One of his greatest joys was preaching in Darfur, Sudan in 2006 and 2007. To God be all the honour, praise and
glory, through Jesus Christ the Lord! Amen.
GOD ANSWERS PRAYER! By Pastor Max Solbrekken, D.D.
JESUS
SAID:
"Come
unto Me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matt. 11:28). "And him that cometh unto Me, I shall
in no wise cast out." (John 6:37).
"Ask
and it shall be given you, seek and ye shall find. Knock and it shall be opened unto you. For everyone that asketh receiveth, he that
seeketh findeth and to him that knocketh it shall be opened." (Matt. 7:7-8)
"Behold
I stand at the door and knock. If any
man hear My voice and open the door, I will come into him and will sup with him
and he with Me." (Rev. 3:20).
The Lord invites:
"Call
unto Me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things which
thou knowest not." (Jer. 33:3). "I
will never leave thee nor forsake thee." (Heb. 13:5)
The Bible is the authoritative, divinely
inspired and perfect Word of God! His signature is on the original
autographs, written by holy men as they were inspired by the Holy Spirit.
St. Peter stated: "Knowing this first, that no prophecy
of the Scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in
old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spake as they were moved by
the Holy Ghost." (2
Peter 1:20-21)
Dr. Martin Luther had not seen a Bible until he was more than 20 years
old and his colleague Dr. Carlstadt had received his doctorate in
theology from a prestigious Roman Catholic Seminary without ever reading the
Bible!
For hundreds of years the Roman Catholic Church refused Christian
laymen the right to read and study the Holy Scriptures. They claimed that it
was too deep. “Only an educated priest or theologian could understand God's Word”,
they pontificated.
A TRICK OF THE DEVIL!
Satan knows how powerful God's Word is and was using this deceptive
tactic to keep people in bondage. Jesus
said, "Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you
free". (John 8:32)
Martin Luther was charged with
heresy by the corrupt Roman Church, for preaching the pure Gospel of Jesus. He
was hauled in before the highest ranking body of civic and ecclesiastical
rulers of the Church of Rome and the Empire. On April 18, 1521, at his trial at the Diet in Worms, Germany, he was
asked: "Will you recant of your
writings?"
Luther replied: "Since
your Majesty and your lords desire a single reply, I will answer without horns
and without teeth. Unless I am convinced by Scripture and plain reason, I do
not accept the authority of popes and councils, for they have contradicted each
other. My conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not
recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe! Here I
stand. I cannot do otherwise! God help me. Amen."
One hundred years earlier, the 'Bloody Old Vatican Wolf' had given the
Bohemian monk Jan Hus a guarantee of 'safe conduct', if he would come to
a similar trial. Believing the pope to be honest, he accepted his invitation
and was betrayed by the lying hypocrite and turned over to the secular
arm to be burned at the stake!
Luther stated: "The gospel that we have today has come to us at the cost of the blood of Jan Hus that was spilt
100 years ago."
No wonder Martin Luther stated, “The
papacy is a general chase (hunting expedition) in which the
Bishop of Rome is seeking to capture and bring to hell as many unsuspecting
souls as he can”.
It is sad but true, Roman Catholic
theologians, as well as Mormons, Jehovah Witnesses and other cults, put their
own interpretation on God’s Word today! But St. Peter said, "No
prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation..."
WHAT DID HE MEAN?
God interprets the Scripture, Himself! The message He wants us to receive is not what a
certain sect or denomination reads into the Scripture, but what He (God) is
communicating! How
does He interpret the Scriptures? By
using other Scriptures which the Holy Spirit has anointed!
Scripture interprets Scripture and
God does not contradict His Word. When
taken in context, you will find that there are NO contradictions in the Holy
Bible!
The Holy Spirit and the Word of God agree totally,
because the Holy Spirit anointed holy men to write the Scripture, and God has
no mental block or speech impediment! He said what He meant and He meant what
He said. And He honours His Word with His total power and authority!
Jesus Christ Himself is the Living Word
of God and the Holy canon of Scripture, the Bible, is the written Word of
God. Therefore, if you will believe the
Word of God and appropriate it for yourself, Jesus Christ will come out of the
pages of this holy book and come into your heart.
St. Paul said, "For what if
some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without
effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a
liar..." (Rom. 3:3-4)
There are more than 33,000 promises of blessings in the
Bible and they all have to do with God's dealings with mankind! His promises
are not for angelic beings, but for lost, sinful, sick and fallen man. His
promises are for you and me!
