Jesus says Watch and Pray

Luke 21:34-36 “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” NKJV

After our Lord warns the disciples of the pending destruction of Jerusalem, the end of the age of mankind in sin, and His second coming to the earth to destroy His enemies and establish His Kingdom forever, He then immediately warns the disciples to be watchful or awake spiritually and continuous in prayer. This warning of course was spoken directly to these men and women who followed Him, but our Lord knew that these men would not be alive to see the end of the age so this word from Him is meant for everyone of His disciples in every generation. The world then we know was filled with many antichrist as the Apostle John tells us 1 John 2:18 Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour. NKJV We know from records of human history that nearly 2,000 years have gone by since these words were penned by John. Therefore, if as he said, “Even now there are many antichrist”, how many more of them are present today and surround us on every side.

Certainly we can hear the urgency and longing in the voice of our Lord encouraging us to be in constant communion with Him whereby we will not fall prey to the many deceivers that are gone out into our world this very day. Prayer, we know, is where our adversary attacks us the most because if he can keep us from communion with our Precious and Mighty Lord Jesus then we will be candidates to fall in all manner of ungodly patterns that grieve the Holy Spirit and bring reproach to the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 21:34). I listened to one of the men that I never met here on this earth, but I consider him a mentor to me in the faith by the many hours I have spent listening to his sermons and reading his writings and he is Dr. Adrian Rogers and he said, “I would rather preach a sermon for 30 minutes than pray for 30 minutes for it is much harder to pray.” Dr. Rogers was no doubt in my mind a very dedicated man of prayer, but what he was saying is that the discipline of prayer is much more warfare than any other part of our sojourn and pilgrimage here on the earth. I agree with those words completely.

Our Lord knew we would be bombarded with many people bringing false messages, giving false hope to people, and redefining sin even to the point of no longer calling sinners to repentance. The mass multitude of humanity will wholly give themselves over to the gratification of the flesh and all of its sensual appetites. Men and women of prominence all over the world will first nibble at and then take a big bite from the devil’s bait not realizing that on that lure is a huge hook to snare them into these false messages that produce false hope. Unlike many of our best sporting fishermen today that primarily fish for sporting competition and practice catch and release, the devil practices no such thing for his aim is to catch and destroy all the while making the soul believe he or she is fine and have just discovered an alternative spirituality or a new way to the light as Oprah has been known to say on many occasions. The President of the United States Mr. Obama has read every one of the Harry Potter books to his daughters from the time they were little girls this according to a quote from an interview with his wife Michelle Obama. Wow, how sad for his children to have a shepard/father not able to discern the difference between good and evil, Hebrews 5:14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. NKJV The world in every generation will always be spiritually asleep and we must be vigilant in watchful prayer/communication with our Lord Jesus Christ so that we may always discern rightly the times in which we live and so we must live and move and have our being in our Lord Jesus moment by moment of every day He leaves us down here (Luke 21:35).

If any man is in Jesus Christ he is a new creation with old things passing away and all things in Him becoming brand new for the person. Our life of sin dear beloved brothers and sisters in Christ was destroyed on the cross and by His resurrection newness of life was given to each one of us freely, but with that free gift comes our responsibility to walk worthy of such a high calling we have received in Jesus Christ our Lord. We must never allow ourselves to fall prey to the liberal view of the Word of God that is no view of truth at all. As the Apostles Paul says, Ephesians 4:17-24 “This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.” NKJV

We are not Christians because we signed a card, joined a church, got baptized in water, made a vow or decision, or any other such thing that purely comes from and requires human effort alone, but we are now Christians and belong to our Lord Jesus Christ because we have been recreated from the inside by regeneration and new birth (Luke 21:36). Therefore, let us fight this good fight of faith with violence in watchful prayer fighting to keep our intimacy with our Lord for He never leaves or forsakes us, but we often leave and forsake Him for little bits of nothingness that will be burned up at His Second Coming. May each of us through diligent, dedicated, and dynamic prayer lay hold of our Lord Jesus Christ and His Word and be found in Him not having our own righteousness, but clothed in His Righteousness more secure and tight than a new Mother wraps her newborn baby as she leaves the hospital on a cold December morning 1 John 2:28-29 And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him. NKJV

“Pray always; be always in an habitual disposition to that duty; keep up stated times for it; abound in it; pray upon all occasions. Those shall be accounted worthy to live a life of praise in the other world that lives a life of prayer in this world.” Matthew Henry

“The church that is not jealously protected by mighty intercession and sacrificial labors will before long become the abode of every evil bird and the hiding place for unsuspected corruption. The creeping wilderness will soon take over that church that trusts in its own strength and forgets to watch and pray.” A. W. Tozer

“Should the believer neglect the teaching of the Bible, failing to watch and pray even though trusting his pure motive to keep him from deception, he shall be deceived.” Watchman Nee

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...

Sincerely in Christ,

Clifford D. Tate, Sr.

Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reader, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…