TCA Mon20May24 - Prayer - Ps Josie Sithole

The main ideas from this information are: - The importance of coming together in one accord to pray and dedicate the day to God. - The story of Isaiah lamenting the state of his nation and comparing it to a desolate booth in a vineyard. - The significance of prayer and the need to discipline oneself to pray. - Jesus' instruction to watch and pray to avoid temptation and destructive calamities. - The power of praying in the name of Jesus, which represents his entire ministry and the miracles he performed. ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទ� ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ ទំទំ We believe that we had a wonderful time in our different places of worship and we are continuing to meet together in the morning. The Bible says when they were together in one accord, that's when the Holy Spirit came. So we continue coming together in one accord, praying and dedicating our day to God before we start. Thanking Him for life and indeed asking Him for guidance as we know that He knows what lies ahead of us, that He gives us the necessary wisdom to start the day. We are going to share the Word of God today, continuing with the subject of prayer as we are meeting around issues of prayer. There is a story or two verses in the book of Isaiah that I want us to base our talk on this morning as we start prayer. It is found in the book of Isaiah chapter 1 verse 8 and 9. It says, So the daughter of Zion is left as a booth in a vineyard, as a hut in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city. Unless the Lord of hosts had left to us a very small remnant, we would have become like Sodom, we would have been made like Gomorrah. This verse, Isaiah, the prophet, is lamenting the state of his nation. He is lamenting the state that this glorious nation has become and he likens it to a garden of cucumbers. He likens it to a besieged city and he says it is like a booth in a vineyard or in a garden of cucumbers. The booth that he is talking about, it is called a sukkah in the original language of the Bible. It is a booth, it is some sort of a mkuku. It is a temporary structure that is built during harvest time. I tried to get a picture of it right there. It is built for the heaper of the vineyard or it is built for the watchmen or the grape gatherers. But this, like I said, it is a temporary structure. So, these structures are mainly left desolate after the harvest. It is a temporary structure, it is not something that can be used after the harvest. So, the prophet is saying the way the nation is, it is left like that booth in a vineyard. It is left like that, it is left in a state of disrepair, it is left desolate, it is left to just disintegrate on its own because the watchman or the keeper of the vineyard has left because the harvest is past. So, we know that when we talk about watchmen, we are talking about people who pray. When you enter the closet to pray, most of the time we liken you to a watchman. So, in this instance, there is a cry to say the prayer closet is left desolate, is left without attention, it is in a state of disrepair, nobody is using it, and it is left as a booth in a vineyard. The issue of prayer is something that we are encouraged to do. We spoke last week about the fact that there is nothing like the gift of prayer. None of us can say, I have a gift of prayer. It is something that you have to do it, you have to discipline yourself and do it. Jesus, when he was going to be crucified, it was that critical moment where he had to go through a difficult death, a painful death, a shameful death. Him, the king of kings, having to die like a criminal, and he is talking to the people that are surrounding him, asking them to join him in prayer, asking them to come together with him to pray. He says in the book of Matthew 26, 41, he says, watch and pray so that you will not give in to temptation, for the spirit is willing but the body is weak. So the issue of deserting the prayer place, or the prayer booth, or the prayer closet, or the issue why a lot of people are not able to pray, it is not because they are not willing. It is not because they don't want to. It is because prayer, you have to discipline your body, you have to discipline your mind, you have to, it goes with a lot of discipline for one to come to a place of prayer. So he says, I don't want you to enter into temptation, so you have to be a watchman, you have to watch and pray. You have to stay in that prayer booth and pray. If it is your bedroom, if it is your, whichever room, and for us, we have a place that has been set up to say these are prayer booths for us to pray and bring our issues to God. So a prayerful person, you have a place even in your house where everybody will know that when you get there, no one must disturb you, it is your time of prayer. So Jesus is saying to them, watch and pray so that you will not enter into temptation. And then when we look at that word to watch, it means to take heed so that through remission and indolence, you don't have some destructive calamity that will suddenly overtake you. You take heed so that you don't decrease your speed or your pace of prayer. You don't reduce or you don't cut back or lessen your time of prayer so that you do not find yourself having suddenly overtaken