Abiding

The Sin and the Cause of Prayerlessness by Andrew Murray

Paula White Exposed [video]

THAT’s My King! Pastor Lockridge [video]

Powerful Prayers from Children-This Will Shake You [video]

The Fear of the LORD is to Hate Evil: Pride, and Arrogancy #shorts [video]

From the book The Prayer Life by Andrew Murray

Chapter 1

If conscience is to do its work, and the contrite heart is to feel its misery, it is necessary that each individual should mention his sin by name. The confession must be severely personal. In a meeting of ministers there is probably no single sin which each one of us ought to acknowledge with deeper shame – ‘Guilty, verily guilty’ – than the sin of prayerlessness.

What is it, then, that makes prayerlessness such a great sin? At first it is looked upon merely as a weakness. There is so much talk about lack of time and all sorts of distractions that the deep guilt of the situation is not recognised. Let it be our honest desire that, for the future, the sin of prayerlessness may be to us truly sinful. Consider

1. What a reproach it is to God

There is the holy and most glorious God who invites us to come to him, to hold converse with him, to ask from him such things as we need, and to experience what a blessing there is in fellowship with him. He has created him we might find our highest glory and salvation.

What use do we make of this heavenly privilege? How many there are who take only five minutes for prayer! They say that they have no time and that the heart desire for prayer is lacking; they do not know how to spend half an hour with God! It is not that they absolutely do not pray; they pray every day – but they have no joy in prayer, as a token of communion with God which shows that God is everything to them.

If a friend comes to visit them, they have time, they make time, even at the cost of sacrifice, for the sake of enjoying converse with him. Yes, they have time for everything that really interests them, but no time to practise fellowship with God and delight themselves in him! They find time for a creature who can be of service to them; but day after day, month after month passes, and there is no time to spend one hour with God.

Do not our hearts begin to acknowledge what a dishonour, what a despite of God this is, that I dare to say I cannot find time for fellowship with him? If this sin begins to appear plain to us, shall we not with deep shame cry out: ‘Woe is me, for I am undone, 0 God; be merciful to me, and forgive this awful sin of prayerlessness.’ Consider further

2. It is the cause of a deficient spiritual life

It is a proof that, for the most part, our life is still under the power of ‘the flesh’. Prayer is the pulse of life; by it the doctor can tell what is the condition of the heart. The sin of prayerlessness is a proof for the ordinary Christian or minister that the life of God in the soul is in deadly sickness and weakness.

Much is said and many complaints are made about the feebleness of the Church to fulfill her calling, to exercise an influence over her members, to deliver them from the power of the world, and to bring them to a life of holy consecration to God. Much is also spoken about her indifference to the millions of heathen whom Christ entrusted to her that she might make known to them his love and salvation. What is the reason that many thousands of Christian workers in the world have not a greater influence? Nothing save this – the prayerlessness of their service. In the midst of all their zeal in the study and in the work of the Church, of all their faithfulness in preaching and conversation with the people, they lack that ceaseless prayer which has attached to it the sure promise of the Spirit and the power from on high. It is nothing but the sin of prayerlessness which is the cause of the lack of a powerful spiritual life! Consider further

3. The dreadful loss which the Church suffers as a result of the prayerlessness of the minister

It is the business of a minister to train believers up to a life of prayer; but how can a leader do this if he himself understands little the art of conversing with God and of receiving from the Holy Spirit, every day, out of heaven, abundant grace for himself and for his work? A minister cannot lead a congregation higher than he is himself. He cannot with enthusiasm point out a way, or explain a work, in which he is not himself walking or living.

How many thousands of Christians there are who know next to nothing of the blessedness of prayer fellowship with God! How many there are who know something of it and long for a further increase of this knowledge, but in the preaching of the Word they are not persistently urged to keep on till they obtain the blessing! The reason is simply and only that the minister understands so little about the secret of powerful prayer and does not give prayer the place in his service which, in the nature of the case and in the will of God, is indispensably necessary. Oh, what a difference we should notice in our congregations if ministers could be brought to see in its right light the sin of prayerlessness and were delivered from it! Once more consider:

4. The impossibility of preaching the gospel to all men-as we are commanded by Christ to do -so long as this sin is not overcome and cast out.

