The Work Of Intercession

John 17

Introduction

Have you ever seen a nest full of baby birds with their mouths opened, waiting anxiously to receive food from the mother bird? Their only desire is for what the mother bird will bring them and their open mouths and noisy cries are a whole hearted request for what they desire.

That is a good picture of what our prayers ought to be like. Rather than the faintly mumbled few words we utter in passing, God invites us into a relationship in which He, as Father, is seen as our whole source of all that we need and our conversations with Him acknowledge His sovereignty, glory and provision. Arthur Pink writes, “Prayer is the expression of desire for benefit by one who needs it, to one who, in his estimation, is able and disposed to confer it.”

If we see that prayer is that important, then we will desire, as the disciples did, to learn how to pray. To know, “How do we pray?” “Whom do we pray for?” “What do we pray about?”

Jesus answered the request of the disciples to teach them to pray when he taught them the “Lord’s prayer.” He further taught them to pray when they saw Him pray. One of the prayers which Jesus prayed in their presence is that which we find in John 17. Knowing that He was about to leave, he had given words of comfort and instruction and then he prayed this wonderful prayer. In it we have a model from which we can learn much about prayer. It particularly demonstrates a model from which we can learn about whom to pray for and how to pray. There is, of course, much more in this passage, but this morning I would like to draw from it lessons on prayer. Some of what I am sharing with you comes from two books. One by Andrew Murray with the title “With Christ in the School of Prayer” and the other called “When God Prays” by Skip Heitzig.

The outline which you will see in the NIV Bible is the outline we will be following. Jesus prays for Himself, for His disciples and for all believers.

Jesus Prays For Himself John 17:1-5

Prayer For Self.

In the first five verses, Jesus begins by praying for Himself. As the Son of God who knew God intimately, we wonder why He would need to pray for Himself. As we will see when we examine the content of His prayer, there is no self centeredness in this prayer. He is praying not so much for himself as that God’s will be done in Him. Yet He does think about Himself and His relationship to God.

If Jesus needed to pray for Himself, how much more do we need to pray for ourselves. How intensely do we pray for ourselves and our relationship with God?

Content Of His Prayer

There are, of course, elements of His prayer that are unique to Jesus alone because of who He was. However, we see also in His prayer a good model of some of what we ought to pray about for ourselves.

We recognize here the intimate relationship which Jesus had with His Father. In this prayer, He clarified his relationship to the Father. He spoke of his work. Notice that he talked about the work of giving eternal life to people. We also see how he spoke of His obedience. In verse 4 he speaks about “completing the work you gave me to do.” In his teaching and in a very short time in his death, Jesus did all that he had been sent to do. The primary concern of this prayer, however, and the actual request which He made to the Father is that God be glorified in His life and work. In the first verse Jesus asked “that your Son may glorify you.” The heart of Jesus, expressed in prayer is for the glory of God.

The word glory is used often in the Bible. Glory refers to that which is the best. When Jesus prays that God be glorified, He is expressing a desire that everyone, everywhere recognize that God and His way are the best. That there is nothing and no one more amazing, more wonderful than God. When God is glorified, people put their trust in Him. When God is glorified, He is recognized as the source of all that is right and good and perfect. Through the work of bringing people to eternal life, Jesus desires that people come to understand and acknowledge this.

As Jesus prayed that God would be glorified in Him, he modeled what we also need to pray for ourselves - that our lives bring glory to God. Our lives bring glory to God when we are taken from being lost sinners to being children of God. Our lives bring glory to God when the work of God is evident in us. Our lives bring glory to God when our life is focussed in a God-ward direction. Arthur Pink writes, “Christ prayed for this glory in order that He might glorify the Father. Here too, He has left us an example. Whatsoever we do is to be done to the glory of God, and nothing should be asked from Him save for His glory.”

It isn’t necessarily easy to pray like this. As we pray about our work, do we pray that God will be glorified in our work? As we pray about our obedience, can we say, “God, I have done what you asked me to do?” What will it mean if our ultimate concern is for the glory of God? For Jesus it meant death. For us it may mean suffering. Are we willing to bring glory to the Father through our lives, no matter what happens to us?

