This is not only the title of one of our booklets, but it was a genuine request by the apostles to Christ, which can be found in Luke 11:1. It expressed a sincere desire on their part to learn how to pray. In Matthew 6:7-14, we can find the outline as to how and for what to pray. This outline is not something we are to repeat routinely, word for word, but rather, it is a guide as to what to pray about, while we are to fill in the gaps, as it were.

I was once asked if I was embarrassed or ashamed to pray in public. The individual told me Christ prayed in public. He thus felt justified to pray publicly anytime and everywhere he wanted.

On the surface this might seem quite plausible until we peel back some of the layers and have a good look at it from a deeper perspective.

It has been a long-time practice of the Church of God not to generally pray in public, and we should look at the reasons why. It is true that Christ prayed at times in public, but one must look at the circumstances surrounding these events. Here is one example, in Mark 6:40-41:

“So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties. And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.”

Here is another example, in Mark 8:6:

“So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.”

The people were there to listen to the message of Christ. This was similar to a public lecture or to a wedding, where people are there by invitation and a prayer is given to open the session or to ask God’s blessing on the food. Christ also prayed publicly just before He resurrected Lazarus from the dead. He did so to prove to those who were present and mourned over Lazarus’ death that God was hearing Him (John 11:41-44). He also uttered “public” prayers when He was being crucified  (compare Matthew 27:46). He was mostly concerned about speaking to God during the final minutes of His life, and He did not care too much as to who might have been present at that time to overhear His prayers.

However, those who insist on praying in public everywhere and anytime they please, especially with a desire to show those who may happen to be there how “righteous” and “religious” they are, are ignoring the clear and explicit instructions of Christ whom they supposedly worship. He tells us in Matthew 6:5-6:

“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”

Nothing could be clearer. Those who do not comply with this simple instruction are in disobedience, and they have their reward, being seen by men. The Pharisees loved to put on a big show, but it was all in vain. That is the reason why we do not generally pray in public. Our focus is not on a reward or temporary recognition which we might now receive from man, but we look to a future enduring reward that shall not perish.

It is amazing how clever Satan is when he wants true Christians to start compromising with any of God’s laws or statutes. He is very astute in facilitating convincing “justifications” in one’s mind. Take for example the doctrinal changes in the Worldwide Church of God, to which many true Christians belonged at one time. Did the new administration, which took over after the former human leader’s death, boldly come out and admit that they wanted to do away with the Sabbath, the Holy Days, tithing, or the distinction between clean and unclean meats? No; rather, they started by “adjusting” what seemed to be unimportant or insignificant teachings to some–for instance, whether or not we are already born again in this life; whether we need to proclaim the gospel of Christ or just about Christ; or whether God is a Family or just has a Family.

In their booklet “God Is,” they gradually abolished the true understanding that the Holy Spirit is not God or a person of the Godhead, but rather the power of God the Father and Jesus Christ, enabling them to create and accomplish things both in the spiritual and physical realm. First, they used the Greek word “hypostasis” for God, saying that God consists of three “hypostases.” The adoption of this philosophical term was just the first step in reaching the point of teaching the wrong orthodox doctrine of the Trinity.  “Hypostasis” was not “supposed” to convey the meaning of a Person—just a mode of being—but in the third printing of their booklet, the word “hypostasis” was substituted with the word “person.” Now they had fully embraced the pagan belief of the Trinity—“God being One Person in Three Persons”–something which they had apparently planned to do from the outset.

These changes were introduced subtly. Unfortunately, many were fooled and deceived, and like the proverbial dead fish or the dumb sheep, they were floating along with the changes and followed the false shepherds to the slaughter. Soon, all flood gates were open and now, one would not recognize as biblically correct most, if not all of the teachings of today’s Worldwide Church of God, since their changed beliefs are based on pagan traditions and superstitions, rather than the Bible.

What Satan was looking for was the proverbial chink in the armor–the one weak spot which makes a soldier vulnerable on the battlefield. For instance, the area around the shoulder is such a weak spot. Overlaps in the armor allowed for movements of the arms, but a good archer could successfully shoot an arrow into the unprotected area. The inflicted wounds were usually not fatal, but they rendered a fighting soldier ineffective for battle and if not tended to, he could bleed to death, if the arrow had pierced an artery.

In 2003, while attending the Feast of Tabernacles in England, my wife and I visited Warwick Castle. We noticed an archer on the pathway up to the castle. He was shooting arrows at a stuffed target, which had the form of a man. The target was some sixty to seventy feet away, but the archer shot the arrows with an amazing degree of accuracy. He explained that in the ancient English army bowmen were trained from the age of six or seven years old. By the age of adulthood, they had become very accurate in shooting arrows into the unprotected spots of enemy soldiers. Because of their intensive training, they could cause a lot of injuries in battle, and they could even help the defeat of their enemy in times of war.