Many feel that the great need of missions is the obtaining of men and women who will give themselves to the Lord to strive in prayer for the salvation of souls. It has also been said that God is eager and able to deliver and bless the world he has redeemed, if his people were but willing, if they were but ready, to cry to him day and night But how can congregations be brought to that unless there comes first an entire change in ministers and that they begin to see that the indispensable thing is not preaching, not pastoral visitation, not church work, but fellowship with God in prayer till they are clothed with power from on high?

Oh, that all thought and work and expectation concerning the kingdom might drive us to the acknowledgement of the sin of prayerlessness! God help us to root it out! God deliver us from it through the blood and power of Christ Jesus! God teach every minister of the Word to see what a glorious place he may occupy if he first of all is delivered from this root of evils; so that with courage and joy, in faith and perseverance, he can go on with his God!

The sin of prayerlessness! The Lord lay the burden of it so heavy on our hearts that we may not rest till it is taken far from us through the name and power of Jesus He will make this possible for us.

A witness from America

In 1898, there were two members of the Presbytery in New York who attended the Northfield Conference for the deepening of the spiritual life. They returned to their work with the fire of a new enthusiasm. They endeavoured to bring about a revival in the entire Pres bytery. In a meeting which they held, the chairman was guided to ask the brethren a question concerning their prayer life: ‘Brethren,’ said he, ‘let us today make confession before God and each other. It will do us good. Will everyone who spends half an hour every day with God in connection with his work hold up a hand?’ One hand was held up. He made a further request: ‘All who thus spend fifteen minutes hold up a hand.’ Not half of the hands were held up. Then he said: ‘Prayer, the working power of the Church of Christ, and half of the workers make hardly any use of it! All who spend five minutes hold up hands.’ All hands went up. But one man came later with the confession that he was not quite sure if he spent five minutes in prayer every day. ‘It is,’ said he, ‘a terrible revelation of how little time I spend with God.’

The cause of prayerlessness.

In an elder’s prayer meeting, a brother put the question: ‘What, then, is the cause of so much prayerlessness? Is it not unbelief?’

The answer was: ‘Certainly; but then comes the question what is the cause of that unbelief?’ When the disciples asked the Lord Jesus: ‘Why could not we cast the devil out?’ His answer was: ‘Because of your unbelief.’ He went further and said: ‘Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting’ (Matt. 17.19-21). If the life is not one of self-denial – of fasting – that is, letting the world go; of prayer – that is, laying hold of heaven, faith cannot be exercised. A life lived according to the flesh and not according to the Spirit – it is in this that we find the origin of the prayerlessness of which we complain. As we came out of the meeting a brother said to me: ‘That is the whole difficulty; we wish to pray in the Spirit and at the same time walk after the flesh, and this is impossible.’

If one is sick and desires healing, it is of prime importance that the true cause of the sickness be discovered. This is always the first step toward recovery. If the particular cause is not recognised, and attention is directed to subordinate causes, or to supposed but not real causes, healing is out of the question. In like manner, it is of the utmost importance for us to obtain a correct insight into the cause of the sad condition of deadness and failure in prayer in the inner chamber, which should be such a blessed place for us. Let us seek to realise fully what is the root of this evil.

Scripture teaches us that there are but two conditions possible for the Christian. One is a walk according to the Spirit, the other a walk according to ‘the flesh’. These two powers are in irreconcilable conflict with each other. So it comes to pass, in the case of the majority of Christians, that, while we thank God that they are born again through the Spirit and have received the life of God – yet their ordinary daily life is not lived according to the Spirit but according to ‘the flesh’. Paul writes to the Galatians: ‘Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?’ (Gal. 3.3). Their service lay in fleshly outward performances. They did not understand that where ‘the flesh’ is permitted to influence their service of God, it soon results in open sin.

