Prayer with Only Christ to Break Down the Darkness (Eph. 2:11-22)
Paul was in Ephesus which was full of Gentiles. He relayed the gospel and they accepted. He said, “In the past, we had to go to God through the law, and because of the law, you wouldn’t be able to join.” The Israelites considered the Gentiles to be animals without God’s law, so the Jewish people in this situation weren’t able to relay the love of God to the world. Apostle Paul said the Jewish people cannot receive salvation through the law, either. Just like the Greeks were not able to receive salvation, Jesus Christ has to completely abolish the law on the cross in order for Jews and Gentiles to be saved. That’s what he’s saying right now, and that’s how we can be one in one spirit, and now we’re in the process of raising up the body of Christ in the church.
Why do you think God gave these words to the church at Ephesus through Paul? Because even having received the gospel, the Jewish people emphasized the law. The Greeks didn’t know the law of God so they didn’t act in lawful ways and were always looked down on, but they cannot receive salvation through the law. We can only receive salvation by faith and the goodness that Jesus Christ did on the cross, and if this one thing is done, we should be thankful.
But the Jewish people said, “You’ve received salvation but you still need to keep the law.” So, on top of the gospel of Jesus Christ, they kept adding “plus alpha,” so the people who couldn’t keep the law had to be cut out, but those who were able to keep it could boast of their own righteousness, but that’s actually the work that turns the cross upside down. There’s no goodness or effort of mankind that could reconcile us with God. We can only be reconciled to God through faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
So, if we were to interpret this in the modern day, what does this mean? The law is talking about some kind of standard. When we’re living in the world, we get lost. We as the public have determined these laws: if you break them, you will go to jail and be punished. Without laws, society would be chaotic, so we need them for life, but what does the church do? The church is a place that gives spiritual peace and freedom. However, if the church doesn’t emphasize the gospel of the cross of Christ, but instead they emphasize legalism or structure, those who cannot live up to that standard have to be cut out.
People teach others with the law, trying to change them. The things within them can never change; only God can change people. Education only changes the external things. Through repetitive discipline and education, external behaviors can change and they are teaching worldly knowledge necessary to live in the world, however, the spiritual things within this person can never be changed. It’s only possible to change this with the cross of Jesus Christ.
What does the “cross of Jesus Christ” mean? To understand this, you must first understand that there’s no way for humans to go before God. Religion says you can go before God with your efforts. Religion is what you call some kind of action or prayer that you do in order to try to get closer to God. The grace of the gospel says that’s not enough and you can never receive salvation with that, so you have to believe in that to be saved. But that’s impossible for us to accomplish with our own good actions, hard work, or ethics. Education is necessary in the world but it’s not even 1% helpful to go to God.
So, the church should stop teaching that. We need to talk about the gospel of the cross that allows anybody to come before God. Even the Jewish people shouldn’t talk about the law, because through Jesus Christ, anyone can become one with God. That’s what we should talk about. When you face a problem, do you know why you remain stuck within that problem? It’s because you forget about the gospel. We are already united with God, so if we just give this problem up to God entirely, He will give us His answer and plan.
Before we were reconciled to God like this, we were enemies of God and we could not meet Him nor pray to Him. Now, by the goodness of Christ, we can communicate with God anytime, so why do you keep getting stuck in your problems? All you have to do is quickly go before God, holding onto Christ, but instead, you keep holding onto your own problems. Instead of going before God, you think about how to solve your problems.
Already, the Holy Spirit is within me, so God promised He would teach me and remind me of the past, present, future, of all problems, crises, and incidents. Without a doubt, He said, “All things,” so if you’ve met with God, it’s finished. “All things” means that no matter what you’re going through in life, God will show you the way, but why can’t we let this go before God quickly? Because we put other things on top. “You didn’t pray enough, you’re lacking this, you didn’t do that,” we keep saying this so that’s why they die.
It’s not about what you do or don’t do; Christ has already finished it, so all you have to do is go before God. In other words, take your heavy burdens and lay them all down before Christ. Then, God takes my burdens away because instead of giving me burdens, He gives me a solution and path. Because God’s peace comes upon me, I become peaceful. That’s why the church only talks about the gospel.
“What about all the things this person is doing wrong? Should we just leave them be?” Common sense must be kept, regardless of whether you’re a believer or unbeliever. Let’s say for example, you’re pooping everywhere in church, people won’t like that. However, if this individual is aware they shouldn’t do that, but they can’t control it because of their spiritual state, we have to understand that. But if they never learned common sense, we have to believe them. Most people aren’t in this category because they went to elementary school and gained common sense, but the reason the internal problems do not change regardless of how much education or discipline they receive, it’s because the gospel hasn’t gone into them.
