Friday, June 1, 2018

Do you know you are very dear to God?

In ancient times, a signet ring was a treasured possession. It was used to place the owner’s personal signature or seal on documents. It was worn on a finger (Jeremiah 22:24) or an arm (Song of Solomon 8:6) or suspended on a chain around the neck.^[1]

When Pharaoh promoted Joseph and put him in charge of all the country of Egypt, he confirmed it by removing his signet ring from his hand and placing it on Joseph’s finger (Genesis 41: 42). The king of Persia showed his great esteem for Haman by doing the same thing with his signet ring (Esther 3:10). We pray that our loving Heavenly Father will bring many Muslims to believe in Jesus Christ and live for him, and so discover how very precious and dear they are to the Lord—like a signet ring.

Prayer

Blessed God, our Maker and Redeemer, I ask you to draw to the Kingdom of your Son multitudes of Muslims. May they find their place among your chosen people. We want to see countless Muslims serve Christ the Lord, worship the risen Savior, and bring others to the cross. Grant them the experience of the bride when she said to her groom, “Place me like a seal over your heart, like a seal on your arm” (Song of Solomon 8:6, NLT).

May they realize by your Spirit that they are precious in your sight, dear to your heart (Isaiah 43:4), and at the center of your plans (Jeremiah 29:11).

May they also understand their serious responsibility to be your ambassadors in this world and to witness to your mercy and grace.

You alone are the Almighty God, Sovereign, Potentate. To you be glory for ever and ever, amen.

Promise

On that day, I will take you and I will make you like a signet ring for me, for I have chosen you (Haggai 2:23, SAB).

Footnotes

^[1]My grandfather did not know how to read and write. He did not like the idea of wearing a ring. He had a seal in his big wallet to stamp documents in his name.

Friday, May 25, 2018

Muslims believe in one God whose oneness does not allow for the doctrine of the Trinity, that is, three Persons in One. They mistakenly believe that Christians worship three gods. Islam claims that Jesus cannot be the Son of God, because God does not marry and produce children. Muslims believe that the Holy Spirit is just an angel.

Furthermore, the loving relationship of God the Father with his people is missing in Islam. “The central claim of Christianity is that God has spoken.”^[1] This means there is the Speaker (God the Father), the Word spoken (the Son) and the Interpreter of the Word (the Holy Spirit).

Although people are not saved because of a doctrine, the teaching of the Trinity reveals to us God’s person, his character and his work, and is essential for our relationship with him. An incorrect concept of God is at the core of many heresies.

Prayer

Lord God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, great in glory and eternal in love, I ask you to open the eyes of many Muslims this week to see your sacrifice, power and wisdom.

Forgive Muslims for rejecting Jesus Christ, your Son, and trying to box the Eternal God into the limits of their own logic! May they instead submit to your eternal love and worship you—Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Lord Jesus, reveal yourself to them, one with the Father and the Holy Spirit. You said: “I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me…. I came from God” (John 8:16,42). May Muslims be reconciled to you at the cross of Calvary. Set them free from the darkness of Islam. May their hearts be touched by your love, O God our Father, by the grace of Christ your Son, and by the closeness and gentleness of the Holy Spirit.

You are the Almighty, the only living God, Maker of heaven and earth, and Redeemer and Sustainer of humans. Blessed are you for ever and ever. Amen.

Promise

Jesus said, “I am the way, I am the truth, I am the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father too. From now on you do know him and have seen him” (John 14:6-7, SAB).

Footnotes

^[1] Swiss Theologian Karl Bart, 1886-1968.

Friday, May 18, 2018

Before Jesus ascended to the Father, he promised to send the Holy Spirit to be our Comforter and Guide and empower us to witness for him. His promise was fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost. This weekend we will celebrate Pentecost Sunday to commemorate the gift of God’s Spirit to the Church. Only the power of the Holy Spirit can draw people to Christ and enable Christians to accomplish great things in everyday life, in evangelism and in missions.