CHRIST’S INVITATION IS
GENUINE!
Jesus
invited, "Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will
give you rest". (Matt. 11:28) The most beautiful word in any language is
'Come'. This is a word of invitation and
when Jesus calls, we must always be ready to answer His call!
He said, "Come unto Me". He is the only One with solutions to our
problems and answers to our questions!
While on a visit to the USA a number
of years ago, the then Soviet Union's communist president Mikhail Gorbachev stated,
"Only Jesus Christ had the solutions to every problem. I don't possess that skill".
When asked by US reporters, the reason for glasnost,
perestroika and the new freedom of religion which was happening in his country,
Gorbachev replied: "JESUS CHRIST"!
As startled reporters asked him to repeat his answer, he stated without
hesitation: "JESUS CHRIST". Then,
as if realizing what he had just said, Gorbachev quickly changed the subject.
Christ's invitation is to "all
who labour and are heavy laden", and that takes us all in. Gorbachev was right: Only Jesus Christ has the solution to every
problem!
He promises rest and
peace to all who respond to His invitation! And we all need a new meeting with
Jesus! No one is exempt from the burdens, frustrations, temptations, pressures,
cares, sicknesses and other pitfalls of Satan, the world and the flesh!
Testing, temptations and trials come
to us all in various forms and fashions.
The inability to pay our debts - due to unemployment, unreasonable
taxation or sickness - is one of the biggest stress producers in this
generation! Our faith is sorely tried as we deal with things like family
break-up among children, grandchildren, relatives and friends.
Christ Jesus, however, has promised us
total victory, a release from tension and an abiding peace as we look to Him
alone and keep our trust in His Word!
Hear His Word again: “Come unto Me, all ye that labour and
are heavy laden, and I will give you rest”. (Matt. 11:28)
Notice - He didn't say ‘Come to a
certain religious body or embrace a certain philosophy, ideology or theology’...but
He said, "Come unto Me".
Jesus didn't mention His mother Mary
or His inner circle disciples Peter,
James or John or
His brother James who became
the pastor of the world's first Pentecostal Church (the church was born on the
day of Pentecost and exhibited supernatural signs and wonders) in Jerusalem!
He didn't say come to the high priest
or rabbi or pastor, evangelist, apostle or prophet! He said, "Come unto Me"!
There is not a single account of Jesus ever
turning away anyone who came to Him for help. He met the needs of each one! And
that is reassuring to know, especially when you are in need of a miracle
healing or are in danger and must have an answer to your prayer!
MY OWN
TESTIMONY!
I
can verify that God is a "God at hand and not a God afar off".
(Jer. 23:23) I can confirm that God
answers prayer! In 1984, my team and
I were conducting a crusade in Northern
India, when a staggering miracle occurred. I had planned to have a
very large crusade in southern India, where nearly all visiting evangelists
conduct their crusades.
Previously I had been in the south
and central parts of India, but had not ventured into the north where the
zealous, devout and often fanatical Brahmin Hindus have almost total power.
In fact, for the previous twenty years the number of Christians had
declined there each year, as daughters of Christian families were marrying
Hindu men because of the low status and dismal financial opportunities for the
followers of Jesus Christ among the predominant Hindu population!
Thousands of pastors were ready to
embrace our ministry in the south, and we were expecting 100,000 persons on the
opening night, with prospects of larger crowds as the crusade progressed. And I
was excited about going! Then God changed my plans and I was challenged to go
to northern India, to a very intellectual city of Brahmin Hindus and Muslims.
The Hindus had just completed a ten-day-revival
in Amedevad, Gujarat in preparation for our coming, in order to rejuvenate the
people in their beliefs and to warn them to stay away from our meetings! On the
first night of our crusade, 1/4 million Muslims were in the streets in a
gigantic parade, to start 21 days of fasting in a celebration called
Ramadan!
We started with 3,000 people on the opening night, backed by two Methodist
churches. About 120 young people from Asia and Europe - with a group
called ‘Christ is the Answer’-
had blanketed the area with posters!
My message was titled, ‘Jesus Christ the same Yesterday,
Today and Forever’! I
declared the gospel of Christ according to St. Peter: "Neither
is there salvation in any other: for
there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be
saved". (Acts
4:12)
I PRESENTED THE CLAIMS OF CHRIST!
