Prayer: Constant Communion

Two words in Ephesians 1:16— [I] cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers—stand out: cease not.

A second principle we see in Paul’s prayer life is that prayer is constant communion.  Prayer is far more than just “talk­ing to God,” much more than just “telling God our troubles,” and infinitely more than just “asking and receiving.” First and foremost, prayer is constant communion. What does this term mean? Simply this: constant communion with God means a continuous consciousness of God’s presence in which we view everything in life in relation to Him.

For example, if we meet someone, we immediately consider where they stand with the Lord. If we hear of something bad happening, we react by praying for God to act in the situation for His glory and people’s good. If we hear of something good that has happened, we respond with immediate praise to God for it because we know He is glorified. In short, we view everything that comes along from a spiritual perspective. When Paul looked around his world, everything he saw prompted him to prayer in some way. When he thought of or heard about one of his beloved churches, it moved him toward communion with God.

Nehemiah provides a wonderful example of such praying without ceasing. King Artaxerxes noticed that Nehemiah was sad and asked him why, at which time Nehemiah told him of the destruction of Jerusalem. The king then asked Nehemiah to make a request of him that he might grant it. Before replying that the King send him to Judah, Nehemiah prayed a quick, brief prayer (Neh. 2:4). In the midst of a stressful situation, Nehemiah was conscious of God’s purpose. What a contrast that is to today’s popular emphasis on the The Prayer of Jabez, where we are encouraged to pray, “Bless me, God!” That’s not what Nehemiah prayed, or, for that matter, what Paul or our Lord ever prayed. No, Nehemiah was concerned with what God wanted.

May I submit, if we do not view prayer in this way, we will soon view God only as one we call on in time of need; without this attitude, we will lose touch with God. This is what is referred to in I Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing,” and Luke 18:1, “That men ought always to pray, and not to faint.”

Having said that, prayer also demands conscious effort, however. We must have times of specific prayer, times when we consciously and thoughtfully bring things to God. There is a beautiful balance between this and constant communion, for our times of “speci­fic prayer” are actually an outworking of our “constant commu­nion.”

Here is a blessed truth! As we are continuously conscious of God’s presence, He will bring people and needs to our minds so that we may bring them before His throne. If we are not in constant communion with God, He cannot bring things to our minds.

Ponder: When was the last time a certain person came to your mind and you could not dismiss him or her from your thoughts? Perhaps you called them on the telephone and told them that you were just thinking about them, just wondering how they were getting along. What did God just do? As you were weighing your life and other’s lives before the Lord, looking at everything in relation to God, He brought that person to mind.

All this is in view in Paul’s words. As he went about his daily tasks, ever conscious of God, God brought certain ones to his conscious mind—one in Ephe­sus, another in Philippi, two more in Colosse, and countless others in churches he had planted. Later in Ephesians, Paul writes, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints” (6:18). Oh, may this be true of every pastor and every other Believer.

Prayer: Praying for Others

Ephesians 1:16— [I] cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers—and the verses that follow (16-23), reveal something about the Apostle Paul that is most enlightening. We often think of Paul as the great church planter, the great theologian, and the greatest of all the Apostles. While all those are true, we often fail to see him as a great man of prayer. It’s amazing, in fact, to study his Epistles in this light and observe just how often we see him praying. While space prohibits our examining all the principles of prayer found in this passage (you can read them online), let’s look at a few.

First, prayer involves “intercession,” that is, praying for others. The more one studies Paul’s prayer life, the more humbled one becomes because we always see him praying for others, not himself. He not only said he was concerned, he showed he was concerned. Colossians 1:9-14 is another example of Paul’s intercessory prayer. He begins in verse 9 with, “For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.” Likewise to the Romans he wrote, “For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers.”