I think that as we pray about ourselves to the Father, we ought to be deeply honesty. We need to admit to God that we are often quite selfish and also fearful. We ought to pray honestly, but also trustingly, acknowledging before the Father that our deepest hearts desire is for His glory.

Jesus Prays For His Disciples John 17:6-19

Prayer For Those Nearby

In John 17:6-8, Jesus continues to speak to the Father about the work He has done, but now a new element comes into the prayer. He is speaking about those with whom He has spent most of the last three years. He acknowledges that these disciples of His have accepted His message and have become followers of God. In verse 9, Jesus says, “I pray for them.”

After prayer for self, Jesus moves on to prayer for His disciples. In praying for His disciples, He is praying for those who are closest to them. He indicates, further, in verse 9 that he does not pray for the world. That is not to say that He does not care about the world. We know from John 3:16 that the world is very much the object of His love. However, at this point the object of His prayer is those who have been closest to Him. This is the longest section and the prayer is specific and definite.

In a similar way, although we should care for and even pray for the world, often our most intimate prayers will be for those in the circle that is closest to us. This is the circle that includes our spouse, our children, our parents and our church family. This is the circle where we know what the struggles are and what is needed and so we are able to pray most personally and most definitely.

Content Of His Prayer

The content of Jesus prayer for those closest to him is also very instructive. What is the usual content of our prayer for each other? How does that list compare with how Jesus prays for His intimate circle?

In His prayer for His disciples, Jesus asks two things

Prayer For Protection

The context of this prayer is found in verse 11. Jesus recognizes, “I will remain in the world no longer.” Up to this point, Jesus had protected His disciples. When they had been hungry, He had provided bread and fish. When they needed a coin to pay taxes, He knew which fish had the coin in its mouth. When they fielded attacks from the Pharisees, Jesus answered the questions. But now He would no longer be physically present with them to protect them. Therefore, He prays for their protection.

In praying this prayer for them, He introduces them to a new relationship. No longer will they have the presence of Jesus to help them. Jesus prays that they will be protected “by the power of God’s name.” It was God Himself, by His Spirit who would now be their protection. Being protected by the name of God means that when God’s name is named in the presence of God’s enemies, they cringe. When we belong to God, we live under the protection of God Himself. It is not a magical thing, rather it is a matter of relationship. We belong to God and so we are identified with and protected by His name.

When Jesus goes on to pray, as He does in verse 12, saying, “I have lost none” it reveals the desperate need for this prayer. The language of loss suggests to us the battle that is going on. It intimates that there is a danger, an enemy out there. The danger is of course the enemy of our souls who is a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Jesus prays for His dearest friends that they will be protected in that danger, protected from that enemy. Do you pray for those closest to you in this way? The danger has not subsided, in fact if anything, it has increased. The other day, I was feeling as if I was under a spiritual attack. Several things combined to make me feel defeated. I asked Carla to pray for my spiritual protection and God has answered that prayer. Let us pray for each other for protection in the battle.

Sometimes when we think about this kind of a prayer, we may feel as if such a prayer will help people to just barely hang on until Christ returns. It may raise in us a war mentality – we will man the battle stations until the victory trumpet is sounded. But Jesus prayer is not that gloomy. Although he was leaving and they would need protection, Jesus prays, in verse 13 that “they may have the full measure of joy.” Recently, Carla’s brother was diagnosed with cancer. The other day she spoke with him and indicated that they are praying and experiencing that the presence of the cancer will not take away the joy they have in the Lord. When you pray for those closest to you, do you pray that they will experience the fullness of the joy God intends for His children? Because of the power and work of Christ, joy can be our constant operating sense no matter how difficult the issues of life – whether illness, or persecution, or the hatred of others.

The final part of this prayer for the protection is an interesting one. It is interesting in the sense of what Jesus does not pray. He does not pray that they be taken out of the world. We would gladly pray for each other that we avoid trouble and trial. We would like to pray for each other that we can avoid difficulty. Jesus, the most compassionate one, does not pray for His disciples that they avoid the challenges of living in this world by being taken out of it. He does not pray that they will have an easy road. Rather, He prays that they will be protected from the evil one on this road.

Are we praying for each other, for protection, that we will not have our joy taken from us and that we will be protected from the evil one while living in a challenging and difficult world?

