DAY 7 — PRAYING GOD’S PROMISES
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7)
Impossible Victories Become Possible
Jesus redeemed us so “that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith” (Galatians 3:14). But how do we build faith in what He has promised? How should we pray so that we are sure of being filled with the Holy Spirit? How does a revived heart lead to real-life Christian maturity?
For many years I knew about a devotional practice called “praying with promises,” but for a long time I did not practice it. When I discovered the blessings of praying God’s promises, I wanted to share with others. Several years ago, I wrote a book called Steps to Personal Revival, which includes a chapter about how praying Scripture is the key to practical Christian experience. Some readers sent these testimonies:
“I never thought I would find such new knowledge about prayer — praying based on God’s promises, as you explained. In the meantime, God has given me victories in my life that I never thought possible.”
“Since I learned to pray with promises, my life has been transformed. . . My wife has noticed a complete change in me. Also, I’m surprised at myself.”
Try It Yourself
What does it mean to pray with promises? We choose a Bible promise or command and pray those words back to God. We rely on Him to do as He
promised. We allow Him to guide our prayers and speak to us through His Word. And if we feel doubt — as everyone does at times — we point to the promises and claim them as God’s personal guarantee. As we fill our hearts and prayers with Scripture, our faith is strengthened and we come to know God’s mind as never before. Ellen White writes,
“To blot the promises of God from the Word would be like blotting the sun from the sky. ... God has placed the promises in His Word to lead us to have faith in Him. In these promises He draws back the veil from eternity” (My Life Today, p. 338).
The Bible offers clear guidance for our prayers. First, we are told to make our requests in the name of Jesus: “If you ask anything in My name, I will do it” (John 14:14). God also gives a general promise that He answers prayers that areaccording to His will: “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us” (1 John 5:14,15). God reveals His will in the commands and promises of the Bible, and we can rely on Him to do what He has promised. Verse 15 goes on: “And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.”
What does that mean? When we pray for something that we know is according to God’s will, He is already answering at the same moment. We may not see visible results yet. And usually we don’t notice anything emotionally. But our prayers are answered by faith, not by our feelings. The feelings will follow later, but for now, we trust the promise.‘
For example, I have learned something when praying with people addicted to alcohol and nicotine. At the moment they pray for deliverance, they do* not notice anything. They received the deliverance by faith and at that moment our dear Lord started to work. They did not pray a second time.* But a few hours later they noticed they don’t have the old craving for drinking or tobacco. At this moment, they have received the practical deliverance requested in the prayer.
Ellen White also offers insights on praying with promises.
“[God] is well pleased when they make the very highest demands upon Him, that they may glorify His name. They may expect large things if they have faith in His promises” (The Desire of Ages, p. 668). “Plead for the Holy Spirit. God stands back of every promise He has made. With your Bible in your hands say, I have done as Thou hast said. I present Thy promise, ‘Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you’ (Matthew 7:7)” (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 147).
Jesus promises, “Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them (in faith), and you will have them (in practice)” (Mark 11:24). Are you praying His promises every day? When we pray in His name and according to His will, all heaven is moved!
Praying God’s Word
God is waiting to give us the Holy Spirit.
“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!” (Luke 11:13).
„But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (John 7:39).
“And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him.” (Acts 5:32)
Father, we read that You will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask You, to those who believe in You, and to those who obey You. This is our desire. Please accomplish this in our lives, for we cannot do it ourselves. Thank You for pouring Your love into our hearts.
He invites us to be filled with the Spirit.
“Be filled with the Spirit” or “let yourself be continually and repeatedly refilled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18, paraphrase).
Dear Father, teach us to ask continually and repeatedly for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. We don’t want to lack the Spirit like the foolish virgins. Fill us with the wisdom found in Your Word.
Questions for Personal Thinking and Devotion
When we claim promises in prayer, why can we expect this prayer to be answered?
What am I saying to God when I have claimed a promise in prayer and don’t expect it to be answered?
What are the two categories of promises? What is the difference between these two groups?
List a few promises dealing with the Holy Spirit.
Why don’t we need to have any reservations about using a written prayer?
