Matt. 26:41: “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into
temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak”.
Jesus
Christ came into the world for a purpose - he revealed God the father to us and
through Jesus, God reconciled mankind to Himself. Although Jesus Christ
fulfilled this purpose to the end, He did not have it easy in fulfilling the
task. Satan, that old serpent who deceived man in the Garden of Eden, wanted to
destroy this wonderful reconciliation plan of God through all means possible to
destroy Jesus. This same Satan has not left Christians alone to worship our
God. Revelation 12 shows that the Christian is in constant spiritual battle
with Satan since day one, that he became a Christian.
This
evening we want to talk about a strategy that Jesus taught the disciples to
overcome Satan and his demons. Bible says that the devil is moving to & fro
like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. But the bible also says that
“for we are not unaware of his schemes”. Jesus taught his disciples to “watch
& pray” so they can overcome satan.
Every Christian is an instrument of God.
The Christian is delivered to also continue with the wonderful work that Jesus
Christ left for us i.e. to
continue spreading the good news of salvation and hope. This means that our
person, our life, our family and everything that we do as Christians, should
portray Christ to others. That is why we need to “watch & pray” so that Satan
will not deceive us or afflict us to deny Christ (as Judas and Peter went
through). Read Matt.
26:41
Background
Matt. 26 talks about the
final hours of Jesus life to crucifixion. Jesus loved watching and praying
throughout His life on earth because he knew the wicked plans of Satan - who is
only good at stealing, killing and destroying. Bible says that Jesus left the
disciples in a part of the Garden of Gethsemane to pray alone. Bible says for
3x, each time he came to the disciples, they have abandonment the prayer and
sleeping. And this caused Jesus to advise Peter - “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed
is willing, but the flesh is weak”.
Though Judas was a disciple of Jesus, he
became a tool of Satan. At that point, Satan was also after Peter and the other disciples to turn them away
from God. Therefore in Luke 22:31-32, Jesus told Peter Satan wants to sift him
but he has prayed for him. In Matt. 26:31, Jesus predicted the falling away of
the disciples, especially Peter. As human as he was, Peter taught he knew Jesus
enough not to deny Him. Feeling confident and independent he taught he had no need
of God’s grace. If you think you are standing, be careful you don’t fall. Some
of us were so confident until we failed the test of temptation and affliction.
If a believer fails to “watch &pray”, sin takes over him. Bible says Satan
is a cunning serpent, therefore we need to “watch &pray” else we will
realize him only at the point of fall.
What is “watching?”
Watching signifies a lurking danger.
Watching means sleeplessness; vigilance; being awake and aware of surrounding
realities. It also means being spiritually alert. In Gen. 3, Adam and Eve
failed to watch, so they believed in the lie of Satan. Most Christians are
failing the test of their faith because ignorance has taken the place of knowledge
of Jesus Christ. Brethren, the secret to victory over sin and the devil is to
watch & pray.
Who is a watching person or
what is it to watch?
A watching or watchful person:
1)
Is
guided by the knowledge of God (as stated in the scriptures). He rejects the
wisdom of the world. He knows that the world’s wisdom is foolishness because it
denies the revelation of God, the creator of the universe and ruler of all.
2)
Is
aware that the ability to sin still dwells in him and that Jesus Christ
defeated Satan by death on the cross but Satan and his demons are still given
the freedom to rule and tempt all believers (Rev 12).
3)
Knows
that this world will pass away and not abide forever. Therefore it is foolish
to trust in this world and its attractions (1Jn. 2:16-17). He remembers Lot’s
wife and accepts Christ’s advise that “what shall it profit a man when he gains
this world and loses his soul”? He does not run like the pagans do after things
of the world but instead seeks first the kingdom of God. He knows there is God
but there is a devil seeking to devour the believer.
4)
Is who
having seen the heavenly things, refuses to live like the people before the
flood and the people before the destruction of Sodom & Gomorrah
(Lk.17:26-30)
5)
Is one
who repents of his sins and obey God. He is careful in his life and sets his
affections on things above, not on things of the earth, which is passing away.
He is one who embraces Paul’s words of Colossians 3:1-4.
6)
He
understands God’s truth and therefore able to detect and reject heresies in the
Church. (Acts 20:30-31). Today’s church is also falling to all the warnings to
the 7 churches in Rev 1-3 because Christians are not watching.
As Christians:
·
we need to watch how the world events are
going to enable us be ready at all times (signs and falsehood)
·
we
need to watch our group relations and friends, our marriages (Job’s wife), our
children (Samuel, Eli, etc) and attitudes (Moses & Canaan entry)
·
we
need to watch the events in the churches, so that we are not deceived by
Satan’s minister who parade as ministers of light.
We need to watch, so that
Satan will not destroy our lives.
The
Power of Prayer
Jesus also told his disciples to pray in
addition to the watching. God has given us the right to pray to him in the name
of Jesus Christ. The right to pray and receive an answer from the living God is
the greatest privilege a Christian has (Hebrews 10:19-22). We don’t need a pope
or a priest to pray on our behalf. We believe in the priesthood of all
believers, that all who trust in Jesus Christ can come through the new and
living way of Jesus Christ into the Father’s presence and he will receive us.
Our
Need to Pray
Why do we need to go into
the presence of God? We are tempted all the time as we live in this evil world.
We need God’s help to resist that temptation. Psychologists cannot help us nor
can anything we learn at the university because most modern educators have
nothing to do with God and Jesus Christ. In fact, it is quite fashionable for
secular man to deny God and Jesus Christ and despise Christianity( they prefer
the new age religions based on human thinking).
