Brother Gary Wednesday Evening 2/19/14

Brother Gary Wednesday Evening 2/19/14

I want to talk more on the secret closet prayer life.  We are so blessed to have the bible, the gospels, the book of Acts…  It is vital that we keep our closet prayer life up to date.  We cannot have an agreement of prayer or pray in one accord if we don’t keep our personal prayer life up to date.

Mat 6:6  But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

Jesus taught us to enter into the closet and shut the door.  We have been taught this truth by God’s people and by the Word and Spirit of God.

Mat 18:19  Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.

Mat 18:20  For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

We are so blessed to have agreement in prayer in our homes, in some of your offices, at school, and for some of us it is by one phone call.

Luk 24:49  And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

That is one of the many messages that is seldom preached.  Thank God the Church of God teaches it:  tarry until you be endued with power.  That is the prerequisite to the Spirit of God being poured out.

In the world filled with people without God, how important it is that we know the value of tarrying and being filled with the Holy Spirit of God.

Act 1:12  Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey.

Act 1:13  And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.

Act 1:14  These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

These continued with one accord in prayer and supplication.  It is marvelous how God makes His word alive.

Act 1:15  And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)

There were there 120 in one accord.  That is a marvelous thing.  The meaning of this phrase, “In one accord”, is that the 120 were of the same mind.  There is one vital thing, it is important to have the priorities in our mind of those things that are of most spiritual significance. 

All of us have different things that we need to do in the next three months, but we want to have one mind toward worshipping God in Spirit and in truth, one mine toward being true to God, one mind that we are not going to wander. 

This is a spoken prayer request, “Pray that I don’t wander.”  There is one thing that I am sure of, there could be the exception, but if you wander you will end up lost. 

They were in one accord.  One accord keeps us from wandering.  If you are going to get something done on your job, if you have a crew, you must get them all together and of the same mind, “we are going to get this done.”

If any of us are able to have our work list and every one of us on the same page and of the same accord then we can get a lot done.

We have to be of one accord, it is vital in order for us to be the church.  What the church is in 2014, is a self adjusting body.  Those that were here in 1960 are not here now.  We must get the job done.

They were all of the same mind, the same affection.  I realize their one accord was that they had been instructed to tarry and were waiting for the Holy Spirit and perhaps they were not really sure what they were waiting for but they knew they were waiting for the Holy Spirit.

They had the same affection, the same desire, and were all concentrating on waiting on the Holy Spirit.  Your obedience will encourage my obedience.  My obedience to God will encourage your obedience to God.

They were waiting for the Holy Spirit.

Act 2:37  Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?

Act 2:38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Act 2:39  For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

This is a scripture of encouragement.  Peter had preached emphatically, taught repentance and baptism emphatically, and then said, “This promise is unto you and to your children.”

If they repent and be baptized they can be filled with the Holy Spirit of God.  It goes to our family and it also goes to all those that are afar off.  It is as far off as your mind can go: east, west, north, south and we can cross the borders.  This promise is: if individuals will obey, repent, be baptized, and sanctified wholly, they can have the Holy Spirit of God.

May God help you and me to be of one accord in this thought, to be sanctified wholly, to have the Holy Spirit and to press the need of the Holy Spirit of God.  If people wander they will be lost.  People will not stay focused unless they get saved, sanctified, and filled with the Holy Ghost.

Act 2:40  And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.

This scripture was true then and it is true for our day.  It was true for the generation that I was raised in, born 1946.  I grew up with a totally different culture than Sister Julie is teaching in.  We prayed before we ate our lunch in the basement of Paradise Grade School.  No one is going to dig up the bones of Yvonne and put her in jail for praying in school.

We didn’t even use slang on the school grounds.  Those sweet little old ladies would look at you with those beady little eyes coming out of those glasses, “You don’t talk that way; your mom would paddle your bottom.” 

We have a whole new generation.  The teachers probably even use slang.  May our children and grandchildren be saved, sanctified and filled with the Holy Spirit of God so that they can be saved from this untoward generation.

When you get outside of your 70 by 110 lot and see how the world lives, we recognize that we need to be filled with the Holy Ghost.  It is getting worse too.  The sister talked about those that are saying, “I love Jesus” and are living in adultery.  Talk about a contradiction.

The Holy Spirit gives power. (Acts 1:8)  We need to have the power of the Holy Spirit in our life.  I’m not talking about a forceful personality, a weak personality, or a domineering personality.  I’m talking of people that get saved and sanctified and have the Holy Spirit in their life.

Joh 14:26  But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

This can be as open as you will let it be.  A lot of people take refuge in the thought, “I am so dumb.”  If you have that attitude then you will not be able to learn a whole lot.  Take the other attitude, “I want the Holy Spirit to teach me.”