So he mentions not only grave sins as the work of ‘the flesh’, such as adultery, murder, drunkenness; but also the more ordinary sins of daily life – wrath, strife, variance; and he gives the exhortation: ‘Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh… If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit’ (Gal. 5.16, 25). The Spirit must be honoured not only as the author of a new life but also as the leader and director of our entire walk. Otherwise we are what the apostle calls ‘carnal’.

The majority of Christians have little understanding of this matter. They have no real knowledge of the deep sinfulness and godlessness of that carnal nature which belongs to them and to which unconsciously they yield. ‘God… condemned sin in the flesh’ (Rom. 8.3) – in the cross of Christ. ‘They that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts’ (Gal. 5.24). ‘The flesh’ cannot be improved or sanctified. ‘The carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be’ (Rom. 8.7). There is no means of dealing with ‘the flesh’ save as Christ dealt with it, bearing it to the cross. ‘Our old man is crucified with him’ (Rom. 6.6); so we by faith also crucify it, and regard and treat it daily as an accursed thing that finds its rightful place on the accursed cross.

It is saddening to consider how many Christians there are who seldom think or speak earnestly about the deep and immeasurable sinfulness of ‘the flesh’-‘In me (that is, in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing'(Rom. 7.18). The man who truly believes this may well cry out: ‘I see another law in my members … bringing me into captivity to the law of sin… 0 wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?’ (Rom. 7.23, 24). Happy is he who can go further and say: ‘I thank God, through Jesus Christ our Lord… For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death’ (Rom. 7.25; 8.2).

Would that we might understand God’s counsels of grace for us! ‘The flesh’ on the cross – the Spirit in the heart and controlling the life.

This spiritual life is too little understood or sought after; yet it is literally what God has promised and will accomplish in those who unconditionally surrender themselves to him for this purpose.

Here then we have the deep root of evil as the cause of a prayerless life. ‘The flesh’ can say prayers well enough, calling itself religious for so doing and thus satisfying conscience. But ‘the flesh’ has no desire or strength for the prayer that strives after an intimate knowledge of God; that rejoices in fellowship with him; and that continues to lay hold of his strength. So, finally, it comes to this, ‘the flesh’ must be denied and crucified.

The Christian who is still carnal has neither disposition nor strength to follow after God. He rests satisfied with the prayer of habit or custom; but the glory, the blessedness of secret prayer is a hidden thing to him, till some day his eyes are opened, and he begins to see that ‘the flesh’, in its disposition to turn away from God, is the archenemy which makes powerful prayer impossible for him.

I had once, at a conference, spoken on the subject of prayer and made use of strong expressions about the enmity of ‘the flesh’ as a cause of prayerlessness. After the address, the minister’s wife said that she thought 1 had spoken too strongly. She also had to mourn over too little desire for prayer, but she knew her heart was sincerely set on seeking God. 1 showed her what the word of God said about ‘the flesh’, and that everything which prevents the reception of the Spirit is nothing else than a secret work of ‘the flesh’. Adam was created to have fellowship with God and enjoyed it before his fall. After the fall, however, there came immediately, a deep- seated aversion to God, and he fled from him. This incurable aversion is the characteristic of the unregenerate nature and the chief cause of our unwillingness to surrender ourselves to fellowship with God in prayer. The following day she told me that God had opened her eyes; she confessed that the enmity and unwillingness of ‘the flesh’ was the hidden hindrance in her defective prayer life.

0 my brethren, do not seek to find in circumstances the explanation of this prayerlessness over which we mourn; seek it where God’s word declares it to be, in the hidden aversion of the heart to a holy God.

When a Christian does not yield entirely to the leading of the Spirit – and this is certainly the will of God and the work of his grace – he lives, without knowing it, under the power of ‘the flesh’. This life of ‘the flesh’ manifests itself in many different ways. It appears in the hastiness of spirit, or the anger which so unexpectedly arises in you, in the lack of love for which you have so often blamed yourself; in the pleasure found in eating and drinking, about which at times your conscience has chidden you; in that seeking for your own will and honour, that confidence in your own wisdom and power, that pleasure in the world, of which you are sometimes ashamed before God. All this is life ‘after the flesh’. ‘Ye are yet carnal’ (1 Con 3.3) that text, perhaps, disturbs you at times; you have not full peace and joy in God.