What are the results of claiming promises in prayer?
A suggestion: study the two key passages for claiming promises in prayer in different Bible translations. (1 John 5:14.15 and 2 Peter 1:3.4)
DAY 6 — GOD’S SOLUTION TO OUR STRUGGLE
“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.” (Luke 9:23,24)
Two Secrets for Lasting Revival
Jesus offers a solution for carnal Christians who want to become spiritual Christians. He says, “Remain joined to me, just as I also remain joined to you” (John 15:4, NIrV). In other words, “Abide in Me.” But how? Ellen White says that abidingin Christ means,
“a constant receiving of His Spirit” and
“a life of unreserved surrender to His service” (The Desire of Ages, p. 676)
This two-part divine solution leads not only to revival but also to a happy Christian life. Why? Jesus said, “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11). By taking these two steps, we experience “Christ in you,” or His presence in our everyday lives, and that means we share the hope of His glory (Colossians 1:27).
The crucial point: We daily ask for and receive by faith the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and we daily surrender everything we have and are to Jesus Christ. He provides the joy!
On Day 1 we talked about how important it is to ask for the Holy Spirit, and on Day 3 we studied our need for surrender. Today we’ll take another look at these two steps — with a special focus on our need to ask and surrender daily.
Why Should We Ask Daily for the Holy Spirit?
Years ago I read the story of a gangster who converted to Christ. He whole heartedly confessed his perjury, theft, and other crimes, and as a result he experienced a tremendous divine intervention. God completely turned his life around.
This impressed me. I said to myself, I’m doing fine in most ways, but I don’t have experiences like that. So I prayed, “Lord, I also want to confess all my known sins and the sins You have yet to show me. In addition, I will get up an hour earlier each day to pray and read the Bible. I want to see if You will also intervene in my life.”
Praise God, He did intervene in my life! Not because I earned some merit by getting up early but because I daily placed myself where the Holy Spirit could reach me. If a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit was a daily necessity for Jesus on this earth, how much more do we need this power? Paul writes about the inward man “being renewed day by day,” and he prays that God’s people would be “strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man” (2 Corinthians 4:16 and Ephesians 3:16). And Ellen White offers this hope: “The Lord is more willing to give the Holy Spirit to those who serve Him than parents are to give good gifts to their children. For the daily baptism of the Spirit every worker should offer hispetition to God” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 50). Our “inward person” needs daily care.
Why Should We Surrender Daily to Jesus?
Trying to help His disciples understand the sacrificial nature of discipleship, Jesus told them, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his crossdaily, and follow Me” (Luke 9:23). To deny self means giving Jesus control over our lives each day. The apostle Paul explains it like this: “I die daily” (1 Corinthians 15:31). That means: his life is also renewed every day.
As humans we resist surrender, forgetting that “when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10). We receive physical life at birth, but we still eat every day to maintain life and* health. We receive spiritual life when we are born again, but we still need daily spiritual food or we will die. Just as we cannot eat our meals ahead of time, neither can we surrender to Christ for tomorrow. Ellen White writes, “However complete may have been our consecration at conversion, it will avail us nothing unless it be renewed daily” (Our Father Cares, p. 144).
How to Get Started
The best way — and only way — to daily receive the Holy Spirit and surrender to Jesus is by having daily personal worship. Unless we choose God each day, our promises and good intentions are like “ropes of sand” (Steps to Christ, p. 47). Will you commit today to sharing the best part of your day with Him? “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
Praying God’s Word
Remain in the best relationship there is.
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. ... If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you” (John 15:4, 7).
Lord, thank You for growing our trust when we daily surrender to You. Lead us to know the Holy Spirit better. Let Your desires be our desires.
Live in the best relationship every day.
“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me” (Luke 9:23).
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33, NIV).
Dear Lord, teach us to put You first in everything. Show us how to begin each day with You.
Questions for Personal Thinking and Devotion
1. What steps are important in order to abide in Jesus?
2. Why is daily surrender to Jesus necessary?
3. Why should you daily pray to be filled again by the Holy Spirit?
4. Why is daily worship / quiet time with God so important?
DAY 5 — SPIRITUAL OR CARNAL: WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?
