© 24 Colin Melbourne
Prayers of Faith
Q: I’ve read the comments of people who’ve prayed your Sinner’s Prayer, and said they felt changed inside. My question is, why don’t I feel any different after praying the sinner’s prayer?
A: The precious Blood Covenant that Our Creator has made, and offers to mankind, is not based on feelings, experiences, or sensations: It is a Covenant of faith not feelings.
We thank The LORD Jesus Christ that He came, a stranger in our midst, and gave His perfect life to redeem helpless sinners from the power of; sin, sickness, failure, and despair, opening the way for believers into the kingdom of God, where we may walk with Him in victory, at peace, forever free of guilt and condemnation.
If you pray the sinner’s prayer expecting to get a spiritual buzz, and feel better about yourself, you’re missing the point of the prayer.
We welcome pleasant feelings, and the sense of personal transformation in our spirits, but they become mere frippery without the determination to evermore believe on Christ as LORD, truly yielding to His Lordship.
It’s Not How You Start: But How You Finish
The correct attitude to pray the sinner’s prayer is one of loving surrender to The One who first loved us, and proved it whilst we were yet sinners.
The Lamb of God sacrificed His sinless life in our stead.
He bore our sin, our guilt.
He took our judgment, so that we are redeemed from every accusation, able to walk in harmony with Him, once we repent and believe on Christ.
Spiritually Bankrupt
It’s realising our human flesh nature is utter failure, incapable of pleasing God, with a determination to follow God’s Holy Spirit, who never fails to lead in victory, righteousness and peace.
Think of it more like signing a contract, making a solemn legal agreement of huge significance to both parties.
God’s part is to count you in on His Blood Covenant.
Your part is to trust and follow through on your commitment to Walk in His Spirit, and thereby keep your human nature under His Lordship.
The lusts of our flesh cannot be controlled apart from the power of God’s Holy Spirit filling our being, never, not even after you become a Christian. Believers need to depend on the Holy Spirit just like Jesus did.
That’s why the Holy Ghost reminds us, Gal. 5:16-18 KJV;
This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
Every Christian needs the fullness of God’s Spirit simply to function as a child of God.
So Become Saved and filled today, and stay filled! Ephesians 5:18-20 KJV;
And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;
Choice Power
Until you take your last breath on Earth, you’ll have the constant choice to trust in what the Word and Spirit prompt, or what your fallen flesh desires.
Trust and obey your LORD, and you’ll supernaturally keep your flesh dead and buried.
Compromise what Father says, and you’ll allow your flesh to rule and destroy your fellowship with the One who loves you more than His own sinless Life.
Just as He gave our first parents, Adam & Eve, total liberty to choose to obey, or not; so He gives believers today the same freedom to choose life or spiritual death.
He trusts that you’ll Walk in His Spirit.
Will You?
© 24 Colin Melbourne
Tract image © Chick Publns. Used by permission.
Click to read All through life we make choices. But there is one choice that is more important than all the rest.