How often is our prayer life centered only in ourselves, our needs and wants? As that great exposi­tor Alexander MaClaren challenged: “A man’s prayers for others are a very fair thermometer of his own religious condition . . . There is nothing colder than the intercession of a cold Christian; and, on the other hand, in no part of the fervid Apostle Paul’s writings do his words come more winged and fast, or his spirit glow with greater fervour of affection and holy desire than in his petitions for his friends. “

Indeed, Paul was ever concerned with what other believers needed. As he challenged Timothy, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men [without distinction]” (I Tim. 2:1). Scripture is filled with examples of God’s people praying for one another: Job prayed for his friends (Job 42:10); Moses prayed for Aaron (Deut. 9:20) and Miriam (Num. 12:13); Samuel prayed for Israel (1 Sam. 7:5, 9); David also prayed for Israel (2 Sam. 24:17), as well as Solomon (1 Chron. 29:18-19); Hezekiah prayed for Judah (2 Kings 19:14-19); Isaiah prayed for the people of God (Isa. 63:15–64:12); Daniel prayed for Israel (Dan. 9:3-19), as did Ezekiel (Ezek. 9:8); Nehemiah prayed for Judah (Neh. 1:4-11); Jesus prayed for his disciples (John 17:9-24); The Jerusalem Church prayed for Peter’s release from prison (Acts 12:5ff); Epaphras prayed for the Colossians (Col. 4:12); and on we could go.

This should challenge us to be praying for one another. As Puritan Matthew Henry encourages: “Observe, even the best of Christians need to be prayed for: and, while we hear well of our Christian friends, we should think ourselves obliged to intercede with God for them, that they may abound and increase yet more and more.”

The Tests of Christian Profession (2)

As we saw in our last installment, the word wherefore in Ephesians 1:15—Wherefore, I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints—links what Paul has already said in verses 3‑14 with what he is about to say in verses 15‑23. Based upon all they have in Christ, Paul prays that they will assimilate those truths.

Going deeper, we see that Paul had heard of two specific things, two things that are actually the two ultimate tests of Christian profession. He here condenses true Christian profession into two words: faith and love. We looked at faith last time.

Second, Paul had heard of their love. Put simply: Genuine FAITH in Christ produces genuine LOVE for other believers.

How often have we caught ourselves saying, “Well I love so‑in‑so in the Lord.” Often what we really mean is, “I love him in the Lord (but I can’t stand him in himself).” But true Chris­tian love can be defined as: Treating others as God has treated you. How has God treated you? He has treated you according to grace, mercy, and love. So, we are to treat others in exactly the same way. What we need to do today is get away from our “cop­out” clichés and our false emotionalism, and get back to true Christian love. This is the real idea in the Greek agape (love). As we mentioned back in study of verses 4 and 5, perhaps the best definition of agape is “self‑emptying self‑sacrifice.” If we really love someone, we will disregard self and think of others. That is indeed a test of Christian profession. The Apostle John tells us: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death” (I Jn. 3:14). There is something drastically wrong with a professing Christian who does not want Christian fellowship or who “snubs” other Christians.

Before leaving these two “acid-tests” of Christian profession, it is noteworthy the order in which Paul presents them: first is faith and then is love. Love comes after faith, not before. This is the opposite of what we see today. Paul always deals with doctrine first and then duty, while false Christianity prattles on about love, ignoring and even denying the Theology behind true love. Paul, however, doesn’t speak of some syrupy sentimentality, rather He first nails down true faith and then says that true love flows out of that.

A wonderful story is told of Philip Henry, the father of the great Puritan preacher and commentator Matthew Henry. Philip had met a young lady and they were very much in love. There was a problem, however; she belonged to a higher social strata then he. While she had become a Christian and such things no longer mattered to her, they mattered nonetheless to her parents. With contempt they asked her, “This man, Philip Henry, where has he come from?” The future Mrs. Henry’s immortal reply was, “I don’t know where he has come from, but I know where he is going.”

Indeed, that is what matters.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please forgive the interruption in postings, but I will be teaching at the Haiti Bible Institute for the next two weeks. Postings will resume, Lord willing, on the October 24.

The Tests of Christian Profession (1)

The word wherefore in Ephesians 1:15—Wherefore, I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints—literally means “on this account” or “for this cause.” This word links what Paul has already said in verses 3‑14 with what he is about to say in verses 15‑23. Based upon all they have in Christ, Paul prays that they will assimilate those truths.