Prayer For Sanctification

In verse 17, Jesus prays another prayer for the disciples and that is that they be sanctified.

To be sanctified is to be set apart from the rest of the world. Jesus prays that those who belong to Him will be noticeably different from the rest of the people living in the world. The basis of this difference is God’s truth. When God’s truth lives in God’s people and they live in holiness, they are set apart from the rest of the world. The power of God’s truth sets us apart - knowing that we are forgiven, knowing that the Spirit is making us new.

As sanctified ones, we are sent into the world. Because we are different, holy, set apart to God, the world takes notice and we become the light in the world.

Can we pray like that for each other? When was the last time you prayed that your wife would be protected spiritually. When was the last time you prayed that your son would be filled with God’s full joy? When was the last time you prayed that instead of bringing your daughter home, God would sent her into the world to be a light and protect her from the evil in the world? When was the last time you prayed that your parents would be so holy that everyone they meet would notice the difference? May we learn to pray for one another in these deeper ways.

Jesus Prays For All Believers John 17:20-26

Prayer For The Wider Circle

In verse 20, the circle broadens to its widest point. Jesus now goes on to pray for all those who would believe because of the testimony of the disciples. What is interesting is that this wider circle extends to us. It is very exciting to notice that Jesus prayed for us. It is wonderful to also know, as Hebrews tells us, that He continues to pray for us.

As a model, this prayer invites us to also pray not only for ourselves and for those we are most intimately connected with, but also for a much wider circle.

How widely do we view that circle? Could it mean that we will pray for the rest of the church, not only those who are our close friends? Do you ever pray through the pictorial directory? What about the churches and mission work of the EMC throughout the world? Do you use the prayer calendar in the Messenger to pray for EMC missions? Do you pray for conference leaders? What about the wider circle yet? What about our Baptist or Holdeman neighbours? Do you pray for people in other denominations? Are you ever moved to pray for believers around the world? Let us not only pray for ourselves or our closest intimate circle, but also for God’s people throughout the world.

Content Of His Prayer

The content of Jesus prayer for this wider circle is also a good model for us to follow.

Prayer For Unity

The first prayer of Jesus for this wider circle is for unity. It is interesting that what was uppermost in Jesus’ mind as He looked into the future of His people on earth was that they would be one.

I believe that the unity Jesus was praying about was not organizational unity or forced obedience to one way. Rather, it is the unity which comes from being close to Jesus. Just as a wheel’s spokes come closer together at the hub, so also God’s people will come closer together as they come closer to the center, to the Father and the Son.

The primary purpose of this prayer for unity is that “the world will know that you have sent me.” In other words, the most important thing Jesus saw for the furtherance of the gospel in the world was that His people be one.

How miserably we have failed at this! Has this prayer been answered at all? Many times in church history it does not look like it. This reality only demonstrates the deep need for such a prayer. Yet as people have come closer to God, unity has happened. I have seen it in an inter-racial church where people from many nationalities loved each other and served God together. It is seen in caring communities of faith which exist in spite of being made up of people from different intellectual, economic and social backgrounds. It happens when we can disagree with each other but recognize that it is more important that we love each other and do God’s work than that we agree on every detail.

I suspect that not many of us have prayed that the wider circle of God’s people be one. What would happen if we would pray for the unity of God’s people. One of the reasons I am so excited about the Franklin Graham Festival is because it is an opportunity to work as one with people from many different churches and show the world that we are indeed one. By working together in this way, the world will know that this is of God.

Prayer To Be In Glory

The last prayer of Jesus in this section was a prayer that those who would believe in God would be with Christ in glory. He is praying here for the ultimate salvation of all who identify with Jesus.

How wonderful that Jesus prays this about us. He wants us in His presence.

Do we pray for others that they will be in glory? Are there some people whom we would rather not see in glory? How can we be faithful to Jesus’ prayer if we think about others like that?

What does it do as we pray this prayer for the wider circle? How does it cause us to look at others when we recognize that we will be in glory with them?

Conclusion

The prayer of Jesus is important in many ways. It allows us to think about the relationship Jesus had with His disciples as he was about to go to the cross. It shows us the heart of Jesus in His relationship with the Father. It encourages us to know that Jesus has prayed for us and continues to pray for us.