The truth is, we are weak,
needy, and helpless. Remember how Peter told Jesus, "Lord, I am willing
even to die for you. Even if everyone else denies you, I never will"? How
many times have we made similar statements? Yet such words are merely
expressions of foolish self-confidence. We need help to resist the devil, and
no one can help us but God, who graciously says to us, "Come to me in the
name of Jesus Christ and you will receive mercy and grace for your time of
need." When we come to him, God will always help us.
Why do people fall into the
same sin again and again? Because they do not watch and pray. They think they
can operate in their arrogance and self-sufficiency, but the devil is stronger
than their self-sufficiency.
So what makes prayer so powerful a tool to the
Christian?
Prayer Is
Communication
When we go to God in prayer,
we go to adore our God, confess our sins to him, give thanks to him, and make
supplication of him. Prayer is communication with God. Our prayer is also a
delight unto God (Prov. 15:8)
In Ephesians 6:10-17 we read
about putting on the whole armor of God. In Ephesians 6:18 we read, "And
pray in the Spirit," meaning the Holy Spirit. We pray because we are in a
foreign land, on the battlefield and want to be in communication with our
general. So we tell him what is happening and he tells us what to do and which
way to go.
We must pray in the power and wisdom of the
Spirit. This does not mean we can ask for anything we want and receive it.
God’s will is revealed in the word of God, and we must pray within the limits
of God’s will. Praying in the Spirit is praying in God’s wisdom and power. In God’s wisdom, our prayers can be answered:
(i)
No
(James 4:3); (ii) Yes (2Kings
20:1-6); (iii) Wait (Dan. 10:10-14);
(iv) Better option (In Judges 7:
Gideon’s 22,000 against God’s 300men for war with Medians).
The prayer of a watching person is always
effective because God gives him his grace to deal with every situation. In 2
Corinthians 12, Paul complained about a “thorn in his flesh” and for three
times, he prayed to God to remove it. But God said, "No," but,
"My grace is sufficient for you to deal with the problems." That is
why Paul could declare, "I can do all things through Christ which
strengthens me" (KJV). We must never try to face the prowling, roaring
devil in our own self-confidence. If we do, he will only laugh at us. But if we
go in the strength that God gives, we can resist the devil and he shall flee
from us.
The Weapon of Prayer
As Jesus came to Gethsemane
we are told he was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. He asked his
disciples, "Please stay with me and pray with me." Imagine, the Lord
Jesus Christ desired help of his disciples in prayer. But they slept the whole
time. Although the disciples did not watch and pray, Jesus did, praying three
times. After he was finished, he told his disciples, "I am ready now.
Let’s rise and go." Jesus was ready to meet the devil.
The third time he knew there
was no other way, so he prayed, "May your will be done," just as he
had taught his disciples to pray in the Lord’s Prayer, "Thy will be
done." Through prayer Jesus was strengthened to face death on the cross. In Luke 22:31, 32 (KJV), he prayed also for Peter against
the devil’s sifting of Peter. I believe that, this prayer saved Peter from
falling away after he had regretted denying Jesus. Because Judas lacked the
strengthening of prayer, he killed himself after his regret for selling Jesus.
This is the weapon of prayer. It is
mightier than all the weapons of hell. In fact, the devil trembles whenever a
Christian is on his knees.
Hindrances to Prayer
Lack of faith (James 1:5-7); Sin (Isa.
59:1-2; Ps. 66:18); Forgive others (Mk. 11:25-26); Using your request for
pleasure (James 4:3); Not taking good care of your spouse (1Pet.3:7)
Watch, Pray, and you’ll
Triumph
The
result of a Christian watching and praying is that - he will be triumphant over
sin, Satan, and the flesh. In 2 Corinthians 2:14 Paul exclaimed, "Thanks
be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ." When we
watch and pray, we will triumph! We will not fall into temptation or be knocked
down, swallowed up, or blown away by satan and his demons. God wants us to live
that glorious hope in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
How to watch vigilantly
Do you
make the time to study the Bible and obey it? Do you fast and do well to pray
every day? Do you take stock of your life whether you are in the faith every
time? Do you trust in man and traditions rather than God? If not, you'll find
yourself swallowed by the world and sifted by Satan like wheat.
Take note that satan and his
demons are not ignorant. He was in heaven and he fell with a "third of the
stars" (other angels) who became demonic spirits. They have knowledge and
they know how to tempt. The devil can even tempt you with the Bible by abusing
verses from it to take you off track (Matt. 4).
Think of Job. He was righteous in
the sight of God, yet the devil tempted him to such an extent that even his
closest friends believed that he had done something wrong to offend God to
cause such calamities. The devil used a whole range of varieties in tempting
righteous Job.
Sadly in
the Christian world today, the emphasis is on prayer and the first word
"watch" is sadly neglected. Brethren, Satan is not asleep - he is
busy all the time. Peter says that we are to be on our guard, to watch, because
our enemy, the devil, goes around like a roaring lion. Just picture this
literally: if you knew that there was a devouring lion in your home would you
act casually or would you be extremely watchful?
It
is not enough to say: "I go to church and have given my heart to the
Lord". It is essential that you "watch and pray".
We need to watch and pray to have
discernment. Jesus said that in the latter days many will fall away. If one
thinks of the fact that just a few years after Jesus had ascended back into
heaven He wrote letters to His 7 churches and 10 times He found fault with
them. It breaks one's heart to think that most of those churches had allowed
deception (through not being watchful and prayerful) into their midst - (go
and read Rev 1 to 3 and ask God to speak to you as you read what Jesus said to
His church)
Conclusion
Brethren, let us watch and
pray because satan knows his time is short and therefore he is roaring to and
fro to sift you and deny you meeting Jesus Christ in holiness and
righteousness. I pray that we will begin to watch and pray and learn the
secrets of having a victorious Christian life.
Brethren, Watch,
watch and pray. Amen!
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