To go deeper, we see here that Paul had heard of two specific things, two things that are actually the two ultimate tests of Christian profession. As John Calvin put it: “Observe here, that under faith and love Paul sums up the whole perfection of Christians.” What a wonderful statement! Paul here condenses true Christian profession into two words: faith and love.

First, Paul had heard of their faith. The first test of Christian profession is faith in Christ. This is evident from the context. With verses 3‑14 still in mind, Paul rejoices that these people had truly received Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. This is the real “acid‑test” of Christian profession. Many today claim to be “Christian,” but at the same time they deny such truths as the Deity of Christ, His sinless perfection, His blood atonement for our redemption, and His literal, bodily resurrection. The acid‑test of Chris­tian profession is whether or not there has been faith in Jesus Christ, that is, faith in what He was and in what He did. Without that faith, there is no salvation.

We should take careful note of the object of faith that Paul emphasizes. He specifically mentions their faith in the Lord Jesus. Any definition of faith is incomplete without a consideration of its object.Faith is a verb, so without an object, the entire concept is incomplete. In contrast to today’s meaningless “faith in faith” concept, saving faith has as its object “the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Notice that Paul here uses the simple title Lord Jesus. As one studies verses 1-14, he finds that this is the first time Paul uses this title. Yes, he uses “Jesus Christ,” “Christ Jesus,” “Lord Jesus Christ,” and just “Christ,” but never does he use Lord Jesus until now. He specifically says faith in the Lord Jesus, not faith in “Jesus Christ” or any other of the previous terms. Why? Because the title Lord Jesus is the bare essentials, the absolute bare minimum concerning the object of saving faith. In short, by using this title, Paul emphasizes not only the person of JESUS, but also His position as LORD, and these are the essentials. Without the person of Jesus and His position as Lord, a person cannot be saved. This is a vitally important and tremendously profound principle. Yes, there are countless people today who talk much about the person of Jesus but reject His position as Lord. In contrast, Paul is quite specific, recognizing that the Ephesians embraced both truths.

A common teaching of our day is that salvation entails just “believing in Jesus.”  Some teach that no repentance is necessary, no change of life is expected, and no responsibility is demanded. But such teaching is foreign to Scripture. True salvation results in an automatic change in the person who believes, as II Corinthians 5:17 makes clear: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

Further, the word Greek word behind “believe” (pisteuo) actually carries the idea “to obey.” As one Greek scholar writes: “Heb. 11 stresses that to believe is to obey . . . Paul in Rom. 1:8 [and] I Thes. 1:8 (cf. Rom. 15:18; 16:19 [II Thes. 1:7-8]) shows, too, that believing means obeying. He speaks about the obedience of faith in Rom. 1:5 [6:17; 16:26], and cf. 10:3; II Cor. 9:1.”

Believing (or faith) and obedience are so inseparable, in fact, we often find them used synonymously. Hebrews 5:9, for example, declares: “And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him” (cf. 11:8). What’s more, as another leading Greek scholar points out, to have faith means to “entrust or commit oneself” and “entails obedience.” Good works never save (Eph. 2:8-9; Tit. 3:5), but good works and obedience to God’s Word are always a result, an evidence of salvation (Eph. 2:10; Jas. 2:14-26; Rom. 1:5; 16:26; I Pet. 1:2).

The Only Source of Truth (2)

In one last look at Ephesians 1:13—In whom ye also trusted, after ye heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation.—we consider finally the Apostles Paul’s broader meaning when He speaks of Truth. Not only is there the Immediate Truth of the Gospel, but second, there is also The Broader Truth of all of God’s revelation, that is, all of His Word. We say this because the message of the Gospel is the center of God’s revelation and everything else flows from that. When we come to Christ, we embrace not only the Truth of the Gospel, but all of God’s Truth.

It is precisely for that reason that we need to recognize that God’s Word is the only source of Absolute Truth (which is actually redundant, because Truth implies an absolute). As we’ve seen, there are many other claims on how to discover Truth, but it is God alone who reveals it in His Word.