I presented
the claims of Christ: "I am the Way, the Truth, and the
Life: no man cometh unto the Father, but
by Me". (John 14:6) "I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved,
and shall go in and out, and
find pasture. The thief cometh not, but
for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy:
I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more
abundantly." (John 10: 9-10)
And I
quoted St. Paul: "For this is good
and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour:
Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the
truth. For there is one God, and one
mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave Himself a ransom
for all..." (1 Tim. 2:3-6).
I declared that Jesus Christ was the Son
of the Living God, born of a virgin, His Sinless Life, Miracle
Ministry, Victorious Death and Glorious Resurrection from the dead!
Less than 100 came forward for salvation in the first
service, but God performed several miracles of healing in answer to my prayer!
The next day, Hindu Religious Leaders decided to drive us out of the Park and
conduct another 10 day Hindu revival on the very grounds we had a permit to
use! Unbeknown to me, our Crusade Leader had received their letter informing us
of their intentions, with a warning of serious trouble if we did not vacate the
area that evening!
THE
LETTER DIVULGED THAT THE POLICE HAD BEEN ALERTED OF A POSSIBLE RIOT AND THAT 50
FANATICS WITH STONES AND STICKS WOULD START AN UPROAR, STOP THE CRUSADE AND
KILL THE PREACHER, IF NECESSARY!
There were
about 6,000 in attendance that evening. I chose for my text Acts 17:18-32 where
St. Paul preached his famous Mars Hill message, ‘The Unknown God’. The
Bible states that St. Paul was “stirred
in the spirit” while he waited for Timothy and Silas, because the
entire city was “full of idols”!
Invited by
the philosophers to speak, he said: “Ye
men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. For, as
I passed by and beheld your devotions I found an altar with this inscription, ‘TO THE UNKNOWN GOD’.
“Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship,
declare I now unto you! God that made the world and all things therein, seeing
that He is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;
“Neither is
worshipped with men’s hands, as though He needeth any thing, seeing He giveth
to all life, and breath and all things. And hath made of one blood all nations
of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times
before appointed, and the bounds of their habitations: that they should seek
the Lord, if haply they might feel after Him, and find Him, though He be not
far from every one of us: For in Him we live, and move, and have our being.
GOD COMMANDS ALL MEN TO
REPENT!
“Forasmuch then as we are the offspring
of God, we ought not to think that the
Godhead is like unto gold, or stone, graven by art and man’s device. And
the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men
everywhere to repent: Because He hath appointed a day, in which He will judge
the world in righteousness by that man Whom He hath ordained, whereof He hath
given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead.” (Acts 17: 16 – 30).
I said,
"I entered your city last evening and beheld your temples, images, idols
and gods. Idols that are made of wood, stone, plaster of paris and plastic;
gods that have eyes that see not, ears that hear not, mouths that cannot speak,
hands that have never helped anyone and feet that are stationary"!”
I quoted the
Psalmist David concerning the gods of the heathen: “Wherefore should
the heathen say, Where is now their God?
But our God is in the heavens: He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased. Their
idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. They have mouths, but they
speak not: They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell
not.”
Then I presented Jesus Christ, the only true Saviour
of the world and the Son of the Living God!
At
precisely 9:00 PM as I was making the altar call, suddenly loud speakers began
blaring out an opposing message - in the Hindi language - in the very same
venue which we were using! They had made good on their threat and now they were
commanding everyone to vacate the park, because a riot was about to begin!
This was no idle threat. These fanatics meant business! On those same
grounds, two years previously, the Muslims had started a riot in a Christian
crusade, in order to stop the meetings.
Muslim fanatics had overturned a bus with 17 men, women and children,
poured gasoline on it, setting it ablaze and killing them all! Of course, everyone fled and the Crusade was history!
More than thirty years earlier, a
well-known American evangelist was conducting a successful crusade in North
India. Fanatics began a riot and he had
to leave.
The Indian
government then declared him non-gratis-persona,
effectively barring him from the country, stating that his crusades
were dangerous and prone to violence and riots. In this manner the bigots and
religious fanatics had stopped one of the world's greatest soul winners from
preaching in that nation for more than 3 decades!
NOW, THEY
WERE PLANNING TO DO THIS TO ME, BUT GOD INTERVENED! Just as the fanatics were
entering the grounds, I was making the altar call. More than 500 people were so gripped by the
message and by the Holy Spirit that they rushed forward to receive Jesus
Christ, as a powerful anointing came over me and the entire site!
Then as
I prayed a powerful prayer, rebuking the devil and calling upon God - in Jesus'
Name - for miracles among the people, a 6 year old boy who was lame in one leg
from birth was instantly healed!
