by Matt Grant

We had another solid group of guys gather for prayer this morning. Justin Schaeffer led devotions. See below for a summary of his devotions and the weekly prayer requests for our campus.

Men’s Prayer Devotions 6.18.08

Our Purpose (Romans 15:30 paraphrased):

I urge you brothers, by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in prayer to God the Father for the glory of the name of Jesus.

Matthew 13:44
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. ”

“The kingdom of heaven”
The kingdom of Heaven is the same as the Kingdom of God which is the same as the Kingdom of Jesus. The Kingdom of God is not mainly realm or place, but rule or reign. It is the saving and redeeming reign of God that is partly manifested in the present (Your Kingdom Come, Give us tomorrow’s bread today) and ultimately fulfilled in the future.

“is like treasure”
If the omnipotent, all-wise God is ruling over all things for your joy, everything must be working for your good, no matter how painful. And in the end God will triumph over all evil and all pain. So this kingdom is a treasure.

“In his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”
The man sold everything he had, and he did it with joy. The kingdom of God is so valuable that losing everything on earth, but getting the kingdom, is a happy trade-off.

Philippians 3:7-8
“Whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.”

In the parable the man sells everything he has so that he can have the kingdom. In Philippians 3:8, Paul suffers the loss of all things that he may gain Christ.

So the point here in Matthew 13:44 and in Philippians 3:8 is that the people who receive the kingdom treasure it more than everything else. You don’t buy it. You get it freely because you want it more than you want anything else. So there is a condition for having the kingdom—for having the King on your side and as your friend—but the condition isn’t wealth or power or intelligence or eminence. The condition is that you prize the kingdom more than you prize anything else. The point of selling everything in this parable is simply to show where your heart is.

Matthew 6:21
“Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”

And if your heart is to have the kingdom above all things, then…

Luke 12:32
“It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

To give you the kingdom!

May God fill us with His Holy Spirit that we might see and savor Christ and his saving work above all things.

We need to feel the burden—the joyful burden—to STRIVE, FIGHT, LABOR in prayer to God the Father for the glory of the name of Jesus. If we love Christ as our highest Treasure, and if we love people the way he did—ready to lay down his life even for his enemies—then we will STRIVE to see as many lives transformed to live for Jesus as possible. We will not be content to simply feed ourselves. If we treasure him, and if we love them, we will pray and give and STRIVE to reach more and more and more and more people. Will we not?

How shall we fulfill our mission—to live for Jesus, knowing culture, and loving others in hopes that they might do the same? That’s why Jesus came. That’s what he sent us to do. Go make disciples. Draw more and more people into the everlastingly all-satisfying experience of knowing and treasuring Christ.

Let’s pray strategically and specifically this morning first regarding our own hearts and the value that we place on the Kingdom of Jesus and glorifying His name with our lives, and second regarding the specific ways He is leading us and our church to draw more people into the joy of living for Him as King.

Strategic Prayers for our Campus

• Pray for our body, that we would see and savor the preciousness of Jesus and His reign as King above everything and that it would destroy idols in our lives and produce worshipful, fruitful lives that would bless our campus and our community.

• Pray that those being called and drawn to Mars Hill would jump on mission to live for Jesus as a city within the city, knowing culture, loving people, and seeing lives transformed for Jesus; by worshiping Him with their time, treasure, and talents for the glory of Jesus, as a member of the body of believers at Mars Hill.

• Pray for God to provide a permanent location for our campus.

• Pray for God to provide sufficient funds and wisdom for our staff and leaders to manage our church over the next few months.

• Pray for wisdom for our campus leaders in planning events and programming for the Summer and Fall that will lift up Jesus and work to faithfully shepherd and disciple our people to live for Jesus.

• Pray against Satan, his tricks, and divisive attempts to hamper the mission of Mars Hill.

• Thank Jesus for His faithfulness, blessing, and healing (spiritual and physical) in the lives of many people at MH Shoreline.