This morning, we have examined the prayer from the perspective of being a model of prayer for us to follow. As such, there are two lessons in this passage. The first is that we ought to pray for ourselves, for those close to us and also for a wider circle. Praying for ourselves comes fairly naturally to us, but let us recognize the importance of it and keep doing it. Praying for those close to us is also natural, but once again the model of Jesus encourages us to be faithful and deliberate in this kind of prayer. Prayer for the wider circle is also something that we do because we know it is right. The model of Jesus affirms this and encourages us to keep on doing it.

The passage also teaches us some of the things we ought to pray for each other. Often our prayers tend to deal with surface issues. We pray for health, happiness and success. The example of Jesus invites us to broaden our requests beyond these things and to pray that God be glorified in us, that God’s people be protected as they live in this world, that God’s people be a holy people and that they be one as they look forward to being in heaven with Jesus.

My encouragement to each of you is to seek to deepen your prayer life. May the model of Jesus teach and encourage us in the work of intercession.

Hope In The Lord

Isaiah 40:12-31

Introduction

Last weekend at the conference, we heard some very challenging messages about the failure of evangelical Christians to live their faith. I mentioned this in a message a few weeks ago. I am one of those evangelicals who does not always succeed at living obediently. I know that there are times when I sin and it is frustrating and defeating when we yield to sin. At times like that, I wonder, “where is the power of God that is supposed to change me into the image of Christ?”

Some of you are aware that our daughter, who is 27 years old, suffers with arthritis. It is hard to watch and realize that if the problem is already starting now, how severely limited will her life be? We pray for healing, but it only seems to be getting worse and we wonder, “where is the power of God that healed people so easily in the past?”

I know that some of you are dealing with some really tough stuff. Some of you are dealing with serious illnesses. Some of you are dealing with grief that seems hard to bear. Some of you are dealing with business challenges that are hard to solve, including those of you who are farming and experiencing drought after flooding and wondering if there will ever be a year that will yield a good crop again. You also must be wondering, “where is the power of God to help us in these difficult situations?”

As a pastor, I am concerned about my family and about you as a congregation. The burden of caring is one that sometimes gets a little heavy and I get tired and wonder how I can keep on ministering.

I invite you to open your Bibles to Isaiah 40:12-31 where we will find direction and encouragement in these things.

I. Where Is God When I Need Him? Isaiah 40:27

Isaiah had prophesied the destruction of Israel for a number of years. In the first 39 chapters of the book, he warned of what was coming because of the sin of the people. Beginning in Isaiah 40, there is a new section with a new tone. Some suggest that this section was written when the people were already in exile in Babylon and others say that it was written before they went into exile in Babylon to prepare them for that time. Whatever the case may be, it is written to a situation of extreme difficulty. It is written to a situation of loss, of devastation, of hopelessness. It was written to a time when the people were wondering if God was still alive, if God cared for them, if God was able to help them. Great and godless powers had prevailed and they would have wondered, as one writer says, “How could the glory of the Lord be revealed in a world dominated by emperors and their armies?”

In Isaiah 40:27, Isaiah identifies the things they were thinking about. They were thinking, “my way is hidden from the Lord.” What did they mean by that? They meant that they felt that God could not see them. They meant that they felt that God was blind to their situation. They thought that, in God’s eyes, their issues were so small that in the grand scheme of things God didn’t see them.

The second thing they were thinking is “My cause is disregarded by the Lord.” By this they were expressing that they thought God wasn’t fair. They assigned no motive for why they thought God was being unjust. Was it that he didn’t care or wasn’t able to help or because he hated them? They simply declared the result and that is that God wasn’t making it right, he was ignoring what was due to them

Have you ever asked such questions? I suspect that all of us have. When we consider the powers of nature, we wonder if God is big enough to bring rain and if he is big enough, why he doesn’t – is our cause disregarded by the Lord? We wonder why our disease is not healed when God could so easily relieve us of the pain and burden of it – is our way hidden from the Lord? As we watch the destructive military actions in Israel and Lebanon, we wonder if God is powerful enough to stop the conflict and bring peace to the region. We wonder if nations are too big for God to control.

One writer asks, “Given the complexity of the cosmos and its celestial hosts, can we really believe that one God controls our destiny?”

