Learning to Seek “Christ” — not Just His “Power”
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| As believers embrace full yielding to Christ, it is important to do it for the right reasons. Beyond question, our motives and perspectives are incredibly important to God! (James 4:1-4) God always reads the content and purity of our hearts. In a day with so much emphasis on success, power and blessing, it is crucial to recapture to the primary reason we fully surrender to Christ. In short, we do it in simple loving obedience to please Jesus and further His kingdom.
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| If our main reason for cleansing is to attain success or “get out of some problem,” we are on a false foundation. Loving and obeying the “Blesser” is the goal, not just the attainment of temporal “blessings.” But of course, in the process of true surrender we gain something truly awesome — power for evangelism and glorifying His name!
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| To be sure, all who seek Christ will certainly receive many personal benefits and it is definitely right to pray for blessings. However, the primary blessing and purpose is simply loving, obeying and glorifying God! (Matthew 22:37; John 17:3) Indeed, we must be prepared for the fact deeper surrender will at times mean some forms of persecution and loss. Yet one thing is certain — Christ’s fullness is worth any cost a million time over! Child of God, you are about to experience the very meaning of life itself — closeness and surrender to Jesus!
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Preparing for Cleansing and Spiritual Fullness
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| We now describe the practical process of full cleansing and yielding to Jesus. While Drawing Near to God is designed for practical use in a fairly brief time, always let God guide your unique pattern. It is perhaps most intended to bring cleansing and power into daily quiet times. While in this practical book, we mostly focus on strengthening personal prayer, readers should be aware of the many powerful uses. Furthermore, I definitely suggest that at least once a week, believers take extra time and very thoroughly pray through all the optional cleansing questions in this section. This will prevent hidden sins from building up without your awareness.
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| Whatever your particular use, simply follow the process of allowing God to examine four major categories for confession and surrender. Above all, let your cleansing journey be flexible and guided by the Holy Spirit. This cleansing journey is not some rigid program that we all have to do exactly the same way! At its heart, cleansing is a love relationship of listening to God’s voice for genuine closeness, surrender and power. This process is not about getting “beat up” but lifted up!
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Four Simple Steps for Cleansing and Fullness
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| In this section, I present a condensed version of yielding the seven areas of our lives to Christ’s Lordship. Each life is actually made up of seven major areas. Yet for purposes of simplicity in daily times of cleansing, I have combined the seven into four.
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| For full cleansing and surrender to Jesus, I suggest four basic steps. (1) Prayerfully work through all four categories of cleansing. Though this is designed for a fairly brief time of cleansing (7 to 15 minutes), pause long enough for God to reveal issues that hinder His Spirit. Simply confess and forsake whatever He reveals. (2) As you confess your sins, ask God for wisdom in concrete steps of repentance. Remember, we must confess and forsake our sins. (Proverbs 28:13) (3) Specifically ask Christ to fill and empower you with the Holy Spirit. (Luke 11:13) Ask in faith for the fullness of God’s presence. Do not rely on your feelings. You are forgiven, filled and empowered by faith, not feelings. (4) Claim the glorious fact Christ’s righteousness is “counted” unto you. (Romans 4:5) Rest in the confidence God now empowers you for spiritual growth and dynamic witness. You are accepted, filled and empowered by His righteousness, not yours.
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| And now dear reader, embrace God’s promises and go straight to your Lord in confidence. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.”
(John 6:37) As you embrace your cleansing journey, look to Jesus — the author and finisher of our faith. Pay careful attention to prayerfully reading all the Scriptures. After all, it is God’s Word that cleanses and transforms. Please prayerfully work through all four categories.
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| As we seek God to cleanse and fill our hearts, simply pause and ask God to reveal any sinful attitudes or thoughts you need to confess and forsake. I suggest you pray something like this, “Father, please show me attitudes and thoughts I need to surrender and change.” Some issues to pray through are: self-will, failure to hallow God, anger, bitterness, pride, impurity, complaining, lukewarmness, fear, etc. For each of these areas, simply ask, “Am I in any way placing my will over God’s will and glory? Do I have any unconfessed anger or bitterness? Do I have points of unyielded pridefulness? Do I have on-going patterns of impurity? Am I often complaining? Do I frequently think fear instead of faith? Am I lukewarm,” etc.? After each searching question, pause and confess whatever God reveals. |
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| As God has searched your heart, simply confess what He reveals and resolve by His grace to fully repent. Now in faith ask Christ to fill and empower you with the Holy Spirit. My friend, God has pledged to answer that prayer! (Ephesians 5:18) If you are doing this for fairly brief daily cleansing or before some ministry, simply confess any wrong thoughts and move to Category Two. However, if you have more than a few minutes, you might want to pray through the following optional questions for even deeper cleansing of attitudes and thoughts. The expanded questions will definitely take your cleansing to a deeper level.
