12 Evidences of Faith (Part 12)

Look at the people around you and you tell who knows Jesus and those who just say they know Jesus.

According to Dr. Michael you set in the words of the Bible true followers of Christ had evidence of faith in their lives today a look at one of those evidences prayer welcome to leading the way with pastor and best-selling author Dr. Michael and his message in an inspirational look into the book of James V. Encouraged, as you listen to Dr. Michael Yousef's message called releasing his power through prayer for things here the apostle James gives us this 12 evidence of first in verse 13. This was before I always want to come back to second in verses 14 and 15 users pray for one another and then said that he comes to verses 16 to 18 and is priority the kind of prayer that releases God's power that brings about answers to prayer unfold when he says pray for you and for others that they may remain faithful to the Lord first or surprise at all times is interviewing trouble is your Friday interview happy should praise you see James understood like most of us understand that when you're in trouble when you're going through tough times.

We can become real great prayer warriors we pray hard.

We pray diligently when we are going through tough times when he wants something from God wanted God to answer where every prayer meeting, we are asking people to pray for us when we are oppressed by our circumstances but when we come to the end of ourselves. We pray and we become great prayer people, men, women, boys and girls, and what James is saying is that when God answers your prayer that you should be as serious and as diligent and as intentional in praising God as much as you were when you petition God. That's what he say the problem was spiritual immaturity is that when we want God were asking where a customer asking them when God answers our prayer. We may just my side.

Thank you, God, and run off until we need them again now James is saying it's okay to prayer and petition God in the time of suffering. Don't you stop asking God in the times of trouble don't you stop asking God to bring your needs to him. Keep on doing it, but please praise him with the same intensity and with the same desire with the same diligence and with the same persistence when he answers your prayer about is a major problem with some believers, and I'm saying some not everybody you can identify with it. Whether you are you not.

There are some people when they're facing tough times, difficult times.

Instead of pressing hard toward the heart of God.

They withdraw fellowship from God that stop praying.

Are you one of those listen carefully just when they need to be closest to God. They run away from him. Some Christians do that, then you wonder why or why they do this at least two reasons above are really either false view of God fails view of what suffering is. First, many Christians have the wrong view of suffering. They think that if they have been dealt a powerful blow or a setback in life, then God must be angry with them, and because kids learn to avoid and get away from an angry parent. They avoid God because they think God is angry with him that this is a faulty view of understanding God and the grace of God in life, I'm talking about Christians on talk about believers I'm talking about people being born again, saved by grace on the dog about somebody outside the church. But the reason they do that every time they're in trouble to get away from God instead of getting closer to God is because they have never let go of the feeling of guilt and shame and inadequacy of their past sins. That's why.

And so when God pursues them trying to enfold him and his gracious arm.

They think that God is out there to punish them when he is trying to enfold him and his loving arms to say I love you I care for you.

I forgive your sins.

My son paid for your sins on the cross. They run away from the loving God like a frightened guilty child. The second thing is that many people stay away from God. In times of trouble because they are angry with God know whether they are going through financial crisis, or whether they're going through some health issues that whether they're going through some setbacks of some sort in life then become angry with God and listen to me. Satan loves it when the believer is angry with God.

He really does. He feels that he's got you exactly what he wants you why because that way he can get them to rationalize sin and rebellion. How how do Satan do that. Listen carefully it comes to the person who says you not listen snookums. Whatever your name is, you need to get back at God for not doing this or not doing that though the other thing SF was a great musician. He was out of the choir for King David wonderful composer wrote lots of wonderful songs and in Psalm 73. He looked at how the wicked seem to be prospering in the righteousness, suffering, and he got angry with God, he set out wasting my righteous living. I been good to God. How come God, be good to me. And then God graciously thanks him and let him see the eternity what's gonna happen to those so-called prospering wicked people and then in hindrances all Lord, I am sorry I was a donkey at a somatic way of saying I was stupid, spiritually stupid on am deeply sorry. Years ago a child psychologist told me this. I have never forgotten it. And I'll never forget it is the number one reason some teenagers get into trouble with her will be cutting themselves or pornography or or or whatever through sexual and illicit missile addiction of any kind. He said the number one reason is that they convince themselves that their parents don't love them and if they convince themselves that the parents don't love them. They can justify the rebellion and sin. Listen. That's how some believers behind if that's how some believers react God doesn't love me and Satan loves it, pray in the times of trouble does at least three things it's an antidote to loneliness. It is a reminder that God is in control and helps us see things and circumstances from God's perspective, not ours. Back in 1855 in Irish poet by the name of Joseph Scriven, composed him that is known to most of us.

