The Bible clearly proclaims that believers have full access to the throne of God through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Yet, the Bible also identifies circumstances that can and will hinder a believer’s prayer life. According to James 1:6-7, a lack of faith hinders the Lord’s response to a person’s prayer. According to 1 John 3:22, disobedience can also be a hindrance to prayer. In 1 Peter 3:7, the Bible declares that the prayers of a troubled home will be hindered. In addition to this, the Lord acknowledges the benefit of praying according to His will (1 John 5:14). It is important to pray but also important to insure that your prayer life is not hindered by your personal walk and ways.
The 2,000-year history of the church reveals that there have been teachers and whole religions who have rejected the biblical teaching of the coexistence of a Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Others have accepted their existence but rejected the fact that these three are one with each being fully God (1 John 5:7). Some have simply been unable to comprehend or unwilling to accept that God could exist as one God in three persons. Regardless of man’s intellectual inadequacies, the Bible reveals that each member of the Godhead works together on our behalf in prayer. The Lord told us that every believer should pray to God the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus (John 15:16). The prayers are directed toward the Father with the Son acting as the mediator (Hebrews 7:25). The book of Romans further reveals that the Spirit of God makes intercession for us in our prayers (Romans 8:26).
Modern Christianity has been redefining Bible terminology and fasting is no exception. Perhaps this is because Christians want to look spiritual without the necessary dedication. Some claim to be fasting from certain things like caffeine or sugar intake. The Bible does not offer anyone this type of latitude. True biblical fasting involves much more than refraining from some handpicked pleasure. According to our passage, Paul entreated the people to take meat because they had been fasting for two weeks. Esther 4:16 reveals that fasting consists of taking no food or drink. Although some Bible teachers have suggested that fasting means to simply refrain from earthly joys, fasting in the Bible always includes refraining from food or from both food and drink. Even the results of fasting identify that it is associated with depriving the body of food. In Psalm 109:24, David said, “My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh faileth of fatness.” Foregoing earthly pleasures is a byproduct of fasting, not the sole object.
Imagine one day standing before “the righteous judge” of the universe who knows every action, thought, and motive. One day, this will become the reality for all those who have ever lived. The Son of God is that judge because the Father committed all judgment to Him (John 5:22). He will judge the world with righteousness and the people with equity (Psalm 98:9). His Father gave Him full authority to mete out this judgment. As the judge, He incorporates an equal standard in every ruling. The scripture testifies of this judgment when it says the Lord has a crown for Paul. Fortunately, this crown is not limited to Paul only, “but unto all them also that love his [Christ’s] appearing.” It is important to note that the word of God stands as the standard by which all truth is judged. The Lord Jesus Christ remains the righteous judge by which all is judged. Unfortunately, far too many judges pervert judgment by incorporating a changing standard into their decisions.
