PLUS

Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

I Corinthians 15:54-57 “So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

The following is a powerful and faith-fueled testimony from Pastor Abba Martin during the challenging conditions of World War II, as recorded in “Strength for Service”:

“I believe it is eminently worthwhile to contend for righteousness, justice, and truth in the world; and that Heaven will reward those who thus take their stand. I am so thoroughly convinced of the presence of the everliving God in the affairs of men that I refuse to become panic-stricken when the sins and selfish ambitions of the usurpers of authority bring about destructive wars and international chaos. So sure am I of the life eternal that even death is robbed of its sting, and I go forward with courage undaunted.

I am so proud of this faith that is mine that I shall not hesitate to declare it anywhere, in any environment, by my deeds, by my words, by my attitudes, and by every outward manifestation of my life.”

Our fully-committed life as Christian citizens is eminently worthwhile as we contend for righteousness, justice, and truth in the world. Heaven will reward us for taking a stand. Our trust and faith in the everliving God in the affairs of men must strengthen us such that we can refuse to become panic-stricken when the sins and selfish ambitions of the usurpers of authority bring about destructive wars and international chaos. Life eternal robs death of its sting, and allows us to go forward with courage undaunted. And, we must be so proud of this faith through Christ that we shall not hesitate to declare it anywhere, in any environment, by our deeds, by our words, by our attitudes, and by every outward manifestation of our lives.

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO BE BOLD ABOUT A LIFE LIVED THAT DECLARES THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST THROUGH EVERY OUTWARD MANIFESTATION. Even in the midst of a world filled with destructive wars and international chaos, we must go forward with courage undaunted.

Jeremiah 33:3 “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.”

Ephesians 3:20-21 “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world with end.  Amen.”

I Corinthians 2:9 “But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.”

Matthew 8:5 “And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him.”

Matthew 17:19-21 “Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?  And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.  Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and by fasting.”

God has amazing plans for His people!  He has incredible purposes for the Christian community and for American Christians!  His planned and prepared path for us is mind-blowing and unbelievable.  These things from Him are great and they are mighty.  They are characterized by exceedance and abundance.  They are more than anything we have seen, have heard, have felt, or have thought.  Yet, they are only limited by us.

In order to activate God’s preeminent plans and purposes for us, we must do our part.  We must call unto Him and beseech Him.  We must glorify Him.  We must have pure and expectant faith.  We must pray and we must fast!

If we are falling short in any of these areas, then we must regroup and recover.  We must realize that our shortcomings are the only things standing in the way of a tidal wave of blessings and a powerful movement of influence and impact. 

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO HAVE THE FAITH OF A MUSTARD SEED, ACTIVATED THROUGH PRAYER AND FASTING.  If we do, then we can move mountains in our land!

ADMIN:  Please see the following for related thoughts:

• https://prayatlunch.us/self-fulfilling/
• https://prayatlunch.us/moving-mountains/

Matthew 8:5-8 “And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.”

Philippians 4:6 “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Matthew 7:7-8 “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.”

The powerful Centurion beseeched Jesus to apply His divine saving power to make whole a sickly servant. He boldly begged Jesus to take action. He petitioned and pleaded with Him to remedy the palsy of a subordinate who was grievously tormented by an affliction. 

At the same time, the Centurion acknowledged an important truth – that he was not worthy to ask such things from the Lord nor even to linger in His presence. Even this mighty man had no right to expect standing in the eyes of the Lord, the Creator, the Sustainer, and the Savior. Nevertheless, the Centurion pleaded and he begged. He asked, he sought, and he knocked. 

As a result, it was given unto him! He found what he was searching for as the Lord’s door of blessings opened wide. It was all because he approached Jesus with humble boldness.

This may seem oxymoronic. Yet, it is exactly what the Lord directs from us. 

We are to beseech Jesus to apply His divine saving and sustaining power to our sickly lives. We are to boldly beg Jesus to take action. We are to petition and plead with Him to meet our needs and to overcome our limitations. 

At the same time, we must acknowledge an important truth – we are not worthy to ask such things from the Lord nor even to linger in His presence. We have no right to expect standing in the eyes of the Lord, the Creator, the Sustainer, and the Savior. Nevertheless, we are to plead and beg. We are to ask, seek, and knock.

