Battle On, Lift Up Your Hands

As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 

Exodus 17:11 NIV

Joshua led the army and fought the battle, yet the focus of this narrative is Moses holding his arms up to the Lord, interceding, if you will. Later in the chapter the Lord  tells Moses to make sure that Joshua hears about it. 

The lesson for Joshua was that it was the Lord who gave him the victory. As Moses, Aaron and Hur recounted the day to Joshua, recalling when Moses' arms lowered and they lifted them back up, Joshua remembered how the battle took its ups and downs. It was a lesson I believe he learned and knowing that it was God who fought his battles gave him the courage to lead the Israelites when Moses died. 

The lesson for us is that while we may think we are all alone in the battle Christ is interceding for us (Hebrews 7:25) and the battle is not just us, but the Lord with us. Christ is always interceding for us and the good news is that he never gets tired. There is one other part of the lesson and that is that sometimes we are called to lift up holy hands in prayer for someone we know who is in a battle, to be the intercessor. So, battle on and lift you hands in prayer to those you know in the battle they are fighting.

Completely and Always

but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

Hebrews 7:24-25 NIV

The fact that Jesus' priesthood is permanent leads to two wonderful truths. First, that he is able to save us completely and secondly, that he ever lives to intercede for us. 

The completeness of his saving work assures us that whatever the depths of sin his death on the cross covers us. The completeness of his salvation also deals with time because he lives forever as our High Priest. The past, the present, and the future are all cover by his grace. 

The comfort of knowing that he is always interceding on our behalf encourages us to press on and never give up. You see, there is no time where he steps away and comes back and is surprised to find us is the mess we are in.  Right now he is interceding for you. 

It's Time

No matter where you are at, it's time to call on God. In thanksgiving and cries for help, God is on the throne and Christ is at the right of the thrown interceding on our behalf.

Hasten, O God, to save me;
   come quickly, Lord, to help me. 
May those who want to take my life
   be put to shame and confusion;
may all who desire my ruin 
   be turned back in disgrace.
May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!”
   turn back because of their shame.
But may all who seek you
   rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who long for your saving help always say, 
   "The Lord is great!” 
But as for me, I am poor and needy;
   come quickly to me, O God.
You are my help and my deliverer;
   Lord, do not delay.
Psalms 70:1-5  (NIV)

POWERFUL AND EFFECTIVE PRAYER

"And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." James 5:15-16

I kind of assume that you, like me, want to be that righteous man or woman whose prayer is powerful and effective. That said I am reminded of a few verses. 

I Corinthians 1:30 tells us that we are in Christ and he is our righteousness.  

Ephesians 31:12 encourages us that, "In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence." 

Hebrews 10:10 bluntly says, "And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of body of Jesus Christ once for all." 

Do you get my point? God makes us righteous. If we are righteous in God's eyes, because he paid the price to redeem us, we are righteous. 

The enemy wants to condemn us. God has redeemed us and made us righteous in Christ and from that position we need to pray! From that position we can pray. We pray knowing that God hears our prayers because Jesus made a way for us, he is our Way.

Just pray. Because in Christ God makes it powerful and effective. 

Father, help us to pray knowing we are righteous in Christ and therefore you hear our prayers. Praise be to you in us today!

THE POINT: CHRIST IS

"The point of what we are saying is this: We do have a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by man." Hebrews 8:1-2 

You have a need. I have a need. We need someone to represent us to God Almighty. We need our sins forgiven. We need someone to be interceding on our behalf. 

Christ died for our sins; past, present and future. Christ sits at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven. Do you realize what that means? It means where the battle is being decided, we have the advantage. Christ, is representing us. That doesn't mean everything is easy. It does mean that Christ will keep us in his will and his way. And in the end, he will give us victory. 

Remember Job. Satan had to ask permission to do him any harm. Job suffered great losses to learn that God alone is Creator and Ruler, Righteous and Holy. God blessed him more in the end of his life than before, but, he did go through quite a battle. 

So, remember whom you have in heaven. Humbly and thankfully call on him. 

Thank you Jesus for being our High Priest and meeting our needs in yourself! Praise be to you in us today!

TEMPTATION: TEASE OR ATTACK?

"Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted." Hebrews 2:18 

Do you look at temptation as suffering? I don't think I do. Maybe it's because I tend to see sin as "pleasurable for a season". If you think about the temptation of Eve in the garden of Eden (Genesis 3) and of Christ in the desert (Matthew 4) the devil was attacking man's central trust and reliance on God. "Did God really say?", "If you are the Son of God". Temptation is not a cute little tease, temptation is an all out assault upon the umbilical cord of the faithfulness of God our Father. 

Christ, our faithful High Priest, suffered temptation to a degree we may never know the depths of. But, because he experienced temptations awful pull, he is able to help you and me when we are tempted. 

What is tempting you? Is your faith in Christ being assaulted? Do you realize that temptation is not benign? However you are feeling the effects of temptation know that Christ is able to help? 

Christ is able to help...

Lord Jesus Christ, help us! Praise be to you in us today!

CHRIST IS MORE THAN ALL THAT

"So he became as much superior to the angles as the name he has

inherited is superior to theirs." Hebrews 1:4

The point the author is trying to make is that Christs' position in the universe is superior to anything else, save the Father. This is important when we realize that then as now people were concerned with how God worked in their lives. The emphasis is that God sent his Son to intercede in our lives, not just angels. 

It is a wonderful thought to know that God uses his angels to guard us (Psalm 91:10-12; Matthew 4:6; Luke 4:10). But, to know that he sent his One and Only Son to die for our sins and that Christ now sits at the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf, that is amazing! 

The name Jesus inherited is the rank of firstborn. Think of it this way. Why do some religions want to say that Jesus is a prophet? Because they want to make him one of many prophets, not the Son of God. The author of Hebrews is reminding us that Jesus is superior to anything or anyone else. 

Father, praise you for sending Jesus to be our High Priest. Thank you that he died for our sins and that he ever lives to intercede for us at your right hand! Praise be to you in us today!

IT'S NOT ABOUT SECOND CHANCES/ Hebrews 1:3

"The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the majesty in heaven." Hebrews 1:3

Wow! Salvation is more than forgiveness. The work of Christ as Savior and Lord is more than dying for our sins, as if that wasn't more than we could imagine in itself. Our Savior provides continued salvation by interceding for us. Later in Hebrews 7:25 we learn that Christ "is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them". That is one reason why he sits at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. 

No if, ands or buts about it, your salvation is complete. Every "if I", "and I", or even "but I" is included in your salvation. Remember, it is not about second chances to be good enough. Think about that! Christianity is not about being good enough to deserve salvation. No one will ever be good enough. It's just about living in the grace of the moment. 

Father, help us to live in the realization that Jesus sustains us in his grace. Praise be to you in us today!