“But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16).
Our Link to Heaven
Before defining spiritual and carnal Christians, we need to remember that we’re not talking about “sinners” and “non-sinners.” All people, spiritual and carnal alike, are sinners in need of a Savior. Our only righteousness comes from Him. Instead, the criterion for inclusion in one group or the other is our personal relationship with the Holy Spirit. God has stipulated that we cannot sever our relationship with the Holy Spirit without damaging our connection to heaven (Matthew 12:32). Ellen White explains, “he who rejects the work of the Holy Spirit is placing himself where repentance and faith cannot come to him. It is by the Spirit that God works upon the heart” (The Desire of Ages, p. 322).
And it’s worth repeating: the only person I should be evaluating as spiritual or carnal is myself. God can work in other hearts and doesn’t need me to pin labels on fellow church members. The good news is that if I’m disappointed by what Hereveals in my heart, He can change me starting today!
The Spiritual Church Member
The spiritual person is a truly converted Christian. Although born a sinner, he is called “spiritual” because he has a living and growing relationship with the Holy Spirit. The apostle Paul writes, “But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet hehimself is rightly judged by no one. For ‘who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him? ’But we have the mind [Spirit] of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:15,16).
Jesus is the center of the spiritual person’s life and reigns in his heart and determines his priorities. The spiritual person has committed himself completely to Jesus and asks continuously for the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13). In the context of Laodicea, the spiritual person could be called “hot” (Revelation 3:15). In the parable of the 10 virgins, she could be called “wise” (Matthew 25:2-4). The spiritual person experiences life “more abundantly” (John 10:10) and is filled with “all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19).
He rejoices that he has been “saved through faith” (Ephesians 2:8). Although the spiritual person faces setbacks and temptations, but much less than before (Rom 8:1.2; Gal 5:16; 1 John 5:18), he fixes his eyes on Jesus.
The Carnal Church Member
A carnal person might have an apparent or a feigned or divided relationship with God. He might be quietly indifferent to the Holy Spirit or even openly rebellious. Here’s what the apostle Paul has to say: “And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men? For when one says, ‘I am of Paul,’ and another, ‘I am of Apollos,’ are you not carnal?” (1 Corinthians 3:1-4).
Here we conclude that the defining factor must be our relationship with the Holy Spirit. Carnal describes a person who lives by the flesh; that is, by normal human strength, not by the Holy Spirit. And the greatest tragedy is that he hasn’t chosen to receive eternal life (Romans 8:9).
Paul addressed the carnal people as “brethren,” which shows they were church members. He couldn’t call them “spiritual” because they weren’t sufficiently filled with the Holy Spirit. They hadn’t grown in faith as they should have. It’s possible to be a church member for many years and still be a carnal Christian. It’s possible to have biblical knowledge and still not mature spiritually. Many carnal Christians feel dissatisfaction, disappointment, or lack of purpose in their spiritual lives. Some are apathetic and say, “We’re just sinners. We can’t do anything about it.”
Other carnal Christians are enthusiastic and active, perhaps proud of their important positions in the church. Sadly, Jesus says, “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Yourname, and done many wonders in Your name? ’And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” (Matthew 7:22,23). What was the problem? They had no real personal relationship with Jesus and no living connection with the Holy Spirit.
If you find that you are a carnal Christian at the moment, take heart! You have the possibility of new life starting right now. Many carnal Christians are in this condition unknowingly, and you may already be praying for a deeper faith experience. Jesus desires “that your joy may be full” (John 15:11), and He invites you to rest in the solid hope of eternal life.
Praying God’s Word
If we are carnal, there is hope.
“And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?” (1 Corinthians 3:1-3).
Dear Lord, thank You for including “still” in this text, for it reminds us that we don’t have to remain in this situation. We want You to change us today. Thank You that envy, strife, and divisions are healed when we live in the Holy Spirit.
Are we asking with carnal motives?
“You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures” (James 4:2,3, NIV).
Father, we live in spiritual poverty because we do not ask, or we ask with selfish, human motives. Please transform our prayers and guide us by the Holy Spirit.