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| Do I truly seek to hallow God and exalt His Name in all my attitudes and thoughts? |
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| Am I exhibiting a profound reverential fear and awe of God in all my attitudes? Am I in any area placing my will over God’s? |
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| Are my thoughts actually more consumed with work, hobbies or family than with Christ? Do my motives in prayer or service revolve around some personal gain or interest? |
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| Is my greatest affection and excitement more for things on earth than spiritual growth and serving Jesus? Have I failed to center my thoughts on reaching the lost and unchurched? |
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| Do I have any persistent thought patterns that are angry, bitter, resentful or unforgiving? |
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| Is there any pattern of dwelling on impure thoughts or looking at unclean images? Do I watch programs or view Internet sites that feature immorality? |
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| Do I tend toward pride and want very much to be noticed by others? Am I always seeking human awards? |
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| Am I in any way envious, self-seeking and over-competitive? Am I jealous when certain others are praised? |
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| Do I tend to worry and fret more than believe and trust God? Am I failing to claim God’s promise and cast my cares upon Him? |
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| Do I tend to gripe and complain instead of praise and thank God in all things? |
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| Am I lukewarm about God and His service? Have I lost my first love and excitement for Christ? Am I lukewarm about prayer, Scripture reading, service, sacrificial giving or witnessing? |
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| Do I have wrong attitudes and thoughts that have remained in my life a long time? Do I take sins of attitude lightly? God doesn’t – sins of attitude and thoughts are actually the seed bed of all sin! (Pride, jealously, lukewarmness, self-will, unbelief, etc.) |
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| Pause and ask God to reveal any words or relationships you need to confess and forsake. I suggest you pray something like this, “Father, please show me words or relationships that I need to surrender and change.” Some to prayerfully consider are: angry, bitter or harsh words, refusal to ask forgiveness, refusal to truly forgive, wrong or improper relationships, having relationships that appear wrong, neglect of family, being wrong with other church members, etc. Pause and let God speak to each area.
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| As God has searched your heart, simply confess what He has revealed and resolve by His grace to fully repent. Now in simple faith, ask Christ to fill and empower you with the Holy Spirit. Our blessed Lord has promised to do just that! (Luke 11:13) We now turn our attention to cleansing from sins of commission or omission.
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| If you can give more than the few minutes, you might consider praying through the following optional questions for deeper repentance. These expanded questions will definitely take you into a deeper level of surrender and power. If your time needs to be brief, simply confess what God has revealed and trust Him to fill you with His Spirit and power.
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| Do I use words or have any relationships that fail to hallow God’s Name or hinder His kingdom? |
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| Do I fail to revere God in some of my words and relationships? |
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| Have I spoken words that are critical, harsh or unkind? Do I often seem to offend others or hurt their feelings? |
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| Have I exaggerated, overstated or lied in any of my words? |
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| Do I use God’s name in any way other then prayer, praise or godly discussions? Have I at any time used words that are crude or unclean? |
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| Do I tend to spout off opinions before I pray or even hear all the facts? |
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| Have I committed any form of gossip, innuendo or slander? Have I spoken against people behind their backs? |
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| Have I spoken words that are critical, negative and discouraging to others? |
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| Is there anyone I have offended yet I have ignored God’s clear command to ask forgiveness and seek reconciliation? If you have neglected to address strained relationships, you are utterly out of fellowship with God. (Matthew 5:23-24) According to Scriptures, your prayers and power are seriously blocked! |
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| Is there anyone against whom I still harbor the slightest anger or grudge? It is vital to realize your prayers and fellowship are totally blocked by any unforgiveness in your heart. (Matthew 6:14-15; Mark 11:25) |
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| Do I have any relationships that are questionable or have the “appearance of evil?” Are some of my relationships improper? Do I have any conversations or rendezvous I wouldn’t want my spouse, parents or pastor to know about (either in person, by Internet or phone?) |
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| As a husband, am I acting as a faithful spiritual head of my home? As a wife, am I respectful and faithful in my role? Have I in any way dishonored or neglected my parents? |
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| Have I been a part of any unresolved anger or division in my church? Have I waited on others to make the first move towards peace and love? |
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| Do I disobey God’s command by showing little respect or reverence for those who lead my church? |
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| Have I quenched God’s Spirit by placing my own personal preferences ahead of others in issues like worship or church policy? Have I made a big deal about petty issues such as sitting in a particular place, the location of my classroom or other matters equally small? |
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| Have I exhibited pettiness by continual complaining and fault finding toward my church? |
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| Would other church members mostly describe me as mature, loving, positive and faith-filled or somewhat complaining, divisive, quick-tempered and negative? In God’s eyes, little could be worse than being known as divisive, unkind and negative! (Proverbs 6:16; Philippians 4:8) |
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| Pause now and ask God to reveal any sins of commission or omission you need to confess and forsake.
