It's Time to Pray and Serve God

FEBRUARY 5, 2023 STUDY NOTES ROMANS 1:8-10 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES IT’S TIME TO PRAY AND SERVE GOD INTRODUCTION From these verses we get a picture of the daily life of Paul and his prayer life He was a man with a word of thanks to God regardless of what each day may bring That was true because he was a man who prayed daily, not just for himself but for others We saw in the first verse of this chapter that his desire was to serve God every day of his life We will now see that Paul’s desire was to go everywhere he could with the gospel He believed that it was time for him to go to Rome with the Good News of God Even though he had heard of a faithful group of Christians in Rome he still wanted to go He wanted to go and help to strengthen their daily spiritual life For Paul, to serve God was to tell the lost about Jesus and disciple those who were saved Exactly what our ministry must be today, “IT’S TIME TO PRAY” It is time to be faithful, “IT’S TIME TO SERVE GOD” Rom 1:8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. The “first” thing on Paul’s mind was “I thank my God,” which was continually on Paul’s mind Giving thanks to God for anything and all things is a praise unto God, it is an act of worship, Heb 13:15 By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. (“Continually,” means always for all things) “Giving of thanks” is another manifestation of the Spirit filled life (Eph 5:18) Eph 5:20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Pay close attention to four things in this verse: (1) Always give thanks (2) Give thanks for all things (3) Always give thanks for all things unto God (4) Because of the Person and Work of Jesus Christians can still be thankful to God when they are not happy about things in their life Christians are to always, at-all times, give thanks to God through Christ for “all” things, 1Th 5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Consider the context of that verse, only in a spirit of thanksgiving will you, 1Th 5:16 Rejoice evermore. Will you pray with a faithful heart, 1Th 5:17 Pray without ceasing. Will you walk in obedience to the Holy Spirit, 1Th 5:19 Quench not the Spirit. Will you give your undivided attention to the Word of God, 1Th 5:20 Despise not prophesyings. Will you desire for your life things that are good, 1Th 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. And have no desire for the appearance of evil, 1Th 5:22 Abstain from all appearance of evil. Did you come to church this morning with a thankful heart? Psa 100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. Are you going to leave church this morning with a thankful heart? You will if you are thinking like Paul, I thank “my God,” identifying his personal relationship with God What a privilege, what a blessed truth, I know Him, He is “my God,” and I can call Him “Daddy,” Rom 8:15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. “Abba” is the Aramaic term for “Father,” a word much like our English word “Daddy” “Abba, Father,” identifies a relationship of intimacy, love, care, dependence, and protection Paul’s relationship with God and his prayer life was all on account of the Person and Work of Christ “Through Jesus Christ,” Paul was thankful for what Jesus had done for the saved in Rome We must hear what he said, “for you all,” he was thankful for all of the saved (all are family) Page 1 of 4 Thankful for the results of their salvation, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world “Your faith” not only identifies that they were saved, but refers to the New Life they were living And they were living a faithful Christian life in the city of Rome, a sinful, wicked city (America?) Their faith was “spoken of” which means it was being spread from one place to another “Throughout the whole world” is an expression meaning everywhere I go Their testimony was known throughout the Roman Empire Everywhere Paul went he heard people talking about the believers who lived in Rome The Thessalonians also had a testimony like that, 1Th 1:8 For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing. A challenging question is, “does our church have a testimony of faith throughout the community?” We each one must ask the question, “what is my testimony of faith through the community?” Does our community have something good to say about each of us and our church family? May the pastor of PGBC be known as the preacher who preaches the Word of God without compromise May the members of PGBC be known as those who believe and live the Word of God daily It is time to be faithful, it is time to serve God, it is time to pray for one another--Rom 1:9 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; Paul calls upon God as a “witness” to his faithfulness and spiritual integrity Paul was aware of his words, he knew what he was stating, calling upon God as “my witness” The omniscient, all-knowing God, who judges the thoughts, intentions, and motivations of the heart He wanted to assure them beyond doubt of his sincere desire to serve God and minister to them “Whom I serve with my spirit” The word “serve” can refer to service for God or worship of God Both were a daily part of Paul’s life, and it was difficult to separate the two Paul’s life was a life of service, prayer, and worship on a daily basis Paul did not limit his service for God and his worship of God to a certain time or place (Church Sunday) Sunday was not the only time of Paul’s worship or service unto God Our lives should be lived with the same desire, day after day serving God and worshiping God We need to practice that today because someday it will be that way in Heaven (Praise God) We will serve Him day and night, Rev 7:15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. Nothing will distract us, Rev 22:3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: (What distracts your worship during the week?) Paul said, “I serve with my spirit” which is the true means of worship As Jesus told the Samaritan woman, Joh 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. To worship with the spirit is to worship with your whole being, with your whole heart and soul “With my spirit” means in a spiritual manner and not a natural, carnal, or fleshly nature To serve God and worship God with a sincere mind, a committed will, from the depths of the heart Paul had an inner consciousness of God which allowed him to sincerely serve God, “My God” Paul served with all-of his heart and taught us to do the same thing, Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. (Do you need a spiritual check-up?) Paul was not seeking to be a man-pleaser, his desire was to please God, Eph 6:6 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; His ministry concerned the Gospel of Jesus, nothing was more important “In the gospel of his Son,” the Gospel is the “Good