Questions for Personal Thinking and Devotion
What is the central problem with carnal Christianity?
What can happen when we try to do something that is beyond our strength?
What factors can lead to carnal Christianity?
Why pray for the Holy Spirit, when I already received Him at my baptism?
DAY 4 — PUTTING REVIVAL INTO PRACTICE
“Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.” (James 4:2,3)
Picture the Possibilities
Imagine that someone gives a revival sermon in your church. With a final appeal, the preacher invites listeners to accept Jesus and follow Him always. Maybe no one responds. Maybe a few. Maybe many. Since God created humans with free choice, we cannot take credit for how others respond to an invitation. Still, when many accept God’s message and put it into practice — whether because of public preaching, personal Bible studies, friendship evangelism, or divinely appointed surprises — then our witness is clearly successful. This kind of effectiveness is a gift of the Holy Spirit. We stand back — amazed — and watch God perform miracles.
But too often our Christian lives are less than effective. This doesn’t mean our church programs and outreach plans are in vain. The Lord has surely blessed — as far as possible — our sincere human efforts. But how much greater could our experience be if we received the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit? Only God knows the possibilities!
Preacher Henry T. Blackaby writes, “He will accomplish more in six months through a people yielded to Him than we could in sixty years in our own strength and wisdom” (Blackaby, Experiencing God, p. 108, revised edition).
Praying for revival is essential, but we can’t stop there. I invite you to take the necessary steps to actually experience personal revival. With God’s blessing, your life can become more powerful and fulfilling than ever before. Your home and church can also experience new life.
What’s Missing?
First, some questions: What is the center of all our problems? Is it spiritual? Could our lack of the Holy Spirit lie at the root of our lukewarm Christian experience? If the answer is yes, then why do we lack the Holy Spirit in our lives?
The Bible’s answer: “Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures” (James 4:2,3).
As we learned in the reading for Day 1, God invites us to continually ask for the Holy Spirit in our lives. “Why do we not hunger and thirst for the gift of the Spirit, since this is the means by which we are to receive power? Why do we not talk of it, pray for it, preach concerning it?” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8, p. 22).
James also suggests that we do not receive when we “ask amiss.” Perhaps he means that God cannot bless when our minds are set on “things of the flesh.”
Paul explains, “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:5,6). What is the “carnal mind” that Paul speaks of? Actually, God’s Word describes three groups of people and their relationship toHim. Within each group are many variations depending on parental training, inherited character, self-control, age, culture, education, and so on. But despite these differences, we find just three basic groups: the “natural” or “worldly” man, the “spiritual” or “spirit-filled” man, and the “carnal” man or person “of the flesh.”
These three groups are described in 1 Corinthians 2:14-16 and 3:1-4. For now, we’ll just mention natural man in passing; he lives in the world and does not yet have a relationship with God.
Church members belong to the other two groups, and a quick glance at each description will help reveal where the problem is mainly hidden. The question is, which group do I belong to? A brief examination should help with self-diagnosis— keeping in mind that we want to look at our own lives, not the lives of others! What kind of person are you?
Natural: Has no relationship with God. He “does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him” (1 Corinthians 2:14).
Spiritual: Has a full, genuine relationship with God. When we are spiritual, “we have the mind [Spirit] of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:16).
Carnal: Has an apparent,* feigned or divided relationship with God. “And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:1).
Praying God’s Word
The Holy Spirit directs our thoughts.
“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit” (Romans 8:5, ESV).
Father, we know that we are either under the influence of our flesh or the Holy Spirit. Please help us to become* spiritual Christians and set our minds on the things of the Spirit.
We are no longer at the mercy of our lusts.
“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16).
Lord, thank You that the Holy Spirit breaks the power of sin in our lives. Please grow the fruit of the Spirit in our hearts. We thank You for this wonderful promise.
The Spirit delivers us from condemnation.
“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1,2).
Father, what a blessing to know that the bondage of sin is broken when we live in the Holy Spirit. Thank You that Christ took our guilt upon Himself and freed us from sin and death.