I pray you take time and give an answer to the question: Have 1 not found here the cause of my prayerlessness, of my powerlessness to effect any change in the matter? I live in the Spirit, 1 have been born again, but 1 do not walk after the Spirit -‘the flesh’ lords it over me. The carnal life cannot possibly pray in the spirit and power. God forgive me. The carnal life is evidently the cause of my sad and shameful prayerlessness.

The storm centre on the battlefield

Mention was made in conference of the expression ‘strategic position’ used so often in reference to the great strife between the kingdom of heaven and the powers of darkness.

When a general chooses the place from which he intends to strike the enemy, he pays most attention to those points which he thinks most important in the fight. Thus there was on the battlefield of Waterloo a farmhouse which Wellington immediately saw was the key to the situation. He did not spare his troops in his endeavours to hold that point: the victory depended on it. So it actually happened. It is the same in the conflict between the believer and the powers of darkness. The inner chamber is the place where the decisive victory is obtained.

The enemy uses all his power to lead the Christian and above all the minister, to neglect prayer. He knows that however admirable the sermon may be, however attractive the service, however faithful the pastoral visitation, none of these things can damage him or his kingdom if prayer is neglected. When the Church shuts herself up to the power of the inner chamber, and the soldiers of the Lord have received on their knees ‘power from on high’, then the powers of darkness will be shaken and souls will be delivered. In the Church, on the mission field, with the minister and his congregation, everything depends on the faithful exercise of the power of prayer.

In the week of conference I found the following in The Christian:

Two persons quarrel over a certain point. We call them Christian and Apollyon. Apollyon notices that Christian has a certain weapon which would give him a sure victory. They meet in deadly strife, and Apollyon resolves to take away the weapon from his opponent and destroy it. For the moment the main cause of the strife has become subordinate; the great point now is who shall get possession of the weapon on which everything depends? It is of vital importance to get hold of that.

So it is in the conflict between Satan and the believer. God’s child can conquer everything by prayer. Is it any wonder that Satan does his utmost to snatch that weapon from the Christian, or to hinder him in the use of it?

How now does Satan hinder prayer? By temptation to postpone or curtail it, by bringing in wandering thoughts and all sorts of distractions; through unbelief and hopelessness. Happy is the prayer hero who, through it all, takes care to hold fast and use his weapon. Like our Lord in Gethsemane, the more violently the enemy attacked the more earnestly he prayed and ceased not till he had obtained the victory. After all the other parts of the armour had been named, Paul adds: ‘with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit’ (Eph. 6.18). Without prayer, the helmet of salvation, and the shield of faith, and the sword of the Spirit which is God’s word, have no power. All depends on prayer. God teach us to believe and hold this fast!

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“And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly, and from house to house, … 25 And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more. 26 Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. … 27 For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. 28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. 29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. 31 Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears. 32 And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.” Acts 20:20-32

Seems clear that the Holy Spirit in Paul foresaw the vile heretical wolves that were going to invade the professing church world for the whole era of the New Testament leading up to when Jesus returned. So, the Holy Spirit quickened in Paul to commend us to the Word of God (Acts 20:32).

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15

So, we see here that “rightly dividing the word of truth” is only possible by studying the Scriptures and not some man’s charts and system.

By the Holy Spirit, the LORD’s apostle Paul is instructing Timothy and us, to study the Word of God itself and not man’s system or charts.

BEWARE of those who arrogantly believe they they can dismiss certain biblical truths because in their own puny minds, they don’t understand how it all fits together. Be not deceived, these are pride-filled wolves and there are many among us! They go to seed on one truth to the exclusion of the whole of Scripture. Rebuke and run! (2 Peter 2:1-3)

“For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.” 2 Corinthians 2:17

The unchanging Word of God, the Bible itself, and the Holy Spirit are the divine Source and Teachers of truth – and not mere men or sinful man’s concocted theological systems and/or charts! Beware saints. See Psalms 119:105, 130; Mark 13:31; John 14:26; 16:13; 2 Timothy 3:15-17, etc.