by some destructive calamity. So Jesus, it is he who was about to be crucified, but he tells his disciples to say, if they don't watch and pray, some destructive and sudden calamity will overtake them. So when we watch, we watch because we know that the enemy is standing in the corner trying to destroy us, trying to overtake us, sending things to us and our families and our prayers, I mean our families and ourselves, our nation, our churches. The enemy is always targeting us. So when we watch, if a person is in a watch, a tower or is watching, you make sure that each time there is danger coming. If you can't handle it alone, then you sound an alarm so that other people that can help you in that situation are able to help you. So it does not mean that when you are a watchman, then you have all the power to fight with the enemy that comes. It is just that when you are a watchman, you are able to see what other people don't see. When you are standing watch or standing guard, you can see things before they reach you. You can see that there is an attempt to break in or there is a breach to the security system. So you sound an alarm so that you can get back up. So when we pray, it is because we are making sure that we watch so that we do not enter into temptation. We make sure that we watch so that we do not experience destructive and sudden calamities in our lives. When the Bible talks about the spirit is willing but the body is weak, when a person is not praying, when a person is, you know, the body is weak or allow the body to keep them in that weak position, failure to pray, it is a state of idleness. Jesus was saying do not be idle at this point. Do not be inactive. Do not be sluggish. Be prayerful. Do not be lazy to pray. So a time of prayer, it is a time to come to God and also to watch over your family, to watch over your church, to watch over your nation and over your children if you are a parent or over your business and everything that concerns you. And when you pray, you have to pray in the name of Jesus. We pray in the name of Jesus because on our own, there is nothing we can do. But in our prayer, we pray in the name of Jesus. The book of John chapter 14 verse 18 to 14, it says, whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the father may be glorified in the son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it. When you listen to this statement and you don't understand fully how God works, it is very easy to think the name of Jesus is just a magic word that you use to get you out of anything, to get you out of any situation. Because when he says, if you ask anything in my name, I will do it, that the father may be glorified in the son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it. So in this verse, 13 to 14, we hear about Jesus saying, use my name when you come before God. When you come before God, use my name to ask for anything. If you have a request from God, use my name and I will do it. So what is important for us to understand as people who are praying is to know that power is not in merely vocalizing the word Jesus. The power in the name of Jesus is not in just saying, coming before God and saying in Jesus' name, because it is not just a magic word that we use. We don't just vocalize the word Jesus and we get anything or everything that we are asking from God. The power that is in the name of Jesus, it is in the memory. When we come before God, we remember last week, we spoke about when we talk to God and he remembers. When we say God remembers, it is always to say God is true to his covenant. It means God is connecting whatever is happening at that point to his word to say, God I have promised or I have a covenant with this person that is praying. I have a covenant with this person. So when we say in the name of Jesus, we are bringing to memory. We are bringing God to understand or to connect our situation with his covenant, to connect our situation with his promises. Now it says power is in the memory and collection of the entire life of Jesus Christ. Whatever Jesus did, whatever Jesus came to do, whatever his ministry on earth was or the ministry, his ministry to the human race was, when you say in the name of Jesus, the power in the name of Jesus is based on the memory and recollection of his entire life. When you mention his name, when you come before God or you come against any problem in the name of Jesus, that mention of his name represents his entire earthly ministry. Everything that he did, if he healed the sick and you are coming in the name of Jesus, it is the same Jesus who healed the sick. It is the same Jesus who opened blind eyes. It is the same Jesus who healed the dumb and the deaf. It is Jesus whose power healed all sorts of disease, including raising the dead. So when you say in the name of Jesus, you are invoking the same power that raised the dead. You are invoking the same power that Jesus used when he healed the sick. So as yesterday was Pentecost Sunday, we were remembering how Jesus said, go and wait in Jerusalem and then you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come. So when we pray in the name of Jesus, we receive the same power that Jesus said to his followers, go and wait for the power. The same power that Jesus was operating in, it was given to the church on the day of