Satan is highly skilled in the “art” of warfare. He is a powerful archer, who is able to shoot his arrows precisely into whatever small chink in our armor he might detect. It is very important that we are completely and thoroughly protected by the whole armor of God (compare Ephesians 6:10-17).

Satan is very subtle, as Paul stated in 2 Corinthians 2:10-11: “Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ, lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.”

The church at the time of Paul was aware of Satan’s devices, understanding that one of them was compromise. Compromise usually starts in small areas–with little white lies and with becoming less diligent than one ought to be, for instance in the area of tithing faithfully, promptly and properly, or starting to engage in improper entertainment or do some “chores” on the Sabbath. These might be looked upon as “small” leaks in a dam, but they can cause insurmountable damage and may jeopardize one’s very salvation.

Compromise is like a small spark. Unless it is extinguished right away, it may develop into a roaring and destructive fire, which might soon be burning out of control. The Worldwide Church of God started their doctrinal apostasy with seemingly small insignificant “semantic” changes—but in fact, Satan had begun to shoot his arrows into unprotected areas of many of God’s people. We must never think that something similar could not happen today again.

Unless we repent of any wrong course of action and change our way of thinking, the slippery slope of compromise will ultimately lead to our demise. We must take due diligence to ensure that we are not caught up in compromise and that our spiritual armor has no chinks, so that Satan’s arrows cannot cause us any spiritual injury.

Somebody once said, “Any old dead fish could swim downstream, but it takes a live one to swim upstream.”  The reason is, going upstream takes effort.

You have to overcome the downward resistance of the water current working against you; you have to deal with a certain volume of water; and, of course, you have to fight against the speed of the current. Likewise, an automobile transmission in neutral will not move the vehicle forward, but rather just spins its gears unless they are engaged.

All of this is similar to our Christian walk. Unless we make an effort, we cannot swim upstream, and unless we are engaged, we are just spinning our gears with no forward motion.

It is really important to focus on the reason why we are called today in the first place, in order to stay engaged. Were we called only to save our own skins? Not at all.

You might want to consider Christ’s words in Luke 21:36: “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” This verse has to be balanced with something else Christ said in Mark  8:35: “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.”

A soldier engaged in an intense battle with the enemy is more concerned with defeating and overcoming that enemy than saving his own skin. He is focused on achieving the purpose for his fighting; and that is, to win against and conquer his enemy.

As true Christians, we are not to fight in war, but we still have a purpose to fulfill. As soldiers of Christ, we must preach and publish the gospel (good news) of the future Kingdom of God and to utter a warning to a deceived and dying world. At that same time, we must keep ourselves unspotted from the world and defeat our spiritual enemy–Satan the devil and his demonic forces.

If our focus is only to save our own skin, then we could lose our salvation in the process. This is a serious matter.

Every Christian is engaged in a deadly battle against Satan’s efforts to thwart the Work of God. The more he can delay, slow down or impede the process  of preaching the gospel, the longer he maintains his deceptive rule over this world.

Our focus and desire should be to shorten his reign as the current god of this age. The big question is, are we engaged in the process to help make this happen, or are we like dead fish, floating downstream, or with the transmission in neutral?

We always have a choice. Let us choose to be fully engaged in doing the Work of the Eternal God.

This will be the last Update and Editorial prior to the Feast of Tabernacles, which begins on Wednesday evening, the 22nd of September. You will receive it just prior to the Day of Atonement, which pictures the putting away of Satan as the current god of this world. With the devil’s banishment, man will be given the opportunity to be at-one with God; to draw closer to Him; and to develop a one-on-one relationship with Him. Following the Day of Atonement, we will be celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles, which pictures the rule of Christ and His saints on and over this earth for a thousand years.

We are sure that most of you are looking forward to the Feast as a time for renewed fellowship. This is especially important  for those of us who are scattered and do not have a group to meet with, but only the internet and the use of the chat line to communicate with one another prior to or after the broadcast of Sabbath services. While these live broadcasts are extremely helpful for those of us who cannot attend in person, they must never be viewed as an alternative when we could attend in person. However, all of us who are scattered should attend the Feast of Tabernacles in person, barring serious health or other legitimate reasons which would prevent us from doing so.

The Feast of Tabernacles is a time of rejoicing, both in the physical and spiritual sense. As we see that the world conditions around us are getting worse and worse, it appears that the time of the great tribulation is not that many years away. We cannot and do not set dates; yet, we are admonished to watch and to keep an eye on trends and the ongoing prophetic fulfillment of prophecy.  The good news is that Christ will return to cut short the great tribulation and to usher in and establish the Kingdom of God here on earth.

