Why you need to pray for Jerusalem

Psalm 122:8 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May they prosper who love you."

For the past couple of days we have been drawing the connection that the Bible makes between prayer and prophecy.  Today we want to consider another prophetic truth that intersects with prayer - God's promise to never forsake Israel. 

God's promise to not forsake Israel
When the Psalmist here is telling us to pray for Jerusalem, He is echoing the promises of God pertaining to the nation of Israel as He originally spoke to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3.  Over the history of His dealings with her, even though she had forsook Him many times, God's word has always stood firm concerning her.  In fact Romans 11:25-26 plainly states: "For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in; 26 and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB.”

Why the promise to Israel is relevant to the Christian
To know that God never breaks His promises is one of the most fundamental cornerstones in prayer, since by God's promises we proceed to pray and live for Christ.  Israel is the objective demonstration of just how faithful God is to His word. 

How one man demonstrated the importance of Jerusalem in his prayer life
In Daniel 6 we read of Daniel being thrown into a lion's den as a result of refusing to compromise His worship of the Lord in the face of a king's decree of death.  The Bible tells us that when the decree was issued that all subjects worship Darius the King - Daniel refused.  Instead when he found out the contents of the decree, the Bible says in Daniel 6:10 - "Now when Daniel knew that the document was signed, he entered his house (now in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously."

How Praying towards Jerusalem kept Daniel focused in the hard times
Daniel never stopped believing God's promise to restore His people.  Though not having been in Jerusalem for nearly 70 years, Daniel, praying in Babylon hundreds of miles away, had prayed this way for the entirety of his captivity in that land.  The center of Daniel's universe was the God of Scripture, whose affection was set upon God's people in Jerusalem. (Deuteronomy 7:7-8).  When King Solomon had dedicated the Temple in Jerusalem 400 years before Daniel's day, the prayer was that it and the city would be the focal point in the prayer-lives of God's people. (1 Kings 8:30)  No doubt Daniel had scriptures like these rolling through his heart as he prayed.  His prayer life centered around the promises of God to His people.  Within his book we see prayer and prophecy intertwined like a strong rope of faith.  

Practical ways and benefits of praying for Jerusalem
When I make it a point to pray for Jerusalem, I try to do it in the midst of my morning routine.  Even if something that I'm doing is not remotely connected to Jerusalem, I try to pray anyway for their welfare and restoration.  Why?  Because it reminds me that the horizon of my hope lies not in how well life here on earth is going but rather in God's unbreakable promises.  Everytime I have breathed a short prayer for Jerusalem, I always find myself being able to see my hope in Christ being made clearer.  Praying for a people who by and large does not even acknowledge Jesus as Messiah also instills in me the need to share Him with others. Then as a final thought, praying for Jerusalem opens the way for blessing, since through it I am aligning my heart with God's heart.    

Why Pray for Christ's Return?

Revelation 22:20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.

The Certainty of Christ's return
In this next to the last verse of the Bible we see Jesus make the promise of "Yes, I am coming quickly", with the prayer following it: "Amen, come, Lord Jesus".  Now why is this so significant?  Because the second coming of Jesus Christ is the most predicted event in the Bible.  224 specific prophecies are related to His Second coming or "Second Advent".  Whenever we see God putting predictions in His word, that means one thing - it is a sure thing.   Jesus Himself, speaking from the standpoint of His humanity, says these words in Matthew 24:34 - “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone."

Why pray for something that is already planned by God the Father?
So why pray for an event that has been set by God the Father on His calendar?  When we pray for Christ to return quickly, it stirs up within us the grace-affected desire to see Him.  2 Timothy 4:8 says these words - "in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing." 

How praying for Christ's return stirs our commitment to have desire
As Christians we run the risk of becoming too tied to this present world.  Focusing on the soon return of Jesus Christ enables us to live right now in light of eternity.  Commitment to Christ needs Desire for Christ.  Commitment without desire burns out and cannot endure under the testings of this age.  When we pray for His soon return, it infuses into our hearts the desire for Him, as well as the desire to live a holy life for Him. 

