Seek God for the City, Day 23

Thursday, 11 March 2010 23:13 Written by Bob Flack

Regretable Responses

Romans 1:16 declares that the gospel is the power of God. Today in Seek God for the City we pray that throughout Manhattan and this whole region, God will cause his power to be known and received through the proclamation of the gospel.

When it comes to the gospel, the church acts cowardly, ashamed of it and uncertain that it will, united with God’s gift of faith, save sinners and transform them. We cave into fears that people will reject us, or that it will take to much time to talk about Jesus well, or that we don't know what to say.

The church is also confused, substituting other good things like social compassion or apologetic presentations or personal testimonies in place of the clear gospel. We lose touch with the message that Jesus lived to keep the law of God and died to accept its punishment so that sinners could have the righteous pardon they do not deserve and be welcomed into God’s family as forgiven.

The church also becomes careless with the gospel. We appeal to people as consumers in search of a good deal instead of sinners in need of truly good news. We reduce the essential gospel response to mere interest or self-righteous participation in a human activity like praying or joining a church. We skip repentance and cut down faith to mere mental assent. Those who don’t do this are so turned off by those who do that they cease to be intentional about propagating the news of Christ.

The church also becomes cold to the gospel. We forget our own sinfulness and so think of the gospel as something we needed long ago but now we’re on to better things. We may preach it to others but feel no need to preach it to ourselves.

The church also becomes cliquish with the gospel. We act as if it were only good for Americans or people who look and live like we do. We rob the gospel of its universal quality, diminishing the reality that it answers to the deepest condition which people share across the world as sons and daughters of Adam and Eve. We construe missions as importing the “good life” from our culture rather than announcing the good news that will be for all the peoples of the world that a Savior has been born for them who is Christ the Lord.

Renewing Request

Father, bring us back to the gospel and first lead us to fall in love with it again. Then lead us to share it with integrity and authenticity wherever we can. Expose our ridiculous excuses for not being bold as followers of Christ. May our identity as Christians become the defining descriptions of our lives, more so than what team we follow or what job we do.

We thank you for the vast outreach of Christian media of all kinds. But we acknowledge as in the reading today, that You will often raise up one person who will witness in his circle of family and friends and soon a whole city knows the message of Christ and forgiveness of sins. Cause that to happen in neighborhoods and extended families all over our region. Do this in Africa where tribal loyalties are such a strong element in their societies.

Prompt Prayer

Prompt your people to pray earnestly for those who remain outside of Christ. Press down on our hearts the eternal realities of heaven and hell. Fill us with an overflowing joy through your salvation that we will want to talk about what You have done and how others may know You in a personal way through faith in Christ. Fill your churches with genuine believers, those who have been truly born again and who will demonstrate that through public baptism. May we see hundreds or thousands converted to Christ in this year.

Seek God for the City, Day 21

Tuesday, 09 March 2010 23:51 Written by Bob Flack

I’ve just left a very long elder meeting. I am so grateful for the men who serve this church as shepherds. They guard, counsel, admonish, teach, and encourage this congregation in ways that most of the “sheep” of this fold do not realize. May the Lord sustain them as they must pursue their calling tomorrow on less sleep than they would get on most nights.

The prayer for today’s leg of the See God for the City journey is for God to display his love and power through answered prayer. Pray for answers to prayer. Sounds redundant. Lord, we’re asking you to do what only You can do. When we ask, we glorify You because we’re admitting our dependence on You. We’re acknowledging that we are looking to You and cannot do anything of eternal significance unless You empower and direct us.

When You respond You continue to glorify Yourself. We often do not even know how to pray. We belittle You with small requests. You are prepared to do beyond what we can imagine. We pray as if we were in control instead of recognizing the Majesty of the One who truly is.

Our prayer-lessness is troubling. We need a spirit of intercession to break out upon the church in our nation and our church in particular. You intend prayer to be a delightful duty and we have turned it into drudgery. Give fortitude to those who expect prayer to be easy. Give joy to those who find prayer difficult. Send answers to prayer in such unmistakable ways that it will move us to pray even more. Strengthen us to keep on asking, seeking, and knocking. As a Father, you love to see your children come and humbly ask.

