"Title" - The Prayer of Jabez; an Encouragement...
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IN THIS ISSUE:
1. EDITORIAL:
Immersion Baptism.
I
have recently exchanged notes with a brother over the topic of Immersion
Baptism, and I thought the matter deserved greater exposure. The evil
one is deceptive by nature, and we must know that he will do everything
within his power to diminish the truth and fullness of a matter. The
obedient act of immersion baptism has been under attack for some time, and
we pray that you find this information helpful.
The
link on Baptism, from the concordance at The Letters, will take you to the
following paragraph, that is located at: http://www.lettersoffaith.com/dscipl12.htm#immersion.
About immersion Baptism, this is what I was originally led to teach:
"I believe that once we are born again, God commands us to follow His example of immersion baptism. The passages in the concordance present irrefutable evidence in support of this. In teaching an immersion baptism though, I am not advocating legalism or ritualism. Understanding God lies in the fact that God is Spirit, and His requirements are spiritual. While we may not understand His workings, we must concede, "`My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,' declares the Lord" (Isaiah 55:8). Sometimes we need to take the Word of God at face value, when understood in the proper context, and by faith, do whatever He desires. For some, baptism will be that step of faith, while for others, water immersion will be a natural expression of their desire to follow Him.
Here is the concordance material that is provided on this topic - Baptism:
New Testament: Matthew 3:11-17, 28:18-20; Mark 1:4,5, 16:15-18; Luke 3:16, 12:50; John 1:29-33, 3:5, 3:22-23, 4:2, 16:7-15; Acts 1:4-8, 2:37-41, 8:12, 8:36-38, 9:17-18, 10:47-48, 13:23-24, 16:13-15, 16:31-33, 18:8, 19:1-7, 22:16; 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, 12:13, 15:29; Galatians 3:27, Ephesians 4:4-6; Colossians 2:9-12; 1 Peter 3:21-22.
With this material in hand - and in mind - therefore, this is how I would be chatting with anybody who professes that, "we need to be baptized with water in the name of Jesus in order to be saved."
Baptism does not save us, Yahshua Mashiach saves us! The Word of God says, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved, you and your household. (Acts 16:31). Elsewhere we read, "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9). And, the reference to, "Not as a result of works", includes the "works" of baptism, when that act becomes a religion unto itself. Sadly, those who abide in a teaching that the act of baptism itself saves us, have made a religion out of the act. According to their beliefs, battlefield or deathbed confessions of faith are useless, just as any confession of faith is useless, unless a person can manage to get dunked before they die, because the person never received immersion baptism. And, in drawing these conclusions, they act as judge over mankind...
"I believe that once we are born again, God commands us to follow His example of immersion baptism. The passages in the concordance present irrefutable evidence in support of this. In teaching an immersion baptism though, I am not advocating legalism or ritualism. Understanding God lies in the fact that God is Spirit, and His requirements are spiritual. While we may not understand His workings, we must concede, "`My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,' declares the Lord" (Isaiah 55:8). Sometimes we need to take the Word of God at face value, when understood in the proper context, and by faith, do whatever He desires. For some, baptism will be that step of faith, while for others, water immersion will be a natural expression of their desire to follow Him.
Here is the concordance material that is provided on this topic - Baptism:
New Testament: Matthew 3:11-17, 28:18-20; Mark 1:4,5, 16:15-18; Luke 3:16, 12:50; John 1:29-33, 3:5, 3:22-23, 4:2, 16:7-15; Acts 1:4-8, 2:37-41, 8:12, 8:36-38, 9:17-18, 10:47-48, 13:23-24, 16:13-15, 16:31-33, 18:8, 19:1-7, 22:16; 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, 12:13, 15:29; Galatians 3:27, Ephesians 4:4-6; Colossians 2:9-12; 1 Peter 3:21-22.
With this material in hand - and in mind - therefore, this is how I would be chatting with anybody who professes that, "we need to be baptized with water in the name of Jesus in order to be saved."
