use you (failures, flaws, and all) for His glory!
2. Put on Righteousness. Old Testament priests used to get clothed with certain garments before they entered the Holy of Holies. Do the same thing, but do it in your mind. Clothe yourself with righteousness as you prepare to approach the Father in prayer.
3. PUT OFF your old man and become your new self. See yourself as a new person – completely righteous by the blood of Jesus – in the attitude of your mind.
4. Agree with God’s opinion of you. When God looks as you He sees you covered by the blood of His Son Jesus and Jesus’ blood makes you holy. If God sees you holy, then you should start seeing yourself the same way. This attitude will help you build confidence as you pray.
Closing Confession: Father, I will never cease to praise Your name for Jesus. I thank You for sending Jesus to die for me. He did what I could not do and He did it when He did not have to do it. Jesus sacrificed His life so that I could live in Him and in You. I am made new in Christ Jesus. I declare, by faith, that I walk in the newness of the life Christ died to give me. I don’t judge my future by my past. I have been made new and I put off the old man in order to become my new self. I am new in the attitude of my mind. I agree with Your opinion of me. When You look at me You see a son. So from now on, when I look at myself I will see a child of the Most High God. I have been made righteous and I put on my righteousness as I prepare to pray. This way I am able to pray with overwhelming confidence. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
