"Pray
That Men Might Be Saved"
Romans 10: 1-5
1.
Brethren, my
heart's desire and prayer to God for
2.
For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not
according to knowledge.
3.
For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about
to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the
righteousness of God.
4.
For Christ
is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.
5.
For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.
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he
information that the Lord is currently giving to us is being given that we
might be able to make a comparison. That comparison (between what is and is not
salvation) allows us to be our own “judge” and “jury” concerning our own salvation.
When
one is blessed with a desire for salvation, he also becomes responsible for a
set of standards given to him by God. These standards are given neither to
impress nor condemn, but rather, are to be used as a “barometer”
(or, “yardstick”) to judge whether or not one is
“thinking” as God “thinks.”
In
God’s world, one must be either “hot” or “cold.” Very
simply, if one is “on fire” concerning the Lord and His purposes
and requirements, he is “hot”; if simply in a state of
“existence,” he can be said to be “cold.” If one finds
himself in a state of “indifference,” a “red flag”
should go up immediately.
By
now, it should come as no surprise nor be considered a “secret”
that it is the nature
of flesh to sin. Being its “nature,” by definition, the flesh
cannot change from being flesh. Therefore,
since sin is found in the flesh, one who walks after it will sin. For you see, along with being
“doomed” by virtue of birth, the flesh (and the man following after
it) will never
choose to
“do right.” So, the only chance that we have of eternal life is
that flesh must be put to death!
In
its fullest implication, this means that flesh can no longer be “in
control.” Of ourselves, this is impossible to achieve, but when we
determine that this is how we want to be (i.e. free of flesh) and we are
willing to commit ourselves to the Lord, then He will help us.
That
men be saved should be our
prayer. However, when one struggles to bring himself
under subjection, it will be hard (if not impossible) to deal with
others to compel them to be saved.
Sometimes,
one can “divorce” himself from himself enough to want salvation for
another—but, usually, it is when that person’s salvation will make
life “easier” for us. Easier or not, it is the responsibility of
those who are already saved to
reach others with the truth that
they might be saved.
One
of the most grievous errors we commit when dealing with others is making a
decision according to whether we can “deal” with them having a
“problem” with us. This determination can often mean the difference
between life and death for the individual. We have not been saved to be politicians, but rather “soulwinners” for the Lord. We can no more
“sort” candidates for salvation than Jesus did. He addressed,
accepted and encouraged all.
Though
we speak of prayer, as men, rarely do we understand what it is or
its purpose. Though we are admonished to pray for others to be saved, the
prayer will not make them be
saved. Evidently, then, prayer is meant to have an effect upon us.
You
see, if we are to “pray that men might be saved” and the prayer is
first to affect us, the prayer actually being offered is that we who are to
lead will submit to the Spirit that men might be won through our example. That example must be consistent, holy and righteous. Meeting these criteria (as well
as others) ensures that we are
walking in the
footsteps of Christ.
Those
footsteps never faltered at what was done or said to the One Who made them. The
One Who made the footsteps also chose
not to focus on the wrath of those who would be offended by His witness.
Apostolics are
“set apart” from others because we “have” the name of
Jesus. But, what does this really mean? Yes, we are “caught up” in
His name, but largely, without understanding.
You
see, Who Jesus is involves more than what He is
called. His “beginning” was supernatural, such that there was none
before like Him and never shall be. His very birth was without the aid of Man
and therefore, there could be no sin accounted to Him. Never could we esteem
the Lord as we esteem just “any other man,” for all men that we
know are born into the world in sin—and
therefore, deserve death. In that we have been provided with One Who has never
succumbed to the temptations common to us, we should
readily and freely serve Him, understanding that He can be depended upon as no
other.
We
really need to understand how asinine it is to be delivered from sin yet continue to live therein. We
are “born of God” that we might be freed from bondage to sin and
liberated to eternal life. One who is no better off than his brother can never be in a position to lead him out of
his conflict—and we are saved that we might be a “light” to
our brethren.
The
knowledge of salvation is proven
in the individual only by the
individual showing that he knows how to live
that salvation. We cannot afford to deceive others by telling them one thing
(that is, that we are “saved”), and acting another. However, how can we be honest with others
when we are not honest with ourselves?
For
too long, salvation has been looked upon as a “putdown” to all those not yet saved. Only the devil could be responsible
for this lie, for whom else but him could want any man
to miss his only opportunity for life?
Men
need to know that there is a Way
out of bondage. More than ever, people are coming to Church because they want help—and people from all walks of
life are in need of help, today.
Thankfully,
salvation is not based upon one’s understanding or ability to do
something. It is based on faith in God. No doubt, the Lord has
“orchestrated” things the way that He has that we might have no
excuse for not being saved. You
see, He knew that salvation would take a change
in the individual and that the individual
would find it impossible outside of Him. Therefore, He has made sure that anything we intend to do for Him will require Him.
The
tests that all men must “best” to be
saved are required precisely
because Man needs a “barometer” of his progress in the Lord. The
Lord, of course, needs no “report card” on any man, but He needs us to have one—if for no other
reason than that we might be without excuse.
If
Man would be changed after
salvation, many of the things that he encounters would be unnecessary. The
problem is that he attempts to bring to salvation “things” from
other organizations, churches and indeed, his life
that impedes his progress in the
We
are creatures of “appearances” and under no other circumstances is
this shown so clearly, perhaps, than when we are saved—or, trying to
prove to others that we are. So, whatever one thinks he knows is put “on display” at
the expense of living one’s
salvation. No “doing” will ever substitute for actual
“being” and therefore, any knowledge
of salvation that we possess must be regulated with truth—and truth must
be lived!
What
is the “truth of salvation?” There is only one and it is that in
order to be saved, we must be dead with
Christ and free from flesh; hence, sin. This is the only hope that
Man has for salvation and his only means of seeing this “in action”
is the example of others.
“Pray(ing) that men might be saved” is a noble thing to
do—but it won’t act as a magic spell. Salvation becomes Man’s
not by anything that he or anyone else does, but rather, by what Jesus has already done. So, in our willingness to pray that others might be saved, we need to
agree (with the Lord) that “Lord, if you have told me to reach people, I
will reach out to them. I know that I can make no one be saved, but I can
be an example—and I can allow You to do your job!”
The
prayer that we need to take on is an attitude
of prayer. This is not for the
people for whom we pray, but for us, who through the “process”
of prayer, are brought into alignment with God. After all, if we are to pray
"...that men might be saved,” those of us doing the praying must
be “under control.” The future of the people of God depends upon
it.