I suggest you pray something like this, “Father, please show me attitudes and thoughts I need to surrender and change.” Some to consider are: the idolatry of placing things or people ahead of God, immorality or viewing uncleanness, words that are unkind or unclean, neglecting God’s Word and prayer, failure to tithe, neglecting damaged relationships, neglecting Christian service, failure to witness, etc. Pause for at least 4-5 minutes to give God time to reveal various points of sin.
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| If you have more than the few minutes, you might consider praying through the following optional questions for deeper repentance. God will definitely use the expanded questions to bring a deeper level of cleansing and surrender. If your time is brief, simply confess what God has revealed and claim His fullness and power by faith. His grace is sufficient!
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| Am I more concerned about my comfort and desires than exalting the Name and Kingdom of God?
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| Have I committed idolatry by placing anyone or anything above God and kingdom service?
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| Do I commit sins of immorality by actions, thoughts or the things I view? (TV, movies, Internet, improper books, etc.)
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| Do I continue any habits that I know are wrong? (Gambling, reading horoscopes, places I frequent or things that harm my body, etc.)
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| Have I said things that are harsh, unclean or irreverent?
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| Do I waste time on things that should never take precedence over church or family? In other words, do I find time for everything except meaningful service to God?
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| Have I neglected significant regular time in God’s Word and prayer? In my typical day, do I make time for most everything except time with God? Have I settled for brief, casual devotions instead of fervent, God-seeking intercession?
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| Do I fail to abide in Christ by neglecting to let Him regularly examine my heart in deep cleansing?
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| Am I robbing God by failing to tithe and give offerings?
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| In my giving, do I calculate the least possible tithe and give little more? Have I neglected to be a cheerful, sacrificial giver? Do I spend so much on “things” that I cannot give generously to God?
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| Have I neglected to ask forgiveness of those I have offended or refused to forgive those who have offended me? Have I denied that I have broken or strained relationships?
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| Am I neglecting to discover and use my spiritual gifts? Am I far more a “taker” than a “giver” in my church? Am I more a “spectator” or “church-hopper” than a committed, ministering member of my local church? Have I neglected to seriously pray about sacrificial service or missions?
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| Pause and ask God to reveal any areas you have not fully yielded or ways you have ignored His voice.
I suggest you pray something like this, “Father, please show me areas I have rejected Your total Lordship in my life.” Some areas to consider are: delayed or partial obedience, tolerating areas of ongoing sin, lack of full yielding, refusal to fully surrender, self-reliance, resisting God’s breaking, etc. Pause for several minutes to give God time to speak.
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| If you have more than the few minutes, you might consider praying through the following optional questions for deeper repentance. God will use the expanded questions to bring a deeper work of surrender. If your time needs to be brief, simply confess what God has revealed and trust Him to fill you with His Spirit and power.
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| Has God spoken to me about an area of my life yet I still resist full obedience?
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| Have I said I am “working on” some area of sin yet I have supposedly been working on it for months (or years) with little real change?
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| Have I “said” I have fully yielded something when in truth, I have not?
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| Has God called me to some challenging new ministry or decision but I am putting it off because of fear?
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| Is there something God has told me to do or give up, yet I am acting like I am not sure what He is saying (when deep down I already know)?
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| Are there areas of repentance where I’ve taken a few steps but stopped short of full obedience?
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| Has God asked me to die to some cherished possession, person or dream, yet I still have not yielded?
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| Do I confess sins but fail to really forsake them? Do I commit the same sins over and over? (Such patterns are an especially dangerous form of abusing grace.)
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| Do I reveal pride and self-reliance by thinking a “little prayer” is all I need? |
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| Have I resented God’s breaking and pruning by complaining about my sufferings and trials? Do I fail to seek God’s lessons in trials or think mostly of just “getting out of the difficulty?” |
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| Am I in any way envious or resentful that others seem to have greater blessings or comforts than me? Do I pridefully think, “I am as good as them, why doesn’t God bless me?” |
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| Do I become irritated or somewhat resentful when God (or people) do not work in ways I desired or expected? Remember if something (including ministry) has the power to make you resentful at God, it has become an idol! |
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