A Call to Repentance: WEEK FORTY

2008-10-12T18:02:00.000-07:00

October 12, 2008

"I have heard from heaven the cries for mercy from My people. I have seen the sincere repentance of My children. I have seen and been moved by their tears." (II Kings 20:5; Isa. 38:5)

INTRODUCTION TO WEEK FORTY

INTRODUCTION TO WEEK FORTY

This week, we continue to press in during WEEK FORTY of our 40 Weeks of Prayer and Fasting, to offer prayers of repentance for the sin in the church, the sin in the nation, and the blessing of Israel.

We thank our Lord for giving us His Grace to have persevered through these past forty weeks, and we ask Him now for a "double portion" that we might yet press through to the finish line, next week.

We now address these areas:

1. SIN IN THE CHURCH: LOSING OUR FIRST LOVE

2. SIN IN THE NATION: SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE

3. PRAYERS FOR ISRAEL: SECURITY DURING SUKKOT

SIN IN THE CHURCH: LOSING OUR FIRST LOVE

REPENTANCE FOR SIN IN THE CHURCH:

LOSING OUR FIRST LOVE

Introduction:

October 31, 2008 will mark a significant anniversary in the church: the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.

490 years ago this month, October 31, 1518, Martin Luther nailed his decrees to that church door in Wittenberg, Germany. The Church has never been the same since.

Please find below the five "solas" (or teachings) of that Reformation:

1. Sola Scriptura! The Scripture Alone is the Standard

2. Soli Deo Gloria! All for the Glory of God Alone

3. Solo Christo! By Christ's Work Alone are We Saved

4. Sola Gratia! Salvation by Grace Alone

5. Sola Fide! Justification by Faith Alone

Each of these "solas' stand in sharp contrast with the principles guiding modern evangelicalism because they argue against man made accretions in the church.

We need to consider if we in the modern church are in a similar situation that faced the reformers. Has culture over swept biblical patterns? Have we added practices, offices and principles that are not found in scripture? Have we invented a new brand of Christianity, unknown to the scriptures? If so, it's time for another reformation.

Today, there are seven solas in the modern church:

1. Sola Cultura - let culture define church life

2. Sola Successa - let numerical success legitimize activities

3. Sola Entertaina - let entertainment be the guiding principle

4. Sola Edificia - let the edifice be the center of church life

5. Sola Programma - let programs dominate the peoples time

6. Sola Thralldoma - let the people be enslaved by whatever thrills them

7. Sola Processa - let the church be managed by business philosophies and processes

(Posted on July 17, 2008 by Kevin Williams, Slice of Laodicea.com)

"To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:

These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." (Revelation 2:1-7)

Prayer of Repentance;

Father God, we cry out to Thee, and we ask for Mercy now in the midst of judgment!

Purify our hearts, O Lord, and cleanse us, that we might return to our FIRST LOVE, which is You.

Forgive us for having lost our way, and help us to return to You, Abba Father.
We ask this in Jesus' Holy Name, amen.

SIN IN THE NATION: SEPARATION OF CHURCH, STATE

REPENTANCE FOR THE SINS OF THE NATION: SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE

[The following article is an excerpt of a teaching by the same name, written by David Barton, President, Wallbuilders. To read the entire text of this article, including footnotes cited for each document referenced, go here.]

In 1947, in the case Everson v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court declared, "The First Amendment has erected a wall between church and state. That wall must be kept high and impregnable. We could not approve the slightest breach." The "separation of church and state" phrase which they invoked, and which has today become so familiar, was taken from an exchange of letters between President Thomas Jefferson and the Baptist Association of Danbury, Connecticut, shortly after Jefferson became President.

The election of Jefferson-America's first Anti- Federalist President-elated many Baptists since that denomination, by-and-large, was also strongly Anti- Federalist. This political disposition of the Baptists was understandable, for from the early settlement of Rhode Island in the 1630s to the time of the federal Constitution in the 1780s, the Baptists had often found themselves suffering from the centralization of power.

Consequently, now having a President who not only had championed the rights of Baptists in Virginia but who also had advocated clear limits on the centralization of government powers, the Danbury Baptists wrote Jefferson a letter of praise on October 7, 1801. . . . However, in that same letter of congratulations, the Baptists also expressed to Jefferson their grave concern over the entire concept of the First Amendment, including of its guarantee for "the free exercise of religion":

"Our sentiments are uniformly on the side of religious liberty: that religion is at all times and places a matter between God and individuals, that no man ought to suffer in name, person, or effects on account of his religious opinions, [and] that the legitimate power of civil government extends no further than to punish the man who works ill to his neighbor. But sir, our constitution of government is not specific. . . . [Therefore what religious privileges we enjoy (as a minor part of the State) we enjoy as favors granted, and not as inalienable rights."