Seek God for the City, Day 21

Tuesday, 09 March 2010 23:51 Written by Bob Flack

I’ve just left a very long elder meeting. I am so grateful for the men who serve this church as shepherds. They guard, counsel, admonish, teach, and encourage this congregation in ways that most of the “sheep” of this fold do not realize. May the Lord sustain them as they must pursue their calling tomorrow on less sleep than they would get on most nights.

The prayer for today’s leg of the See God for the City journey is for God to display his love and power through answered prayer. Pray for answers to prayer. Sounds redundant. Lord, we’re asking you to do what only You can do. When we ask, we glorify You because we’re admitting our dependence on You. We’re acknowledging that we are looking to You and cannot do anything of eternal significance unless You empower and direct us.

When You respond You continue to glorify Yourself. We often do not even know how to pray. We belittle You with small requests. You are prepared to do beyond what we can imagine. We pray as if we were in control instead of recognizing the Majesty of the One who truly is.

Our prayer-lessness is troubling. We need a spirit of intercession to break out upon the church in our nation and our church in particular. You intend prayer to be a delightful duty and we have turned it into drudgery. Give fortitude to those who expect prayer to be easy. Give joy to those who find prayer difficult. Send answers to prayer in such unmistakable ways that it will move us to pray even more. Strengthen us to keep on asking, seeking, and knocking. As a Father, you love to see your children come and humbly ask.

Seek God for the City, Day 20

Monday, 08 March 2010 23:23 Written by Bob Flack

Defend the Honor

The emphasis for this Day 20 of “Seek God for the City” targets a serious problem in today’s church, people who claim the name of Christ but live in ways that disgrace that name. We take up the prayer that God would defend the honor of his own name. This is fearful kind of request.

Lord, if you act to protect your honor you will have to deal with sin. You can no longer be a stranger in the land (as Jeremiah complained you were) and stay away while those who bear your name do not obey your voice. You will not be able to ignore the prolific idolatry by which we pour out our passion for so much besides your glory. You will have to come among your people and your presence will expose the foolishness of misplaced affections.

Home for Hypocrisy

The problem of backsliding is so thorny because we do not know the true condition of a human heart. Only You do. The church has always had people who identify and align themselves outwardly with Christ. As image bearers fall into sin and under the curse, we remain incurably religious. We are capable of using the trappings of true Christianity to practice a religion of self-righteousness.

Come and honor your name by exposing such hypocrisy and souring the satisfaction that people experience with this kind of religiosity. Create a hunger for Jesus that only He can satisfy. Send the gospel to cut through the deceptions that chain so many even in good churches. Infuse preachers with boldness to expose the dangers of decisionism which numbs people with false assurance of a pseudo-salvation.

Dangers of Being Dull

But there are genuine believers who for a time grow cold toward Christ and slip back toward the pit from which You saved them. Whole churches and the church of whole nations can grow callous and careless. How will hypocrites find the truth if those who have it are dull to it? If the church looks like the world, then those who straddle the fence feel no urgency to reject their double-mindedness.

Your prophecy of your Messiah-Son promises that he will not break a bruised reed or snuff out a smoldering wick. You show mercy to your people as you bring justice to victory. You will vindicate your own. You will give strength to your overcomers and they will overcome. You cannot indefinitely remain quiet when your name is being trampled. You will not let your children return to their rebellion. You will discipline them even with severity to ensure that they turn back to you.

Direct the Double-minded

You are a jealous God. Move your people to humble themselves before You. Clean hands and purify hearts. Focus the double-minded on your beauty and majesty and unite their hearts to fear your Name. Strengthen bruised reeds and ignite smoldering wicks.

Increase the love of your name among all who truly name the name of Jesus. Make it of such value that your people will deeply fear doing, thinking, or saying anything that does not promote your glory. Do this in Africa among the nations for whom we offer prayer today. Do it in our church so that we might take your name to the nations rather than disgrace it.