a prayer

'Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem. We have abused power and called it politics. We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and Set us free. Amen!'
Commentator Paul Harvey aired this prayer on his radio program, 'The Rest of the Story,' and received a larger response to this program than any other he has ever aired. With the Lord's help, may this prayer sweep over our nation and wholeheartedly become our desire so that we again can be called 'One nation under God.' 

-Billy Graham (Billy Graham, 90 years old, is America's most famous evangelists. His crusades have led to several millions accepting Christ and he has reached billions with his radio and television broadcasts).

What are your reactions to this prayer by Billy Graham? Agree? Disagree?

philippians 1:1 part 1

Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,

To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the overseers and deacons:

Paul's letter to the Philippians is a short one, but there is tons packed in every verse- even the greeting. As Paul begins the letter, he starts off by addressing himself and Timothy (Timothy was with him while he wrote this letter). He is referring to himself and Timothy as servants of Christ Jesus. The word Paul uses for 'servants' actually translates as 'slave.' What can we get from the way Paul is describing himself?

We generally have a different image in our minds when we hear the word, 'slave.' The way Americans view slavery from our recent history differs from the way slavery was in Paul's time. We generally think of the Africans who were treated unfairly and all that stuff that's pre-Civil War. Let's take a look at how people became slaves back in Paul's day.

1) Become a slave by conquest - If another army defeats your army, you would become their slave.

2) Become a slave by birth - If your parents are slaves, you are also a slave.

3) Become a slave by debt - Many poor people would sell themselves or their children off as slaves to repay debt.

Slaves in Paul's time knew their means of becoming slaves was justified and they served their master obediently. Likewise, most masters were fair to their slaves and provided them with food, shelter, and protection.

When Paul is writing that he is a servant or 'slave' of Christ, he is implying that what is true of him should also be true of other Christians. This means that we are also like Paul and should realize we are slaves to Christ. But, one important thing Paul teaches is that we are "not our own" and we are "bought at a price" (1 Cor. 6:20). So, what does that mean we should do? Since we are "bought" by Christ, we need to glorify God in our body and our spirit.

But if we are "bought" from something, it means that we were owned by something else, right? When you go to Coldstone and see tons of ice cream, who does that ice cream belong to? It belongs to the lucky people who own and operate the Coldstone, right? But when you order that Strawberry Banana Rendezvous and fork over $5 for it, it belongs to you. You buy it at a price so you can eat that delicious treat. In a similar way, Christ has "bought" us from SIN (except he doesn't put us on a waffle cone and eat us with a spoon). 

Think of the three ways people became slaves. The Bible shows that we are originally slaves to sin by conquest. It rules over us so we cannot do the things we might always want to do. It also shows that we are sinful by birth because of our human nature. Also, Paul shows in Rom. 6:23 that the wages of sin is death and in that way, we are slaves to sin by debt, too.

Ever go to the doctor's office for fun? Just because you want to get checked up and get some shots for fun? If you do, you have to go to a different type of doctor because you have problems. But usually, we won't. We go to a doctor because we know something is wrong with us; because we know we're sick. Likewise, you have to realize that you are a slave to sin first; only then can you turn to Jesus, who can set us free.

In Paul's day, there were a few ways someone could be set free from slavery. They could either wait for the year of Jubilee, which happened every fifty years. Since slavery was so common, this became a law (see Leviticus 25 if you want to read it). The other methods were to earn freedom, buy freedom, or have freedom given to them by someone else who pays the price of his/her redemption. But in the spiritual sense, there is no year of Jubilee and you can't earn or buy your own freedom from sin. Recall in Rom. 6:23, it says the wages of sin is death, but if you read the second part of that verse says that the free gift of life is eternal life in Christ Jesus. Christ was the one who paid for our sins and bought us freedom, at the cost of his life on the cross. 

reflection

Do you realize how you are a slave to sin? What are some sins in your life that have you in chains? What are some worldly things/ thoughts/ desires that enslave you? Acknowledge these things in writing.

Christ has bought us from the chains of sin with his blood on the cross; his sacrifice has brought us our redemption and set us free. We are free to serve Christ, His people, free to give, free to love. With Christ as our master, we have a relationship with Him and do what Christ tells us to do. We are his servants, his slaves, but it's different because we have joy in serving Him. When we are listening to Christ, we have genuine spiritual satisfaction. Write out your prayer that you want to serve Christ in this way; that you want to have joy.