A CHRISTIAN'S SUNDAY MORNING PRAYER
My Father and My God,
You are the Sovereign One: Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
You alone rule in Heaven above, the earth below, the sea, and even in the abode of Hell, You are the Sovereign Ruler.
You control all the kingdom's of men for Your glory and the good of Your church.
O LORD: Father, Son, Holy Spirit, You are omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, infinite, immense, and eternal.
You are loving, gracious, merciful, kind, long-suffering, forgiving, and at the same time holy, just, and righteous!
You have always existed! You are the Ancient of Days! You are the Eternal One!
This knowledge is too wonderful for me to grasp. It is too high, I cannot attain to it.
However, I can apprehend it because it is revealed in Scripture.
But no mortal man can comprehend such depths of Your glory, splendor, holiness, and wonder.
O LORD, You are the zenith of purity, but I am so sinful in thought, word, and deed.
Who am I or what am I that You, O Lord, are mindful of me, that You should care for me, that You should redeem me?
I have violated all Your holy commandments! I have kept none of them!
I am worthy and deserving of damnation! Of myself, I am vile, corrupt, and unclean in Your sight!
But in a wonder of Your grace, You have redeemed me, body and soul, to be Your own.
You have cleansed me with Christ's blood! You have covered me with Christ's righteous robes!
I am humbled to the ground "that You would give Your only Son to make this wretch (me) His treasure."
I have no words to fully express Your gracious, wondrous, awesome redemption.
But, nevertheless, I praise Your name!
I praise You, Father! I praise You, Jesus! I praise You, Holy Spirit!
One God in divine essence yet three distinct Persons.
O Holy Spirit, continue Your transforming work within me.
Make me think and live like my Savior Jesus, Who always did those things that please the Father!
O Jesus, humble me when I obey; chasten me when I rebel against You!
Retrieve me when I go astray; keep me within Your sheepfold, O Great Shepherd of the Sheep!
Never loosen Your grip upon me lest I return to the broad road that leads to destruction!
My trust for redemption, from justification to glorification, is You, Lord Jesus!
Use me for Your glory, even though I am sinful, weak, and feeble!
Use me up for Your glory! Fill me with Your Spirit and Word.
Holy Spirit, bring my mind captive to the obedience of Christ!
I know I am a sinful vessel, but please, O Father, I plead with You, use me for Your glory and the good of Your church!
As the hymn writer penned:
Guide me, O thou great Jehovah,
pilgrim through this barren land.
I am weak, but thou art mighty;
hold me with thy powerful hand.
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
feed me till I want no more;
feed me till I want no more.
In Jesus’ Name!
Amen!
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A PORTRAIT OF THE SPIRIT-FILLED CHURCH
“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”
—Acts 2:42
BEFORE JESUS ascended into heaven He said to His disciples, "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you" (Matt. 28:19). The apostles preached and taught the people so often that it was said they “filled Jerusalem with their doctrine” (Acts 5:28). And the believers never tired of hearing the Apostles’ doctrine because they loved to hear the Gospel of their salvation. One of the marks of a true believer is a person who loves the truth of the Gospel, joins the visible church, and desires to learn all he can from the Word of God. A true believer wants to be instructed in the Scriptures, and he wants to tell others the things he learns.
IS THIS THE desire of your heart? Do you go to worship on Sunday morning because you can’t get enough of the Word of Christ? The church of Jesus Christ is a teaching and learning church. It’s a church that is steadfastly devoted to the Apostles’ teaching –the sound doctrine that proclaims the Lord Jesus Christ and what God has done for sinners through Christ –that is the heart and soul of the church. You take away the Apostles’ doctrine, and the church will die. Wherever the faithful preaching of the Apostles’ doctrine is heard, and where people continue to profess that doctrine, there the true church lives and thrives. And it’s there that you have a portrait of the Spirit-filled church.
BUT OUR TEXT also reveals that a Spirit-filled church is one devoted to fellowship. The word fellowship could also be translated communion because the basic idea of fellowship or communion is unity with another. You have something in common that brings you together. And believers have something in common –their union in Jesus Christ. The early church was devoted to fellowship. They were united in true brotherly love, and they demonstrated this by taking care of each other. Those who had more gave of their wealth to those who had less. There were no needy people among them.
WHAT ABOUT YOU? How do you view your possessions? We have so many things today that we don’t even use certain items. Just think of some of the clothes in your closet that you haven’t seen in years. Do you see your possessions as a gift from God to be stewarded for His glory and the benefit of the church, or do you just keep them to yourself? Do you have more of a desire to hoard things you don’t need or give them to those who could use them?
THE EARLY CHURCH was very enthusiastic in showing the common bond they had with one another, and their fellowship was based upon the union they have with God and the Lord Jesus Christ. We read in 1 John 1:3, “And truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.” Fellowship in the church is no less than fellowship with God Himself. That’s the covenant life of the church. That’s the true unity that believers have in Jesus Christ.
Friday Devotional: May 9, 2025
In Christ,
Pastor S. Henry
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TRANSFORMED NOT CONFORMED
“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
—Romans 12:2
CONFORMITY TO the world is the sin of many professing Christians. Many think they have found a way to serve both God and money. However, Scripture calls the redeemed of Christ to resist conformity to the spirit of this age. As the Apostle John wrote, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world; the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life; is not of the Father but is of the world” (1 John 2:15-16). And James tells us, “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4).
AS BELIEVERS, we are strangers and pilgrims on this earth (Heb. 11:13). Heaven is our country (Phil. 3:20) and the Lord Jesus is our Sovereign King (Rev. 15:3). What does a believer have to do with people, places, and things that promote a spirit of unrighteousness and irreverence towards our holy God? (2 Cor. 6:14-18). What conformity does a believer have to a world where things are purposely designed to indulge sinful passions and eliminate all thoughts of God? The redeemed are those who have been translated from the realm of darkness and death into the realm of light and life in Jesus Christ (Col. 1:13). Therefore, the Apostle Paul declares to every believer, “For you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light” (Ephesians 5:8).
THEREFORE, WE are commanded not to adopt the sinful customs, desires, ideologies, philosophies, psychology, attitudes, actions, or thoughts of the rebellious people in the land where we sojourn. It’s the duty of every believer to redeem the time, to walk with God, evangelize the lost, and to do all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and for His glory (1 Cor. 10:31). In this way, we are truly living as salt and light amidst a dark world.
Tuesday Encouragement: May 6, 2025
In Christ,
Pastor S. Henry
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