|
|
|
|
| DAY 5: Priest JANUARY 5, 2010 |
|
"I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall
and stand before Me in the gap on behalf of the land
so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none."
(Ezekiel 22:30) |
|
| MORNING DEVOTION - "O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee..." (Psalm 63:1)
Scripture Reading: Hebrews 7:24-25
In our devotion time yesterday, we read as Jesus offered up words of encouragement to His disciple Peter, letting him know that He was praying for him (reference Mark 11:22). Peter would not walk the dark valley he was about to face alone; even though he felt the most extreme sense of loss and loneliness, having rejected his beloved Teacher and Friend, and then watching as He died on the cross. There would be no way he could bare such pain without the promised prayers of His Lord.
Our heavenly Father gave us the extraordinary gift of His Spirit to guide us into perfect union with Him. But is the work and continued occupation of Jesus as our intercessor that allows us direct access to the throne of grace. Jesus is our great intercessor. "...He always lives to intercede..." (v.25b). His life is prayer. The power of prayer comes from our Savior Jesus Christ who sits in the position of power. "Christ Jesus, who died - more than that, who was raised to life - is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us" (Romans 8:34).
Jesus was the mediator between God and man, willingly and obediently laying down His life on the cross to bridge the broken gap, securing for mankind the opportunity to enter into the holy of holies as His priests. Jesus has given us HIs life that we might experience the fullness of life that comes through faith and continues with prayer. Jesus prays for us even today that our faith, like Peter's, will not fail, but that through our union with Him we would receive power to continue in prayer and strengthen our brothers and sisters in the faith.
Heavenly Father,
I praise You for the work of Your Son,
who not only gave HIs life for me,
but continues to give His life in prayer.
I thank you for this encouragment to face
whatever comes my way knowing that I
am being lifted up in prayer.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
[We have the privilege of listening in on Jesus' prayer as He intercedes for us with the Father in John 17:20-26. It is here He reveals the desire of the Father and the Son to be in perfect union with His children; providing for us the standard the unity He desires for the whole Body of believers. May we pray for unity for the Church so the whole world will testify to the love of Christ].
_______________________________________________________________________ |
AFTERNOON DEVOTION - "Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and He shall hear my voice" (Psalm 55:17 KJV).
Scripture Reading: 1 Peter 2:4-12
Jesus, our great High Priest, intercedes for us at the right hand of the Father so that we will be unified with Him and receive His blessings to continue the work of building His kingdom. He has called us to be a kingdom and priests (reference Revelation 1:6; 5:10), a "holy priesthood" (1 Peter 2:5) faithfully fulfilling His holy work of intercession. Just as the priests of the Old Testament kept the altar fires burning with the sacrifices and prayers of the people, so to are we to intercede and fervently pray for the needs of others.
As priests we have a holy calling to stand in the gap for others who are in need of answers, healing, deliverance, and salvation. Our time in prayer is not meant just to seek answers for ourselves. We have been given the burden and privilege to pray for others to experience the grace and mercy of God as we humbly, and obediently, offer ourselves up as living sacrifices for the purposes of being a useful vessel with which He can pour His love into the world. May we recognize the importance of this roll we have been given and keep flame of the prayer altar ablaze!
Heavenly Father,
I desire the passion I have for you
to be translated into a burning passion
to pray for those you desire to reach.
Help me to remain at my post,
and keep the altar fires ablaze with the
fervent prayers of others.
In Jesus' Name. Amen
[As you come before the Lord in prayer, consider the words of 1 Timothy 2:1-6, as you accept your roll as an intercessor in the holy priesthood of God: "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone - for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all men - the testimony given in its proper time"].
_______________________________________________________________________ |
|
|
EVENING MEDITATION - "...and on His law he meditates day and night" (Ps. 1:2)
Scripture Reading: Psalm 90
In Exodus chapter 32 we find Moses, who had just come off the mountain of the Lord with the Law, returning to the Lord with 40 days of prayer and fasting to intercede on behalf of a disobedient and idolatrous nation. "The next day Moses said to the people, 'You have committed a great sin. But now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin" (Exodus 32:30). Moses was willing to lay down his life to save his people from the wrath and destruction of God. From the beginning of his ministry to the very end, Moses interceded for his people and God shaped an entire nation through his fervent prayers. Psalm 90 provides a glimpse of the prayers of this great intercessor of God.
Heavenly Father,
We pray for the kind of influence
that Moses had with you. He knew the work
you called him to could only
be accomplished with prayer as he abided in You.
Help us to lay down our lives these
next 40 days and offer ourselves
to fervent and focused prayer, that we too
would see a great move of Your kingdom.
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
[If we desire our work to be as effective as Moses' was, we must become people of prayer. God has accomplished great movements in His kingdom through the prayers of His faithful priests who kept the prayer altar burning. "Whenever the Lord is about to do a great work, He sets His people to praying." May we remain faithful to this holy task these next 40 days!].
________________________________________________________________________ |
| "Perhaps no sin of omission more frequently occasions this
than the neglect of prayer." - John Wesley
| |
|
|
|