II. Do You Not Know? Isaiah 40:28, 12-26

A. Questions

Isaiah takes their questions seriously, when he asks, “Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel…” In other words, he asks them, “why are you asking these questions?”

Twice in the whole passage he asks, “Do you not know? Have you not heard?” These questions appear in both verse 21 and 28. These questions imply that we have missed something.

Both of these questions turn our doubts back on ourselves. The questions which Israel was asking were questions of doubt. The questions God asks are questions challenging doubt. What reason do you have to doubt God?

The major part of Isaiah 40:12-31 is a rehearsal of who God is written to demonstrate that we do not need to be filled with doubt about the ability, justice, care and help of God. The evidence is powerful and deep to demonstrate that we have every reason to hope in the Lord. This morning I would like to examine what is spoken here as an encouragement to all of us to not doubt God, but to put our faith in Him. What reasons do we have to do this?

B. God Is:

First of all, we note the brief summary of who God is and what he does in verse 28. Here we have four statements which encourage us to trust God.

First of all we read that he is the everlasting God. Was God able to help Abraham? Of course, He is the everlasting God. Was God able to help Paul? Of course, He is the everlasting God. Is God able to help us today? Of course, He is the everlasting God. Will God be able to help us in whatever future we experience? Of course, He is the everlasting God.

The second statement indicates that He is the “creator of the ends of the earth.” Last summer, our son Joel hit a rock with his canoe while going down a rapid and caused some damage. We were not too concerned about it. We had built the canoe and so we knew exactly how to fix it. God is the creator of the ends of the earth. Is there anything in all of creation that He does not know about, how it works and how to fix it?

A few weeks ago when I was working on a building project in our yard, I was having some problems. It was in the evening and I had already had a full day at church and was quite tired. I began to make silly mistakes and realized that I would have to stop because I wanted to do it right, but was too tired to do so. God “will not grow tired or weary.” Whenever we need His help, He is ready and able to give us His best.

The last statement in this summary is that “his understanding no one can fathom.” There are two thoughts which come out of this one. One is to recognize that there is nothing that God does not know. Ken Jennings knows a lot of things, but there is an end to his understanding. In his day, Albert Einstein brought the understanding of physical science to new depths, but there was an end to his understanding. There is no end to God’s understanding. The other side of that truth is that when we get to the end of our understanding and can’t figure things out, God still has lots of ideas. In other words, when we can’t understand why God lets a child die, we have to realize with humility that we have come to the end of our understanding, but not to the end of God’s understanding.

C. Over All Powers

Isaiah 40:28 is a summary of the arguments which encourage us to put our trust in God. Isaiah 40:12-26 is a fuller presentation of the things which encourage us to trust God. It is written to people who had a certain understanding about the powers of the universe. The religious and philosophical understanding of the people surrounding Israel was that there was a particular power structure in place in the universe. They believed that there was a connection between the gods who ruled the universe, the created world in which they ruled and the nations which existed. Each of these had power – nature, nations and gods. The people feared each of these powers. They feared nature which was unpredictable and uncontrollable. We understand that power because nature is still unpredictable and uncontrollable. They feared nations which could at any time come and conquer them. We understand this fear because we still live in fear of nations, and today especially of terrorists, which come right into our country and plot to engage in acts of terror. They feared the powers behind all things. They saw them as gods and sought to appease them by making images to represent them and hopefully by sacrifice to appease them. We also fear other powers. We fear the power of ideas. EFC reports on a poll that says that 31% of Canadians are uncomfortable with evangelical Christians. What happens when that is taken to its logical conclusion? We fear the power of economic forces. What happens as the dollar strengthens and we can’t sell our goods to the US any more? What happens if the interest rate goes to 20% again as it did in the early 80’s?

In Isaiah 40:12-26, Isaiah addresses these powers and demonstrates the power of God over all powers. He does so by using the literary device of a chiastic structure. A-B-C-C-B-A. Isaiah 40:12-14 deals with creation; 15-17 with nations; 18-20 with idols and the powers behind them; 21-22 with powers; 23-24 with nations and 25,26 with nature again. The images here are at times humorous, powerful, persuasive and ultimately encouraging.