Words fail to express the impact this realization has produced in my own life and service. After examining the history of science, philosophy, and religion, it becomes glaringly obvious that Truth is to be discovered only in God and His Word. To argue along the lines of these other things is pointless, fruitless, and, if I may be so bold, borderline blasphemous. We should not argue from any other premise except, “Thus saith the Lord.”

Now, some would object to our whole discussion by saying, “This is all quite silly. After all, I can say, ‘The book is on the table; that is a fact and is therefore true, and the Bible didn’t have anything to do with it.” And to that we say, you are quite right. That is what philosophers call “self-evident fact.” Something that is self-evident does not need to be proved because it shows itself to be true.

This thought immediately prompted me to ask, “Does the Bible have anything to say about self-evident fact?” And I found that It does, indeed. Galatians 3:11 declares, “But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.” The word “evident” translates the Greek dēlos, which refers to “a clear case, out of all dispute.” Writing to the Galatians, who had become entangled in works-oriented religion, Paul is saying that there is nothing more “self-evident” than the fact that man cannot be justified by Law but by faith in Christ alone. There is, indeed, no more obvious and self-evident Truth than that. That is precisely what changed Martin Luther’s life and ignited the Reformation. In Luther’s own words, “If anyone could have been saved by his monkery, it would have been me.” But he finally realized the self-evident Truth of sola fide (faith alone).

My Dear Reader, I would encourage you that if you are looking for Truth, you will never find it unless you come to Christ, Who said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (Jn. 14:6). If you are already a Christian, I would challenge you that no matter what the question, no matter what the issue, may your motto be, “What saith the Scripture?” (Rom. 4:3; Gal. 4:30). Why? Because only It is Truth.

Let us close with two other wonderful verses: “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (Jn. 8:32-33). Will science make us free? No, we’re ever learning but never discovering. Will philosophy make us free? No, it drove Nietzsche mad. Will even religion make us free? No, the Law keeps us in bondage. It is only the Gospel of Christ that makes us free, and it is only in His Word that we find Truth.

The Only Source of Truth (1)

Considering Ephesians 1:13 once again—In whom ye also trusted, after ye heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation.—we have considered the Meaning of Truth and Inadequate Sources of Truth.

This bring us to a third consideration, The Only Source of Truth. What is true? What is factual? What is absolutely reliable, totally secure, and unchanging? We are left with only one answer—God and His Word.  There are two emphases in the Apostle Paul’s statement

First, The Immediate Truth. Paul speaks of the word of truth, which is best stated and understood as the gospel of your salvation. In other words, it is the Gospel that is the only Truth that brings salvation. The real Truth, which in turn forms the foundation of all other Truth and is the source from which all other Truth flows, is the Gospel.

Word (logos) means to speak intelligently, to articulate a message, to give a discourse. Truth, of course, denotes a thing as it really is. So the phrase the word of truth declares that there is one message that is real and unconcealed, not falsified or changing—the message of the gospel.

In a day when it is considered intolerant and divisive to say that there is only one true religion, that statement invites violent criticism. To call one group a cult or false religion, or call Islam “an evil religion,” as did evangelical leader Franklin Graham after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, brings a storm of protest. But such dissent does not alter the fact that God says that only His Word is Truth. 

The word Gospel has an interesting etymology. The Greek is euaggelion: eu, good; aggellō, to proclaim, tell. But the English is even more fascinating. It comes from the Old English gōdspel: gōd, good; spel, tale. Witches were said to cast a spell, that is, say certain words that supposedly had magic powers. To spellbind, is to speak in such a way as to hold people’s attention. To spell a word means to name or write the letters of the word. So the Gospel is, indeed, the good spell, the good tale, the good story, the good message, the good news.

Even more significant, the gospel is the only good tale. In the Greek, the verse literally reads: “The message of the truth, the good news of your salvation.” Paul wants to make it clear that there is only one good news. As he declared in Galatians 1:6-7: “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.” He makes it clear that a perverted Gospel is not a Gospel (a good news, a good story) at all. It is for that reason that he writes the very pointed, narrow command in the next two verses: “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.”

