Oxford Bible Church - Living in the Last Days

We have a powerful Helper and Prayer Partner, the Holy Spirit. Together with Him we form a Dynamic Duo, for as we call on His help in prayer and depend on Him, He fills us and empowers our praying. We are told to always 'pray in the Spirit' (Ephesians 6:18), so His help must always be available to us, as we trust in Him.

God's will for believers is that they grow spiritually through His Word. Our prayers for them are important, for they release His Spirit to them, Who works with His Word to bring forth fruit. There are many examples of Bible Prayers we can pray. To pray the Word, is to pray God's will, so we know He hears and answers these prayers.

God's will for every man is Salvation through the Gospel, but these words must be backed up by Prayer, to release God's Spirit. Pray God: (1) removes their spiritual blindness and opens their eyes to see their sin and Saviour, (2) sends them anointed labourers, (3) gives us opportunities and boldness to share the Gospel, with clarity, accuracy and power.

God wants us to PRAY for all men (1) to be saved and (2) come to the knowledge of the truth (1Timothy 2:1-4). This is the fulfilment of the 2 parts of the Great Commission: (1) Salvation thru the Gospel, and (2) Discipleship in God's Word. So the Great Commission must be backed up by Prayer, for it to be fulfilled. So when we pray: "God's will be done and His Kingdom come" for others, our prayers...

Christ gave us authority, through the Keys of the Kingdom, to release His Power through Prayer, so His will is done on earth. His will is that all men be saved and grow in God, which is accomplished through His Word (Gospel), but Prayer is needed to release the Rain of His Spirit to work with the Seed of His Word, to bring forth fruit in men's hearts.

When is the Rapture of the Church? David Pawson says Post-Tribulation and Derek Walker says Pre-Tribulation. This may seem an incidental issue, but it has a big impact on how we understand end-time prophecy, and on our Christian life. Should we be preparing for the antichrist or looking for Christ's imminent Return?

Prayer is not getting man's will done in Heaven, but getting God's will done on earth. The more we submit ourselves to God's will, the more we can exercise our authority in the Name of Jesus. King Jesus gave us the Keys of the Kingdom, authorising us to bind the power of the enemy, and loose the power of God on earth.

To be a channel of God's Spirit bringing Heaven to earth, we must (1) COME to God and honour Him with praise, thanksgiving and worship (Matthew 6:9), then (2) RECEIVE His Spirit and words into our heart by faith (John 7:37), then (3) RELEASE His Spirit from our heart into the earth by our WORDS of faith (Matthew 6:10, 12:34-35, John 7:38). After (1) coming to God, (2) we believe we receive the pro...

We are to pray God's Kingdom (righteousness, love, joy, peace, life in the Holy Spirit - Romans 14:17) to come from Heaven to earth. So we are a Channel between Heaven and earth, connected to God in our spirit and to the earth in our flesh, through which His Spirit flows to bring His Kingdom into the earth as we pray.

This illustrated message describes Jesus' Prayer at Gethsemane ('Oil Press'). This place was chosen to give a picture of what He suffered and accomplished here by submitting to God's will. Just as in this Cave in a Garden, olives were pressed 3 times to release their oil, so Jesus was pressed 3 times to release the Oil of the Holy Spirit to us.

We primarily express our will (authority) through the words we choose to speak. As a Pilot establishes a ship's course by controlling its rudder, so we establish the direction of our lives by our tongue (James 3:4). We bring our lives into submission to Jesus our Captain by (1) saying: "Your will be done", and (2) aligning our words to His revealed will (Word).

The Prayer of Dedication: "Your will be done" is essential to receiving Guidance from God. Derek and Hilary share 8 Principles of Guidance: Realise (1) if you trust in yourself you will mess up, (2) God has a good plan (perfect will) for your life, (3) He is guiding you, (4) as a child of God, you can hear His voice. (5) Do God's revealed will diligently. (6) You must WANT God's will. (7) Pray for...