What a friend we have in Jesus. Most people don't realize that that him came out of the furnace of affliction. You see, Joseph was engaged to be married, not just once but twice. His first fiancé drowned in the day before the wedding supposed to take place the second time you got engaged this fiancé died of pneumonia, remeasuring the girls in town. The running away from them and in he decided that his going to dedicate his life 24 seven to serving the Lord, far from being angry with God, he gave his hold got thank you wrote that song originally is a poem for his mother to comfort her when he left Ireland and went to Canada, but then some of the stanzas was added later. Have witch trials and temptations. Have we probably knew where we should never be discouraged to get to the Lord in prayer.

Can we find a friend so faithful, who will all our sorrows share Jesus knows our every weakness, take it to the Lord in prayer. Pray all the times. Secondly, said pray for one another. Pray for one another versus 14 to 15 his interview sick, you should call the elders of the church and pray over him and anointing with oil and in the name of the Lord see James speaking about the person who so sick you can go to church and he talks about the oil because oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit's power to heal.

Now I think some of you know this, but I want to tell you anyway. This particular verse is talking about the faith of the elders, not the faith of the sick person. No I am not minimizing the the faith of the of the sick person but I want to tell you, at least in this passage is talk about the faith of the elders and what just this prayer of faith is all about.

What is that all about.

It is the belief expressed in prayer by the elders of the church, namely that our sovereign God is in the business of healing people. It is they believe that the option for healing remains in God's hands, not ours.

It is the belief that when we do pray we do not order God to do something like a genie. It is a believe that we submit to the sovereign will of God.

It is a believe that God dates his prerogative to heal or not.

Let that obligation. It is a believe that our obligation is to petition God and then trust them for before the outcome pray at all times.

Pray for each other so they said pray the prayer that releases the power of God and answered prayer. Talk about misunderstood verse therefore confess your sins to each other in the prayer of the righteous man is in your translation said a veil of much this is powerful and effective. What is let me confess your sins to one another. Now he's the sad part. It is fashionable in some circles in this 21st century church in the West sick to take this to mean that you gotta hang out all your dirty laundry for everyone to see. Telling whatever sin you committed. I'm aware of some groups that practice this travesty and ended up destroying many a marriage because of this public revelation. They think that this verse mean you gotta be total honesty and they think total honesty means that you tell everything I wanted to listen carefully. Please because that is a total misunderstanding of this verse because when you do that. Where is the focus. The focus is on sin, not on the power of God to forgive sin when you focus on that and when you focus on the sin, not the power of God to forgive sins. The devil can use that to drag you back to sin.

So what does it mean confessing your sins one to another, listen very carefully first, you must begin confession of sin to God because ultimately, every sin is a sin against God. The psalmist in Psalm 51 said against you and only you have our sins, and that is why first John 19 says if we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.

Secondly, we confess our sin only to the people who are affected by our sin. Jesus said in Matthew chapter 5.

He said he would go to the alterity about offer your gift and then you remember, you hurt somebody you said you did something wrong and you leave them there and not stand up in the middle of the temple is that hey guys, I've done this and this and the other thing is it now go to the person you got to the person that you wrong confess to him or her the first thing I want to tell you is this. We should never confess our sins beyond those of been impacted by our sins.

Private sins require private confession to God unto the individual has been hurt by sin. Why is this so important. Listen to me. What will why I'm spending time one because such accurate and biblical confession releases the power of God.

You see when you don't confess your sin, you create a barrier between you and God that God does not put the barrier, the Dublin God so that God never moves to God never changes, but we place a barrier between us and God. When we confess our sin. What we are doing.

We come in agreement with God because God knows what happened anyway.

God knows our sin anyway and therefore when I come in agreement with God is a God. I am deeply sorry I can't. Please forgive me. James said there's a secret of blessing when you come in agreement with God. This empowering agreement.

Imagine the part of agreement with God.

Listen, if we don't keep short accounts with God. Every time we pray would gonna feel like heaven is like IN a new earth is like a brass. We got going and when the song acidifying client of sin in my heart that is if I don't confess my sin that will not hear me that barrier that we have created by our sin, he is something I want to tell you must never, never, never forget those believers who are not growing spiritually, it is because they have a casual attitude toward sin. They really do they have a casual attitude toward sin, but sometimes you have to ask the question what keeps a person from confessing to God and confessing to the person that the wrong what keeps them from asking for forgiveness. Well, sometimes it's because of pride. We don't want to say were wrong we don't want to sound sorry pride plays a dominant role. Other times, because of fear. Rosa well what's going to happen if that person withdraws forgiveness from me.

