Spiritual Formation
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He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.
The word Christian is used 3 times in the Bible
Two times its used in a condescending sense and one time in reference to suffering.
But the word disciple is used 274 times in the NT. Referring to Jesus followers
Under the umbrella of Christianity you have people who believe they where born Christian, people who prayed a prayer and believed they.
Theres allot of people who trust Christ for there salvation, for eternal redemption. But don’t trust Christ for there mental health.
For there way of life.
Christ is great as my Savior but not as my teacher.
Being a disciple was an identity.
Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.
Luke 11:9 (NKJV)
“So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
We ask for what we wish; we seek for what we miss; we knock for that from which we feel ourselves shut out.
God answers the things that we wish for. God helps us find the things that are lost, and He opens the doors that are shut.
We have triple assurance of success of our believing efforts.
For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
Ask - This passage isn’t saying “you must ask in order to receive” ,but the passage is saying “if you ask you will indeed receive.”
These verse are an invitation to prayer not a order to do so.
When we ask of God we ask with an honest purpose that we will use what He has given us.
Have you ever impulsively brought some that you swore you where gonna use but once you brought it you forgot about it. like a 12 foot beach ball.
Like I’m gonna use it have some fun but then you realize I have to blow it up some how.
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;
When we ask God for wisdom He gives generously.
When God gives generously it means “simple, open, a sincere action,”
His generosity is nondiscriminatory. So its not just reserved for the Pastor but everyone can take advantage of the wisdom that God wants to graciously give.
wisdom is given not just to a particular class of persons within the whole people of God but rather to everyone who belongs to him. However poor, ignorant, mistaken, or confused believers may be, they are commanded to pray for wisdom
Without reproach - He’s not criticizing us.
Or insulting us as he’s giving to us.
Wisdom is given out of God’s generosity and gentleness
The wisdom of God is needed to overcome trails in this present life. The faithfulness of man is not enough.
Seek- Is frequently used to describe seeking after God.
Deuteronomy 4:29 (NKJV)
But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul.
This verse came after God was forbidding Israel from worshipping the creation. Not making Idols about of animals or not looking up to the heavens and seeing the starts and the sun and because of there mystery being incline to worship them.
When we fail to seek the Lord the alternative is to look up and worship the universe and the thing's we see around us.
When you hear celebrities saying I thank the universe this isn’t new this is a form of pagan worship.
Isaiah 55:6 (NKJV)
Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.
To seek Gods face is to pray.
We seek not to look for something lost but to come with diligence to where the Lord is to be found
Knock- Knock means we knock at the gates of mercy and we find that they were opened to us.
You do not have to storm the gate of heaven to get God to answer your prayer. God has not gone to bed. The door is wide open and He says, “Knock, seek, and ask.” Take everything to God in prayer, and He will give you His very best.
If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish?
Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?
A real father wont give you anything to hurt you .
So how much more will our heavenly Father give us what we need.
Maybe from a distance a stone could look like bread, but up close its not.
Maybe from a distance a snack could look like a fish but up close its not
Maybe from a distance a scorpion could look like a egg but up close its not.
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 who ask Him!”