In short, the inclusion of protection for the "free exercise of religion" in the constitution suggested to the Danbury Baptists that the right of religious expression was government-given (thus alienable) rather than God-given (hence inalienable), and that therefore the government might someday attempt to regulate religious expression. This was a possibility to which they strenuously objected-unless, as they had explained, someone's religious practice caused him to "work ill to his neighbor."

Jefferson understood their concern; it was also his own. In fact, he made numerous declarations about the constitutional inability of the federal government to regulate, restrict, or interfere with religious expression. . .

Jefferson also declared that the "power to prescribe any religious exercise. . . . must rest with the States" (emphasis added). Nevertheless, the federal courts ignore this succinct declaration and choose rather to misuse his separation phrase to strike down scores of State laws which encourage or facilitate public religious expressions. Such rulings against State laws are a direct violation of the words and intent of the very one from whom the courts claim to derive their policy.

One further note should be made about the now infamous "separation" dogma. The Congressional Records from June 7 to September 25, 1789, record the months of discussions and debates of the ninety Founding Fathers who framed the First Amendment. Significantly, not only was Thomas Jefferson not one of those ninety who framed the First Amendment, but also, during those debates not one of those ninety Framers ever mentioned the phrase "separation of church and state." It seems logical that if this had been the intent for the First Amendment-as is so frequently asserted-then at least one of those ninety who framed the Amendment would have mentioned that phrase; none did.

In summary, the "separation" phrase so frequently invoked today was rarely mentioned by any of the Founders; and even Jefferson's explanation of his phrase is diametrically opposed to the manner in which courts apply it today. "Separation of church and state" currently means almost exactly the opposite of what it originally meant.

A PRAYER OF REPENTANCE:

· Lord God, in this season of increasing persecution of Your church, we stand in the gap for our nation, and we ask You to forgive those in the court systems who have so twisted the concept of the "separation of church and state" that today, it is being interpreted in its opposite intent of the framers of our Constitution.

We ask You, Holy God, to move to restore that which the locust has eaten over these many, many years, so that this original intent is once more foundational in the court of law: the the government's role is to protect the free exercise of religious expression, and not to interfere with it.

Lord, you are a God of miracles, so we ask for this miracle even now, in Jesus' Mighty Name, amen.

· "For the LORD is our Judge,
The LORD is our Lawgiver,
The LORD is our King;
He will save us . . . "
(Isaiah 33:22)

PRAYERS FOR ISRAEL: SECURITY DURING SUKKO

PRAYERS FOR ISRAEL:

PART ONE; SECURITY DURING SUKKOT

(From: Intercessors for Israel)

. . . we prayed for Israel's security over this week's Sukkot/Tabernacles feast:

- As the enemy so enjoys ruining the joy that Jews are supposed to have during our holydays, we ask that You give divine help to Israel's much overworked security forces to maintain their alertness over this next week and a half.

- Protect us our God. "My help comes from LORD, who made heaven and earth. Behold, He that keeps [guards] Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep." (Psalms 121:2,4)

- Help Israel to dwell in their succot b'shalom - in their booths in peace.

- As You have done often in the past, place Your fear in the hearts of Israel's enemies. " . . . the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for LORD fights for them against [us]." (Exodus 14:25)

- Abba, we read how You protected Israel during 40 years in the wilderness - even though she was there because of an evil heart of unbelief (Hebrews 3:9-19). How much more do we now both need Your protection and ask for it - when Israel is back in Your land and there are many righteous in Messiah Yeshua among her that call on Your name (2 Corinthians 5:21).

- We remind You of Your promise: "Hear the word of LORD, you gentiles, declare it in the islands afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep [guard] him, as a shepherd doth his flock." (Jeremiah 31:10)

PART TWO: THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC SITUATION

The global economic situation will eventually affect all of us. Israel is in pretty good shape as of today, but she will also be shaken. It will affect aliyah, banks, unemployment, and even security as it takes lots of money to keep the IDF at its peak. Also, many areas of Israeli life depend on outside philanthropy. Yet to paraphrase David Ben-Gurion, "Israel is the only nation that includes miracles as part of its economic planning."

- Lord, You are shaking everything that can be shaken. Please use this situation to shake the Jews out from the nations and bring them back home.

- "Thus says LORD of hosts; Behold, I will save My people from the east country, and from the west country. I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness." (Zechariah 8:7-8)

- Give Israelis and the government wisdom on how to deal with this global crisis.

- Help Your Body - both Jews and gentiles - to trust You completely. "LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows them that trust in Him." (Nahum 1:7)

- Wake up the Messianic Body in the nations that "This year in Jerusalem," is just about the best plan they can make for their future.

