HopeLives365

Mark Finley: If we would study the Bible diligently and prayerfully, combining Bible study and prayer every day, we should every day see some beautiful truth in a new, clear and forcible light.

Guest (Male): This is Hope Lives 365 with Pastor Mark Finley. Today's message: A Fulfilled Christian Life Through the Holy Spirit, Part Four. Enjoy, and remember you can always catch up with past messages and stay up to date with Hope Lives 365 and Pastor Mark by going to HopeLives365.com. And now, Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: I want you to think with me of some of the different names of Jesus in the Bible. And you can just speak them out. I'll start. Jesus is the bread of life. Jesus is the light of the world. Give me some other names of Jesus. What are they? Somebody from this side. What's another name for Jesus? Lamb of God, okay. What's another name for Jesus? Yeah, the branch of David. What's another name of Jesus? He is the way, the truth, the life. He is the Rock of Ages, right? What's another name? Living water, that's a good one. Yeah, the bread of life.

Why are there so many different names of Jesus in the Bible? He's mentioned as the light of the world because he lights our darkness. He's mentioned as the water of life because he quenches our inner thirst. He's the bread of life because he satisfies our every need. He is the Rose of Sharon because he perfumes our life. So many names of Jesus because Jesus is infinite.

What about this Michael? Michael is a war term. Every time you read about Michael in the Bible, it is Jesus beating back the forces of hell and the forces of Satan. Jesus, this mighty Michael, comes and answers prayer in the light of the great controversy to beat back the forces of hell. Now, there is a great controversy between good and evil, between Christ and Satan.

The Bible talks about Satan as, after Adam fell and Eve, the ruler of this world, John 12:31. It talks about in Ephesians 2:2 that Satan is the prince of the power of the air. In Ephesians 6:12, it says we don't wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in heavenly places.

So there's this battle between good and evil in the universe, this battle between Christ and Satan in the universe. And in the light of this battle, prayer is a mighty weapon that calls forth the powers of heaven to beat back the forces of hell. Notice 2 Corinthians 10:4. Let's read it together. The weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for the pulling down of strongholds.

So prayer is a mighty weapon to pull down the strongholds of Satan. As we get together and pray, as families pray, God moves in ways that are unusual, that are powerful. Look, Great Controversy 525: It is part of God's plan to grant us in answer to the prayer of faith that which he would not bestow did we not thus ask. God respects our freedom of choice. And as we are on our knees praying, seeking God, he responds, respecting that freedom of choice in ways that seem impossible. Look, 1 John 5:14-16: This is the confidence that we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.

I was helping a lady quit smoking once, many times, and I quoted this promise, 1 John chapter 5. And I said, "Do you think you can quit smoking?" "No, I can't quit, Pastor." "Would you like to quit smoking?" "Yes, I would, Pastor." I said, "Let's read 1 John 5: 'This is the confidence we have in him.'" I said, "Is the confidence in your ability to quit?" "No, Pastor." "Is the confidence in your strength to quit?" "No, Pastor." "Is the confidence in your willpower?" "No, Pastor." "Where's your confidence?" "Oh, it says in Jesus."

This is the confidence we have in him. If we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. Is it his will for you to quit smoking? "Yes, it is, Pastor, but Pastor, I'm too weak. I don't think I can quit. I just don't think I can, Pastor." I said, "Would you please get a pen? I want you to write something in your Bible." She said, "Okay." So she got her pen.

I said, "This is what I want you to write: 'This is the confidence we have in him. If we ask anything according to his will,' do you see that in the Bible? Now write this: 'except quit smoking.'" "What did you say, Pastor?" I said, "I want you to write that in your Bible because you don't believe God can help you, so you'd better write an exception in the Bible." She said, "Pastor, I am not writing that in my Bible. Not doing that, Pastor."

She claimed the promises of God, and we saw God do some amazing things in her life. In prayer, it's not confidence in our prayers. It's not confidence in our eloquence. It's not confidence in the large words that we use. It is the humble recognition that we can't but he can. Prayer humbly acknowledges that we are not good enough to be saved, but he is. That we are not wise enough to guide our own lives, but he is. That we are not strong enough to overcome temptation, but he is. That we don't have some genius that we can reach the neighbors, but through his spirit, he can open their hearts and use us as witnesses.

So prayer is an acknowledgment of who God is and who we are. Now, it says if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions we asked of him. When we know something is God's will—is it God's will to forgive you for your failures in the past? Is that God's will? Do you have to say, "Oh God, if it's your will, please forgive me"? Is it God's will for you to overcome anger, bitterness, resentment?