As a result, we may find that it has been given unto us as the Lord’s door of blessings opens wide. It will all be because we approach Jesus with humble boldness!

PLEASE PRAY FOR A SPIRIT OF HUMBLE BOLDNESS IN THE LIVES OF AMERICAN CHRISTIANS. While the linkage of these characteristics may seem oxymoronic, it is God’s formula for proper standing with Him to enable His power to fully act in our lives. Come to the Lord with humble boldness!

Romans 8:35-39 “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”

Hebrews 4:15-16 “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

John 1:14 “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”

God loves us! He loves you, and He loves me!

He loves the saved and the unsaved, the saint and the sinner, the faithful and the faithless. He loves a world that is sin-stained and Savior-separated. He loves the unlovely, the unloved, and the unloving. He loves those who love Him back, and He loves those whose life is the antithesis of love.

His love transcends time and place, situation and personality. We cannot be separated from it. It is given freely, though its value is unmatched. It drove Him to the cross for all of humanity and for each and every person. It contains the power of eternal salvation and it consolidates boldness in every situation.

For His people, this amazing, miraculous, supernatural truth should carry significant meaning and provide substantial motivation. It should be celebrated daily, uplifted regularly, and proclaimed at every opportunity. In response to a society that is quickly diverging from Him, we must be encouraged, empowered, equipped and emboldened to reach out. Like Him, we are to do so in love, in grace, and in truth. We should never give up, never give in, never quit, and never relent. We are His representatives to a world that needs Him desperately, whether it knows it or not, and a society that is eroding due to a foundation that is unsteady and unsure without Him at its core. It needs His love, and we are His instrumentality to show them a stark alternative to a world that hates, spites, and degrades.

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO UPLIFT, CELEBRATE, DEMONSTRATE AND PROCLAIM THE LOVE OF JESUS CHRIST. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? No one can! What can separate us from the love of Christ? Nothing can!

II Chronicles 7:14 “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

Proverbs 14:34 “Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.”

During World War II, Dean Wickes of Princeton University said the following: “It is well that this crisis should urge us to make the world over, but long before we can do this, we can let this crisis make us over into the sort of people the world is going to need.”

Similarly, in 1942 Pastor Joseph Ewing recounted the following story in “Strength for Service”:

“A father and mother were having some difficulty in interesting their little daughter in the study of geography.  They schemed to help her by purchasing for her a jigsaw puzzle map of the United States.  They were sure that this would require so much effort on her part in piecing it together that it would be a valuable geographical project.  To their amazement she was able to assemble the map in a remarkably short time.  They asked her how she did it, and she explained that on the opposite side of the map was a picture puzzle of the face of George Washington.  This further word from her was especially thought-provoking: ‘When you get the man put together right, the United States comes out all right.’”

The whole is made up of its pieces.  Notably, the character of a nation will never be greater than the character of its most righteous, Christ-like parts.  Are today’s Christians setting the standard for the rest of society, or are we converging with society’s standard of worldliness and godlessness?

We live in perilous times.  Sin is elevated and its natural consequences yields death, destruction, and depravity.  Our society’s collective character is a reproach to a world in chaos and a culture in crisis.  Christians must be the sort of people the world needs today, and that it will need in our progressive dystopian future. 

Are American Christians put together right?  If we are, then there is hope for this sin-stained world.  If we are not, then today’s crisis will never make the world over into something better than it is today. 

As much as we like to focus on the external, it is time to shift that focus to the internal.  If we are righteous, then this nation can be exalted.  If we humble ourselves, and pray, and seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways, then we can see widespread revival.  After all, when you get the man put together right, the United States will come out alright.

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO SEEK INWARD RIGHTEOUSNESS SO THAT ONE DAY WE CAN EXPERIENCE NATIONWIDE REVIVAL.  May we let our current crisis make us over into the sort of people that the world is going to need.

ADMIN NOTE: My next PLUS post will be in two weeks.  In the meanwhile, please continue to pray for our nation, for our leaders, and for national revival in 2022!