Thought for the Week: Obedience

OBEDIENCE, The ESSENCE of SALVATION

By Andrew Murray

The Lord gives prominence to obedience as the one thing for which He was come into the world. Jesus who entered it with His `Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God,' ever confessed to men, `I seek not My own will, but the will of Him that sent Me.' Everywhere, obedience is what He claims from everyone who would be His disciple.

During His whole ministry, from beginning to end, obedience is THE VERY ESSENCE OF SALVATION. No one could enter the kingdom, `but he that does the will of My Father which is in heaven.'

John 14:15-23

If you love Me, keep My commandments.

I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever, the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him, but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.

I will not leave you orphans. I will come to you.

He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.
And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father,
and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.

If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him,
and We will come to him and make Our home with him.

How often and how earnestly we have asked how to be able to abide continually in Christ. We have thought of more study of the Word, more faith, more prayer, and we have overlooked the simple truth that Jesus teaches so clearly:

If you OBEY, keep My commandments, THEN you shall abide in My love. The ONLY way under heaven to abide in divine love is to keep the commandments.

A.W. Tozer: The Conditions of Peace

The Conditions of Peace

By A.W. Tozer

He came trembling and fell down before Paul and Silas. . . and said. Sirs, what must I do to be saved? --Acts 16:25~30

In a world like ours, with conditions being what they are, what should a serious-minded man or woman do?

First, accept the truth concerning yourself. You do not go to a doctor to seek consolation, but to find out what is wrong and what to do about it.

Then seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness; Seek through Jesus Christ a right relationship to God and then insist upon maintaining a right relation to your fellow man.

Set about reverently and honestly to amend your doings. Magnify God, mortify the flesh, simplify your life Take up your cross and learn of Jesus Christ to die to this world, that He may raise you up in due time.

If you will do these things in faith and love, you will know peace; the peace of God that passes all understanding.

You will know joy; the joy of resurrection. You will know, too, the comfort of the indwelling Spirit of God, for you have sought to do the will of God at any price!

Hymn of the Week

LEAD ON, O KING ETERNAL

"He is the living God, the eternal King." (Jeremiah 10:10) Words: Ernest W. Shurtleff (1888)
Music: Henry T. Smart (1836)

As we now draw to a close of 40 Weeks of Fasting, Prayer, and Repentance, we join you in this triumphal song of exit; "Lead on, O King Eternal!"

Lead on, O King eternal,
The day of march has come;
Henceforth in fields of conquest
Thy tents shall be our home.
Through days of preparation
Thy grace has made us strong;
And now, O King eternal,
We lift our battle song.

Lead on, O King eternal,
Till sin's fierce war shall cease,
And holiness shall whisper
The sweet amen of peace.
For not with swords' loud clashing,
Nor roll of stirring drums;
With deeds of love and mercy
The heavenly kingdom comes.

Lead on, O King eternal,
We follow, not with fears,
For gladness breaks like morning
Where'er Thy face appears.
Thy cross is lifted over us,
We journey in its light;
The crown awaits the conquest;
Lead on, O God of might.

[To listen to this wonderful hymn, go here. May the Name of our Lord evermore be praised!]

A Closing Thought

A Closing Thought

Dear Friends,

As we now draw to the close of these Forty Weeks of Prayer and Fasting for America -- Forty Weeks of Prayers of Repentance -- our hearts are filled with the joy of the Lord, knowing that you have joined with us in this work.

Over these past months, the LORD has shown me that He views each of these weeks as "building blocks" in the process of repentance. Just like the Carpenter He is, Father God is searching out the very foundation stones of our nation and our church, discovering the bricks (sins) that have been "out of alignment" with His will for our people, and replacing those decayed bricks with the Presence of His Holiness, through acts of repentance.

We are humbled to have been chosen to share this work with you.

In closing, may we invite each one of you to continue to partner with our Holy God -- the Foundation of our very existence -- as He continues to prepare us for His soon coming? May we each continue to seek His face for the other "bricks" that yet need to be identified, repented for, and tossed away through His Shed Blood.

And as we repent for each one, let us thank Him for the "perfectly formed brick" that He would set in its place.

It is written; " . . . He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ . . ." (Phil. 1:6)

In His Amazing Grace, Mercy and Love,

Sara C. Ballenger, Founder and President
Capitol Hill Prayer Partners
Sunday, October 12, 2008

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Thank you all for your own prayers of agreement as we continue to work through 40 WEEKS of Prayer and Fasting, before our Lord, for our sin as a church and as a nation. Amen.

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A Call to Repentance - 40

A Call to Repentance: WEEK FORTY