PRAYING ALWAYS
Tuesday – May 9, 2017
God is so good, let all that have breath give thanks and praise and worship to the glory of God. Welcome once again to The Three Minute Word publication. I hope that you are feasting upon His word and being filled and nourished for the good fight, the fight in which we have overwhelming superiority in Him. Remember to pray for our nation, for the governments at every level. The Lord has impressed upon me that the “slime pits” are being drained.
Genesis 14:10 (KJV)
10 And the vale of Siddim was full of slimepits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and fell there; and they that remained fled to the mountain.
Now let’s review our primary text and the seventh (seven (7) is the number of spiritual completion) facet of the whole armour of God.
Ephesians 6:13-18 (KJV)
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
The seventh facet of the whole armour of God which is prayer with watchfulness (alertness, attention, vigilance, caution, and care). We heard this from Jesus on the day of His Crucifixion in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Matthew 26:41 (KJV)
41 Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Did the disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane watch and pray and not enter into temptation or did they enter into temptation and scatter like rats at the dump? They scattered like rats at the dump and went into hiding. They were not out proclaiming the Truth that He was coming out of that grave before daylight on the first day of the week. They were not there to see the stone rolled away and the resurrected Jesus burst forth. Are we boldly proclaiming the Word of God, the whole Truth, and doing the things that Jesus did and the greater works or are we also hiding in fear?
Ephesians 6:11 (KJV)
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
The “wiles of the devil” are temptations presented to us courtesy of the devil. In order to make us useless to the Kingdom of God he does not need to get us off into adultery, bank robbery, or murder, he just needs to introduce and get us to receive and believe a doctrine of demons. This is what happened in the Garden of Eden. This is analogous to the fall of Lucifer and the result recorded in Scripture (Genesis 1:2, Jeremiah 4:23). Adam had face to face contact with God and was getting and had gotten face to face instruction from God yet he and she sinned. Lucifer was perhaps even more aware of the full scope and Truth of God yet sinned. Lots of good sounding things, even religious or Godly sounding ideas are presented to us, sometimes on a daily basis. How do we separate the lie from the Truth? First we must have an unwavering belief in the Word of God that we know and have proven.
We must be alert and watchful because the doctrines of demons can come from any number of sources including the songs that we sing in Church. These doctrines of demons may come from our Pastor or other speakers at Church. The teachings being taught may be a traditional understanding of a certain thing but cannot be proven from the Scriptures. Church is the most dangerous place for the Christian in many ways because we tend to be wide open to the leaders and other brothers and sisters we consider to be more mature in God. We must be Berean’s and receive the Word with great hunger then prove it.
Acts 17:11 (KJV)
11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.
The testimony of one must be compared or measured by the Word of God, the Word of God in context. Could things have turned out entirely different in the Garden of Eden had Adam (The Man) and Eve (The Woman) taken the time to consult with God about the testimony (words) of the devil? The word or testimony of one may sound reasonable until there is a second witness.
So what is prayer? Prayer is simply conversation with God. From our text the phrase “praying always” is not talking about unbroken prayer or conversation with God but is talking about our quickness and consistency to consult and communicate with God about all things. The Apostle Paul is instructing by the unction of the Holy Spirit that we are to talk with our Father in every way that is available to us. Sometimes that will be thanksgiving, sometimes that will be in reaffirming His promises (praise), and sometimes that will be in voicing our submission (worship) to His will. It may be intercession for others which can play a major even lifesaving role in another person’s life. Sometimes it may be a request (supplication) on behalf of another saint.
Tomorrow we will move on in our study of Ephesians. Now, receive the blessing in Jesus name.
Please determine in your heart (mind, thinking) to receive and walk in the Blessing which is freely available to all believers.
Numbers 6:24-26 (KJV)
24 The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
25 The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
26 The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
By: Dr. David Wood, Author, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