“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalms 119:105

“The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.” Psalms 119:130

“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” John 14:26

“Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.” John 16:13-14

“Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.” Revelation 3:11

“… Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” Ephesians 5:25-27

Is your favorite minister warning you to be ready for Christ to return?

Here’s why you must study God’s Word – the whole of it – for yourself:

Perhaps the most insidious, dangerous thing false teachers do is that they over emphasize the minors while evading or under emphasizing or never mentioning the majors – the doctrinal majors of God’s Word.

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. 25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.” Matthew 23:23-25

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False Leaders are Know by their Refusal to Warn as did Paul

God’s men are to call out and not cover the sins of His people.

“Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.” Isaiah 58:1

The LORD cites the false teachers among us in that they specifically do not tell the people what God says is sin – They refuse to lift up their voice and “shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.”

Very important truth here. False leaders refuse to show God’s people what GOD calls sin which is the only way people in sin (includes any of us) can be made free. Take note and make record of this verse:

“Thy prophets (leaders) have seen vain and foolish things for thee: and they have not discovered thine iniquity, to turn away thy captivity; but have seen for thee false burdens and causes of banishment.” Lamentations 2:14

“The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.” Proverbs 8:13

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The Surrender of the Cross [podcast]

“For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” Romans 8:29

One writer notes:

“Your sin is not the disqualification. Your refusal to repent is.

The strongest men in scripture weren’t the sinless ones. They were the ones who fell and did not stay down.

David: adultery, a murder ordered from a throne, a dead son. And the psalm he wrote on his face: “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.”

Peter: three denials in one night. “And Peter went out, and wept bitterly.” Fifty days later he stood in the same city and preached the sermon that saved three thousand.

Paul: dragged Christians to prison and death. “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.”

“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.”

God is not collecting monuments. He’s raising men who get on their face, get clean, and get back in the fight.”

Brother Billy, a friend of mine, asked “What is the cross?” We’re going to talk about that in this podcast message.

So many today have this idol image of the cross. They do not understand what Jesus and His holy apostles taught us about what the cross is as it pertains to our daily life in following Jesus.

Some think there is power bowing down before an image of the cross. Not.

Some believe it’s of God to carry a little cross in their pocket, nearly like a good luck charm. Not.

Others believe that making the sign of the cross is of God. Not.

In one word, the cross, as it applies to us as Jesus taught, is surrender in repentance and thereafter daily.

When we’ve repented and received Christ as the LORD and Savior of our lives, He washes us clean of all our sin. That is initial salvation and thereafter we must walk with Christ and live in the victory He died and rose again to grant His people.

Did Jesus die on that cross to set us free to sin for the remaining of our days on the earth after He saves us? No.

The cross separates us from self and therefore sin. Jesus knew we’d need this in order to walking holy after He initially saves us, washing us of all sin. That’s initial salvation and in order to thereafter walk with our LORD, we must be crucified with Him which will keep us from living in sin.

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7

Jesus Christ is the only One who can save and sanctify us. Regrettably, so many stop at initial salvation and as Satan would have it, they are told the “eternal security” lie. This is the lie that led the first man and woman to sin which plunged the human race into darkness, separation (Genesis 2:17 > 3:4).

Jesus died to “take away our sins” – initially and ongoing as we “endure to the end” abiding, remaining, continuing in and with our LORD (Matthew 10:22; 24:13; John 15:1-6, etc.).

“he was manifested to take away our sins”

“And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. 6 Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not: whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.” 1 John 3:5-6

“If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.” Luke 9:23-24

Ask God to let His message of the cross be absorbed and deeply permeate your heart and mind.

“Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men.” Luke 9:44

Karen Cochran writes:

“’Only in the light of Calvary will we discover how the pain of our suffering can be transformed into a ministry.’