Baptism does not save us, Yahshua Mashiach saves us! The Word of God says, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved, you and your household. (Acts 16:31). Elsewhere we read, "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9). And, the reference to, "Not as a result of works", includes the "works" of baptism, when that act becomes a religion unto itself. Sadly, those who abide in a teaching that the act of baptism itself saves us, have made a religion out of the act. According to their beliefs, battlefield or deathbed confessions of faith are useless, just as any confession of faith is useless, unless a person can manage to get dunked before they die, because the person never received immersion baptism. And, in drawing these conclusions, they act as judge over mankind...
Acts 2:37-39, 8:12, 8:36-39, 9:17-18 all show a sequence of faith, baptism and then the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Acts 10:47-48, however, clearly shows that the Holy Spirit can baptize before water immersion takes place. It is amazing how they forget this fact. And, this event was not a mistake either. This was done by the Holy Spirit for just this reason; to stop mankind from making a religion out of the act of baptism. And, please don't lose sight of the fact that each of these "events" clearly shows TWO very distinct and separate EVENTS taking place... Immersion Baptism - and - the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, ARE TWO TOTALLY SEPARATE EVENTS!
The confusion that exists in comprehending this fact is found in the realization that those who teach that we are saved through baptism have totally forgotten (or choose to ignore) the fact that, "By one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit" (1 Corinthians 12:13). The Baptism of the Spirit - in the Spirit - is a Baptism into the Body of Messiah. And this fact is upheld by Ephesians 4:4-6... Sadly, in quoting Ephesians 4:4 the way they do, they attempt to make it sound as if the "one baptism" of this passage is dealing with the physical act of immersion baptism - which it does not! The baptism of the Spirit is into the Body of Yahshua. The immersion baptism is an obedient and submissive act of faith, unto Yahshua Mashiach, which symbolically (Spiritually) "Washes away our sins" (Acts 22:16).
Now for those who do not abide by the teaching of immersion baptism, the above passages clearly teach that we must follow the commands of our Savior, and obediently submit to His will. The physical act of immersion baptism does not save us in itself, but we follow His lead (Acts 3:11-17) and obey His command (Matthew 28:18-20) and in the fullness of these things discover that the re-birth comes fully in water and Spirit (John 3:5).
2. FEATURE
ARTICLE: The Prayer of Jabez
Revealed.
I
would like to offer a twist on the prayer of Jabez, that the Lord placed
upon Charlie's and my heart, because we find this little prayer to hold
repentance and rightness with Elohim to be fundamental to its fulfillment:
"Now
Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name
Jabez, saying, 'Because I bore him in pain'. And Jabez called
on the God of Israel saying, 'Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and
enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would
keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!' So God granted him what he
requested" (1 Chronicles 4:9,10, NKJV).
First,
Jabez "was more honorable" than his brethren. Jabez was
repentant. Jabez had already ordered his life aright before God, and
had sought His face for a very long time. Jabez was honorable in
the sight of God. This fact has been grossly overlooked by the
religious organizations, but, praise the Lord, it has not escaped our
attention at all.
In
light of this fact, Jabez approached God in fervent prayer - seeking for
the glory of God! And this is the same approach that Charlie and I
take as we approach His throne through His Son.
We
seek for His blessing; that we may be a blessing to His children. We
seek His light, that we may reflect that light in the darkness of this
world. We seek His righteousness, His wisdom, knowledge,
understanding, compassion, mercy, forgiveness and love (especially His
love) that we may display this fruit unto all that we encounter.
Furthermore,
we seek for the expansion of our boundaries - Not that we want to own
things, but that He would increase the area of our ministry for the praise
of His glory. We seek very little for our selves (those of our
needs, which are always rendered through His loving provision) but we seek
for whatever is needed to progress His Word and minister to His lost
children.
The
next part, "That you would keep me from evil" is repeated in the
New Testament over and over again, but nowhere more significantly than in
the Lord's own teaching on how we should pray. As a matter of fact, if
you seriously look at the contents of 'The Lord's Prayer', many elements
of Jabez' prayer can be found here as well... Yahshua
said we are to pray thus, "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be
Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done. On earth
as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And
forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do
not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Thine is
the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever. Amen]"
(Matthew 6:9-13 NASB).