News” concerning God’s Son It is the “gospel of God’s grace,” Act 20:24 But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Page 2 of 4 Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God. It is the “Good News” about the salvation that God provided through “His Son,” Act 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. It is the “gospel of salvation,” Eph 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, It is the “gospel of peace,” Eph 6:15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; How important is the “Gospel?” So important that it must always be accompanied with prayer Paul prayed for those he was going to preach too, he prayed as he preached, he prayed after he preached He prayed for those who had received the gospel of Jesus and had been saved “That without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers” “Without ceasing” does not mean that Paul didn’t do anything but pray But that he was constantly conscious of the importance of prayer and praying for others Paul daily prayed on the behalf of others, that is known as intercessory prayer Intercessory prayer should be a part of our daily prayer life, don’t limit your prayers to selfish “wants” Paul took time to pray for the Ephesians, Eph 1:16 Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; For the Philippians, Php 1:3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Php 1:4 Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For the Colossians, Col 1:3 We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, For the Thessalonians, 1Th 1:2 We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers; For Timothy, 2Ti 1:3 I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day; For Philemon, Phm 1:4 I thank my God, making mention of thee always in my prayers, How could Paul do that? How could Paul spend so much time in prayer praying for others? Well, he didn’t have a T.V., a cell-phone, internet, or face-book, he didn’t even go to Walmart But he did have priorities! Paul practiced what he preached, 1Th 5:17 Pray without ceasing. Paul prayed daily because he was totally dependent upon God and desired God’s will for his life Our prayer life will be strengthened when we realize the outreach and power of prayer We can pray for people that are miles apart from us, even though we cannot see or hear each other Even people that we don’t know, and they don’t know us, prayer spiritually unites all that separates us Sincere prayer that comes from the heart goes directly to God’s heart Then the Spirit touches the heart and life of those we are praying for (Amazing Power of God) The power to speak to people and love people we don’t even know, prayer touches lives, Php 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. Paul gives us a prescription for worry, it will cure worry (What worry did you come to church with?) Paul’s prescription is probably not what the doctor ordered, but it is what God commands us to do The emphasis of the verse is the priority of prayer, you can either pray or worry, it’s your choice Through prayer you are in the presence of the One who has the power to do anything for you or others That is why we are to pray about “everything,” that covers it all, nothing is to be left out Look at the comparison, don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything Peter tells why we must turn it all over to the Lord, 1Pe 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. “Casting” means to hand it all over to God, deposit it all with the Lord, put it all in His hands Then turn it loose, leave it in God’s Hand, the only way to be relieved of the pressure of worry Come before God in a state of humility and freely make your request known with thanksgiving Don’t pray with a heart of greed, pray with a heart of gratitude, Col 4:2 Continue in prayer, and watch in Page 3 of 4 the same with thanksgiving; It is easy to say, “please God,” we must learn to say “thank you God” Is the lack of “power” within the church of today due to the lack of “prayer” within the church of today? What are you going to do this week with the prayer list in our bulletin? Have you even looked at it? Rom 1:10 Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you. Paul had time to pray for himself, but his prayer was not selfish, he prayed to be able to minister to others Paul prayed that his prayer would be answered, his prayer was that he could serve God in Rome “If by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey” He prayed that the day would come when God would allow him to go to Rome His prayer was not only that God would allow Him to go to Rome But that his mission would be fruitful, and his service would be successful Which would be true if his journey would be according to “the will of God” Paul’s prayer was, “By the will of God to come unto you” Which was most important to Paul, he wanted his journey to Rome to be in the will of God I have to call something to your attention concerning the will of God for our life Walking in the will of God does not always mean that we are free of trials and troubles Read Acts 26-28 and you will find the path that Paul traveled to Rome Paul’s journey began by being falsely accused by the Jewish authorities Paul came to Rome as a prisoner after being arrested in the Temple in Jerusalem The ship that Paul was aboard was caught up in a violent storm at sea and shipwrecked When Paul made it to land, he was bitten by a viper, faced winter weather and then came to Rome All of which is probably not what Paul had in mind when he prayed for God to allow him to go to Rome We do not always know what we are asking when we ask for God’s will to be done in our life But God’s will, will always the best for our life and for all that we will come in contact with Throughout Paul’s journey to Rome, he was a continual witness for Christ through it all He shared his personal testimony before the authorities, he presented the truth of the gospel to them God appeared to Paul through an angel and gave a warning concerning the storm they would face at sea He testified that his information was from the God he served, who had promised his safe journey to Rome God healed Paul from the venomous snake bite and Paul healed others by the power of God upon him Paul’s journey on the way to Rome was filled with opportunities to serve God, he did not neglect them Once Paul reached Rome he experienced a prosperous spiritual journey, Act 28:30 And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, (He ministered to them) He was able to do exactly what he had asked God to allow him to do, Act 28:31 Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him. Paul preached the gospel and people were saved, then Paul taught them to live as a Christian should It’s time for the same thing to happen through the ministry of Prairie Grove Baptist Church IT’S TIME TO PRAY IT’S TIME TO SERVE GOD Page 4 of 4