June 3, 2010

• "not only in word" - send Your Holy Spirit so we might proclaim Your Gospel in power

  I've been focusing on Nehemiah 8 and praying that the Lord might restore the Word of God to its proper place in the Church once more.

  • May we gather as one man to hear Your Word (Nehemiah 8)
  • Give us ears to be attentive to Your words alone (Nehemiah 8:3)
  • one sign of revival: attentiveness to the Word of God (Whitefield's Journals)
  • "People cannot take preaching...People are dying through lack of knowledge." (ML-J)
  • pray for ministers to read from the book clearly, give the sense & understanding - Neh. 8:8
  • Awaken a hunger for Biblical preaching (accounts of revival in Virginia in the late 18th c.)
  • Forgive us, Holy Spirit, for grieving You, for not paying attention to Your Word
  • Forgive us, Holy Spirit, for grieving You by despising the gift of Your Word
  • May we increasingly desire to understand & study Your Word (Neh. 8:13)

  Though I've already touched on the role of the Holy Spirit in empowering God's people to proclaim the Word of God and for our understanding the Word of God, today I would like us to specifically pray for the Holy Spirit to come upon us, to work in and through us as we proclaim the Gospel as well as and to fall upon those who hear the Gospel.

  Holy God,

  You who have graciously given us Your Word through Your Holy Spirit, and have entrusted Your Word to us, we confess to You that so often we want to give out Your Word without asking for Your anointing and Your power.

  I Thessalonians 1:5 ... our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.

  Acts 10:36  As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), 37  you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: 38  how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

  Lord Jesus, if You were wholly dependent on that Holy Spirit power and You needed that anointing, how much more do we?

  Come, Holy Spirit.

  O God our Father and Jesus the Son, be gracious to us, send Your Spirit to us.
  Your glorious Gospel comes not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit.
  We confess we have no power in and of ourselves.
  We are in desperate need of Your Holy Spirit.
  You have told us to ask for Your Spirit, so we come boldly to Your throne to ask for what You alone can provide.
  Send Your Holy Spirit to us from on high, so, like Jesus Christ Himself, we might proclaim Your Gospel in power, in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.
  Holy Spirit, fall upon those who hear our words, as many as have been ordained to eternal life.

  Come, Holy Spirit.

  How can we expect to do anything in Your Kingdom apart from asking You to baptize us afresh, to come and infuse our words as we speak and then fall upon those who hear.

  Acts 10:44  While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. 45  And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. 46  For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared, 47  “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” 48  And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to remain for some days.

  We marvel how You used Peter, the one who was fearful and denied You three times. We thank You for this wonderful encouragement to us. Who but God can take the weakest of men and use them in such mighty ways! We confess how we have been like Peter, we confess how we have denied you and shrunk back in unbelief and fear. We praise You for the reminder that any one of us can be Your vessel, no matter how weak we are, no matter how sinful we have been, no matter what.

  Come, Holy Spirit.

  O God our Father and Jesus the Son, be gracious to us, send Your Spirit to us.
  Your glorious Gospel comes not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit.
  We confess we have no power in and of ourselves.
  We are in desperate need of Your Holy Spirit.
  You have told us to ask for Your Spirit, so we come boldly to Your throne to ask for what You alone can provide.

  Be gracious to us, send Your Holy Spirit to us from on high, so, like Peter, we might proclaim Your Gospel in power, in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.
  Holy Spirit, fall upon those who hear our words, as many as have been ordained to eternal life.

  Come, Holy Spirit.

  When we do sin (for we will sin, otherwise, we make You out to be a liar), lead us, Holy Spirit, to come into the light and to confess our sins to our Father that we might receive the forgiveness and cleansing You have promised us through Christ's precious blood, so we might be recommissioned to feed Christ's sheep.

  We marvel at how that small band of disciples who were hiding away in that upper room, as they remained faithful in prayer, were endued with Your promised power from on high, so they could be Your witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and to the ends of the earth. We confess how often we rely on our own abilities and do not ask for Your divine empowerment, which You so long to give us. It is part of our birthright as children of God. May we bathe all we say and do in prayer. May we never cease to ask for Your Spirit. Forgive us for not asking for Your Spirit as we ought. Forgive us for being puffed up and thinking we are sufficient in and of ourselves. We are nothing and can do nothing apart from Your Holy Spirit who dwells in us forever and Whom You also choose to send to us as You will so we might be bold witnesses for You as we see happening in the book of Acts. May we remember that the Spirit blows where and when He wills. May we pray expectantly and then trust Your sovereign will and way. May we never resist Your Holy Spirit.

  Come, Holy Spirit.

  O God our Father and Jesus the Son, be gracious to us, send Your Spirit to us.
  Your glorious Gospel comes not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit.
  We confess we have no power in and of ourselves.
  We are in desperate need of Your Holy Spirit.
  You have told us to ask for Your Spirit, so we come boldly to Your throne to ask for what You alone can provide.
  Send Your Holy Spirit to us from on high, so, like the disciples, we might proclaim Your Gospel in power, in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.
  Holy Spirit, fall upon those who hear our words, as many as have been ordained to eternal life.

  Come, Holy Spirit.

  Holy Spirit, keep reminding us that though we should and must prepare and do all we can to ready ourselves to proclaim Your Word, the Gospel of Christ must go out not in word only, but in power and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance.

  Your Gospel is the power of God unto salvation. Yet how often do we not rely on that same Gospel power when we speak to others? We confess we so often rely on our own cleverness and intellect. We confess we are tempted to maneuver and manipulate. Our own efforts, however learned, however polished, can never birth a child into the Kingdom of God.

  I Corinthians 4:20 For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power.
  

  Paul himself recognized this:

  I Corinthians 2:1  And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. 2  For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3  And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, 4  and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5  that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

  Forgive us, Lord. Forgive us, Holy Spirit, for grieving You. How can we expect to speak of the Lord Christ with boldness and much assurance unless Your Spirit is empowering us to do so. O, how foolish of us, not to ask for heavenly supplies when we engage in heavenly work! Forgive us, Lord God.

  When we work in our own power, we may very well get decisions for Christ, but we will not get conversions. Guard us, O Lord, in this. Protect us. Stop our mouths as soon as we begin to speak in our own flesh rather than by Your Spirit. Your Spirit alone can breathe life into the dry bones. Your Spirit alone can translate souls from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of Your Son.

  Come, Holy Spirit.

  O God our Father and Jesus the Son, be gracious to us, send Your Spirit to us.
  Your glorious Gospel comes not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit.
  We confess we have no power in and of ourselves.
  We are in desperate need of Your Holy Spirit.
  You have told us to ask for Your Spirit, so we come boldly to Your throne to ask for what You alone can provide.
  Send Your Holy Spirit to us from on high, so, like Paul, we might proclaim Your Gospel in power, in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.
  Holy Spirit, fall upon those who hear our words, as many as have been ordained to eternal life.

  Come, Holy Spirit.

  O great God, have mercy on us,  for Jesus' sake, for without You, we can do nothing.

  Brothers and sisters, please add your PRAYERS for God's Holy Spirit to fall fresh upon us and those who hear us.

  • 10:58 AM
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