Leading the Captives to Freedom
An overview of Personal Prayer Ministry
by Pastor Pete Beck III
These meditations are copyrighted, but feel free to download them for personal use or to forward to friends.
Saved by Grace
All things begin, continue and end with God. He is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. It is crucial for us to understand that each Person of the triune Godhead contributes to what the Bible calls our "great salvation". The Father is the One who loved us from before the creation of the world and who planned our salvation before we ever breathed our first breath.
Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ. 4 For he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world that we may be holy and unblemished in his sight in love. Ephesians 1:3-4 (NET1)
Abba Father is the kindest and most loving Person we will ever know.
But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, 5 even though we were dead in transgressions, made us alive together with Christ — by grace you are saved! — 6 and he raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 to demonstrate in the coming ages the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:4-7 (NET1)
But He is also completely righteous, and our sin created a huge challenge to our ever being able to enjoy the fellowship and intimacy that Father God desired for us to share with Him. We distanced ourselves from Abba through of our breach of his righteousness. His desire to show mercy stood opposed to his truth and righteousness. How could God's righteous anger at our sin ever harmonize with his tender mercies?
Abba's amazing plan was the fruit of wisdom which is beyond human.
Instead we speak the wisdom of God, hidden in a mystery, that God determined before the ages for our glory. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood it. If they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 1 Corinthians 2:7-8 (NET1)
The solution was for His only begotten Son to become a human being and offer Himself as a perfect substitutional sacrifice in our behalf.
But when this priest [Jesus] had offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 where he is now waiting until his enemies are made a footstool for his feet. 14 For by one offering he has perfected for all time those who are made holy. Hebrews 10:12-14 (NET1)
In addition, by the genius of what theologians call "identification", we participate in Christ's death and resurrection, having been placed "in Christ", in whom we are blessed with all spiritual blessings.
God made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we would become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NET1)
Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ. Ephesians 1:3 (NET1)
To make the solution perfect, our heavenly Father sent His Holy Spirit to indwell each believer. God's Spirit lives Christ's life in and through everyone who is born again. He is the Great Enabler. He is our power source, the Person we always wanted to be. He is our guarantee that God will finish what he began.
Then I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever — 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept, because it does not see him or know him. But you know him, because he resides with you and will be in you. John 14:16-17 (NET1)
For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. 21 And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, 22 and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. 2 Corinthians 1:20-22 (ESV)
Every great team has unity, clearly defined job descriptions and superlative abilities. The Trinity is no exception. In fact, the very concept of team finds its origin in God. The Father is the planner. The Son is the executive who carries out the Father's plan. The Holy Spirit is the administrator who works behind the scenes to assure the success of Father's plan and the Son's execution of that plan. Another way to put it is that the Father chose us to be his very own. The Son died and rose again to make it possible, and the Spirit applies the finished work of Christ to our lives, bringing the Father's plan to fruition. And when all is said and done, after the final judgment and the conclusion of all things, Paul tells us that:
When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all. 1 Corinthians 15:28 (ESV)
God will be all in all. He is our final destiny, the goal or end of salvation. To Him belongs all glory forever and ever. It is important to understand and believe that our salvation begins and ends with God. The beginning was Father's plan to bring us into his family. The end will be when we receive the final installment, our resurrected bodies and heavenly reward. The in-between is also ultimately "all God"; although, we play a vital role. The coming of our Lord, his death, burial and resurrection, and the sending of the Holy Spirit were all accomplished before we were even born. Certainly we had no "say" in that or decision to make. As Paul wrote,
So then, it does not depend on human desire or exertion, but on God who shows mercy. Romans 9:16 (NET1)
Our part came at the time we were privileged to hear the gospel and were called upon to respond. If you are among those who believe, something happened in your heart when you heard the gospel message. I believe the inner work of God's Spirit combined with the outer call of the gospel to effect in us the desire to surrender our lives to God. Jesus made it clear that God is the initiator, not us.
No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:44 (NET1)
Yes, we must make the choice to believe in and serve Christ, but the mystery of God is at work beneath the surface of things so that we can all agree that...
For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 it is not from works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them. Ephesians 2:8-10 (NET1)
The reason I have gone to such lengths to show God's integral involvement with every aspect of our salvation is to give you hope. If our salvation rests on our shoulders and depends on our abilities, our will power, our holiness, or our goodness, we are in big trouble. But if our salvation rests upon the Fathers choice to love us, the Son's finished work and the power of the indwelling Spirit, we are in good shape. If you are going to experience true freedom, you will need to come to terms with the God who works through grace, his free gift to you. You cannot approach him through your own goodness or performance. Likewise, neither your lack of goodness (apart from Christ) nor your poor performance thus far, is any deterrent to experiencing God's ability to set you free. We come to God solely on the basis of Christ's righteousness. We have none of our own. We must make it our goal to..
.. be found in him, not because I have my own righteousness derived from the law, but because I have the righteousness that comes by way of Christ’s faithfulness — a righteousness from God that is in fact based on Christ’s faithfulness. Philippians 3:9 (NET1)
Only when we learn to rely on God's love, kindness, righteousness, grace, power and authority can we experience all that Christ died and rose again to give us. We dare not short change ourselves and "frustrate the grace of God" by trying to save ourselves. It will never work and only leave you confused and frustrated. Jesus did not come to help the religious. He came to save sinners. Answer Christ's call and come to Him with no ability to save or liberate yourself, but with full confidence that freedom can be experienced by grace alone.
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke on you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and my load is not hard to carry. Matthew 11:28-30 (NET1)
God's promise is that when we learn to live by faith in the power of the Spirit, believing what is true, we will live in a way that brings glory to God.
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Romans 8:1-4 (ESV)
If you will make it your goal to rely on God's grace, believe his truth, operate in Christ's authority and live by the power of the Spirit, you too can experience freedom in Christ.