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TEXT: Luke 10:1-3
1 After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.
2 Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.
3 Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.
We are in a series of messages titled “Praying Through the Bible: A Series on Every Passage and Verse Regarding Prayer in the Bible.” The purpose of this series is to encourage and motivate you to pray to the God of the Bible. We highlighted each of these over 500 verses and passages in the Prayer Motivator Devotional Bible. So far, we have completed 163 messages in this series.
This is message #164 titled, The Prayer for Workers
I am sure you have seen signs in the windows of businesses saying, ‘Now Hiring”; Or ads in a newspaper saying “Help Wanted”; Or a notice on a community bulletin board saying, “Volunteers Needed.” The people who put up those signs and put out those ads are simply saying that they need laborers to work in their harvest. They need workers, employees, people willing to serve. This passage is basically The Lord’s “Help Wanted” sign. He, too, is looking for laborers to send out into the harvest of the world.
As we enter this passage, we find Jesus Christ at a busy time during His ministry. He has already begun heading down the road that would lead to the cross. As you know, He had already selected twelve men whom He was training to carry on His work. However, there were many others who consistently followed Him. Out of these followers, Jesus selected seventy to be His evangelists. The Bible says He “sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.” The Jamieson, Faussett, Brown commentary states that “As our Lord’s end approaches, the preparations for the establishment of the coming Kingdom are quickened and extended. The seventy were chosen probably with allusion to the seventy elders of Israel on whom the Spirit descended in the wilderness. Their mission, unlike that of the Twelve, was evidently quite temporary. All the instructions Jesus gives them are in keeping with a brief and hasty pioneering mission, intended to supply general preparation for coming events which the Lord’s own visit afterwards would not, from want of time, now suffice to accomplish. The instructions to the Twelve, besides embracing all those to the Seventy, contemplate world-wide and permanent effects. Accordingly, after their return from this single missionary tour, we never again read of the Seventy.”
Jesus calls all of His followers to serve Him in various and diverse capacities. Everyone is not called to the same form of ministry, but everyone is called to ministry. Research done by Scott Thumma and Warren Bird a few years ago revealed that most work done by local churches is actually carried out by 20-percent of the congregation. The other 80-percent are minimally involved, are spectators, and many don’t even attend regularly. That is not the kind of church Christ envisioned. Everyone was called to serve. Imagine the impact the church would have on the world if 80-percent of believers simply woke up and got to work.
This is an urgent need for the church today. Jesus tells us why in verse 2 of this chapter when He says, “The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few.” Jesus uses the analogy of a field of crops ready to be harvested. Imagine if there were no laborers in the cornfields, and wheat fields, and grain fields of America. The crops would wither and die. They would never make it to the processing plants to be transformed into various forms of food. They would never make it to the stores where they could be sold and be of benefit to millions of people. Many would be without vital nutrition. That is the urgency Jesus conveys. The harvest of the world must have laborers. If you are not engaged in the work of winning lost souls, get engaged today.
If you are already laboring in the vineyard, there is something you can do: pray. As He sent out the seventy evangelists, Jesus told them, “pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.” As you go, pray that others will go. Pray that God would fill others with His love for souls and send them out into the fields of the world where people are ripe for saving. It is definitely within His will. He is eager and willing to “send forth laborers.” Spurgeon states, “The Greek [used for ‘send forth’] is much more forcible. It is that he would push them forward, and thrust them out; it is the same word which is used for the expulsion of a devil from a man possessed. It takes great power to drive a devil out, it will need equal power from God to drive a minister out to his work.”
We must pray for God’s power to be poured out on His people so that they would be led to evangelize the lost. The command we are to follow is simple. Jesus Christ told the seventy evangelists, “Go your ways.” In essence, ‘I have already given you your orders; now, go and carry them out. Go and preach the Gospel. Go and bring in lost souls as a harvester brings in grain.’ When it comes to the command to pray for laborers in the harvest, God wants to use each of us to be an answer to that prayer. We shouldn’t pray for laborers if we are not willing to go and labor ourselves.
Jesus says we will go “as lambs among wolves.” Being a lamb among wolves isn’t a very attractive job description. Danger is inherent in the work of a harvester. That is why, throughout our time of service, we must continue to depend on the Lord and seek His guidance through prayer.
We should keep in mind the words of Teresa of Avila: “Christ has no body on earth but yours; no hands but yours; no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which the compassion of Christ looks out to the world. Yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good. Yours are the hands with which he is to bless others now.”
Go, and pray that others will be sent.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Now, if you are with us today, and you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, your first prayer needs to be what we call the Sinner’s Prayer. First, please understand that you are a sinner, just as I am, and that you have broken God’s laws. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
Now this is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.
Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.
If you just trusted Jesus Christ as your Saviour, and you prayed that prayer and meant it from your heart, I declare to you that based upon the Word of God, you are now saved from Hell and you are on your way to Heaven. Welcome to the family of God! Congratulations on trusting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. You have done the most important thing in life. For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door, by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.
The post The Prayer for Workers (Praying Through the Bible #164) appeared first on Gospel Light House of Prayer.
Location: new file
Description: Click here to download audio.
TEXT: Luke 10:1-3
1 After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.
2 Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.
3 Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.
