In the Grecian world, about the fourth century, the word “church” was understood as an “assembly.” Jesus has called the Christians and Messianic Jews. He has called us out of the secular world. Adonai has called us out from this world and into His glory. He calls for us to be kept separate from the worldly systems, which belong to Satan. In John 17:14-18, Jesus said, “I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.”
From these Scriptures above, God has mandated us to continually remain apart from the world so we can be that righteous offering that is pleasing unto Him. God knows how destructive it would be if His believers were to become part of the secular world. He knows we would eventually become hardened under our sin, and in this situation, we would not hear His voice when He calls for us.
Let’s go to the story of Job. Job was a righteous man and a patriarch. As a family man, he served in his household as a priest. Everyday he would pray and consecrate his children every morning. While praying for his children, a spiritual application was presented here.
There is spiritual salt that comes from God when we pray. As in Job’s case, this salt helped him keep in tune when God spoke to him. It certainly preserved his spiritual state. Additionally, when we keep serving Jehovah and the more we pray to Him, the more the spiritual salt keeps us Holy and keeps us apart from the profane.
In the Bible, you will not find any formulas in how to pray, nor are there any shortcuts in prayer. There aren’t even any rituals we need to assimilate. We can pray standing, kneeling, or prostrate on the ground. We can pray in a bowed position, facing north, south, east, or west.
Let us remember to keep our prayers fruitful so it can bear many fruits in us. If we have prayers that we pray which are empty and selfish, our prayers will lose the salt that will preserve us spiritually between ourselves and God.
As believers, how do we retain the spiritual salt, which will help us? The answer can be found in Galatians 5:16-17. “Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want.”
When we desire to do the things of Jesus Christ and to “walk in the spirit,” then we will not be praying or acting out of His will selfishly (for our own benefit and our own autonomous means). We should continually seek the word of God, and then we will know His purpose for our lives. We need to know the Messiah our Redeemer on a more personal and spiritual level.
We have a moral duty to keep the spiritual salt maintained in our lives. How do we do this? By cultivating our spiritual life everyday through prayer and reading the Word of God. Thus, our prayers will be a sweet aroma, pleasing unto Him.
By Michael Jones
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