A Common Characteristic

A life of prayer, marked by prayer, filled with prayer, is a sure sign of a true believer.  Just as an infant’s first sign of life is a cry, so the earliest sign of a person born again is to pray.  A common characteristic of all Christians is that they pray.  A common characteristic of the wicked is that they do not. Psalm 14:4 says, “The workers of iniquity call not upon the Lord”. Our first act of faith is to speak to the Lord because we have access to the throne of grace through the merits of the shed blood of Christ (Romans 5:2 and Ephesians 2:18).  Many Christians are failing in their prayer life. Is that true of you?

 Neglecting to pray is neglecting to live one giant aspect of the Word, for so much of the Bible is about prayer.  How can we successfully live the Word and neglect our prayer life? How can a church congregation claim to be living the Word and fail to remember Jesus’ words in Matthew 21:13, “My house shall be called a house of prayer”.  The primary duty of every church is to pray.  This is basic.  This is fundamental in the eyes of God.  We may fail in many areas of Christian responsibility, but we must not fail to pray. 

Prayer is certainly every Christian’s and every church’s duty, but it should also be our delight. It is a God-given privilege to talk to our Heavenly Father.  We’ve been granted access to the throne of heaven, to communicate with Almighty God, to cast our cares before Him, to ask, to seek, to knock, anytime, from anywhere.

The Pastor’s Pocket

Pastor Bruce Freeman

 

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