It would be wise to utilize this coming festival to re-charge our spiritual tanks, since there is a considerable length of time, up to six months, until the Spring Holy Day season. We should also take time and make every effort to strengthen our spiritual ties which each other, since some of us only see each other once a year at the Feast.

We are told that in the Millennium, the nations will keep this Festival. They will eventually learn the benefit for so doing. We, on the other hand, have the opportunity to keep it now and to enjoy the great blessings that come with obedience.

So if there is anything we could admonish you to do, it would be to attend the Feast; travel safely; pray for the safety of the ministry and the brethren as they travel; have a tremendously inspiring Feast; rejoice before our God and Lord Jesus Christ; and to look forward to the time when the real meaning of the Feast of Tabernacles will be fulfilled and when we can teach the world to follow the example that we are already living at the present time.

Is eternal life alone a sufficient guarantee to God that we will never sin again or turn and rebel against Him? If you think it is, then perhaps you should re-evaluate that line of thought.

Bear in mind that when Lucifer was created as an eternal spirit being, his creation was “perfect.” Ezekiel  28:15 says this about Lucifer: “You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you.” Notice, he was perfect in all his ways. He was THE perfect created spirit being at that time–till iniquity was found in him, that is sin.  In the course of time his mind became corrupted by sinful thoughts and desires, and he became Satan, the adversary and enemy of God.

Consider this–a perfectly created being turned in rebellion against his Maker and became God’s enemy, as it were. He attempted, unsuccessfully, to overthrow His Creator, and in the future, he will attempt to overthrow Him again, as Revelation 12:7-8 tells us: “And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon [Satan the devil]; and the dragon and his angels [demons] fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer.”

So the question is, how can God guarantee absolutely that this will not happen with us when we, as His born-again children, are changed to spirit and become God beings–“gods” (compare John 10:34-35)–in His divine Family?

Right now, we are flesh-and-blood human beings. Our physical existence is temporary and would remain so if there was no resurrection or change to immortal life. We are today begotten children of God who received God’s Spirit at baptism. We do not read that Satan was ever begotten by God’s Spirit when he was created. Rather, we read that God is reproducing Himself through man–not through angels. He begets us through His Holy Spirit and creates in us His divine nature. This potential to become true members in God’s Family–GOD beings–was never offered to angels (compare Hebrews 1:14; 2:5, 16; 2 Peter 1:2-4; Revelation 19:10; see also 1 Corinthians 6:3).

The guarantee that God wants to find in us is referred to in Philippians 2:5: “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” In addition, we must consider Ephesians 3:14-19 in this context, stating:

“For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

The mind that was in Christ Jesus was the mind of God the Father; and to become filled with the fullness of God–by growing in God’s grace and knowledge–is God’s absolute guarantee that we will never rebel against Him, because we will develop the same mindset that God and Christ have. This mindset says, in effect: “I will not sin; therefore, I cannot sin.”

God cannot rebel or sin against Himself. By creating in us His way of thinking through His Holy Spirit–His divine nature–He guarantees that we will NEVER sin or rebel against Him in the future.

We will become God beings; therefore, God the Father and Jesus Christ will not have to keep watching their backs in fear of their children and brothers and sisters rebelling in some manner. We will have developed and grown into the mindset of God. This necessitates, however, that we prove to God now that we are willing to develop His mindset. If God sees that we are unwilling to submit to Him and obey Him, then He will NOT grant us eternal life in His very Family.

But as long as we are willing to worship and please God, then our glorious future is guaranteed, and this will also be a guarantee to God that we will remain faithful to Him for all eternity.

Several years ago I asked a friend how things were going and if he had gotten a job, since I knew that he had been searching for one. In the course of our conversation he informed me that he had landed a job with a certain company. I was surprised and asked him how he had  managed to get a job there, since it was very difficult to get in.

He relayed to me that he showed up there on Monday morning at 8:00 am and asked to talk to the Personnel Manager. After an introduction and laying out his qualifications and desire to work for the company, he was told by the Manager that there were no openings at that time. On Tuesday morning, at 8:00 am, he showed up again and asked to see the Personnel Manager who was quick to ask him why he had returned. My friend told him that he wanted to get a job there. The Manager responded that he had already explained to him the previous day that there were no openings at that time.

On Wednesday, my friend showed up again at 8:00 am and asked to see the Personnel Manager.  The Manager told him once more that they had no openings. On Thursday, at 8:00 am,  my friend showed up again. The Manager took one look at him and said: “Just report for work tomorrow at 8:00 am.”