Our deepest transformations happen during our times of sufferings! I have found Jesus more in my darkest valleys than on the mountain tops, because in the high places I did not think I needed Him. But when I am in the valley of the shadow of death, and cry out, ‘Please Jesus I am poor in spirit and can doing nothing without You.’ In His grace He reaches down into that place and gives me the comfort of God, and raises me up out of my troubles. The cross life! Romans 6. We go down into death and He raises us up into newness of life.

When we experience His compassion, we are then required to comfort others with the same comfort we have received from God. 2 Cor 1:3-5. That is how He births ministry in us!”

“For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:18

IF in your fellowship you are not hearing the cross, the crucified life biblical message and knowing Jesus and the Father, you are sitting under “another gospel.” (John 17:3; Galatians 1:6-9; 2:20; 6:14; Philippians 3:10; Colossians 1-2)

Jesus is “the life” and Jesus taught and demonstrated by His own life and mission that death and burial must of necessity precede resurrection (John 14:6). YET, you will seldom if ever hear this original, central Gospel cross truth mentioned in a modern church. Think: “Life Surge”, another fad ministry campaign. They speak of the “surge” or resurrection and yet they will never mention the death and burial Christ requires as a condition to raise, to cause one to surge. This means they are raising themselves up instead of dying and letting God raise them up.

Beware of the false gospel being peddled at nearly EVERY so-called “church” in this late hour. The wolves who occupy those pulpits are “accursed” for preaching “another gospel.” (Galatians 1:6-9) A gospel without the cross of Christ and the one He mandated that you take up, is a false gospel .

“And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.” Matthew 24:11

WHO ELSE needs a rest from the vile rage of the flesh?

“For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. … O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” Romans 7:18, 24

There is nothing good in me, nor in you, other than Christ. This is why we must be “crucified with Christ.”

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20

Your relationship with the LORD and the corresponding fruit are dependent upon you “Letting go and letting God.”

Without being born again and living the crucified life Jesus has called us to, there is no hope of remaining in Christ – of abiding in Christ and seeing God produce “fruit … more fruit” and “much fruit.” See John 15:1-16.

Putting to rest the deeds of the body is the crucify the flesh.

WHO are truly Christ’s?

“And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” Galatians 5:24

IF one is not crucifying the flesh daily, he is living in the flesh, in sin.

Reading Romans 6 each morning will be a blessing to your life.

“Not my will, but thine, be done.”

Jesus tells His disciples to “Watch and pray” – to remain vigilant perpetually in prayer and watching. Then He tells us why – because “the flesh is weak.”

“Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. 42 He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.” Matthew 26:41-42

“Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.” Luke 22:42

Our Savior demonstrated the cross, before the cross when He declared to His and our Father “not my will, but thine, be done.”

This is divine prayer material for us saints – “not my will, but thine, be done.”

One source notes the following concerning Jesus’ submission and surrender to the Father:

“Jesus yielded up His spirit to the Father after completing His perfect sacrifice.

- Luke 23:46: “And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, He gave up the ghost.”
- John 19:30: “When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.”
- Philippians 2:8: “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

The Meaning of Surrender at the Cross

- Complete Submission: Jesus willingly submitted to the Father’s will, finishing the work of redemption.
- The Believer’s Response: Scripture calls followers of Jesus to model this surrender by taking up their own cross daily (Luke 9:23).”

Slaves to “Christian” or “Church” Conmen and Cross-less Counselors

The cross is the opposite of what the fake “church’s” calls “self-care.” “Self-care” is a fake “solution” that brings repeat busine$$ to those who perpetrate it. The cross is God’s solution – beginning at the foot of Christ’s redemptive cross and the cross He mandates you to take up daily. Beware of the cross-less deceivers (Philippians 3:18-19). There is no salvation or solution from sin outside of Christ, and Christ commands us to take up the cross, be crucified with Him, daily after He initially saves us (Luke 9:23-24). If not, you are not following Him. One can only follow Jesus the way He prescribed. Read that again.