1. God Over Nature

The massive diminutive nature of the first verse is so creative and interesting. Can you imagine God scooping up all the water of the whole world in the hollow of his hand? Last December we flew over part of the Pacific Ocean and believe me, that is a lot of water. Can you imagine God measuring the infinity of space with the distance between the tip of his thumb and baby finger? Can you imagine God carrying a basket filled with all the dust in all the earth or getting out a scale to weigh the mountains and the hills? The images are massive diminutive, demonstrating that God is more powerful and bigger than anything on earth. Not long ago someone said to me “this is a big problem.” It was true, it was a big problem, but when we read this we are encouraged that God is an even bigger God.

Sometimes when I show people something I have made they ask me, “who showed you how to make that?” Well, I seldom use plans and rather enjoy figuring it out myself. Verses 13 and 14 ask this kind of a question about God. They invite us to consider if there is someone who is wiser and greater than God? Did anyone tell him how to create? Did anyone show him what was the way of righteousness? Did anyone lead him in the way of wisdom and understanding? If there was someone like that, then we should get to know that someone because he would be greater than God. But God is the source. All wisdom, all understanding, all knowledge of justice, every right way, the best possible solution is always in the mind of God. This week I was standing and looking into my garage and noticed a project I had made and was admiring it. Then I glanced a little over and saw some flowers and was immediately humbled to realize that my little project was nothing compared to God’s creation.

In verses 25,26 which again refer to God’s power over creation, we are invited to examine the starry host and realize that thousands of years of looking at stars, first of all with the eye, then with telescopes, then with space telescopes and then even with electronic receptors, and we have still not gotten to the end of our knowledge of the universe, but God knows the name of each star and has, in fact, put them all in place. The question asked in verse 25 is certainly relevant. “To whom will you compare me?” God is greater and wiser and more powerful than all the powers of nature. He is greater than the storms, greater than the bears, greater than the ocean waves and even than the hurricanes.

2. God Over Nations

The section comparing God to the power of the nations begins in verse 15. Once again we see pictures that stir the imagination. Can you imagine God holding an empty bucket with only one drop of water in it? Can you see what it means when it says that the nations are like a drop in a bucket. Can you imagine a scale with the fine dust that gathers when we don’t dust it? That dust doesn’t even register on the scale! Can you imagine that compared to God all the nations of the earth are just like that dust?

Lebanon was a country of great forests filled with animals. Yet for all its natural resources, there is not enough wood and there are not enough sacrificial animals in all of Lebanon to supply all the sacrifices which would be fittingly offered to God. The intent of the image is once again to show that God is greater than all the powers of all the nations of the earth.

The other section speaking about the nations is in Isaiah 40:23,24. There have been many great nations in the world, but every one of them has eventually come to nothing. The nations which exist are there by the will and permission of God. When they no longer have the permission of God, they are gone.

God is greater than North Korea, greater than Afghanistan, greater than Iraq and greater than the United States of America.

3. God Over Powers

The last power addressed in this section by Isaiah is the powers which are often represented by people as idols. We think that we do not make idols, but that is not the case. Idols are the representation of powers that we fear or serve. Money can be an idol when it represents a power we serve. Medical and educational institutions can be idols if we put our hope in them and as they represent something greater than ourselves to trust.

The section on idols is actually quite humorous, especially verse 20 when it talks about “wood that will not rot” and “a skilled craftsman” who “sets up an idol that will not topple.” How can you worship and serve something that you have made, over which you have power?

Once again we are asked the question “Do you now know? Have you not heard?” It isn’t nations or nature or powers, it is God who sits enthroned above the circle of the earth.” God is bigger and wiser and more capable than any power on earth.

III. Those Who Hope In The Lord! Isaiah 40:29-31

These powerful, creative images bring us to turn to God and realize that He can help us in any situation. The invitation to trust comes in verses 28-31.

A. Promise

When Carla was training for the marathon, we learned a lot about how to have enough energy to keep going. At first she was trying to do her long runs with only water for nourishment. Later we discovered that you could buy a container with a pudding like substance which was very high in quick energy. When she began to eat one of these every four or five miles, it made a huge difference. We are made so that we need to replenish our energy if we want to keep on working. If we have not taken in enough nourishment, we get weary. One of the words used in this section for tired or weary is a word which implies that the tiredness comes from not taking in enough energy. We know what that feels like, but, God does not. He doesn’t ever grow tired even if he hasn’t had enough to eat.