1 John 2:2-3 states - "Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. 3And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure."

Prophecy's Role in Prayer

Luke 18:1&8 (1) Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart. (8)  8“I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”

Jesus desire to find His people praying at His return
In this little section Jesus presents a parable on prevailing prayer.  He tells the story of a poor and oppressed woman who had appealed to an unjust judge for resolution of a situation.  Everyday she went to him, making an appeal for him to take care of the problem that was vexing her life.  Jesus tells us that this Judge cared neither for her nor her plight, however he chose to intervene in order to get her out of his hair - so to speak.  Jesus' point was that if an unjust Judge would answer the pleas of a woman He doesn't know, how much more will not the Father - who is Just and fair, hear the pleas of His people whom he loves.  Jesus then closes the section with the statement of His desire to find such prevailing prayer among His people at His return.

Why we must see the connection between prophecy and prayer
Jesus here is making an important connection for us between prayer and His second coming.  When we explore the scriptures, we discover the premium scripture places upon both.  For instance, 1/5 of the 31,000 verses of the Bible deal with prophecy or Divine statements about the future.  Of those more than 800 prophecies, 1/3 of those focus upon the most important theme in prophecy - Christ's return. 

On the prayer side of things we find over 600 recorded prayers in the Word of God.  Prayer is such a huge theme in the Bible.  In Genesis 4:26 we see prayer first mentioned, with Revelation 21:20 being the last prayer of the Bible.  In that final prayer of the Bible, we find the combinations of prophecy and prayer in these words: "He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus."

Prayer needs hope, and prophecy gives us the Hope
The Holy Ghost speaks these words through Paul in Titus 2:13 - "looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus".  Prayer by its very nature is wrestling to know God, hear God and invite God to be front and center in our thoughts and situations.  If anything, prayer needs hope - for often we find ourselves praying for people or situations where hope is in short supply.  It seems that scripture intentionally connects prayer and prophecy together to infuse our prayer lives with the Hope - Christ.  With prayer being possible because of Christ's first coming, and prophecy focusing us upon His second coming, it is clear why both need to be together. 

Contending for the heritage of biblical authority

Jude 1:3b - "I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints"

How scripture's unique authority as the inerrant Word of God been contended for by the historic church? To see a specific example, we will quickly journey through the Baptist movement in general, and Southern Baptists in particular, to discover how God's people have contended for the "faith once and for delivered to the saints" in the realm of biblical authority. 

The heritage of the Baptist Movement and its view on Biblical Authority
From the early centuries of the Christian church, various groups with similar beliefs to Baptists existed.  All of them espoused belief in the sole authority of scripture in determining how  Christians drew conclusions from experience, reason and others sources of authority.  How did earlier "Baptists" come to express this principle of "sola scriptura" (scripture alone) and how does Southern Baptist life connect into the historic Christian view of Scripture's authority?

1. The 1689 London Baptist Confession on the authority of the Bible - It alone is sufficient
Although historic doctrinal statements are secondary sources of authority, it is important to see how doctrines have developed and are consistent in the history of God's people.  In this early Baptist Confession of faith, we see this statement on the scriptures: "The Holy Scripture is the only sufficient, certain, and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience, although the light of nature, and the works of creation and providence do so far manifest the goodness, wisdom, and power of God, as to leave men inexcusable; yet are they not sufficient to give that knowledge of God and his will which is necessary unto salvation."  

2. The 1723 Philadelphia Baptist Confession on the authority of the Bible - It alone is sufficient
When the Baptists came to America, most of them arrived to our shores with a familiarity of the 1689 confession.  At Philadelphia in 1742, Baptists articulated what they believed and formulated what was termed:  "The Philadelphia Baptist Confession". In it's article on the scriptures, they retained the identical wording of the 1689 confession.