What's going to happen if the person rebuffs me what's going to happen if that person deliberately turns around and hurts me imitating something it is worth it. It is worth it to be able to receive the blessing of God and the power that he releases an answer to prayer.

It's worth the blessing of confession and seeking forgiveness. Sometimes it's just general dishonesty with like Adam you know we got a hide from God the hide from others sent even hide from ourselves would draw the cover-up and confess. But that's why James is saying that it is vitally important to confess is vitally important why he gives us the answer. Verse 16 Healing Will Take Pl. when we do, what kind of healing is he talking about it is that healing that comes from mending our fellowship with God for amending our fellowship with one another look at the last line of verse 16. The prayer of the righteous. You have to ask who are the righteous, listen carefully, although believers are righteous in some way because we have no righteousness of ourselves.

When we came in the Lord Jesus Christ received him as Savior and Lord. The Bible said Jesus imputes his righteousness upon us, so we only have an imputed righteousness. Although believers do, but I know and you know not all believers walk in God's righteousness, and that is why he saying when we have short accounts with God. When we confess that is the righteousness that pleases God.

And that's why the prayer of the righteous, not a special super saint not a pastor held that anybody who was walking in the righteousness of Jesus Christ whose confessing and keeping short accounts are not holding grudges are not building grudges that person is prayer and help where I got to be answered.

See, that's the power of the God releases as a result of us keeping short accounts and that's why he goes on to tell us about a larger larger was intimate with God.

Elijah was attuned to the mind of God. Elijah would not allow anything to come between him and God.

Elijah knew the mind of God, so much so that when he prayed, God released his power, but Elijah was far from perfect but may give your use of translation larger was flawed. Like all of us. I knows rough translation, but that's really what he meant but he would not allow a barrier to build between him and God. Elijah knew God. He trusted God fully healed by God even when his knees were knocking pray all the times pray for others. Pray that prayer that's releases the power of God and forcefully pray that you and others remain faithful. Verses 19 and 21 of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring them back said, remember this wherever turns a sinner from out of his way will save him from death and cover a multitude of sins.

Do you know someone is wondering from the Lord. Right now someone is wondering from the fold of God, you might be a person here today who I wandered away from the fold of God and God brought you here for a purpose to hear this message because God is pursuing you he wants you to come into his embrace is not pursuing usually punishes you is pursuing is that he might bring you in and hold you and enfold you if you know someone that you try to restore them, bring back to the truth, and for whatever reason they not responsive. Listen to me very carefully is what you need to know. Don't ever give up praying for that person.

Don't ever surrendered his or her soul. Keep asking for the opportunity to restore the brother of the system your prayer will cover a multitude of sin in all of this is something of vital importance is saying that love does not sweep sin under the carpet.

It doesn't. And where there is love, there is truth and where there is truth. There is an honest confession where there is honest confession of sin that is cleansing and forgiveness and power. Beloved, I know in the spiritual life. Sometimes people feel trapped. They may feel trapped in an illness.

They may feel trapped in the financial circumstances not wrongdoing, but I feel trapped in past sins they might feel trapped in some opposition and scorn of others. They may feel trapped in and of one form of addiction or another. When you feel trapped. The natural tendency is to panic but don't do the natural do the supernatural is some natural tendency is to lose your head or your pound in the screamo only measuring the worst. That is why, don't forget, there is an emergency button is called prayer and you are contrary to the one who has limitless power who listens to you 24 seven the one who loves you more than Amy Winder is able to love you the prayer of the righteous avail of much after confession and cleansing restoration God's power is going to be released in the question is are you ready prayer reaching out to the one who has limitless power and loves you more than anyone. You're listening to leading the way one of the perks of sitting behind this microphone is getting the opportunity to read and to share testimonies of the many lives that are touched by leading the way and the teaching of Dr. Michael UNICEF people right here in your neighborhood and people all around the world so recently and it was delivered to our international department have many of us, wiping away tears and we'd like to share this with China Christian convert from learning all of my family is Muslim. I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ my God and Savior, in your spare parts break my family took my children and wife on me because I became a Christian. They now call me apostate. Nothing they do can change my new spiritual identity. I want to get baptized and get out of here. I want to live my Christianity freely. Lord willing, I want to be an evangelist friends. Stories like this on ongoing reality here at leading the way. Our final teams see and hear the stories each and every day, and we appreciate your help and your encouragement if you'd like to stand with Dr. UNICEF and with these worldwide teams.

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