Over the centuries, the Holy Spirit has used miracles, visions, and dreams to reveal Christ to many Muslims in different parts of the world. The great influx of Muslims coming to Christ in Indonesia in the 1960s and 1970s, and presently in some parts of Africa, can be attributed mainly to the powerful work of the Holy Spirit.

Prayer

O God the Holy Spirit, come upon Muslim converts to Christ, and fill them with your power and presence. Fulfill to them Jesus’ promise of Pentecost. Holy Spirit, sanctify them, guide them to the truth, and help them lead a victorious Christian life. The environment that surrounds them is very hostile to the Gospel, and they need the fullness of the Spirit to persevere in their commitment to you.

Help them pray for others and intercede for the lost world. Inspire them with zeal and power to witness for Christ, spread the Gospel throughout the whole earth, and demonstrate God’s majesty through signs and wonders.

I pray that the time will come when “the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord’s glory as the waters cover the sea” (Habakkuk 2:14).

In the mighty name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

Promise

I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions (Joel 2:28, NLT).

Friday, May 11, 2018

During this season, Muslims start the month-long fast called Ramadan. The Muslim calendar is based on the lunar year, which has only 354 days. So each year the month-long fast comes about 11 days earlier than in the previous year.

Muslims fast from dawn to sunset every day throughout this month. They abstain from food, drink, smoking, smelling nice aromas, and marital relations. Each day after sunset, they break the fast, usually with a feast. They are allowed to eat until dawn of the following day.

According to Islam, this fast enables people to gain a right standing with God and an entry into paradise.

Some Muslims actually believe that during this month the devil is chained and cannot cause them harm, that the doors of heaven are open and the doors of hell are closed.

Prayer

O Lord Jesus, I pray with love and compassion in my heart for Muslims during this season of fasting.

You know, Lord, that most Muslims are sincere people. They are serious about their religion and beliefs. Help them realize that to approach you they have to go through Jesus and his sacrifice at Calvary. They cannot save themselves from sin by “pulling themselves up by their bootstraps”! They cannot lift themselves up to you by performing rituals and religious duties.

O God, help them discover that we are saved, not through works of righteousness, but only by faith through your undeserved favor.

I pray that you will reveal yourself to Muslims during this month as the Savior who has already accomplished all things. May they know that on the cross “it is finished.” Amen.

Promise

It is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life” (Galatians 3:11, NLT).

Friday, May 4, 2018

Pride is one of the biggest obstacles to receiving Christ! The Bible asks us to humble ourselves to receive God’s grace (James 4:6). Muslims need to bow down at Christ’s mercy seat and submit themselves in humility to God’s plan. He brings people to himself by grace and not because of anything we deserve, through the cross and not by our good deeds. God’s Word warns: “Pride will destroy a person; a proud attitude leads to ruin” (Proverbs 16:18, NCV); and “God sets himself against the proud, but he shows favor to the humble” (James 4:6, NLT).

Prayer

O Lord Jesus, meek and humble in heart, yet Almighty Maker and Master of all, I come to you humbly to worship at your feet.

I know it is hard for Muslims to admit that they have been cheated and misled for many centuries! One obstacle that hinders them from humbling themselves before you is the realization that their forefathers went astray and did not really know God, the true God! That is why we ask for grace for our Muslim friends to acknowledge this tough truth.

Help them to repent, abandon their pride and lean on your grace to please you rather than on their heritage, race or tradition. O God, grant that they may approach Jesus with humility and meekness. I pray that they will bow their hearts to their Redeemer and fall on their knees to worship Christ—God become man, who reigns over all and will judge all. May they acknowledge you, O Lord, as the First and the Last, the Alpha and the Omega. Majesty, glory and honor belong to you, Lord Jesus, for ever and ever. Amen.

Promise

Humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and in his good time he will honor you (1 Peter 5:6, NLT).