Jesus' command to ask, seek, and knock all hinged on the lesson of being persistent and asking, seeking, and knocking again & again until what you want is granted. Remember the illustration/story that Jesus gave of the man who knocked on his neighbor's door in the middle of the night and asked for bread but the man said he was already lying down so he would not - but the man outside kept knocking so due to his persistence his neighbor gave him what he asked. Also we are told to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17) though not with vain repetition (Matthew 6:7) but rather with purposeful prayer. Sometimes it only takes one prayer, sometimes we have to pray over and over. I have heard many stories of mothers and fathers who consistently prayed for their unbelieving kids to be saved for over 20 years and finally late in life they come to believe Christ because of that courageous and unceasing prayer of their loved ones for them. Some prayers take actual labor - and this is where the idea of intercessory prayer and being a "prayer warrior" comes into view. There are spiritual battles to be won in prayer, and often that takes consistent prayer. I just thought I would point that out.
God Bless,
~Josh
Hi Josh, I will address this last part of your post at another time because I'd like to get to the following:
Lots of good points, Josh. However, because I disagree with some of them, I'd like to take a moment to explain something I feel needs to be made clear, for future posts if nothing else.
This is not news to you, I'm sure but the Word is amazingly layered. We can read a verse today and find it meaningful and feel we understand it. Sometimes this is because : 1) It has become a set tenet in our minds so that no other interpretation is possible for us to consider. 2) We have given up understanding the verse and decide that it is not all that important at the moment. 3) We have prayed and asked that the Truth of the Spirit behind the black and white words be revealed to us. There may be other scenarios I could relate but these 3 matter to this post.
For instance, you posted this:
Well here I think that you may have some confusion about the concept or terminology of Jesus being 'gone'. Jesus did indeed leave us to go to His Father - and he even said it was necessary that he leave them so that he could send the Holy Spirit (whereby the reality of the indwelling of Christ in us - which you mentioned - occurs). So what Jesus meant is that when he left the earth they would indeed fast - but not during his earthly ministry. Also remember the difficulty that the disciples had casting a demon out of a boy's body and Jesus said, "This kind goes not out except by prayer and fasting" (Matthew 17:21)? Paul also fasted (2 Corinthians 6:5, 11:27) and gave instruction for husbands and wives, "Do not deprive one another except with consent for a time, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer" (1 Corinthians 7:5). Fasting is not wrong by any means. I have fasted many times, mostly to grow closer to the Lord or repent of sins that need correction.
I disagree with some of your wording. First, gone is gone. There is no indication that the words Jesus used were intended to mean that after His death and resurrection His disciples would fast but that as long as He was ON earth as a separate being, they would not. Jews had regular fasts. The disciples were Jews. For Him to say they would not fast as long as He, as the Bridegroom, was present with them pointed most clearly to the near future when the Law would no longer rule over them.
As for 1 Cor 7:5, in verse 6 Paul relates that he says this as a concession, not a commandment. Whether he is referring to the separation of the married couple or the fasting and prayer is difficult to determine. Here is where I think what we hear preached has a very strong formative effect on our minds and especially on what we believe certain verses say. Another verse that is frequently used to say we "should" fast, is the one about the demon the disciples were not able to cast out. The entire wording about prayer and fasting there is not found in one of the important manuscipts used for translation. I think that it is the NU.
actions of prayer and fasting as a unit (and are often refered to together in the Bible), and when Gabriel said that God had sent him as soon as he set his heart to do it
Just one quick comment on this quote: Daniel didn't know he was going to get a lengthy vision of the future. In fact, from the previous verses, it appears he was mourning over the sins and wickedness mentioned in 9:5. Which the angel did not address except to show Israel's "punishment". And, note that in 10:7, there were others with Daniel who apparently were there with him through the 3 weeks, yet they did not see the "man" nor hear his words. Though we cannot tell because it is not written, it would be reasonable to assume they too had "eaten no pleasant food, meat, or wine" for that period.
I assure you I do not feel fasting is "wrong or right". I think it is highly overrated in some churches as a means to move God, as if He needs priming like a balky motor or something. My real point is that certain things, like fasting, prayer cloths, washing each other's feet, dabbing store-bought olive oil on one another; those things that are viewed as "spiritual" are actually traps in some cases that keep us from simply praying or just believing God. When we do these things as sort of superstitious exercises we are definitely off-track. I'm sure you fasted because you felt led to do so. But, if from the pulpit or other public forums it is preached that others do it, that is wrong and can cause people to stumble badly if they try to copy the behavior and don't get expected results. (I'm not implying your post has contributed to this kind of scenario, there is no demand in what you said for anyone else to follow you and, I hope it is understood, there is no demand in mine
not to fast, dab each other with olive oil, or wash each other's feet, etc.)
and not rather that there is nothing good in our physical body
I am aware there are different words used for the flesh. However, Paul says in Rom 7 that within HIM(SELF) there dwells no good thing. Quite obviously, He was not speaking of his spirit in which the Godhead lived. We contain this treasure in "earthen vessels". Another of his sayings. Both of these specifically refer to the physical body. Oh, yes, he also stated that his body "is dead because of sin". Physical body? I believe so. True we walk in these dead bodies but in a very real sense, they
are dead as we walk.
I heard once that murderers in, I think it was, Rome were required to have the dead body of the slain tied on to their own bodies until they died from the contact. Gruesome but I suspect very effective in reducing murder rates. LOL
What made me think of that, though, was that we carry these bodies around but the engine has changed, the Spirit now runs the body and the mind of Christ is ours to know what the spirit is doing and saying. Amazing how God changed His own creation. Adam became a living soul, Christ (and those in whom He dwells) became a life-giving spirit.
Thanks for providing an interesting platform, my brother.
Enough, enough. Be blessed, my brother. You look a good deal like my favorite nephew and for that reason alone I would pray blessings on you!