3. The 1833 New Hampshire Confession - an important link to Southern Baptists
By 1833 Baptists in America existed in several different groupings.  In the New England area the Baptist Churches felt it necessary to state their doctrinal beliefs in the "New Hampshire Confession of Faith".  This document would be the forerunner to the "Baptist Faith and Message of 1925" (a Southern Baptist Doctrinal Statement).  The New Hampshire Confession still advocated the principle of sola scriptura: (The Bible is) "the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions should be tried."  The New Hampshire confession also advocated in writing that had been held by historic Baptist groups - namely the belief in biblical inerrancy.

4. The 1925 Baptist Faith and Message
When the Southern Baptists formed in 1845, they did not have a unified doctrinal statement.  Southern Baptists have typically treated their statements of faith as "summaries" of what they believe.  In 1925 the Southern Baptist Convention adopted what was termed "The Baptist Faith and message 1925".  Its statement on scripture still advocated the Reformation principle of sola scriptura.  Southern Baptists continued the emphasis of stating the Bible's character of inerrancy as the reason why it alone was the believer's authority.  You can see this by going to the Southern Baptist Website (sbc.net) and comparing the 1925 Baptist Faith and Message.

5. The 1963 and 2000 Baptist Faith and Message
By 1963 the Southern Baptists felt the need to issue an updated version of the Baptist Faith and message.  By retaining much of the same wording on the article of biblical authority, they added the following statement: "The criterion by which the Bible is to be interpreted is Jesus Christ."  As the Denomination went through battles over Biblical inerrancy in the 70's, 80's and 90's, many leaders and pastors felt that a more emphatic statement needed to be made.  In 2000 the convention adopted the current Baptist Faith and Message, changing the wording on the article of scripture in the last part to: "All Scripture is a testimony to Christ, who is Himself the focus of divine revelation." This change identified Christ as the "central focus" of the Bible's message, while re-emphasizing the historic belief in inerrancy as the chief characteristic behind the Bible's authority.

In Summary - Southern Baptists have never stopped believing in Sola Scriptura nor valuing biblical inerrancy
This quick summary serves to demonstrate where Southern Baptist have stood in light of the historic Christian church's belief on the absolute authority of the Bible.  I would also add that in order to continue in that tradition, we must never abandon the belief in the Bible's inerrancy - since inerrancy is the main trait demonstrating the Bible to be Divinely inspired.  As long as Christians continue to prize the Bible as uniquely sufficient in all matters of eternity and life, they will continue to "contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints." 

The Christian's Thermostat - Sola Scriptura

Titus 2:15 These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority. Let no one disregard you.

What is the Christian's authority for eternity and daily decision making?  In the passage above, the Apostle Paul is urging a young Pastor by the name of Titus to exhort and reprove with "all authority".  The "authority" in question cannot be in reference to the pastor nor the office he occupies.  There is only one authority that covers every area of life in the church and life - namely the scriptures.  

When confusion arose over the Christian's main authority  
In the period where the Roman Catholicism had developed its heirarchy of Priests, Bishops and Popes, the underlying assumption was that they were the final authority on matters of Eternity and life in the church.  Called "The Majesterium" (Latin for "those who teach) by Roman Catholic theology, the idea was that no one could interpret the Bible for themselves, and that the Majesterium were the only ones qualified to hear "God's voice as He spoke through both the Bible and Church tradition".  In short, the Catholic church of the Middle Ages had adopted a "dual-source" theory for understanding matters of life and eternity through both Scripture and Church Tradition. 

The Movement that got back to the authority of the Bible
On October 31, 1517 a monk by the name of Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses or reasons of protest to a church door in Wittenburg Germany that opposed what He deemed abuses done by the Roman Catholic Church.  Over time, this movement, called "The Protestant Reformation", spread through Europe and used the little Latin phrase "sola scriptura" or "The Bible Alone" to capture the priority of the Bible as the supreme authority for the believer. 

What Sola Scriptura does not mean
When people hear that I advocate the Bible as the final authority on matters of faith, practice, life and eternity, they may think that I only read the Bible and ignore other books or ignore the historic teaching of the church.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  When Martin Luther was advocating "Sola Scriptura" (Bible Alone), he was not ignoring the historic teaching of the Christian church nor ignoring other resources such as reason or experience.  If anything, He was returning back to the original teaching of Christ and the Apostles.  He was stating that the Bible alone is the only type of authority that can bind the human conscience.  Without excluding other types of authority, sola scriptura asserts the Bible to be the final authority by which all others are measured.     