No matter how much we take in, there are times when we will still get tired. There is a weariness from not having taken in enough nourishment and there is another kind of tiredness that comes from having done too much work. This is the meaning of the other word for tired in this passage. I always find it so interesting that I wake up in the morning with all kinds of ideas and plans and all the energy in the world to do many things. As I do them, my enthusiasm begins to wane and if I have decided to do something in the evening, in my early morning energy, by the time evening comes along my enthusiasm is not nearly as great. I get tired, we all do, but God does not grow tired or weary. Whether at the beginning of the day or the end, God has full energy. Whether at the beginning of creation or near the end of the world, God’s will and ability to work and act is the same. God’s promise is that He always has full energy to do whatever is needed.

God’s further promise is that we can tap into that energy. The same words used to describe that God does not grow tired or weary are used to promise that God also gives strength to those who grow tired and weary. I am always amazed at the energy and strength of young people. Carla worked very hard from April to June to prepare for running the half marathon. She was diligent and disciplined. Our son spent very little time preparing. He was busy and went running a few times and then was able to run the full marathon. He is a young man, but even he gets tired. God promises that we can have the strength and energy greater than that of a young man. God promises that He will provide for us whatever is needed to soar like an eagle, to run and not get tired because we lack nourishment or energy. He promises that we will walk on and on and never become faint.

What a tremendous hope to know the power of the God who never gets tired available to us in whatever may be needed. Now this is not saying that if we put our trust in God we will never have to eat or sleep. What it does mean is that if we get to the end of our resources and we have to keep going, God supplies what is needed. I have had to apply this to myself many times. Sometimes when I needed to go make a visit and didn’t have the emotional energy or when I had to write a message and was feeling like I was lacking the creative energy I have experienced God’s power holding me up and giving me the ability to do what needed to be done. I have also, on the other hand experienced God’s grace in giving me rest when I felt obligated to do something but God knew I needed a break. That is the way God gives strength to the weary and power to the weak.

B. Hope In The Lord

How is the power of God and the eternal and amazing wisdom of God applied to our lives?

Often we are looking for immediate answers and when they don’t come, we begin to doubt God. We were talking about the soccer games last weekend and wondering about some of the acting that was happening when players who were barely touched fell down and pretended to have an injury. In one case, the player was grasping his knee and when the trainer came he sprayed something that looked like water on the knee and all of a sudden the guy got up and was better. We were mocking the magic healing water in that bottle. Yet we often want magic healing water to cure us right now. We are quick to go off and find the powers that will solve all of our problems, whether it is a lawyer, a doctor or a government official. Now I am not saying we should not use the help we get from these professionals. However, if we discover that they can’t solve every problem or don’t listen to us, and we become upset at that, it shows that we are putting our trust in these other powers instead of in God. One writer says, “So long as the human heart harbours other ultimate loyalties besides God, it is lost in a sea of chaos.”

The help of God comes to those who “hope in the Lord.” The Hebrew word means to wait, to hope, to look eagerly to God.

What this means is that first of all, we trust that God is able, that God cares and that God knows what to do. It means that we have faith in God. This is a critical point! I have done some rappelling, which is jumping off a cliff held up by a rope. You have to trust that the rope is solid and will hold your weight. If you don’t, you will never take the first step. Putting our hope in God is similar. It requires that we put our weight of confident trust in Him. What rest comes when we so trust in Him!

It also means that we wait until God acts or calls on us to act. I can’t speak for you, but I know that I am often very impatient. I don’t understand God’s timing and it sure doesn’t always suit me, but in retrospect, I always know that it is best. I have had several times in my life when I left one church and did not find another one for several months, once 4 months and once 7 months. At the time it was difficult to wait for God to show us our next place, but in retrospect, I have realized that these times away from ministry were important as times of refreshing to be able to gain strength and energy for the next assignment. God’s timing was right and I could have saved myself grief if I would have put my trust in Him.

Conclusion

Friends, there is so much in this passage to show us that God is able. As we recognize that, whatever you need help with, I invite you to have faith, to trust in God. He will give strength. He will give what you need.