Daily Diary - January 27th 2016

Righteous Prayer

Yesterday we asked the Question  “How do you Pray?”  We learned to pray in faith and ask God to fulfill His plan for us, which requires us to be humble and boldly go the throne of Grace.  Today we expand on the righteousness of prayer.    

James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

When you read this scripture was your first thought, “I can’t be righteous enough?”

Don’t worry you are in the majority.  Our sinful nature automatically tries to condemn us of our unrighteous failures.  This misunderstanding of God’s righteousness is causing Christians to be non-effective in their prayer life as well as keeping them from growing in God. 

The Good News:  People receive righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. Jesus Christ who was the sinless Son of God, took humanity's sin upon himself and became the willing, perfect sacrifice, suffering the punishment mankind deserved. God the Father accepted Jesus' sacrifice, through which human beings can become justified.

This means believers receive righteousness from Christ. This doctrine is called imputation which is Christ's perfect righteousness applied to imperfect humans.

So quite simply you are “Righteous” if Jesus Christ is your savior! So therefore your prayer will avail much.  This is also based on your measure of faith in JESUS as your righteousness and not based on your works.  Salvation is a free gift!

Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not of works, lest anyone should boast.

So this amazing Gift of salvation has made you righteous so your prayer can avail much!

I believe that people don’t pray enough because they don’t believe in their righteousness, which is Jesus.  They fall into “condemnation” that does not come from God.  This is where the real struggle lies.

Romans 8:33-34 Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. ³⁴ Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.

If we are in Christ Jesus we have to believe by faith that God is not the one who condemns us.  In fact we are already made righteous through Jesus.  It is the enemy of our flesh that leaves us in shame.

Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,^]who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

Summary:  Faith in God is not an emotion or a feeling it is simply faith.  You cannot justify your righteous place in God because you are not worthy.  We must simply accept this amazing Gift from God and pursue him the way He designed it.  God is Good!

Father God we come to you in faith and trust you with our prayer life.  We desire to seek you and your righteousness to become complete the way you made us in Jesus name! Amen.