What Sola Scriptura does mean
This important principle explains the Bible's relationship to secondary but still important sources of authority that Christians use everyday.  Two terms have been used to unfold the meaning of this principle.  The Bible is first described as the "Norming Norm", meaning "The measurer of all other measurements".  Then the Bible is secondly described as the "First Norm among all other Norms" meaning "The Chief Measurement among all other measurements". 

In other words, the Bible is the standard against which other authorities like reason or experience or Church doctrinal statements are determined.  Also too, the Bible is to be understood as never being separated from those other sources of authority.  I clearly need to use my God-given reasoning abilities to aid in my study of scripture while hearing the Spirit of God speak through their words.  Likewise I need experience to see how well I am applying the scriptures.  With that said, the Bible is still the main authority which judges the conclusions of reason and events of experience.

Illustrating sola scripture - The Bible is a thermostat, other authorities are just thermometers
If we may use the difference between a thermometer and a thermostat, the thermometer functions like other sources of authority (reason, experience, tradition, science, etc).  They tell me information about various aspects about truth and life and and are vital in the process of making daily decisions.  A thermostat on the other hand is a regulator, it changes the climate of things and can influence me to stick around or go another direction.  That's how the Bible functions - it alone can convert the human heart (1 Peter 1:23) and provide binding authority that influences how I ultimately act and live. (Psalm 119:105)  It doesn't merely tell me about aspects of truth - it is God's truth. 

Being that a thermostat works in conjunction with a thermometer, both are needed - however it is clear which one is the determining authority on all matters in the room - the thermostat.  May we come to appreciate the Bible as the Christian's Thermostat through this important concept of sola scriptura (scripture alone)

Jesus Christ 1,2,3 - His Three Offices

Hebrews 7:26 For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens;

In this final part of our short blog series: "Jesus Christ 1,2,3", we have taken a quick tour of the person and work of Christ.  We have used the simple outline of Jesus Christ being One person, having two natures occupying three offices.  Today's blog will deal with the three offices in which Jesus Christ is occupying.

As Prophet - He reveals God to His people
Hebrews 1:1-3 tells us that Jesus Christ is the exact radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His being.  As Prophet He reveals God to His people.  By virtue of His glorified humanity He can communicate who God is by the Holy Spirit through the scriptures.  By virtue of His Deity, He is the exact picture of who God is and is pointed to by the Holy Spirit through the scriptures.

As Priest - He represents the people before His Heavenly Father
As we saw in the opening verse of today's blog, He is the believer's representative.  As our High Priest, He is able to mediate between God and man due to the fact He is both God and man. (1 Timothy 2:5; 1 John 2:1-2) 

As King, He rules over His people and reigns supreme
By being exalted above the Heavens, Jesus Christ as the Eternal Son reigns over His church and in an inaugurated way, over this world. (Ephesians 2).  Once He returns, His Kingdom will manifest as an earthly one for 1,000 years.  Then once He hands over all things to His Father, he will ever reign as King over His people. (Revelation 21-22)

How Christ's three-fold offices relate to the Christian life
In this blog site the aim is to provide growing Christian resources for the Christian life that is practical, doctrinal and supernatural.  These three traits are the most fundamental way of describing the Christian walk.  The Christian life cannot be defined apart from Jesus Christ.  When I consider Christ as my King, practically I am to submit myself to Him, doctrinally I acknowledge His claims on my life and supernaturally His Kingdom is a reality operating in my heart and one that is yet to come.  