Pentecost. The same power that Jesus operated in, it was given to the church when the Holy Spirit came in the form of that rushing wind, in the form of those tongues, the tongues of fire that sat on each of them. When the Holy Spirit came down, it was God saying, I'm giving you the power to operate. So when we come against any situation in our lives, when we say in the name of Jesus, we are invoking the same power that Jesus was operating in when he was on earth. So it is not something that we just recite and just vocalize the name Jesus because the name Jesus, there are other parents that name their children the same name or people who have a surname called Jesus. But when we come before God and we say in the name of Jesus, we are invoking the power just like he said, do this in remembrance of me. In other words, when we do this, when we take the Holy Communion and we remind ourselves, we remind God of the work of Christ. So even when we say in the name of Jesus, we are invoking all the entire ministry of Jesus Christ on earth, all the things he did, all the things he said, and all the things he experienced while he was on earth. Those are things that we are invoking when we say in the name of Jesus. We bring all the truth of his life and ministry to bear on the matter that we are bringing to God in prayer. In other words, what makes your request weighty before God is that God comes, Jesus comes and backs it up with his ministry on earth, including his death, including his burial and resurrection. So when you bring a matter to God and you say in the name of Jesus, all the truth, all the things that Jesus did while he was on earth, all the things that he came to do, all the things that he imparted to the church are the things that the blood of Jesus or Jesus himself, when you say in the name of Jesus, then Jesus himself comes. You are now wearing his identity. When you start saying in the name of Jesus, you disappear from the scene. Even the enemy no longer sees you, but the enemy sees the power of Jesus. You are now wearing his identity. There is a story in the book of Luke chapter 10, verse 17 to 19, which says, Then the servant returned with joy, saying, Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name. And then Jesus replied and said, I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, on overall the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Because when you come in the name of Jesus, you are now wearing Jesus' identity. When you come in the name of Jesus, even the demons are subject to you because you are not coming in your name. You are coming in the name of Jesus. This is a very exciting thing that immediately you come in the name of Jesus. The demons are subject to you. The 70 people come to Jesus excitedly and say, even the demons are subject to us, but in your name. So, when we use the name of Jesus in our prayer, it is a name with authority. It is a name that gives you that boldness to trample upon serpents and scorpions. It is that power that gives you that boldness to come against all the power of the enemy. Knowing that nothing shall by any means hurt you. But it is not because you have power. It is not because you are powerful. But it is because you are now wearing the identity of Jesus Christ. So, when the enemy sees you, he is looking at a... When you pray, when you groan, when you lament, like when we see Isaiah is lamenting about the state of the nation. He is lamenting about the state of Israel and Judah. And we realize that he is complaining that it is desolate. It is just like this booth in a vineyard where the watchmen are no longer there because they no longer care. There's no longer harvest there. So, with us, there is a lot still to be harvested. With us, we still have a lot of things that need to be protected by our prayers. We still have children to protect through our prayers. We still have our lives to be protected through our prayers. We still have needs that we need to be met through our prayers. The Bible says the enemy comes to steal and to destroy. So, we still have a lot that we need to regain from the enemy that he has stolen. Through our prayers, we still have to go and redeem things that the enemy has stolen from us. We use the identity of Jesus Christ. I like that when you come to the enemy that has stolen your property, you come in the name of Jesus. It's like you're holding an officer with a warrant and you come and say, I have this warrant to set you. Come in and you receive everything that the enemy has stolen. So, this is something that Isaiah was saying when he was lamenting and complaining in chapter one to say, you know, the nation is in a bad state. My country is in a bad state. So, let's remember that Isaiah and Micah were contemporaries. Micah also, when you look in Isaiah 1 and you look at Micah 1, they both prophesied at the same time. They were crying about the same thing. In Isaiah, the one that we are talking about now, in verse 8, before you reach verse 8, in verse 1, Isaiah says, I mean, the Bible says, the vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Josam, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, the kings of Judah. And when you look at Micah, it also says, the word of the Lord that came to Micah, the what you saw regarding Jerusalem, Samaria, in the days of