Day 8—Faithfulness Hebrews 11:1-11 Suggestions for Intercessory Prayer Feel free to claim other promises as well. Remember, all of God’s biddings are His enablings! Praise God for His faithfulness and forgiveness. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 Praise God for the gift of faith. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God. Eph. 2:8 Praise God that He does not change and remains faithful even when we are faithless. If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself. 2 Tim. 2:13 Praise God that He rewards our faithfulness. A faithful man will abound with blessings. Prov. 28:20a Pray that God will make you faithful in the small things. Tell Him some of those small things in which you need to learn to be faithful. He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. Luke 16:10 Pray that God will give you faith and help you believe. Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” Mark 9:23 So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” Luke 17:6 Pray that God will teach you to walk by faith and not by sight. Pray for specific situations in which you need to learn to walk by faith and not by sight. For we walk by faith, not by sight. 2 Cor. 5:7 Pray that you will not trust in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. That your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. 1 Cor. 2:5 Pray that God will increase your faith. And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” Luke 17:5 Pray for your local pastor, asking that God will give your pastor an abundant measure of faith. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive. Matt. 21:22 Pray that every church leader around the world holds deeply to a faithful spiritual and evangelistic perspective. Plead with the Lord to guard pastors and church members against losing the prophetic identify of who we are as the Seventh-day Adventist Church, God’s remnant church at the end of time.But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. 1 Peter 2:9, 10 Pray for the increased use of Christian literature by all church members and for increased emphasis on literature evangelism, both through hard copy and electronic formats. But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 2 Cor. 9:6 Mission to the Cities—Pray for the Southern-Asia Pacific Division and the cities on which they are concentrating their efforts: Metro Manila, Philippines; Dhaka, Bangladesh; Cebu, Philippines; Makassar, Indonesia; Yangon, Myanmar; Urdaneta, Philippines; Karachi, Pakistan; Kota Kinabalo, Malaysia; Davao, Philippines; and Medan, Indonesia. Pray for the workers to be filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. Acts 1:8 Pray for any personal needs or anything on your heart. Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. Matt. 7:7 Praise God for being faithful in listening and answering your prayers. Praise Him for what He is going to do. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive. Matt. 21:22 At the end of prayer time you may want to form groups of two or three and pray for the seven people that you have on your list. Pray that God will increase their faith. Claim Hebrews 11:6 for them: “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” If you have a personal prayer request that you are not comfortable praying about in the large group, feel free to share with your partner and pray about it together. Suggested Songs “Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus” (SDA Hymnal #524); “Standing on the Promises” (SDA Hymnal #518); “My Faith Is Built on Nothing Less” (SDA Hymnal #522); “It Is Well with My Soul” (SDA Hymnal #530).Ellen White on Faith and Faithfulness But the fruit of the Spirit is . . . faithfulness.—Gal. 5:22 In coming to Christ there must be an exercise of faith. We need to bring Him into our everyday life; then we shall have peace and joy, and we shall know by experience the meaning of His word, “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love, even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love” (John 15:10). Our faith must claim the promise, that we may abide in the love of Jesus. Jesus said, “These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full” (verse 11). Faith works by love and purifies the soul. Through faith the Holy Spirit finds access to the heart, and creates holiness therein. Man cannot become an agent to work the works of Christ unless he is in communion with God through the Holy Spirit. We can be fitted for heaven only through a transformation of character; we must have Christ’s righteousness as our credentials, if we would find access to the Father. We must be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. We must daily be transformed by the influence of the Holy Spirit; for it is the work of the Holy Spirit to elevate the taste, to sanctify the heart, to ennoble the whole man, by presenting to the soul the matchless charms of Jesus (Ye Shall Receive Power, p. 77). Every act of life, however small, has its bearing for good or for evil. Faithfulness or neglect in what are apparently the smallest duties may open the door for life’s richest blessings or its greatest calamities. It is little things that test the character. It is the unpretending acts of daily self-denial, performed with a cheerful, willing heart, that God smiles upon. We are not to live for self, but for others. And it is only by self- forgetfulness, by cherishing a loving, helpful spirit, that we can make our life a blessing. The little attentions, the small, simple courtesies, go far to make up the sum of life’s happiness, and the neglect of these constitutes no small share of human wretchedness (Conflict and Courage, p. 52). Upon your faithfulness in this work not only the well-being of others but your own eternal destiny depends. Christ is seeking to uplift all who will be lifted to companionship with Himself, that we may be one with Him as He is one with the Father. He permits us to come in contact with suffering and calamity in order to call us out of our selfishness; He seeks to develop in us the attributes of His character— compassion, tenderness, and love. By accepting this work of ministry we place ourselves in His school, to be fitted for the courts of God (Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 388). Those who enter the work as “eye-servants” will find that their work cannot bear the inspection of mortals or of angels. The thing essential for successful work is a knowledge of Christ; for this knowledge will give sound principles of right, [and] impart a noble, unselfish spirit, like that of our Savior whom we profess to serve. Faithfulness, economy, care-taking, thoroughness, should characterize all our work, wherever we may be, whether in the kitchen, in the workshop, in the office of publication, in the sanitarium, in the college, or wherever we are stationed in the vineyard of the Lord. “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much” (Review and Herald, Sept. 22, 1891). We are to behold Christ, and by beholding to become changed. We must come to Him, as to an open, inexhaustible fountain, from which we may drink again and again, and ever find a fresh supply. We are to respond to the drawing of His love, to feed on the Bread of Life which came down from heaven, to drink of the Water of Life which flows from the throne of God. We are to keep looking up, that faith may bind us to the throne of God. Do not look down, as though you were bound to the earth. Do not keep up an examination of your faith, pulling it up, as though it were a flower, to see if it has any root. Faith grows imperceptibly (Ye Shall Receive Power, p. 77). Questions for Personal Reflection 1. Do you have faith in God even in the most difficult situations? Ask God to increase your faith! Claim His promises. 2. Read the last paragraph above. Make a list of things you can do to increase your faith. Ask God to teach you how to apply them in your life.
Posted on: Wed, 14 Jan 2015 04:06:08 +0000
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