Questions Personal Thinking and Meditation
What is probably the cause for the lack of the Holy Spirit? (James 4:2)
What reason does James mention for why we are not heard despite requests? (James 4:3)
There are three groups of people that are defined by their relationship with God. What are the characteristics of each group?
The natural person: ________________________________
The carnal person: _________________________________
The spiritual person: _______________________________
DAY 3 — SURRENDER IS THE KEY
“Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” (Romans 12:1, NIV)
My Journey
I was a businessman, age 36, when a friend who was a pastor suddenly passed away at age 41. This brought the question to my mind: What would happen if God called me to be a pastor? I did not want this at all. For a whole week I fought bitterly and negotiated with God—morning, noon, and night. I explained to Him how I could serve Him other ways. Apparently He was not hearing my objections, and as I knelt by my bed with no further arguments, a quiet thought entered my mind: God loves you! And I thought, Yes, I believe this. After a few minutes, trust in God’s love led me to completely surrender myself. Then I was at peace. And one and a half years later, the Lord did call me to become a pastor. Years later, I am still so grateful to Him. It was His endless love and wisdom that showed me a completely different way than what I had in mind. Now I see that this surrender released great blessings in my life. God led me the best possible way.
Why Surrender?
As Garrie F. Williams writes, “Full surrender is the key to salvation, to rebirth, to victory over sin and temptation, and to fullness of the Holy Spirit” (How to be Filled With the Holy Spirit and Know It). We cannot emphasize this encouraging message enough. Just as I had to surrender before God could fully use me, so the apostle Paul had to give up his old life and plans when God called him on the road to Damascus. In his letter to the Romans, Paul later urged believers to “offer your bodies as a living sacrifice” and “offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness” (Romans 12:1; 6:13, NIV).
Many have not surrendered themselves to God (often out of ignorance) but instead have taken their lives into their own hands. They lack the power of the Holy Spirit, which is the gift that brings forth all of God’s other gifts. “But like every other promise, it is given on conditions. There are many who believe and profess to claim the Lord’s promise; they talk about Christ and about the Holy Spirit, yet receive no benefit. They do not surrender the soul to be guided and controlled by the divine agencies” (The Desire of Ages, p. 672).
As humans we resist giving up our freedom, but God’s desire for us is the opposite: “God desires to heal us, to set us free. But since this requires an entire transformation, a renewing of our whole nature, we must yield ourselves wholly to Him” (Steps to Christ, p. 43). A life of sin is not as free as we like to imagine. “Every soul that refuses to give himself to God is under the control of another power. He is not his own. He may talk of freedom, but he is in the most abject slavery. He is not allowed to see the beauty of truth, for his mind is under the control of Satan. While he flatters himself that he is following the dictates of his own judgment, he obeys the will of the prince of darkness. Christ came to break the shackles of sin-slavery from the soul” (The Desire of Ages, p. 466). What do we lose by surrendering to Christ? He is able to free us from the tyranny of ourselves — from envy, resentment, quarrelsomeness, greed, addiction, anger, pride, conceit, discouragement, inferiority complexes, and more. Remember, every human being is his or her own biggest problem. You are your own biggest problem. “In the change that takes place when the soul surrenders to Christ, there is the highest sense of freedom” (The Desire of Ages, p. 466).
But a potter can only work with the clay that is in his hands. That’s why we offer ourselves to God. “The surrender of all our powers to God greatly simplifies the problem of life. It weakens and cuts short a thousand struggles with the passions of the natural heart” (My Life Today, p. 6).
Only surrender leads to lasting joy. “Those who take Christ at His word, and surrender their souls to His keeping, their lives to His ordering, will find peace and quietude. Nothing of the world can make them sad when Jesus makes them gladby His presence. In perfect acquiescence there is perfect rest” (The Desire of Ages, p. 331). He invites you today to experience that perfect rest!
Praying God’s Word
Make us instruments of Your love.
“Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness” (Romans 6:13, NIV).
Lord, we want to give You every part of our lives. Use us as instruments for Your glory.
Make our lives an act of worship.
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God — this is your true and proper worship” (Romans 12:1, NIV).