So we can claim the promises of God by faith because the creative energy that brought the worlds into existence is in the word of God. So when I accept the promises of God by faith, the promise that God has given me in his word carries with it creative power through the Holy Spirit to change my life. So I grasp the promises of God by faith.

Now, there are many promises in the Bible that tell us that we ought to pray. There are very few statements in the Bible that tell us what happens when we pray. And probably the clearest statement that I know of is here in John. It says in 1 John 5:16, if anyone sees his brother sinning a sin that does not lead to death—now what is the sin that leads to death? What is that? What do you call that? The unpardonable sin, right?

So it says if anybody sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask. Now, who is the he? That is the intercessor. He will ask, and he—who's that? God—will give him—who's the him? The intercessor—life for those who commit sin not leading to death.

Now, this is absolutely incredibly amazing. When you're on your knees praying for somebody else, and you are interceding for that person, God gives you life. That is to say, the river of the water of life from the throne of God—I don't fully understand it, but I believe it. God's very essence of God's life passes through us to touch their lives in ways that God would not have done had we not thus prayed.

There's an amazing statement in the book *Selected Messages* that I wrote in the bottom of my Bible after this passage. And so what happens actually when you pray for that neighbor, when you pray for that son, that daughter, that husband, or that wife? Let's suppose that you have some family member that doesn't know Christ. And let's suppose that they once came to church, but they're no longer coming. Or there's some—let's suppose that you have a daughter that is living in some distant city, getting ready to go to some disco on a Friday night. Or let's suppose that you're praying for some neighbor that you've been studying the Bible with. And when you pray, what happens?

In *Selected Messages*, volume two, page 377, it says ministering angels are waiting about the throne. Where are the ministering angels, everybody? Where are they? About the throne of God. Ministering angels are waiting about the throne to instantly obey the mandate of Jesus Christ in answer to every prayer offered in living faith.

So we pray. We're on our knees praying, and our prayers ascend up there to heaven. And as they ascend up to heaven, the angels are around the throne and they say, "Jesus, can I go? Jesus, can I go?" And Jesus says, "You go." And that person is about ready to make some decision that'll change their life.

And the angels of hell—because we wrestle not against flesh and blood—the angels of hell are trying to influence them. And the good angels fly from heaven, beat back those evil angels, and that person now is clearheaded where they can now make a logical choice. Ministering angels are about the throne of God waiting instantly to obey the mandate of Jesus Christ for every prayer offered in living faith.

Let's look for a moment at the prayer life of Jesus. The Bible says in Mark 1:35, "Now in morning, having risen a long while before daylight." So Jesus had a time to pray. He prayed early in the morning. "He went out and departed to a solitary place." Jesus had a place to pray.

I was not brought up in an Adventist home. My mother was a Catholic Christian and Dad was a Protestant. They couldn't be married in the Catholic Church in those years, so they were married in the priest house. Later, when my father was 33 years old, he worked with a Seventh-day Adventist. Started working with him when he was 31, and at 33, Dad was ultimately baptized into the Adventist Church.

I was in my teens at the time, and I will never forget. I would go out and play basketball on Friday nights because I had no concept at all of the Sabbath. And I'd come home and watch the late, late show, and try to watch it anyway, but it snowed every time on our television because in those days we didn't have that digital stuff. So it would be snowing. I'd be lying in front of the TV, 11 o'clock at night, two feet away from it. I didn't know any better. You guys know better, but I didn't know any better.

But I would look through the crack in the door, and there was this old black and white vinyl chair. And Dad would be kneeling by that chair. I can see him in my mind yet. He'd be kneeling by that chair, he'd be praying, "Dear Lord, please save my boy. He's a good boy, but he doesn't know you, Lord. Please touch his life. Please work in his heart." You see, Dad had a place to pray.

Do you have a place to pray? Maybe you walk out in nature, and as you're walking, you're praying aloud where nobody else can hear you and you're just praying and talking to God as you walk under those trees. Maybe it's in a room in your house where you love to go and shut the door and you're alone and you can see God.

Jesus had a time to pray. Jesus had a place to pray. And Jesus often prayed aloud. In Luke 5:16, there are at least seven instances in the book of Luke that tell us about the prayer life of Jesus. It says he himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.

