Today we will continue our series entitled “God’s Grace & Our Faith.” We are looking at The Law given under Moses vs. the Grace provided by Jesus. Our primary scriptures are John 1:14 & 17.
(John 1:14 New International Version)
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
(John 1:17 New International Version)
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
I will flow in the same vein as yesterday’s message, where I taught on the importance of prayer.
While God’s plans for our lives are complete, we must discover them and then seek to perform them, on the earth, at just the right time. If we get out ahead of God, we will be “out there” on our own. If we fall behind God, we will be frustrated as we attempt to catch up. Living in sync/harmony with God is the key. When you are in sync with God, His grace flows to you/through you, and the results are supernatural. Prayer is a key component of this process.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. Key aspects of prayer (continued from yesterday).
— The Father already knows what you need before you pray, but He still requires you to pray (to ask), becuase your prayer is how you provide faith-agreement with His will (see Matthew 6:8).
— While you do need to ask, the goal is to ask in agreement/alignment with God’s will and NOT your selfish desires. James said, “You don’t get what you want because you don’t ask God. Or when you ask, you don’t receive anything, because the reason you ask is wrong. You only want to use it for your own pleasure.” (James 4:2,3 ERV). The Passion Translation reads, “…all the time you don’t obtain what you want because you won’t ask God for it! And if you ask, you won’t receive it for you’re asking with corrupt motives, seeking only to fulfill your own selfish desires.”
— While God has given us authority over this planet, please don’t think that prayer is about you telling God what to do. Remember, there is a God, and you are not Him. He is not your servant; it’s the other way around.
— When you understand the divine authority God has given you in the earth domain, you appreciate and respect the responsibility you have to bind (prevent) and loose (permit). Here is an excerpt from my book (Level Up Your Life) on this:
quote
(Matthew 18:18 KJV)
Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
If all you read are these verses, without any context, it sounds like heaven will respond to whatever we say in prayer or otherwise. But you and I already know that’s not the case. You have prayed for and said many things that heaven did not respond to. So let’s seek understanding.
The Amplified translation of Matthew 18:18 reads: “Truly I tell you, whatever you forbid and declare to be improper and unlawful on earth must be what is already forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit and declare proper and lawful on earth must be what is already permitted in heaven.”
This translation sheds more light on what Jesus was actually teaching. Jesus was not putting pressure on heaven to respond to our will, but rather on us to learn what heaven’s will already is and to pray that!
We can’t force God to do something against His will. As a matter of fact, we can’t force God to do anything! When we pray, we must pray in alignment and agreement with heaven.
end of quote
— When things are happening in your life that you don’t like, you must ask yourself the question, “Have I prayed about this?” “Have I invoked God’s involvement?” You may think you are waiting on God, while He may be waiting on you to get Him involved. You have not, because you ask not!
— Heaven responds when believers on the earth make valid requests. Pray, in faith, in accordance with God’s will. This is how God’s will is done, on earth, as it is in heaven!
*** Stop accepting everything that happens as God’s will. Stop conceding to satan and cowering to his attacks. Get heaven involved in your life today through the power of prayer!
2. Pray from a position of grace — from God’s perspective.
Here is another excerpt from my book:
quote
When you understand God already made plans for you before the world began, and He made those plans completely by His grace, you then understand the importance of seeking God concerning what to pray for. John said, “We can come to God with no doubts. This means that when we ask God for things (and those things agree with what God wants for us), God cares about what we say. He listens to us every time we ask him. So we know that he gives us whatever we ask from him.” (1 Jn 5:14,15 ERV).
— Praying from a position of grace means you are praying from the position of God’s perspective and will.
— What you are praying for (on earth) is what He has already provided (in heaven).
— In this way, grace-based prayers tap into supernatural power for God’s will to be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
end of quote
I will add to what you just read:
— Don’t pray as if God doesn’t already know what you are facing. It’s not news to God. He knows all things. He also knows what He has already provided for you to GET OUT of your situation.
— Don’t pray as if God hasn’t already equipped you to face and overcome the challenge. He has already given you the grace for it. So you need to pray with the mentality that God has already given you the victory and you are just seeking Him concerning HOW to bring it to pass.
— Don’t pray as if God is not in the fight with you. Don’t ask Him to “come,” as if He is not already there. God’s Word promises that He is with you. You are never in a fight alone. If you pray and ask God to be present, you acknowledge that you believe He is not. That is an affront to God. He is always with you. He will never leave you, forsake you or turn His back on you. So acknowledge His presence, tap into His peace, and invoke His power.
— Don’t pray as if what you are facing is going to destroy you. When you do this, you are demonstrating to God that you have no faith, trust, or confidence in Him or in the plans He made for you before the world began. Remember, for God, it’s already done. For you, it’s only a matter of time. You have to pray, believing God has done His part in eternity and that you will receive your breakthrough in time.
— When you pray from a position of grace, you are praying from God’s perspective. Praying this way, your prayers will be full of faith, hope, confidence, and peace, regardless of the situation.
— I recently shared with you the following, and it is worth repeating. “When you pray from a position of grace, you are praying from a position OF victory, not praying FOR victory. You know you already have the victory, and it is only a matter of time before you see, in your hands, what you already saw, in your heart.”
That’s enough for today.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I thank You for teaching me about Your unearned and empowering grace and my requirement to live by faith. The more I learn about Your grace and my faith, the more effective I am in walking out my destiny before I die.
I know that for You, it’s already done. You have already provided. You reveal things to me about my future, and when you do, You speak to me about those things like they are ‘past tense,’ because, for You, they have already happened. You have been to my future, and You have seen these things play out right before Your eyes. You are now looking at my life to SEE what You SAW! I declare that You will!
Therefore, I am not striving FOR the victory. I enter each day FROM a position OF victory. I thank You, Father, for always causing me to triumph. You give me the victory through my Lord, Your Son, Jesus the Christ. I enter this day to DO what, for You, is already done! And as I live in sync and harmony with Your will, I know GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