What we dedicate to God, He will consecrate (possess with His Spirit). There are 2 kinds of Prayer of Dedication: (1) When God's will is known, we pray: "let be unto me according to your word" (Luke 1:34-38), and (2) when His will is unknown, as we pray: "Your will be done", His Spirit aligns our thoughts and desires to His will.

The Purpose of Prayer is not to establish our will, but to release God's power and blessing, so His will is done on earth as in Heaven. This starts by our submission to His authority: "Thine be (1) the Kingdom (authority), (2) the Power (in the Holy Spirit), and (3) the Glory (the manifestation of the power in answered prayer)" (Matthew 6:13).

When we come into God's Presence with praise and thanksgiving, we meet His authority, requiring us to bow (submit) our will to God, praying: “Your Kingdom come. Your will be done.” This positions us to receive His grace for ourselves, and to be a channel of His grace to others through our prayers (Romans 14:17).

Divine Protocol in Prayer means we don't start with our needs or sins, but we look to 'our Father in Heaven', and come into His Presence by 'hallowing His Name' with PRAISE (declaring His Greatness), and with THANKSGIVING (for His Goodness and Grace to us). Then we bow our hearts to Him in WORSHIP, submitting to His Government over our beings and our lives: "Your Kingdom come, Your will be done."

To fully glorify God's Name we must know His 8 Covenant Names through which He has revealed Himself: Jehovah (1) Jireh, the Lord our Provider, (2) Rophe (Healer), (3) Nissi (Victory), (4) Shalom (Peace), (5) Tsidkenu (Righteousness), (6) Mckeddish (Sanctifier), (7) Shammah (Glory), (8) Rohi (Shepherd).

As we hallow the Name of God we enter into the Secret Place of the Most High (Psalm 91:1-2), where our real prayer happens. One powerful prayer is the Sacrifice of Praise - thanking God before we see the answer, based on His Name (Hebrews 13:15). This opens up a spiritual highway for God to move (Psalm 50:23), as seen in Jehoshaphat's victory (2 Chronicles 20).

The Lord's Prayer provides a Pattern. So our prayer should start with us coming to God with praise and worship. Derek and Hilary share on HALLOWING His NAME, especially in connection with 3 NAMES of God: Elohim (Creator), Adonai (Lord and Master), and El Shaddai (the God who is more than enough).

Prayer starts by lifting up our eyes to Heaven, magnifying God, and looking to Him as our Source: “Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your Name." This is how Jesus prayed. He taught us to: "watch and pray." Watching means setting our eyes on the Lord, so we can see His will and receive His grace.

The Sermon on the Mount (including the Lord's Prayer) is foundational for the Christian Life (Matthew 7:24-27). So this Prayer gives His pattern for New Covenant Prayer. The start of: "Our Father in Heaven" signifies our fellowship with God in prayer is to flow from our Father-son relationship (based on grace).

This is the introduction to a Series on the Principles of Prayer, using the Lord's Prayer as the inspired PATTERN for our prayer life (Matthew 6:9-13). Jesus described prayer as the intimate communication between children and their Father, in contrast to the external religious practice of hypocrites and heathen.

In these days we need to enter God's Presence, where we can worship, receive from Him and rest in Him. In this study of Psalm 95, we discover the 3 Stages to enter into His Rest: (1) Enter His Presence with thanksgiving & praise (v1-5), (2) worship (v6-7), (3) hearing and receiving His word to us (v7b-11).

Jesus promised us: "In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). Simon shares about (1) the REALITY of trouble, (2) how we should RESPOND to trouble, as demonstrated by David, Habakkuk and Jonah, and (3) the RESULT of trouble (glory).

In the New Covenant, Jesus made the way for us to be born again, when our spirit is made alive by His resurrection life, enabling the Holy Spirit to indwell our spirit, so we become His Temples. When we receive Christ the Spirit regenerates our spirit. This rebirth is pictured by the changing of water to wine.