July, 2014
Greetings Church Leaders, Pastors and Prayer Leaders,
The need of our hour is before us clearly. The world status is a continual on-slaught of evil, tragedy, death and spiritual warfare against our Lord and His people. The church in its present condition today cannot meet the spiritual need before us. Evil is rising and multiplying, while we in our spiritual advancement and growth is inching along.
One of Satan's priorities is to destroy; 'your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour (destroy).' Death and dying and destruction are ever before us across the landscape of our land, our churches, our families and in the hearts of men. For those of you that follow my ministry you know that one of my warfares is against the evil of murder-suicides in our land. Such a devastating evil is this, where not only is loss of life done, as in homicides and suicides, but multiple loss of life far impacting families, communities left behind. We have seen this great evil in the school shootings, military base shootings, and multiple family murder-suicides being affected. How many families? In the US alone, we are averaging two murder-suicides per day. If this hasn't affected your county, city or family, it is coming. Wrestling against this evil is a hard matter for me. I thank God for all those that join me in 'fighting this good fight'.
The need of our nation right now, is for the power of the Lord's Presence and glory to push back, flood out, and destroy the works of Satan. It is for Him to be glorified in us and through us. We know that this is not done, in our own merits, in our own strength; 'not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord.' It is only as we wait before the Lord, that this blessed outpouring of His mercies is granted. In the last months, there is an upsurge by many in the churches to see this happen. The cry for revival, seems to be everywhere. More prayers and direction for prayer is happening at this time. However, the majority are still void of 'studying to show themselves approved unto God' in His Word, no Bible reading, memorization, and little Bible study. Prayer meetings are still limited. Many of those that are happening are void of the tears, burden and cries of our present need. Let us seek for the Lord to help us in seeing as He sees and respond as He would have us to do. The sin of prayerlessness is still much among us in the pulpits and pews. And it is still evident that carnality and worldliness is still much in the pulpits and pews as well. We have not cast off that which has provoked the Lord in daily lives. An atmosphere of holiness is missing among us today because we have too much of flesh and world in us and around in our homes, churches and actions. Let us seek to be fully surrendered, emptied and filled with Him.
For almost a decade I have labored for this same call to prayer. So for me to see and hear of this happening, is a joy. To have Ronnie Floyd elected president of the SBC convention with a priority of calling for prayer, 'extraordinary prayer' is an answer to prayer as well. Although as that term was used so often from Jonathan Edwards sermon, I asked of Ronnie to define that for his readers and the convention. He recently wrote a blog posts addressing that. For what is extraordinary prayer for one is not for another. For example, to have one prayer meeting a month for your church may be extraordinary, but for my churches that pray each week in corporate prayer it would not be. To pray personally, one hour a day would seem extraordinary for many in our nation, but go to China or South Korea where they pray two hours each day, it would not be extraordinary. And no matter what we think we are doing is extraordinary there is always another higher level of holiness that we must strive for; 'I press toward the mark of the high calling of my Lord.' 'Set your affections on things above, not on things of this earth'.
Now as great as the increase is for prayer and revival is happening, I must share with you it is not enough yet. More prayer movements, prayer meetings, and talk of revival is not the answer directly. The sermon that I have attached is addressing of this truth. The great need is a great cry. A cry of sighing, sorrow of heart, and cries due to the burdens laid upon us. 'Praying effectively and fervently by those that are righteous is our need. Let us not assume that because some are praying that they are praying effectively. Nor let us assume that simply because some scream and cry that this is fervency that moves God. 'Let all things be done decently and in order.' When the children of Israel cried by reason of their bondage, the Lord heard. When the 400 yrs. of being in Egypt was complete, the Lord heard. In Judges when the Lord sent them into captivity and they lifted up their cry unto the Lord, He heard them. When Jehoshaphat was surrounded and lifted up his cry, 'the Lord heard and delivered him'.
There have been many illustrations in other countries that bring us to this one point: "If we don't pray out of desperation; we will pray in desperation." That saying has struck me in much conviction to my own praying. We are not desperate. And what Leonard Ravenhill said of revival in our churches is as true, 'we don't have revival, because we don't want revival.' God have mercy on us. So content, so humanistic, so proud, so at ease and lukewarm; while a world perishes, our Lord's Name is desecrated, our Lord's servants are butchered and imprisoned and we sit idle. 'Ye are idle, ye are idle', our sloth is our sin to be confessed. Our response of fervency, brokenness, contrition must match what we are facing.
Many are quoting II Chronicles 7:14 for the sake of revival and pinning on God's response. But we have not truly dealt with our response. We have not humbled ourselves, we have not prayed, we have not sought Him as we should. And it is only now in these last months that we are starting to see this happen, which I rejoice in. I was blessed to see the SBC convention get down on its knees and pray. Call 2 Fall was observed on June 26 and many churches participated in it and it was the very act of getting down in humility before our Lord and praying. Anne Graham Lotz called for prayer July 1 - 7 and many church leaders and prayer leaders joined in. There has been much more activity in the call to prayer.
But as evil has multiplied, we only add. Therefore, I am asking of you, as the Lord had laid on me to make you aware of these things to consider:
1. The Need: as I have sought in this sermon attached to address this, it is not a burden by many in the churches and pulpits. I fear that many have a delusion of our current plight on where we are heading, and just how short our time is. And without some intercession to turn back God's wrath our children and grandchildren will know the horrors of this world. The need of this hour must be presented, proclaimed, and prophetically shared.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBWvij71RCc
2. 'When the foundations are removed, what shall the righteous do?' Our foundations in this country are being removed from education, government, economy, family and lastly the church. Satan in his warfare has done much to obliterate everything that we have grown up with and assumed were safe and sound. But we know differently now, they are all fragile and eroding. We must examine and know just how fragile we are and do everything to maintain and strengthen these foundations while we have time. Time is not a luxury for us.
3. Such need and fragile condition should compel us to desperate, fervent prayer. Truly, the like of which we have never known nor seen in all of humanity. Extraordinary prayer must be a standard to promote, progress and position ourselves in. Every church must have a weekly corporate prayer meeting addressing these and crying out to God for mercy, to be glorified. Every individual, no matter what their prayer life yesterday or today, must be deeper and more burdened, filled with fervency.
4. Every effort of teaching, leading and instructing on prayer must be in unity, Spirit filled and honoring unto Him. The day of prayer meetings being more about temporal, carnal issues is over; and the day of prayer meetings being more about eternity and spiritual matters is before us.
Brethren, we are out of time, and the response of God's people is upon you and me to set the example and call them to respond rightly.
until,
dan biser
rdbiser@live.com
'Hour of Prayer' via live ustream feed and recorded sessions on prayer; Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday at 9 PM (Est)
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/dan-biser
No comments:
Post a Comment