There are lots of people peddling the lie of “self care” which is ultimately nothing more than absolute self-idolatry. Pure evil. We need SAVIOR care! Such “self-care” only perpetuates the prey, the victim, in their misery. The only way to deal with the wicked iniquitous nature, is to crucify it, not pamper it (Luke 9:23-24). It’s your time to get into God’s Word and follow Jesus (KJB). Repent, deny yourself, lay down your life and serve God and others, not yourself. Loving your wicked self IS your problem and so all “self care” is accomplishing is to make your problem bigger, to fortify the evil within (Galatians 5:16-24). Crucifying that evil by the power of the Holy Spirit who is then raising your upward in His grace, glory, and power, is the divine prescription (Romans 8:13; Colossians 3:3, etc.). Read Philippians 2:3-5 each morning this week. Jesus commands you to love God. Worship God. Obey God (Matthew 22:37-39).

Jesus conquered sin, death, hell, and the grave by surrendering – by dying to self and honoring and executing the will of the Father.

“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that THROUGH DEATH he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;” Hebrews 2:14

The daily cross, the surrender of self, is essential to keep sin out of our lives. It is our submission to God – giving back to Him the life he gave which is us – and came and died to redeem.

“He must increase, but I must decrease.” John 3:30

“ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price”

“What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Surely we don’t believe Jesus initially saved us only to approve of us thereafter living in sin.

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? 2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” Romans 6:1-2

Beware of the cross-evading “eternal security” deceivers whom Jude calls “ungodly men”, who by their serpentine heresy, are “turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness (license to sin)” and by doing so they are “denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Jude 3-4) These are “enemies of the CROSS of Christ.” (Philippians 3:18-19)

How do we know that those who teach “once saved always saved” are of the devil? – Because that was Satan’s first lie which led to the fall of mankind in the Garden and it’s resulting in the same falling away today. Read what God said in Genesis 2:17 and then what Satan said in Genesis 3:4.

Now read Romans 6 each morning for the next 3 days. Ask yourself: Can you live in communion with God who is holy, without the crucified life”? No.

“For he that is dead is freed from sin.” Romans 6:7

Read that verse again and ask: “WHO are the only people ‘freed from sin’”? – It’s exclusively those who are “dead” and buried with Christ. They are then raised upward in the glory and power of Jesus Christ, walking fruit-filled lives for His eternal glory (Romans 8:11-14).

PRAYER: Holy Father, I come to You afresh, and I ask You to have Your way in my life. Please overcome all evil dear LORD. You must increase but I must decrease – now and till You return. Not my will but Thine be done Jesus. Please help me to love and trust You more. In Jesus’ name.

The Flesh will Never be Reformed it Must be Crucified [podcast]

The Divine Prescription is Clear and there are No Shortcuts “And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” Galatians 5:24 The law brings repentance, salvation while thereafter the crucified life, the cross keeps us from that sin which once separated us from the LORD, who now has saved us (Psalms 19:7; Romans 6). There are lots of people peddling the lie of “self care” which is ultimately nothing more than absolute selfishness. Pure evil. Such only perpetuates the prey, the victim, in their misery. The only way to deal with the wicked iniquitous nature, is […]

Either Crucify the Flesh or it will Crucify Christ out of Your Life [podcast]

Fight the temptation or die the death? Where’s the victory come from? The Cross – something counterfeits intentionally evade (Philippians 3:18-19). The cross is how we know who is real and who is fake. Refusing to take up the cross means one has denied Christ. This would account for the vast majority of men in ministry today. They are cross-less. The only people who are truly following Christ are those who are doing it HIS way – and His stated way is the cross, the crucified life (Luke 9:23-24). There is no other way to follow Jesus. If we don’t crucify […]

The Cross in My Pocket Deception [podcast]

Any person who has to wear a big cross, have a cross in their pocket, or have a cross tattoo, to “prove” they are a Christian, very likely doesn’t know the One who died on that cross to take away our sins. “For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.” Philippians 3:3 Having “the fruit of the Spirit” is the proof one is born again in Christ (John 3:3, 7; Galatians 5:19-24). The Savior never instructed anyone with this understanding: the idea of needing or using […]