“So that’s how I got the job there,” my friend told me. “I guess, my persistence paid off.”

Indeed it had. Persistence can be described as an ongoing effort and action in spite of opposition, obstacles, set-backs, rejection or discouragement.

The concept of persistence can be found in the Bible. For instance, Christ gave the following parable of the widow and the unjust judge in Luke 18:1-8:

“And He also spoke a parable to them to teach it is always right to pray, and not to faint, saying, A certain judge was in a certain city, not fearing God, nor respecting man. And a widow was in that city. And she came to Him, saying, Avenge me of my adversary. And he would not do so for a time. But afterward he said within himself, Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her, that she not wear me down in the end. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge says. And shall not God avenge His own elect who cry day and night to Him, though He has been long-suffering over them? I say to you that He will avenge them speedily. Yet when the Son of Man comes, shall He find faith on the earth?”

The admonition is clear. We are not to throw in the towel if we are rejected the first time. We need to keep seeking, asking and knocking.

Perhaps God is really testing our persistence when we ask for something and do not receive an immediate response. What should we do? We should keep asking until we obtain what we have requested or until it is clearly revealed to us, for instance through obvious circumstances, that God’s answer in a particular situation is “No.”

Paul asked God to be healed. He might have suffered from an eye problem or even from malaria, as some commentators suggest. Did he quit after his first request was not answered in the way Paul had expected? No. He asked three times–apparently being anointed three times–until God’s answer was, “My grace is sufficient for you.” Paul clearly realized, after his third request, that God would not heal him in this life, and Paul accepted and even gladly submitted to God’s Will.

Sometimes we are asked to pray for an individual who is suffering from a sickness or who has a different serious problem. Do we quit praying after a few days, or do we continue until the person is healed or his problem is solved, or particular circumstances clearly reveal that God’s Will is different than what we were praying for?

Christ gives this promise to the Philadelphia church: “Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth” (Revelation 3:10).

Paul encourages us in Ephesians 6:18-19 to pray “always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints, and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel…”

God commands us to be persistent and to persevere–just like the unjust judge who granted the widow her request and the Personnel Manager who gave my friend his job. They obtained what they desired because they would not give up.

How persistent are you?

When I was growing up and going through some trials or difficult times, my mother used to have the following saying in French: “Il faut endurez sur la terre.”  Translated into English, it means: “You have to endure on this earth.” She understood that life wasn’t always a cake walk and that even as a youth at home, there were tough times that one had to endure, without caving in and giving up. 

Near the end of his life, the apostle Paul conveyed this same understanding in his admonition to Timothy. He wrote in 2 Timothy 4:5-8:

“But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.”

Christ expressed the same sentiment in Matthew 24:13: “But he who endures to the end shall be saved.”

It is one thing to be called, but quite another to respond in a positive way to God’s calling. If one throws in the towel along the way, either because of trials or persecution, then there is no reward in the end. That is why it is so important to set our mind on the completion of our calling by enduring to the end–the end of our physical life or the return of Jesus Christ, whichever comes first.

As we are living in the end time, trials and persecution will increase even to the point that the love of many will wax cold (Matthew 24:12). This warning is addressed to Church members, not just to people in the world. It may be carnal people who will persecute God’s elect, but Christ said that the love of God will wax cold among the people of God. And unbelievably, perhaps, it will be God’s people who will persecute and betray and even HATE one another (compare Matthew 24:10). And why? Matthew 24:12 tells us, why: “And because LAWLESSNESS will abound, the love of many will grow cold.” Lawlessness or transgression is the same as sin. Sin is defined as the transgression of the law, or lawlessness (1 John 3:4). It is the love of many that will grow cold because of lawlessness or sin. This refers to many IN THE CHURCH OF GOD. Sin among true converted Christians will abound or increase, because they will not heed Christ’s warning to endure and remain faithful.

Let us take very seriously Christ’s admonition in Revelation 3:11: “Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.”

Notice,  we are to hold fast, that is to endure, so that we do not lose our crown–God’s gift of eternal life and rulership in His Kingdom. Christ added in Luke 9:62: “‘…No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.'”

Once we have put our hand to the plow; that is, once we have begun to respond to our calling and commit to God’s way of life, we cannot look back to what we have left behind; we must not have regrets and give in to desires to go back into the world from where we came; otherwise, Christ will have no pleasure in us.

On the other hand, if we faithfully continue in our calling–through thick and thin–and endure to the end as profitable and diligent servants in God’s Work, then we can look forward to an incredible future. It includes living forever as spirit beings and members in the very Family of God–and to rule under Christ on this earth. Isn’t this something for which we should gladly endure?