His parents, who were Brahmin Hindus rushed forward to
testify, along with their healed son. Upon hearing the commotion and the
testimony, the fanatics asked, "Is that Mr. and Mrs. so and so? (a
prominent businessman in the Brahmin Community) Is it true that his son
is healed? Who is that man? Is he a prophet?"
Those around them in the crowd said, "Yes,
he is a prophet from Canada". They dropped their stones and sticks
saying, “We could have killed a prophet. We’ll give him another day.”
They
pulled down their loud speakers! The next
evening, the crowd grew to about 10,000 and I preached on ‘God's Love and
the Blood of Jesus’! The fanatics who had previously wanted to hurt me,
now wanted to kiss my feet. And the revival continued with the crowd growing to
approximately 40,000 persons.
And according to the last reports we have
had, the Christian community was not only strengthened but also is
growing! Thousands enrolled in the New
Converts Class, by mail. And hundreds took special courses for Christian
Ministry! To God be all the glory!
At the time
of this writing (December, 1992), we have just heard the sad news that another
well-known American evangelist has very recently been banned from India for
the same reason. Hindu fanatics took
over his crusade declaring that he was fabricating lying testimonies of people
who claimed to be healed!
Here,
however is the good news: We can come to our Heavenly Father at anytime and
anywhere, for any need and expect a hearing and an answer to our prayers! God's
Word says, "Call unto Me, and
I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest
not". (Jer. 33:3)
All of us
go through times of difficulty and trouble, and God is more willing to give
than we are to ask. Jesus said, "Hitherto
have ye asked nothing in My name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may
be full". (John 16:24)
JESUS BIDS US COME TO HIM!
We are invited to call upon Him in the day
of trouble and He will deliver us and show us His mighty arm outstretched, in
signs, wonders and miracles!
All we must do is call, and He will
answer! It is humbling for us to
acknowledge our weakness and need for help.
It is humbling for us to request assistance from an outside force in
this proud, efficient and materialistic world in which we live.
IF WE WANT AN ANSWER, HOWEVER, WE MUST CALL UPON HIM! Jesus
said, "If ye then, being evil,
know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your
heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him"?
(Luke 11:13)
Our Lord
stated, "Come now, and let us
reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be
as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool".
(Isa. 1:18)
Jesus
invited, "Ask, and it shall be
given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For
every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that
knocketh it shall be opened." (Matt. 7:7-8)
The simplest thing in the world for anyone to do is to
ask for something. And yet, it can be
the most difficult!
To ask God for forgiveness, we must
acknowledge our failings and sins. To ask God for guidance, which road to take
or for strength, we acknowledge our weakness. And to ask God for divine
healing, we admit that we are sick and need help!
But Jesus made it so easy! He said, we must become like little children
and ask with child-like faith and expectation. And His promise is sure and
guaranteed to work. He will keep His
Word!
Jesus said, "If
ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it
shall be done unto you". (John 15:7)
Again He
stated, "Ye have not chosen
Me, but I have chosen you and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth
fruit, and that your fruit should remain: That whatsoever ye ask of the Father
in My name, He may give it you." (John 15:16)
WITHOUT CHRIST, WE ARE HOPELESSLY
LOST & POWERLESS AGAINST SATAN!
We must
remember Who our Source is! Jesus Christ
is our Redeemer and the Holy Spirit gives us the power to function by His
grace. And the Word of God is Supreme
that He may be all in all!
Jesus said: "But
ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you and ye shall
be witnesses unto Me..." (Acts 1:8). "Without Me, ye can do nothing"! (John: "I will never leave thee, nor forsake
thee. I will be with you until the end
of the world". (Heb. 13:5)
WE MUST ASK IN FAITH! When we
approach God’s Throne of Grace,
we must ask specifically for what we need or desire! We must be specific, so that we can
prioritize our request and focus on our needs!
It is important to lay out our needs in a definite
request, believing that He hears us and will keep His promise!
Faith is expecting
an answer when you pray! Faith is
trusting God so explicitly, that when you have met the conditions that He has
set forth in His GREAT DOCUMENT - the Holy Bible - He will respond
favourably!
The Bible
says, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen". (Heb. 11:1). Here is Moffat's translation of this
verse: "Faith means we are
confident of what we hope for; convinced of what we do not see."
Faith is like the title deed to a property you own but
have never seen. You know it is yours
because it has been bequeathed to you in a will or it has been given to you as
a gift ~ possibly in another part of the world ~ and you still haven't received
it or seen it.
