How do we have or do devotion? Why do we need to have devotion?
--->
And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the
fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.
Acts 2:42
What made the early church vibrant and healthy was their devotion to God. Because they were devoted to grow in their relationship with Him, they developed disciplines that expressed this devotion.
Two of these important disciplines are:
1 reading the Bible
2 and praying.
<---
meaning from google:
A devotion means the use of time, money, energy, etc., for a particular purpose
merriam webster: the act of dedicating something to a cause, enterprise or activity
There are lot of creative ways to have devotion
Could be:
singing praises and worship
listening to christians songs / listening to scripture
meditating / reflecting on our relationship with God.
reading books related to God’s word like devotional / christian / bible
pinaka important:
quiet time that we spend PRAYING,
and feeding our soul and spirit with God's WORD through reading and listening,
--->
WORD
<---
1st is God’s WORD - More than just a random collection of stories, poems, and letters
which is the Bible - this is the inspired written Word of God
this is our very guideline and instruction, that God gave us, on how do we live life here on earth
it is our key to help us grow spiritually
how we resist temptation,
how we become successful,
and how we can know God’s will for our lives.
Can you imagine, throughout thousands of generation, the BIBLE is still here and it’s all over the world.
--->
More than just a random collection of stories, poems, and letters, the Bible is the inspired written Word of God. We must follow the example of Job who valued God's Word more than food.
"I have not departed from the commandment of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food."
Job 23:12
Before turning to Christ, we lived by the world's standards. Now we accept the Bible as the final authority for what we believe and how we live. God's Word is the ultimate and absolute standard for every area of life.
The measure of our spiritual progress is not how much of the Bible we know, but how much we obey. (**how much do we apply God’s word in our life)Those who constantly learn but fail to obey end up deceiving themselves.
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
James 1:22
The Bible is our key to spiritual growth. It is also how we resist temptation, how we become successful, and how we can know God’s will for our lives.
<---
It’s more like on “actions” than the knowledge about the Bible.
It is important for us to listen to what God’s words says
pero mas importante for us to obey it and do what it says.
Pero if we truly absorb God’s word in our heart and mind, eventually God’s word will manifest in our actions. minsan nga hindi na natin namamalayan.
We can measure the effectiveness of our devotion time by the EFFECT IT HAS ON OUR BEHAVIOR & ATTITUDE.
--->
2Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk,
that by it you may grow up into salvation— 3if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.
1 Peter 2:2-3
<---
Us Christians, once we see our need for God in our life, once na experience natin ung effect of God’s presence
-> we begin to find nourishment for our Spirit, (ex. ung times na you feel your walking with God, tapos everything on your day just goes very well and smooth)
-> as we spend more time nourishing our Spirit through God’s Word - our appetite increases
-> by then, we start to mature spiritually
--->
9How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. . . .
11I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
Psalm 119:9,11
"This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."
Joshua 1:8
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Romans 12:2
<---
sa Joshua 1:8, God was telling Joshua that in order for him to prosper & succeed, he must
1 - constantly read and study God’s word
2 - obey God’s law
for us also to prosper and be successful
let’s continue to learn God’s Words,
meditate on it, nourish our spiritual life
and live with it everyday
--->
PRAYER
<---
2nd important discipline about devotion is PRAYER
Prayer is the way we communicate or talk to God
like sa relationships, for it to be healthy, COMMUNICATION is important db…The better the communication, the better the relationship will be.
same with our relationship with God, we need to communicate to Him, so in that way we maintain a good relationship with Him, through PRAYER
Si God naman, he talks to us in many ways
it could be through people around us, through things we read / watch / listen to
but he talks to us PRIMARILY THROUGH HIS WORD, the Bible.
prang ganito ung communication natin:
God talks to us through His WORD thru the Bible
We learn to listen to His voice when we read His word.
We talk to Him through prayer.
He listens to us when we pray.
We respond to His word with action.
He responds to our prayers with action.
--->
Christianity is more than just a religion. It is first and foremost A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. The foundation of any healthy relationship is communication. The better the communication, the better the relationship will be.
God talks to us in many ways but PRIMARILY THROUGH HIS WORD, the Bible.
We learn to listen to the sound of God’s voice in our lives when we read His word.
We talk to Him through prayer.
He listens to us when we pray.
We respond to His word with action. He responds to our prayers with action.
Jesus is our best example for prayer. By observing His personal prayer life, we can learn important principles on how to have an intimate time of connection with the Father.
Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his
disciples."
Luke 11:1
Jesus told us not to pray like the hypocrites and those who don’t know God.
5"And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. . . . 7And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."
Matthew 6:5,7,8
"But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Matthew 6:6
read “Matthew 6:5-8”
<---
when we pray,
we need to set a certain place and time, for us to really focus and enjoy the time we communicate with God.
it’s like setting a date with God.
verse 5-6
There are Some people who wanted to be seen as holy and public prayer was one way to get attention.
kaya lang, yung essence ng prayer is not public style BUT PRIVATE COMMUNICATION WITH GOD.
We’re not saying na prayer is not for public…There’s a place for public prayer.
The point is when we pray in private or public, we focus on addressing God,
not on how we’re coming across with others or hindi dahil mapapansin ka nung mga tao, kasi pag ganun it just indicates na yung audience mo is ung mga tao and hindi si God
--->
Jesus told us to pray to the Father, not to the mother, saints, or angels. we are to pray through Jesus, because He is the only way to the Father. (**backed sa verse 6 and 1 Timothy 2:5 and John 14:6)
For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and
men, the man Christ Jesus ...
1 Timothy 2:5
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one
comes to the Father except through me."
John 14:6
Jesuts taught His disciples to pray for God’s will to be done, provision, forgiveness, victory over temptation, and protection from the devil’s schemes.
9Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. 10Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11Give us this day our daily bread, 12and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.13And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Matthew 6:9-13
<---
the Lord’s Prayer is a template for us on how to pray
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
1 worshipping the Father, we begin with thanksgiving and praise
Your kingdom come
2 God’s kingdom, we acknowledge His sovereignty
your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
3 God’s will and guidance, we confirm God’s will
Give us this day our daily bread
4 Our daily needs, we ask for our needs but it should be good & reasonable—not against God’s will
forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors
5 forgiveness / relationships, pray also for others
lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
6 Spiritual warfare, praying that God will sustain a blessed life
message:
--->
As we read and obey the word, and as we pray and trust God with our lives, let us not forget that God really answers prayer. The more specific the prayers, the more specific the answers will be. The secret is to pray according to His will. We know His will by knowing His word. Therefore, as we pray according to His word, we know He will answer.
14And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ASK ANYTHING ACCORDING TO HIS WILL HE HEARS US. 15And if we know that he hears us in WHATEVER WE ASK, WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE THE REQUESTS THAT WE HAVE ASKED OF HIM.
1 John 5:14,15
<---
ending it with this phrase:
We don’t just see our prayers for what they are
When we’re praying them, we see the potential of what they can become when God answers them!
Prayer is a communion with the living God such that He will change you to have the ability to receive what He has for you.
You may not succeed by the world’s standards, but you will be a success in God’s eyes—and His opinions and rewards are more important than anything the world can offer
--->
PERSONAL APPLICATION
Do you have a set time and place for daily Bible reading and prayer?
Are you involved in a Bible study or discipleship group?
Have you forgiven all who have sinned against you?
Begin praying for your daily bread.
PRAY
ask God to help him/her put into action what we have
Want to print your doc? This is not the way.
Try clicking the ⋯ next to your doc name or using a keyboard shortcut (
