Matthew 25 Rapture Blog

Truth Inspires ::: The Holy Spirit ::: The Awesome Restraint of God – Part Three Restraint of Conviction.

1. I will pray with my spirit.

There is no man nor church in the world that can come to God in prayer, but by the assistance of the Holy Spirit. “For through Christ we have access to the Father by one Spirit” (Ephesians 2:18). Therefore Paul said, “We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will” (Romans 8:26, 27). And because there is in this scripture a complete discovery of the spirit of prayer, and of man’s inability to pray without it; therefore I will in a few words comment on it.

“We.” Consider the person speaking, Paul, an apostle, the extraordinary elder, the wise master-builder, he that was taken up into paradise (2 Cor 12:4). “We do not know what we ought to pray for.” Surely everyone will admit, that Paul and his fellow apostles were able to have done any mighty work for God, yet, he says, “We do not know what we ought to pray for,” without the help and the assistance of the Spirit. Should we pray for communion with God through Christ? Should we pray for faith, for justification by grace, and a truly sanctified heart? We do not know the answer to any of these things. “For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God” (1 Corinthians 2:11).

“We do not know what we ought to pray for.” Paul said, we must pray as we ought; and this we cannot do by the skill, and cunning devices of men or angels. “We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit”; no, it must be “the Spirit HIMSELF” that helps us in our weakness; not the Spirit and man’s lusts. What man’s own brain may imagine and devise, is one thing, and what they are commanded, and ought to do, is another. Many ask and do not receive, because they ask with wrong motives; and so they never enjoy those things they pray for (James 4:3). While we are praying, God is searching the heart, examining our motives and spirit (1 John 5:14). “And he who searches our hearts knows,” that is, approves only, what is agreeable to, “the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.” (Romans 8:27) For he only hears that which is in accordance with his will, and nothing else. And it is only the Spirit that can teach us what to ask; only the Spirit is able to search every thing out, even the deep things of God.

Without the Holy Spirit, though we pray a thousand different prayers, yet we would be unable to know what to pray for, because we have a built-in weakness that makes us absolutely incapable of praying correctly. These weaknesses within us, although it is difficult to name them all, yet the following are eight key weaknesses which prevent effective praying.

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Summary: There is a source of “power from on high” that too many Christians have either overlooked or rejected to their own loss. Come and read about the mighty baptism with the Holy Spirit — a gift that is “for you” and for today. It will change your life!

After spending 3-1/2 years with Jesus, Peter denied the Lord three times. The third time he even went so far as to “call down curses on himself, and he swore to them, ‘I don’t know this man you’re talking about.’ ” (Mark 14:71)

Fast forward about seven weeks. Now we see this same Peter preaching an anointed message to crowds of thousands in Jerusalem. It is a virtual certainty that the crowds contained many of those who, seven weeks earlier, had been screaming in the direction of Jesus: “Crucify him! Crucify him!” But now we see Peter, the former Christ-denier, preaching boldly and openly about the crucified and now-resurrected Savior. The result of Peter’s now-courageous testimony was 3,000 of his audience believing in the Lord and being water baptized.

What made the difference? The answer is simple and is right there in Scripture for us to see. Between his denial of Christ at Passover and his mighty, soulwinning sermon less than two months later, Peter experienced the first New Testament Day of Pentecost. Peter was among the 120 who had received the heaven-sent baptism with the Holy Spirit.

Let’s examine this great biblical truth — the mighty Holy Spirit anointing known as the baptism with the Holy Spirit. It was vitally important to Jesus that His disciples receive it. In fact, just before His ascension back to heaven, He forbade the disciples from going forth to minister until they had received this Holy Ghost power from on high.

Luke 24:47-53 “…repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. (continue reading…)