We are in a series of messages titled “Praying Through the Bible: A Series on Every Passage and Verse Regarding Prayer in the Bible.” The purpose of this series is to encourage and motivate you to pray to the God of the Bible. We highlighted each of these over 500 verses and passages in the Prayer Motivator Devotional Bible. So far, we have completed 163 messages in this series.
This is message #164 titled, The Prayer for Workers
I am sure you have seen signs in the windows of businesses saying, ‘Now Hiring”; Or ads in a newspaper saying “Help Wanted”; Or a notice on a community bulletin board saying, “Volunteers Needed.” The people who put up those signs and put out those ads are simply saying that they need laborers to work in their harvest. They need workers, employees, people willing to serve. This passage is basically The Lord’s “Help Wanted” sign. He, too, is looking for laborers to send out into the harvest of the world.
As we enter this passage, we find Jesus Christ at a busy time during His ministry. He has already begun heading down the road that would lead to the cross. As you know, He had already selected twelve men whom He was training to carry on His work. However, there were many others who consistently followed Him. Out of these followers, Jesus selected seventy to be His evangelists. The Bible says He “sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.” The Jamieson, Faussett, Brown commentary states that “As our Lord’s end approaches, the preparations for the establishment of the coming Kingdom are quickened and extended. The seventy were chosen probably with allusion to the seventy elders of Israel on whom the Spirit descended in the wilderness. Their mission, unlike that of the Twelve, was evidently quite temporary. All the instructions Jesus gives them are in keeping with a brief and hasty pioneering mission, intended to supply general preparation for coming events which the Lord’s own visit afterwards would not, from want of time, now suffice to accomplish. The instructions to the Twelve, besides embracing all those to the Seventy, contemplate world-wide and permanent effects. Accordingly, after their return from this single missionary tour, we never again read of the Seventy.”
Jesus calls all of His followers to serve Him in various and diverse capacities. Everyone is not called to the same form of ministry, but everyone is called to ministry. Research done by Scott Thumma and Warren Bird a few years ago revealed that most work done by local churches is actually carried out by 20-percent of the congregation. The other 80-percent are minimally involved, are spectators, and many don’t even attend regularly. That is not the kind of church Christ envisioned. Everyone was called to serve. Imagine the impact the church would have on the world if 80-percent of believers simply woke up and got to work.
This is an urgent need for the church today. Jesus tells us why in verse 2 of this chapter when He says, “The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few.” Jesus uses the analogy of a field of crops ready to be harvested. Imagine if there were no laborers in the cornfields, and wheat fields, and grain fields of America. The crops would wither and die. They would never make it to the processing plants to be transformed into various forms of food. They would never make it to the stores where they could be sold and be of benefit to millions of people. Many would be without vital nutrition. That is the urgency Jesus conveys. The harvest of the world must have laborers. If you are not engaged in the work of winning lost souls, get engaged today.
If you are already laboring in the vineyard, there is something you can do: pray. As He sent out the seventy evangelists, Jesus told them, “pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.” As you go, pray that others will go. Pray that God would fill others with His love for souls and send them out into the fields of the world where people are ripe for saving. It is definitely within His will. He is eager and willing to “send forth laborers.” Spurgeon states, “The Greek [used for ‘send forth’] is much more forcible. It is that he would push them forward, and thrust them out; it is the same word which is used for the expulsion of a devil from a man possessed. It takes great power to drive a devil out, it will need equal power from God to drive a minister out to his work.”
We must pray for God’s power to be poured out on His people so that they would be led to evangelize the lost. The command we are to follow is simple. Jesus Christ told the seventy evangelists, “Go your ways.” In essence, ‘I have already given you your orders; now, go and carry them out. Go and preach the Gospel. Go and bring in lost souls as a harvester brings in grain.’ When it comes to the command to pray for laborers in the harvest, God wants to use each of us to be an answer to that prayer. We shouldn’t pray for laborers if we are not willing to go and labor ourselves.
Jesus says we will go “as lambs among wolves.” Being a lamb among wolves isn’t a very attractive job description. Danger is inherent in the work of a harvester. That is why, throughout our time of service, we must continue to depend on the Lord and seek His guidance through prayer.
We should keep in mind the words of Teresa of Avila: “Christ has no body on earth but yours; no hands but yours; no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which the compassion of Christ looks out to the world. Yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good. Yours are the hands with which he is to bless others now.”
Go, and pray that others will be sent.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Now, if you are with us today, and you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, your first prayer needs to be what we call the Sinner’s Prayer. First, please understand that you are a sinner, just as I am, and that you have broken God’s laws. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Second, accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
Third, accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Also, the Bible states in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
Now this is bad news, but here’s the good news. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Just believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead by the power of God for you so that you can live eternally with Him. Pray and ask Him to come into your heart today, and He will.
Romans 10:9 & 13 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved… For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins, was buried, and rose from the dead, and you want to trust Him for your salvation today, please pray with me this simple prayer: Holy Father God, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.
If you just trusted Jesus Christ as your Saviour, and you prayed that prayer and meant it from your heart, I declare to you that based upon the Word of God, you are now saved from Hell and you are on your way to Heaven. Welcome to the family of God! Congratulations on trusting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. You have done the most important thing in life. For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door, by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.
The post The Prayer for Workers (Praying Through the Bible #164) appeared first on Gospel Light House of Prayer.