The gospel is the message of the cross. It’s not about your strength, but because Christ has already done it, you go out with the strength of being with God. I told Joyce, “You’d fall asleep in the afternoon, and you’ll fall asleep today, so do deep breathing by the window.” She said, “Pastor, please pray for me,” and I said, “No, you pray for you.” It’s because of the message of the cross, we can go before God anytime we want. Why are you making me do it for you? When she says, “Please pray for me,” those are great words and I pray for the remnants a lot, but what are you going to do in the field?
At any time, I must have the spiritual state to pray to God. Why do you think we stop praying in the name of Jesus Christ? It’s because we put other things on top, “I’m not a pastor, I don’t have enough faith,” we keep attaching other things, that’s what I’m saying. For you, at any time, if you place hands on someone who is sick and pray in the name of Jesus Christ, God will work. That’s what this is saying. Why doesn’t it take place quickly? There are many things other than the gospel that have been added.
People who are stupid can put their hands on their heads and pray for the filling of the Holy Spirit. You can’t change your own brain, so at any point, pray in the name of Jesus Christ for God to work. That’s what this Word is saying. Do you understand why you cannot pray in the field? Because you can pray in the name of Jesus Christ all you want, and God will work in your field, but why isn’t this changing quickly? It’s because you keep putting yourself in there.
“I cannot do this,” but it’s not you; you are the one who can pray in the name of Jesus Christ. So, depending on how quickly people in the church are able to apply this, that is, enjoying and relaying the gospel themselves, that’s the way of answers. Most of you have your own standards, “I can’t do this because I wasn’t trained as a pastor.” What is this? You’re blocking the cross. It’s possible in the name of Jesus Christ, that’s what this is saying.
If you go into the churches but don’t hear the gospel but you hear other things, you won’t be able to pray in the name of Jesus Christ in the field and people’s problems will seem irrelevant to you. “Oh, I didn’t read the Bible,” and you’ll make excuses about your skills, but in the name of Jesus Christ, God is bound to work at any time.
There are many videos of school fights, and I’m used to guys fighting, but girls fighting is very fierce, especially Hispanic females. They fight and punch each other. You can’t fix that, but at any time, in the name of Jesus Christ, do you understand what I’m saying? It’s something only God can solve in the name of Jesus Christ. Just because the teacher says, “Stop fighting,” it doesn’t mean they will stop fighting. However, through the person who has the gospel and continues to pray in the name of Jesus Christ, those things keep disappearing. That’s what I’m saying.
If you’re not able to understand these words, then the longer you attend church, the harder it gets, because when you go to church, you should be hearing about the gospel, but instead you pile up your knowledge with other things and say, “I can’t do anything.” But the standard is, the more you go to church, the more you should experience freedom through the gospel.
If you want to say this in other words, it doesn’t matter what problem comes to me, it’s irrelevant to me because through the cross of Jesus Christ, I can go before God. You can do this faster and faster, but our imprint says, “I can’t do this.” I cannot pray for a long time like pastors do,” you were told to pray in the name of Jesus Christ, and even if you pray a short prayer once in the name of Jesus Christ, God works. But we’re so full of religion and legalism, we think we have to pray a lot for God to work.
That’s a misconception. One prayer in the name of Jesus Christ will result in the work of the Triune God. Then, even if you pray one time for your church in the name of Jesus Christ, God works. What changes when God works? The things you see with your eyes may not change, however, when God begins to work, the invisible forces of darkness and curses flee. What happens if you pray every time you go to school and pray in the name of Jesus Christ, “May the Kingdom of God be established here and the forces of darkness be broken down”?
Do it just once, and when you graduate, see how much the school has changed. God is bound to give you the evidence, “This is how God works on my prayers when I prayed in Jesus Christ. Some people never change. Because of that, the children cannot fight back with their strength, but we always have the standard of “me.” In the name of Jesus Christ, God’s Work. God can work, but why can’t we do that? Because we think we can’t. Of course we can’t, and that’s why we have the name of Jesus Christ and the cross. Anyone can pray to Jesus Christ.
The longer you’ve been going to church, the easier this should become, but if you picked the wrong church, you can, in the name of Jesus Christ. Because God works. Do you have unspeakable problems in your heart? God solves that, and you will see the results of it being finished later. When you live your walk of faith, you should only be left. “How many times have you read the Bible?” That’s Anybody should be able to reconcile with God.