“Accursed” (anathema) refers to that which is devoted to destruction. We are not to be tolerant of false teaching; rather we are to consider such teaching and teachers as under God’s judgment. God simply will not tolerate a perversion of the Gospel. Why? Because it’s the only Truth. The Apostle Paul preached the only Gospel there is. In contrast, in our day the Gospel is being retold as a new tale, a new story. It’s a story of God’s Universal Fatherhood, Jesus’ life as a good moral example, and a salvation without repentance, Lordship, or even acknowledgment of sin. One today can define the Gospel in whatever terms make him feel good. But that type of Gospel, which is no Gospel at all, must be cursed for what it is—a lie. The only Gospel is trust in Jesus’ blood as the only redemption from sin.

Is Truth in Religion?

Based upon Ephesians 1:13—In whom ye also trusted, after ye heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation.—we ask again: where is Truth? Two of the greatest claims to discovering Truth are made by science and philosophy, but religion is another strong contender.

In a very real sense, what we’ve observed regarding philosophy applies equally to religion, for religion is nothing more than philosophy. Webster defines religion as “a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices.”

Of course, in a sense Biblical Christianity is a religion. The Puritans, for example, often referred to it as religion. But it’s interesting that in the five verses where the world “religion” appears in the New Testament, it is always qualified by a modifier. Speaking as a Pharisee, Paul refers to “our religion” in Acts 26:5, that is, the works-oriented religion that Judaism had become. He does so again in Galatians 1:13-14, where he uses the term “the Jew’s religion.” James uses two modifiers, calling one religion “man’s religion” and the other “pure religion” (Jas. 1:26-27).

So there is a difference between “religion” per se and “pure religion.” The word “pure” (katharos) means that which is genuine, or that which is free from any improper mixture. Biblical Christianity is, therefore, the genuine article, in contrast to just religion. “Religion,” therefore, is false religion, in contrast to Biblical Christianity.

Consequently, when one examines religion, he finds that from Cain, through the pagan cults, and right up to today’s countless religions, every one of them has its own belief system, philosophy, and view of Truth. Every religion is simply man’s works-oriented way of getting to God (or enlightenment, nirvana, or whatever). Like philosophy, religion is invention, not revelation. Religion is not Truth.

Perhaps the best example is Judaism. After all, if any “religion” could be called Truth, it would surely be Judaism. God Himself gave the Law, instituted the sacrificial system, and established Temple worship. But the Jews totally perverted all of it and turned it into just another works system. Throughout their history, especially during the Babylonian Exile and the Intertestamental Period, they added thousands of man-made traditions to God’s law and made them equal to God’s law. The rabbis searched Scripture to find various commands and regulations and then added supplemental requirements. As our Lord declared to the scribes and Pharisees, “Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition” (Matt. 15:6).

Just one example of many we could give was the command not to work on the Sabbath. To that law they added the idea that carrying a burden was a form of work, but then they had to answer the question, “What constitutes a burden?” After much discussion, they decided that a burden would be defined as food equal to the weight of a fig, enough wine for mixing in a goblet, milk enough for one swallow, honey enough to put on a wound, oil enough to anoint a small member of the body, water enough to moisten eye salve, paper enough to write a customs house notice, ink enough to write two letters of the alphabet, reed enough to make a pen, and so on. To carry anything more than those prescribed amounts on the Sabbath was to break the law.

But even such a list could not answer every situation, so a lot of time was spent arguing about such things as if a tailor who went out on the Sabbath with a needle stuck in his robe, or if moving a lamp from one place in a room to another, or if wearing an artificial leg, or if using a crutch, or if a parent lifted a child, or if a doctor healed a patient on the Sabbath was considered carrying a burden and therefore sinful.

Such meaningless works and outward ritual have been repeated millions of times, throughout thousands of years, by hundreds of religions. And religion is all it is, just man-made tradition. And Truth is always forced to give way to religious tradition.