When I consider Christ as my prophet, practically I turn to the scriptures to understand what He has to say, supernaturally I can hear Him through the scriptures and doctrinally build my understanding of Him upon the word of God.  Then with Christ being as the believer's High Priest, I practically serve with other saints as a kingdom of priests, representing Christ; supernaturally I seek God through His ministry and  doctrinally I know that Christ is the only mediator between God and man. (1 Timothy 2:5)  

Jesus Christ 1,2,3 - Human and Divine

1 Timothy 3:16a "And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh...."

Yesterday we began considering who Jesus Christ is by considering Him as "One Person".  We used a simple little phrase to aid us in summarizing who Jesus Christ is: One person, having two natures occupying three offices.  Today we want to focus on that second part: namely that Jesus Christ as One Person has "two natures".

What is a nature?
Nature in this discussion refers to how a being expresses its existence.  So for instance my dog Rica, has the "nature" of a little dog.  She wags her tail a mile a minute, yaps and can dig holes the size of teacups.  Her "nature" is how she expresses her existence.  I have a "human nature" - I get tired, hungry and can be only in one place at one time.  All creatures express their existence in one way - through a "creaturely nature".  The Triune God expresses Himself in an infinite, unlimited way or "Divine Nature".    By "Divine Nature", we mean that God can be more than one place at one time and that He has no beginning nor end. 

Jesus Christ has two ways of expression or "two natures"
As the opening passage of today's blog states: "God was manifest in the flesh".  This language of scripture expresses a truth upon which the Christian church of every age has understood Jesus Christ - that He is God and man.  We can even see this in the two chief names by which we identify God the Son in human flesh: "Jesus" and "Christ".

As Christ He is Divine
As Christ we recognize that God the Son was selected, and voluntarily entered from all eternity to do the will of The Father.  Christ was sent by the Father to be the One who would fully reveal His glory (John 17:4; Psalm 2) and who would come to work redemption (2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 1:2).  As Christ He is the Messiah of Jewish Prophecy - The Divine Savior who would also rule and reign over His people. (2 Samuel 7:13-16; Psalm 2; 45; 89; 110; Revelation 15:12).  Christ Himself spoke of His Divine identity. (John 8:58). 

As God, Christ can be everywhere present (John 3:13); He knows all things, including the fulness and depths of the Divine Hidden nature of God - since He Himself shares fully in the Divine Nature with the Father and Holy Spirit. (John 1:1-18)  He is all-powerful. (Matthew 28:18).  By His resurrection He demonstrated that He is the Living God. (1 Corinthians 15)

As Jesus He became human and still is human
As God the Son, Christ has existed from all eternity as it pertains to His divine nature.  However when He entered from eternity into time, He took upon Himself a second way of expressing His Person, a second nature - a human nature.  He was both predicted and born of a virgin, in Bethlehem over 2012 years ago. (Isaiah 7:14; Micah 5:2-4; Matthew 1:21; Luke 2)  By being named Jesus, He became the human Savior, limiting himself to human weakness without sin. (Philippians 2:5-11; 1 Peter 2:21-24)  As a man he could get hungry, be tempted and get tired.  As a man He went to the cross and died.  His human nature subjected him to living a life of submission to the will of God the Father. 

When He resurrected from the dead, He retained a physical, albeit glorified human body. (John 20).  When He ascended, He still retains His humanity and is situated at the right hand of God the Father as man who is still God. 

Practical considerations for Jesus Christ's two natures
1. When we think of the cross and resurrection
When I speak about Jesus Christ, I need to ask whether I'm referring to Him as it pertains to His Deity, or as it pertains to His humanity.  As it touches His humanity, I can say He died on the cross, was buried in a borrowed tomb and was raised on the third day. As it touches His Deity, His work of redemption was of infinite value. 

2. When we think of prayer
As man He intercedes and represents me as my elder brother. (Hebrews 2)  As God He is able to answer prayer and excercise Sovereignty in answering my prayers. 

3. When we think of the second coming
As the New Adam He is the man from heaven whom I am looking for to return to take back the title deed of earth that Satan had stolen from the original man Adam. (Romans 5:11-21; Revelation 5)  As Eternal God, He will return to set up the Kingdom which His Father promised Him from all eternity, and of which He will put every enemy under His feet and give all things over to Him. (1 Corinthians 15; 2 Peter 3; Revelation 20-22)