November 8, 2018
Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living
I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.
(1 Timothy 2:1-2 (NIV))
It would be so nice to live in peace with all people!
Unfortunately, human history has a track record of exactly opposite of this desire. Once sin was introduced into the world, we have been at each other’s throats nonstop. Adam turned on Eve and placed the blame solely on her. Eve turned to the serpent and placed the blame on him. Cain turned on Abel and killed him because God accepted Abel’s offering and not his own. Ever since then, all of human history has been the never ending story of one group of people trying to control other groups of people. If you stop to think about this, it is actually the power of the enemy to influence one group of people to do harm to another group of people.
There is something about human nature that longs to be in control, to be in charge, to be able to enforce their will over the will of others. Satan knows this and uses this to his advantage. We have appointed people to be in positions of authority. Some people have gone so far as to kill others to end up in positions of authority. All throughout human history, we have had slavery. The conqueror enslaves the conquered. Sin is rampant!
Sinful human nature all too often prevails. People still become violent if they do not get their way!
With all of this history, Jesus came to break that trend and to offer us a new future. We don’t have to turn to anger and bitterness. We don’t have to control. We don’t have to get angry and wage war. We were not created to live in that manner. We were created to live in a loving fellowship with each other and with the Lord. We can live peaceful and quiet lives!
It starts with proclaiming that Jesus is your personal Lord and Savior. It matures through prayer and study. It continues to mature as we become more and more like Jesus.
Think about that last sentence!
When Jesus was facing crucifixion, what did He do?
He prayed!
He prayed for those who were entrusted to Him. When He was on the cross, He prayed for the Father to forgive those who crucified Him. He realized that the power behind the events of the world were not human, but were actually works of the enemy. When He prayed, and when we pray for those in authority, the enemy is bound! Only when the enemy has been bound can we live in peace!
We must pray for the enemy to be bound!
Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Posted by dailylivingministries
November 2, 2012
Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©
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.
(1 Timothy 2:1-2 (NIV))
No matter what the outcome of the elections, this should be the prayer of every believer. We should pray for just what as we are told. We should pray for all of those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.
Unfortunately, our society and our world is far from peaceful and quiet. Godliness and holiness seem to be fading from public view. These have been replaced with self-centeredness, greed and lust for power. Gone are the days when people could disagree about things and still be friends. We are becoming a divided society and a divided world.
What caused this division?
Did we wake up one morning and it had changed overnight? We let it happen gradually. We didn’t even see it coming. We can fix the problem. We can pray for those in authority. We can pray for peace. We can pray that God will be allowed back into our public lives.
Regardless of the outcome of the elections, we can pray!
if my people, who are called by my name, will 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.
(2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV))
God calls us to pray. He calls us to pray for our leaders. He calls us to pray for our country. He calls us to pray for godliness and holiness. Voting is important, but we are called to do more than vote. We, as the Body of Christ, are called to pray for those in authority.
How often do you answer that call?
Copyright 1998 – 2012 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Posted by dailylivingministries
Daily Living Ministries 