That is
how faith works! You have God's
promises regarding prayer and His desire to answer, but the things you prayed
for may not have happened yet!
Keep
on trusting, expecting and believing, and the answer will come! Loved ones will come to Christ, sicknesses
will be healed by God's power and your many prayer requests will be answered
when you pray in the Name of Jesus! We have His Word on it!
The Bible
says, "Commit thy way unto the
Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass".
(Psalms 37:5) Jesus showed us how faith
works in Mark 11:22-24:
"And
Jesus answering saith unto them,
Have faith in God. For verily
I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed,
and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall
believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have
whatsoever he saith.
“Therefore I say unto you, What things
soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have
them."
In my opinion, Heb. 11:1 is a theologian's
definition of faith. The layman's
definition of faith is found in verse 6.
"But without faith it is impossible to
please Him, for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a
rewarder of them that diligently seek Him." (Heb. 1:6)
FAITH
IS THREE THINGS!
1).
Faith is coming to God with your needs and making your requests known to Him!
When you bring
your request to God in prayer, you are declaring your faith in Him! By asking
God for help, you are demonstrating faith! You wouldn't come to God for help if
you didn't believe He could help you! This is proof that you do believe that He
is greater than yourself and your need!
You are saying: "Lord, You are greater than I and more powerful, and that is why I
am coming to You. I am weak, helpless and needy. I trust in You as my Saviour, Healer and Deliverer!
Wash me in Your precious blood and heal me through Your broken body. Hear my
prayer, O Lord. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Ame
2). Faith believes that God exists!
Faith is believing that God is real, that He is alive and available
today! But,you may ask:“Who is God?” That question has
been asked repeatedly for thousands of years. Here are some truths about God
from two historical creeds of the Church.
In 230 A.D. during the Arian
controversy (attack on the deity of Christ and Trinity) 318 Church Fathers
(many of them victims of persecution) met at Nicaea, and adopted a
statement of faith. It is called the Nicene Creed:
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
The Only begotten Son of God,
Begotten of Him before all ages,
God of God, Light of Light,
Very God of Very God,
Begotten, not made,
Being of one Substance with the Father,
By Whom all things were made.
I believe in the Holy Spirit
The Lord and giver of life,
Which proceedeth from the Father and the Son,
Who with the Father and the Son together,
Is worshipped and glorified.
A part of the Athanasian Creed reads
thusly: “In this Trinity, nothing is before or after, nothing is greater or
less: but all three Persons co-eternal, together and equal.” Concerning
Jesus the Son, they wrote into the Creed: “Equal to His Father, as touching
His Godhead; less than the Father, as touching His manhood.”
In his
book, ‘The Knowledge of the Holy’, A.W.
Tozer writes: “Christ did not hesitate to use the plural form when speaking
of Himself along with the Father and the Spirit. ‘We will come unto him, and make our abode with him’ Yet
again He said, ‘I and My Father are
one.’ It is most
important that we think of God as Trinity in Unity, neither confounding the
Person nor dividing the Substance.”
He is
eternally existent in three persons: God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit! God
is omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (all
wise), omnipresent, (everywhere present at once), incomprehensible
(unknowable), transcendent (above nature), eternal
(without beginning and without end) and immutable (never
differing from Himself).
Faith is: Believing that Jesus Christ
is the Son of God and that He died on the cross for our sins and arose from the
dead for our justification! Faith
is: Believing in the God of the Bible!
3). Faith is expecting a miracle when we pray!
Faith anticipates and awaits the imminent answer from
the eternal, living and trustworthy One, Whose name is Faithful, True and
Holy!
The Holy
Scripture says: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for the
evidence of things not seen" The NIV translation renders this verse
thusly: "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of
what we do not see." (Heb. 11:1)
Faith is a
reality! Faith is a fact and faith is also an act, because
"faith without works is dead being alone". (James 2:26)
Faith is now! Faith is a present day reality and faith gets the
job done! Yes, indeed my friend: Faith Works Miracles!
I
close this brief paper with these words from St. John: “He that believeth on
the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made
Him a Liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of His Son.
“And this is the record that God hath
given to us Eternal life, and this life is in His Son. For he that hath the Son
hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
“And this is the confidence that we have
in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He heareth us: and if we
KNOW that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we KNOW that we have the petitions
that we desired of Him.” (1 John 5: 14, 15)
May the
Blessed Holy Spirit make these precious truths real to each and every one
reading these inspired words. Amen.