One of the great challenges of our generation is finding time to be alone, finding time when you're away from your digital devices, finding time where you're away from the clamor and the noise of society, finding time to be alone with God and to have a peaceful heart where God can speak to you, where the voices of earth are quiet, where the clamoring voices of humanity are no longer there.

In Luke 9:29, it says he, Jesus, prayed, and the appearance of his face was altered. His robe became white and glistening. This to me is saying that Jesus' strength was renewed. He was about ready to face Pilate's judgment hall, about ready to face Judas' betrayal, about ready to face Peter's denial, about ready to face the nails driven through his hands and the crown of thorns that would be jammed on his head. But yet he found strength as he went to a quiet place and prayed.

And there as well, as we come to those quiet places of life, we find strength. Many even in their seasons of devotion fail of receiving the blessing of real communion with God. They are in too great haste. With hurried steps, they press through the circle of Christ's loving presence, pausing perhaps a moment within the sacred precepts, but not waiting for counsel. They have no time to remain with the divine teacher. With their burdens, they return to their work.

Jesus wants to do something in your life and mine that we have not yet imagined. Sometimes we carry burdens. Sometimes our lives are filled with stress. Sometimes anxiety overwhelms us, and sometimes the challenges of life are large. But waiting in the presence of Christ, coming to Jesus in that secret place of prayer, he lifts the burdens. He says, "Come unto me, all you that are burdened and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Come to me in that secret place of prayer."

Jesus said in Luke 11:13, "If you then being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those that ask." The Holy Spirit comes by our side to strengthen us, to encourage us, to guide us. As we come to Jesus and ask for the spirit strength that day, our burdens are lifted.

Let me give you four life-changing prayer principles. I want to make this very practical. So here are four life-changing prayer principles. First, set aside a specific time each day to be alone with God. For much of my life, early morning time was not the best for me. And here's why. I would be in evangelism every night, not every night, but many nights. And when you're in evangelism, you often see people after the meeting. You get home at 9:30, 10:00. You try to get ready for bed. Many of those times was 10:30, 11:00.

And so for me, I was not getting up at 5:00 in the morning. I was not a morning person. I want to share this with you because there are some people sitting here, I know, that you may not be the greatest morning person. So every morning, of course, I would pray some and read my Bible some. But those were not my best times. I would have a specific time sometime that morning where I would set aside a period of time.

And I remember when I was with *It Is Written* television, I'd often go into my office and say to my secretary, "From 9:00 to 10:00 this morning, I just have to spend some prayer time." So find a time that is the best for you. Certainly pray some every morning, and if that's your best time, praise God. If you need to set your alarm earlier, praise God. But look, find some time every day to be alone with God.

Many people find an acronym helpful called ACTS: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication. Sometimes it's nice to have structure for your prayers so you're not just all over the place. So in this, we start with adoration. And I think about what can I praise God for today? You remember Psalm 50:23, it says, "Whoever offers praise glorifies me." So God, what can I praise you about today?

Then confession: Lord, where in my life do I need to see definite improvement? Am I impatient at times? Am I unkind? At times do I speak quickly? Lord, what can I confess to you today? Then thanksgiving: What am I specifically thankful for that's happened to me in the last 24 hours? And then supplication: What are my needs and what am I asking God for? Some have found adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication very, very helpful.

Matthew 7:7: "Ask and it will be given to you." Read these texts with me, would you? "Ask and it will be given to you." James 1: "Ask in faith without doubting." "My God shall do what?" Do you believe that God will do that? Will he do it? Amen. "Obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." So if you have a time of need, we can find help in time of that need.

Claim the promises of God in your prayer life. Sometimes it's helpful just to open the Bible. Read the Bible prayerfully, allowing the Holy Spirit to impress your mind. One of the most precious times I've ever had in a prayer life is I took one Psalm at a time, read a few verses, and prayed through Psalms.

Now, let me disabuse your mind of something. Somebody said prayer is like talking to God as a friend. I agree with that, but it is problematic. You say, "Pastor Mark, what do you mean it's problematic?" Well, how many friends do you have that you can't see that you just talk to? How many friends do you have that never talk back to you? You understand the problem.

So when I'm talking to a friend, I see my friend and my friend's communicating with me, right? But God's my friend, but how do I have that dialogue with God? Here's one way: the Bible is God speaking to us as if we could hear God speak verbally to us.

So I have found it helpful to often pray with my Bible open, reading the Psalms. For example, Psalm 46: "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." Today, Lord, I've got some real challenges. I'm going through difficulty in my life. I hear you talking to me through Psalm 46: "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help." "Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, the mountains carried into the midst of the sea." God, whatever happens to me today, I don't have to fear because you've got this thing, God. You've got this thing. See?