Father, thank You so much for inviting us to become new creations. Show us how to surrender daily to You without any restrictions. Help us follow you in all things by Your strength.
Protect us from the evil one.
“We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him” (1 John 5:18, ESV).
Lord, thank You for promising to protect us from the evil one when we are surrendered to You. Lead us on Your path to perfect joy.
Personal Thoughts and Discussion Guide
Which challenge is behind the divine invitation to surrender my life?
What can hinder someone from surrender? What could it be for you?
Which advantages does a life under divine navigation have?
What is crucial to keeping my relationship with Christ intact and intimate?
What is a vital controlling factor in our life?
DAY 2 — GRASPING THE GIFT
“How wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ”
Ephesians 3:18, NIV
Receive, Surrender, Grow
How can we experience the fullness of God’s love?
Read what the apostle Paul says in Ephesians 3:14-21 (NIV).
1. First, we need to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being” (verse 16).
2. Next, we surrender our lives to Christ and live in a close, continual relationship with Him “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith” (verse 17).
3. Then our faith grows and matures through Christ and the Holy Spirit in us. We are “rooted and established in love” (verse 17).
The result? We experience the fullness of God’s love. He gives us the power “together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” (verse 18).
God’s Love Passes Every Test
Consider the parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11-32. One day the younger son went to his father (who symbolizes God) and declared that he wanted to leave home and live his own life. Evidently his father’s household rules (God’s commandments) didn’t suit him. The son demanded his inheritance, which he wasn’t even entitled to at that time, but the father gave him his portion. The father gave him complete freedom because he loved him and respected his choice (just as God does with us).
Then the son journeyed to a faraway place and proceeded to spend his money on wild parties and loose women. As the money dwindled, his circle of “friends” became smaller, and eventually he had nothing left. To make matters worse, a famine hit the region where he lived. Desperate to survive, he looked for work, but the only position he found was working as a swineherd. Hunger tormented him, but he wasn’t even allowed to eat the pig feed. As often happens during hardships, he began to consider his life. He realized all of his father’s workmen had enough to eat while he was starving, so he vowed to return to his father and say,
“Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants” (verses 18, 19).
The son started home with mixed feelings, but his father was already watching for him. Full of compassion, the father ran forward, fell on his son’s neck, and kissed him, even though the son must have been dirty and smelly. Before the son could finish his whole confession, the father called servants to bring the best clothes and prepare a feast. Clearly, he loved his son just as before. In this story we hear the full story of salvation — the repentance and confession of the sinner, the Father who waits longingly, and the joyous welcome when we return. God loves us unconditionally! But we need to go to Him, just as the son went back to his father. The love of God passes every test!
He will not fail to welcome you. Only when the son returned could the father pour out all his love. Only then was the son open to receiving all that his father wanted to offer. At last nothing stood in the way of their intimate relationship, and the son could experience the complete goodness of his father, who had never stopped waiting for him.
Back to the question — how can we experience the complete fullness of God’s love?
By living in full, daily surrender to Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. And when God’s love fills our lives, we become channels of His love to others; the more we give, the more we receive. Ellen White says, “You need a daily baptism of the love that in the days of the apostles made them all of one accord” (Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8, p. 191). And why is it so important to understand this divine love? “Paul saw that the character of Christ must be understood before men could love Him or view the cross with the eye of faith. Here must begin that study which shall be the science and the song of the redeemed through all eternity” (The Acts of the Apostles, p. 273).
What a joy to study the matchless, many-faceted love of our Savior! Won’t you choose today to turn your eyes on Jesus?
Praying God’s Word
What is the greatest commandment?
“Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’... And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matthew 22:37,39).
Father, thank You for loving me. Please help me to love You with all my heart, all my being, all my emotions, all my strength. Thank You for already answering this request according to Your will. I want to love my neighbor with Your help. Make me a channel of Your love.
How can we grasp the depth of God’s love?
“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” (Ephesians 3:16-18, NIV).
Father, I ask that You strengthen me from the inside out through Your Holy Spirit. May Christ live in me through faith and guide me so I can be firmly rooted in His love. Since this request is according to Your will, I thank You for hearing me and answering.
