Psalm 50: 14-15 …14
"Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving And pay your vows to the Most
High; 15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I shall rescue you,
and you will honor Me."16 But to the wicked God says, "What
right have you to tell of My statutes And to take My covenant in your mouth?…
The Bible tells us that God is ready to help. He says we’re
to pray, “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.” That is the
prayer of deliverance. You ask God for help.
The prayer of deliverance is often just one word: Help! It
doesn’t have to be “Our gracious heavenly Father …” No. When you come to the
prayer of deliverance, you can do a microwave prayer: “Help! Keep my eyes
straight. I don’t like this person. I do not like the way my relative treats
me, and I’m going to see her today. Oh, God! You’ve got to help me! I lose my
Christianity when I’m around that person. I really need your help today,
because everything in me just wants to slug her!”
The Bible is full of examples of people who’ve prayed for
deliverance, such as David, Daniel, Peter, and Paul. God provides assistance
for anybody who asks.
Why can I expect God to help me when I pray the prayer of
deliverance? Because God has promised it. Psalm 50:15 says, “Call on me in
the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me” (NIV). God
says you don’t have to have a long conversation. You can just say, “Help!
Mayday! SOS! God, I’m facing something now that willpower won’t help me get
through.”
God is sympathetic to your situation. He knows everything
that’s going on in your life. He knows how irritating those people are. He
knows the things that tempt you. In fact, look at this verse: “Jesus
understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he
did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we
will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most” (Hebrews
4:15-16 NLT, second edition).
Notice he says Jesus understands. Why is he sympathetic?
Because he faced the same temptation.
You say, “Wait a minute. Are you saying Jesus was tempted to
get angry?” Yes, I am. “You’re telling me Jesus was tempted to have self pity?”
Yes. The Bible says he was tempted in all the ways we are, yet he did not sin.
That’s the difference. He never gave in. He had the freedom to choose.
But even better is the fact that he never sinned. What does
that mean? He can help you overcome. So the Bible says, “Come boldly to God.”
Come and say, “I need your help!” God isn’t ticked with you when you get
tempted. He’s not going to scold you when you’re tempted. He says, “I’m here to
help.”
Thought for today:
Do I present my temptations to God?
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