Abiding

The Benefits of Knowing and Delighting in the LORD [podcast]

Delighting ourselves in Him

“Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” Psalms 37:4

Loving God with a Whole Heart, our Whole Being

“Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” Matthew 22:37-40

Abiding in Christ, Asking

“If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” John 15:7

Jesus Must Be Our “First love”

“Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.” Revelation 2:4-5

“That Your Joy May be Full”

“And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. 24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.” John 16:23-24

“That is the only place I want to be at the feet of Jesus drinking in His word. Soaking up all He has to say to me! I do not ever want to be arrogant enough to believe I can make it without Jesus. Everyday I tell Him how much I need Him. I am nothing without Jesus!! Oh how I long to be with Him! Yearning for the day when I shall see Him in the clouds. Coming to take us home! Hallelujah!” Karen Cochran

Truly Delighting in the LORD

“Many take this verse out of context (Psalm 37:4). For many years all I would hear Christians say was, ‘He will give you the desires of your heart.’ This then becomes all about you. They would leave out the first part, which says you must delight yourself in the Lord. I came to realize that when you delight in Him, He changes your heart, and you begin to desire what He desires. He aligns your heart with His heart!” Karen Cochran

The subject matter of your prayers reveals if you are about you, or about Jesus.

To illustrate our relationship with Christ, one write of old noted:

“The life of self is death.

The death of self is life.”

There cannot and will not be a resurrection until there is a death. Death and burial must precede raising up. Read Romans 6 each morning this week and ask God to help you life a doornail dead life!

Am I delighting in the LORD? If not, how can He possibly grant the desires of my heart?

“Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.” Psalms 37:4

When we delight in the LORD, our lives are crucified with Christ, we are one with Him and He is filling our hearts with His desires – to worship, love, and obey Him. What we ask Him for in prayer will change. Instead of “LORD, please give me this or that fleeting trinket,” it will be “LORD, please let this life be crucified with Thee. Help me to love You more. Use me to edify Your people and minister Your bless-ed Gospel to the lost souls You died and raise against to save.”

“For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” Romans 8:29

Run from any wolf who is not squaring you up regularly to inform you that the LORD mandates your death so that He can fill and raise your life upward, Heavenward, for His eternal glory.

YOUR PRAYER: Holy Father, thank You so very much for sending Your only begotten Son to find, rescue, forgive, and save me into Your glorious eternal kingdom. Please help me to know and love You more. Sanctify my life and conform me to the image of Christ. Please wash me afresh with Your precious blood LORD Jesus. Use me to help others know You dear LORD. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Importance of Private Prayer [podcast]

“But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.” Matthew 6:6 Private prayer is essential to the disciple. Jesus reveals here that those who seek His face in prayer privately, will be used of Him publicly! Are you at Christ’s feet? Do you live a life of prayer? Have you ever studied the life of Christ and beheld the many instances of His prayer life? “And in the morning, rising up a great while […]

How to Know You are being Led by the Spirit [podcast]

Firstly, since there are many ungrounded flakes today claiming God is telling them things or leading them, let’s speak of the danger of using God’s holy name in vain. “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.” Exodus 20:7 It’s a dangerous proposition to be attaching the holy, the very name of the LORD to things He is not saying. Such is the work of counterfeits, false prophets. Read the severe warning in Jeremiah 23:30-40 on this matter. We know for […]

Is Loving God Enough? Must We Fear Him? [podcast]

Often, I’ve heard seminarians and modern “Christians” reject the biblical concept, the divine command to fear God. Both loving God and fearing God are divine commands (Ecclesiastes 12:13; Matthew 22:37-39; Luke 12:4-5, etc.). Yet we must ask: Is loving God enough? Is loving the LORD all we need to do? Will saying we love God keep you out of sin? It’s a nice platitude, yet this is false humility. Trite. Holiness by way of the fear of the Lord is an essential to remaining, abiding in Christ. May God instill in the depth of our being His holy fear – […]