And
I guess here is the rub of it all... Religion distorts and
diminishes the truth and fullness of everything that is spiritually
relevant. And the current teachings on the prayer of Jabez are in
full agreement with that fact.
Just
as the Catholic Church repeats the Lord's Prayer, as if it were meant to
be some sort of mantra, along with the 'hail Mary', the false
Protestant/Evangelical/Whatever religious organizations are now distorting
the prayer of Jabez to accommodate their need for something to grasp a
hold of - in their positive thinking mindset - because everything else is
tumbling down around them.
Only
a truly repentant and contrite heart can pray in line with Jabez - and
receive a response from our Messiah.
And
the last line of his prayer is, I think, the most precious of all.
And, the most forgotten. Oh, "That I may not cause
pain"... Can you hear it? Can you hear the heart of His
faithful children crying out to Him in this prayer?
"Father,
please, do not let me teach anything in error. Please give me the
strength and courage to teach the fullness of You; to prophetically look
into the hearts of Your lost children - and to speak directly to their sin
- not maliciously, but in Your love - so that they may discover their need
for repentance, and so that they may return to You with contrition and the
joy of Your Spirit. To the praise, honor and glory of Your Most Holy
Name."
Personally,
I believe that the warning to Solomon is meant to be KNOWN first.
Then, when our hearts are right with Him, a prayer like that of Jabez will
naturally flow from those hearts, because the sole desire of a heart that
is right with God will seek to please, honor, glorify and magnify The
One who has called us, redeemed us and disciplined us. Sadly, the
religious organizations have forgotten these things, again, and in their
forgetfulness, the sheep are led further astray.
3. PRAYER
REQUESTS:
Sandi
is requesting prayers for Holly - who is an abused child that is just
beginning to wrestle with her ordeals, for Bridget - who is taking drugs and
for Kendra, her granddaughter who is caught up in the middle of Satan's
mess. We also need to pray for Sandi herself, who is a lone reed
standing in the midst of a tremendous spiritual battle.
Christine
needs our prayers for healing - following surgery.
JS
and L, who are engulfed in a terrible financial battle, as L is out of work
and in need of a job. Looking faithfully, but with no results as of
yet.
Judy
is praying the same for her husband, who desperately needs a job.
Cindy
is praying for her son and daughter-in-law, who are trying to have a child.
4. FEEDBACK:
As
you know, November 17, 2001 was the day in which we were moved to call for
an international day of repentance - in prayer and fasting.
First
off, let me thank you all for forwarding our initial and follow-up messages
on this event in the manner in which you did. We reached souls for the
glory of our Lord, and no matter what the ultimate outcome, I know that He
was pleased.
It
rained here - all day long. Nevertheless, prayer was offered at the
park, and by our support teams at home, and I know that the Lord heard our
earnest and sincere prayers. I have not heard of a torrential
outpouring anywhere else, so I am praising the Lord for dumping it all here, so
that many others were able to assemble in the warmth of His love.
I
have not heard of "groups" coming together, but that doesn't mean
that some of you didn't find others praying in the listed parks (348,
I believe).
The
Lord gave me a wonderful dream after our day in the park - on Saturday night
/ Sunday morning - in which I got the very distinct impression that He was
well pleased.
Thank
you all again for your participation.
5. CONTACT:
larry vosen
If you have any questions about the
Bible, Elohim (God), Yahshua
Mashiach (Jesus Christ), Qodesh
Ruach (the Holy Spirit), the
Gospel, Faith or any pressing
spiritual matter, please feel free to contact me. While I may not
possess the answers personally, I
know Who Does! Every effort will be made to answer your questions in a
timely and Scripturally supported
manner.
Do you have a prayer request?
Please share your needs with us... We will post your needs in our
"Prayer Request" sections, so that we can approach the
Throne of God in a united front on your behalf.
We can be reached through our email
address at: Contact larry
Or, please feel free to mail your
thoughts, requests or
support to:
Larry Vosen
End Time Christianity, Inc.
2600 E. Seltice Way, #203
Post Falls, ID 83854
Larry Vosen
End Time Christianity, Inc.
2600 E. Seltice Way, #203
Post Falls, ID 83854
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© 2001 Larry Vosen.
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