Josam, Ahaz, Hezekiah, the king of Judah. So, as much as Micah was prophesying, including about Samaria as well, which is the northern side of Israel, but it was during the same time, and he was also prophesying against Jerusalem. So, Micah and Isaiah were talking at the same time. But then, when you look at Isaiah, in verse 8, he is complaining about the vineyard, I mean, the state of the nation that is left as a booth in a vineyard. But Micah, in chapter 1, verse 8, he is complaining about, he's talking about a different thing. While Isaiah, in verse 8, likens the nation to people who desert their prayer closet, their watchtower, Micah is saying, I will lament like a jay call and like an ostrich. He says, because of this, because of the state, when he says because of this, it is because of the state of the nation, I will lament and wail, I will walk barefoot and naked, I will howl like jay calls and mourn like the ostriches. While we are still on the fact that when you come before God, or you come against anything that is troubling you, or you come against anything that is plaguing your family or your nation, you are wearing, when you say in the name of Jesus, you are wearing the identity of Jesus. Mr. Mukwumo, I'm talking, I request that, I'm not sure I didn't check with you if you received that video clip, I just need the sound. Yes, thank you. When you come before God, thank you so much, Mr. Mukwumo. When we come before God, Isaiah is likening the nation to a booth that is deserted. We have already spoken about that. To say when we come to pray, we are likened to prayer warriors or watchmen that are watching over a harvest, that are watching over the vineyard. So, Jesus' vineyard is left in our hands. Jesus has given us the authority, has given us the power to go and guard it. But when we see the enemy coming and we start lamenting, we start wailing, we start praying, and we start shouting the name of Jesus, the enemy does not hear your voice. When you start saying the name of Jesus, the enemy hears the voice of Jesus. When you start praying, when you start praying, when he says, I'm going to mourn like an ostrich, when you start praying, you are wearing the identity of Christ. You are like this ostrich, like Micah is saying. You are an ostrich, but when your enemy hears you, he hears the voice of he in whose name you are coming, Jesus, the lion of the tribe of Judah. So, as much as you are just a bird, you are just like an ostrich. When you start to say in the name of Jesus, the enemy hears this. Let's hear what the enemy hears. This is how the ostrich will sound when confronted with the enemy. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. As you can see, this ostrich is protecting her eggs, and when, who can come against a lion? As she's protecting her chicks, and when she starts crying out like a lion, she sounds like a lion. So, the enemies have to run away. So, even with us, even when we know that we are weak, when we come before God in prayer, when we come before God and say, Lord, I'm bringing my children, or I am asking you to protect my family, or I have this need that I need to be met, when you start saying in the name of Jesus, you wear Christ's identity. And even when you are crying using your own voice, in the enemy camp, he hears the sound of the lion of the tribe of Judah. So, let us come before God in prayer, knowing that we are not doing this in our own power. We are not doing this in our own name, but we are coming in the name of Jesus. And we will talk like the 70 to say, even the demons are subject to us in your name. Let us be encouraged, men and women of God. Let us be encouraged, children of God, to come before God with everything that we have, protecting everything, coming to reclaim everything that the enemy has stolen. When we say in the name of Jesus, the lion of the tribe of Judah will roar and take over and win our victory. Let us pray as we start this week to say, Lord, indeed, we are powerless on our own. But as yesterday, we were celebrating the coming of the Holy Spirit. We are saying we are empowered. When we come in the name of Jesus, even our voice changes. We no longer cry like people. We are coming before you and we are bringing all the work of Christ. We are coming and bringing all the ministry of Christ, all the entire life of Jesus, all the things that he did in the three and a half years that he was on earth. We are perpetuating them when we come in the name of Jesus. Let us all pray. And as we pray, I'm not going to come back. Pray and start your day with power. Walk around knowing that when you say in the name of Jesus, the enemy does not see you. The enemy does not hear you. He hears the work of Calvary. He hears the power of Jesus. He hears all the things that Jesus did in his entire life. So when we say in the name of Jesus, let's bear that in mind. We are not just vocalizing the name Jesus. It is not just a magic word. But we are bringing back all the things that Jesus did. Let us pray. Let us start the day with power. May God help you as you confront the enemy to retrieve and to restore, to recall all the things that the enemy has stolen. To ask God to help you fight the enemy and to win that victory in the name of Jesus. Let us pray. Come on and give Jesus the praise this morning. He is so worthy.