This was the gospel given to Ephesus. All other things are the work of man, but all things can be finished by the cross of Christ, and we testify of Christ to others. It’s so simple, “In the name of Jesus Christ, may the Holy Spirit of God work upon me,” so God works upon you with unlimited IQ.
Right now, you can pray. If you have problems in your family, you can pray and God will work right now. If someone has a bigger vessel, they can pray in the name of Jesus Christ for America. You can pray for the entire world, and in the name of Jesus Christ, God works transcending time and space. Your life will change depending on how much you enjoy this, but if you do something, you’ll be burdened. You must tell them so that in the name of Jesus Christ. Don’t think about your own standards, but think from the perspective of the cross.
It’s so easy, the gospel is easy, it’s not hard. You make it difficult. All you have to do is apply in the name of Jesus Christ. I’m reconciled with God through Jesus Christ, not by my goodness. Everything is possible through Jesus Christ, why? Because I’m a child of God.
I pray you will pray to God in front of your problems, and God is bound to work. Earlier I was talking to Payton, and Payton received grace from God two months ago, but he’s separated from his girlfriend. I asked, “Why did you guys break up?” He said, “God is starting to give me grace.” So, his girlfriend wasn’t the problem, but God was giving him grace inside, and he said Tim was helping him a lot. His mom is French, Vietnamese, and Korean, and his father is Korean, so his mother has Korean nationality as well. Payton and Nathan are there. Everybody goes through different things when they’re little, but he’s gone to churches too, and he got scarred and stopped going.
We’ve been continuously praying for him since about two months ago and God gave him grace. “The things inside of me are receiving grace and I’m being changed and healed.” He says he has many unbeliever friends who recognize his changing, even his mother sees it. I think he used to stress out his mom in the past. Nobody stresses people out because they want to cause a burden, but they’re struggling inside so they make others struggle, too.
When he first came to the church, we talked about evangelism and he asked, “What does that have to do with me?” Anyone can change through the Word, that’s the gospel of the cross. There’s not a single person who will not change before God. We call this fundamental healing. It doesn’t matter how much you get educated, your shell will change, but you have to learn manners, and you’re going to learn to listen. We get education, but the “me” inside doesn’t change. That’s why education cannot change the inner “you.”
There’s no law or structure that can change the things within someone, even if it changes their outside. Because they don’t know the spiritual state, people say education can change us, but that’s not true. Only God can change me in the name of Jesus Christ. At any point, in the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven. Why? Because Jesus Christ received all the curses on my behalf. Isaiah 53 says Jesus Christ also carried our diseases. So, it’s not about my actions, it’s about the actions of Jesus Christ, but I believe in it.
You are able to pray right now, but you aren’t because you want to talk about your own actions. If you resolve in your heart, the devil will flee. If you keep praying in the name of Jesus Christ but the unsolvable problems are within you, one day the darkness will be broken.
Everything is equal in Jesus Christ. You don’t need to argue about the job, but you can argue about what will save people. Only the gospel can change our inner state. Someone who is full of this will go into the world and reconcile the world. God reveals this talent to me. How will God reveal this to me? God reveals it to me through worship, the Word of God, and prayer. Then, as an ambassador of Christ. We’re not going to college because we’re afraid of not being able to get a job if we don’t go, but we believe God has given us a talent to build up our specialization to go into the field, and to pray the role of the ambassador. It’s not about, “What can I do?” However, you won’t be able to work it out. It is Christ within you, to confirm your place. You keep saying something about “me.” Your math teacher is teaching Math but they’re also teaching something else, right? These words are centered on humans or yourself, “You do have to do your best,” but many people do this.
Worship is very important. There are lots of words of God, of love, and the gospel, but within that, there’s the plan of God to save you and your field. Whenever you pray in the name of Jesus Christ, no matter what you’re going through or what you’re experiencing, God is bound to work. Even if you pray once, God works greatly. Even for those playing in the back, one day, pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Satan cannot overcome Jesus Christ. I can’t say, “Sit still,” but it’s rightful for him to act that way. Pray in the name of Jesus Christ for yourself. May you enjoy these blessings.
Prayer
Father God, we thank You. We thank You for reconciling us with God through the work You did on the cross. We thank You for allowing all people to be connected to God through Jesus Christ. Allow us to be the ones who are always enjoying the name of Jesus Christ and saving the world. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, man.