Psalm 1: "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful." God, I don't want to walk in the way of ungodly people today. I don't want to listen to any ungodly counsel today. So you can take the Psalms, take one Psalm at a time, read a few verses, ask what God is saying to you in these verses, speak to him in prayer about what the Holy Spirit impresses you in the Psalms.

There are six chapters in the Bible on the death of Christ. And you may want to make it a prayer experience to take Psalm 22, Isaiah 53, Psalm 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 19. Not a speed-reading course; it may take you weeks to get through them. But pray through them. As we combine Bible reading and prayer, it makes all the difference.

Look, Psalm 119:154, "Revive me according to your word." If we would study the Bible diligently and prayerfully, combining Bible study and prayer every day, we should every day see some beautiful truth in a new, clear, and forcible light.

Secondly, learn to pray out loud. Take a walk and pray aloud. When Jesus often prayed, he prayed out loud. Luke 11:1, Jesus was praying out loud, his disciples heard him praying out loud, and they said, "Lord, teach us to pray." Why? Because they had never heard prayers like that before.

In Luke 22, Jesus prays out loud. He says, "Not my will, but thy will be done." Three times it says Jesus prayed saying, saying, saying. If you look, for example, at Hebrews 5:7, it says Jesus offered up prayers and supplication with vehement cries and tears to him who was able to save him from death.

So what's the advantage in praying out loud? Look, all of us have a problem with our mind wandering in prayer, don't we? You try to bring it back. You're on your knees praying, and then you think, "Wait a minute, I've got to go pick up the kids at school." You're on your knees praying and say, "Wait a minute, what was that grocery list I just wrote there now?" or "I've got to do this."

When you pray aloud, the brain has to engage the mouth. When you stop talking, immediately you know, "Hey, wait a minute." So praying aloud is a powerful way to keep engaged in prayer. Now look, we can pray silently any time, any place, all the time. All of us pray silently. But there's a special relationship that comes with God when we find a quiet place, maybe we're walking, maybe we're in a room, and we pray aloud.

Revival signifies a renewal of spiritual life, a quickening of the powers of the mind and heart, a resurrection of spiritual life. So when you're studying the Bible, combining that with prayer, there is this renewal of spiritual life. There's this quickening of the powers of the mind and heart. There's this resurrection from spiritual death.

Fourthly, organize small prayer groups. Five people covenant to meet together at least once a week to pray. There's something that happens when we pray in prayer groups. The New Testament church united in praying for the power of the Holy Spirit. They were together in that prayer.

Jesus said in Matthew 18:19 and 20, "Again I say to you, if two of you on earth agree as touching anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am in the midst of them." You know, you hear that—somebody, you have a service at church and only a couple people come and somebody says, "Oh yeah, God says when two or three are gathered in my name, I'll be in the midst of them." That is in the context of a prayer band. That's what this is all about.

Look, again I say to you, if two or three on earth concerning anything they ask, it'll be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I'm in the midst. So when you get two or three people gathered to pray, God does something special.

Guest (Male): You've been listening to Hope Lives 365 with Pastor Mark Finley. We hope you've enjoyed today's message and remind you that you can find more in our many ministry resources at HopeLives365.com. And you can support this ministry by going to HopeLives365.com/donate. And now, a final prayer from Pastor Mark.

Mark Finley: Oh my Father, in the quietness we praise your name. You are such a good God, reaching out to us with your grace, loving us when at times we're unlovable. You're a God that forgives us, delivers us from condemnation, gives us strength to live. There is so much for which to be thankful. There are blessings so abundant each day.

And so we thank you and praise you for who you are. We thank you for your word that reveals hope on the journey ahead. We thank you for the privilege of prayer, to think that the awesome God of the universe listens to our prayers, that your ear is bent low to hear the cries of your children, that you never become weary of our coming to you.

We thank you and praise you for the gift of prayer, that our hearts can be united with your heart, that our mind can be united with your mind. Lord, we pray for the revival that is promised to come. Quicken our spiritual life. Renew the dormant faculties of our soul. Draw us closer to you than we ever have been before. Grant to us the abundance of your Spirit. Empower us, I pray thee. And Lord, may we leave this place tonight more committed, more dedicated, more decided to spending time with you in fellowship and prayer. I pray it in Jesus' name, Amen.