More texts to pray with: Romans 5:5 and 1 John 4:7-8
Personal Thinking
Why can we be sure that God is really love?
Why is it so important to know God’s character? What are the possible consequences of having a false concept of God?
What difference is there between the general blessings and the special, supernatural blessings from God?
How can I “grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ”? (Ephesians 3:17 NIV)
DAY 1 — JESUS’ MOST PRECIOUS GIFT
“How much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” (Luke 11:13)
I Have Nothing
“Lord, teach us to pray!” the disciples pleaded. They saw how Jesus connected daily with His Heavenly Father and longed for the same power in their own lives.
Jesus responded with a memorable prayer lesson in three parts: the Lord’s Prayer, the parable of a friend coming at midnight, and — in climax — the need to continually request the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:1-13). In the parable (verses 5-8), a man has nothing to feed a visitor who arrives late in the evening. The man hurries to his neighbor and asks for bread to feed the visitor, explaining, “I have nothing.” He continues asking until at last he receives bread to share with his guest. In this story we see that we have to come to Jesus in order to have something to share with others. When we want to pass on the Bread of Life, we often realize that we have nothing to give!
Then Jesus links the problem in this parable (I have nothing) with our need to request the Holy Spirit: “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you” (Luke 11:9).
Jesus Invites Us: Keep Asking
Here in Luke 11, Jesus emphasizes 10 times that we should ask for the Holy Spirit in our lives. I know of no other passage where He so lovingly urges us to take something to heart.
“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. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 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? 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!” (Luke 11:9-13).
In these few verses, Jesus uses the verb ask six times and emphasizes the idea with seek two times and knock two times. These are all action verbs. He clearly shows that we must take action in order to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
The last use of ask is in the Greek continuous tense, meaning that we should ask not just once but keep asking — continuously. Clearly, Jesus wants to awaken our desire for the Holy Spirit with this heartfelt invitation. He knows we are missing something crucial if we don’t continually ask for the rich blessings of the Holy Spirit.
In Christ’s Object Lessons we read, “God does not say, Ask once, and you shall receive. He bids us ask. Unwearyingly persist in prayer. The persistent asking brings the petitioner into a more earnest attitude, and gives him an increased desire to receive the things for which he asks” (p. 145).
And consider for a moment, why did Jesus Himself spend so much time in daily prayer? Ellen White explains, “Morning by morning He communicated with His Father in heaven, receiving from Him daily a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit” (Signs of the Times, Nov. 21, 1895). Indeed, Jesus was our example in this. Ask yourself: If Jesus needed a daily refreshing from the Holy Spirit, then how much more important is it for me?
Testimony and Challenge from a Church Member
“For the past two years I have been praying daily for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in my life. ... My walk with God has been unbelievable. The fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5 has become more visible in my life since I asked Jesus to live in me, to do His will in me, and to daily renew me with the Holy Spirit. I have greater joy in reading the Bible and sharing Christ with others, and I have a strong desire to pray for others; furthermore, my lifestyle has changed dramatically. ... I challenge you to pray daily to be filled with the Holy Spirit for six weeks and see what happens” (C.H.).
Praying God’s Word
Why don’t we have more answers to prayer?
“Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures” (James 4:2,3).
Dear Heavenly Father, please forgive us for neglecting to ask continually for the Holy Spirit. Thank You that if we confess our sins, You are faithful to forgive them.
Our request shows how much we value God’s offer.
“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!” (Luke 11:13).
Dear Father, thank You for promising to give us the Holy Spirit. We ask for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit now, and we thank you for answering. Teach us to rely on this promise.
God wants to give us life in abundance!
“‘He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive” (John 7:38,39).
Dear Lord, thank You for granting rivers of living water to those who believe in You. Please help us to live in daily, continual surrender to Christ so that You can fulfill this promise in our lives.
Personal Thinking
What promise can we claim? (Zechariah 4:6) What could this mean for you and your church?
What important conditions have to be met in order to expect good results?
Which of the quoted experiences especially touched you and why?
"For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” EPHESIANS 2:10
Image by Christopher Powers, Instagram @fullofeyes