Come As You Are

Pastor Korter shares about his trip to Niagara Falls. The falls are an incredible power and magnificent power of God and nature is God’s second great Book!

Jesus wants us to have a powerful experience also. We can have that through Prayer. He wants us to have that mighty relationship with Him.

Jesus prayed constantly to His Father when He was here on earth. He often went and prayed all night while the disciples slept.

Our prayers are like little drops of water and Jesus prayer was like Niagara Falls in comparison.

Revelation 8:3-4
Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel’s hand.

Get this picture this morning from Pastor. Pastor has felt weak, puny, nothing, and empty. Jesus came and offered prayers with the Saints. There is nothing wrong with admitting how weak we feel. Jesus directs us to not look at ourselves. Look to the Savior.

There are key words in the Bible like censer, altar, incense, throne, and smoke. We are to come to Him just as we are and admit we are completely helpless, weak and in need of Him.

In the most holy place, Jesus stood by the ark, and offered up to God the Saints prayers with the incense. The little droplets of Pastor’s prayers are mixed with the flood of Niagara Falls which is Jesus prayers. This is Christ intercession for us. We can come to Jesus and experience this power.

Jesus wants a partnership with us. God tells us that we can have the perfect righteousness of Jesus and pray to the Father through Him. Our prayers can be radically different with Jesus partnering with us. Our sin and little prayer is woven into the firm fabric of Jesus.

Do you realize the value Jesus is placing on you? Our odorous and smelly prayers tainted with sin and we can go boldly to the throne of grace and be caught up with Jesus perfect intercession for us. Picture the Mercy Seat with God there and accepting our prayer through Jesus.

While God’s people were outside of the sanctuary, the incense was burning and rising up to God. This is why Jesus is the perfect prayer partner. Jesus is asking us to come to Him and be our prayer partner. We need to bring our sin, struggles, and weakness to Him. Come Just as You Are.

Think of how awesome and powerful this is. It is about partnering with Jesus. Having Him be our closest ally, our defender, our friend, partner.

We are promised that answers will come. What is our motive for having a relationship with God? What is our motive for praying to Him? Is it because of what we can get, what will happen, or is it because we want a partnership with Him?

Exodus 30:7-8
Aaron shall burn on it sweet incense every morning; when he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. 8 And when Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense on it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations.

God is saying the ‘type’ is meeting the ‘anti-type’. The perfect righteousness of Jesus goes on and on. The mediation is taking place in the Most Holy Place right now. He is pleading with you right now. He is asking you to partner with Him. Recognize how sinful, puny, and helpless your life is and partner with Jesus.

Jesus says our prayers join with the prayers of Him and He intercedes on our behalf before God. The Devil trembles at the sound of our weak and puny prayers. You want to talk about power. Our weakness is mingled with the perfection and power of Jesus. And the Devil and his demons have no power over us. The righteousness of Jesus is covering us.

Now you understand why it is easier to be saved than it is to be lost. If that is not true, God is weak and the Devil is powerful. Jesus runs after people through His mediation. He stands in the gap. Do you think the devil will do that for us? The devil wants us to stay in the dark and cold and be lost.

This is how we can have awesome power in our lives. The human beings weak and puny prayers mixed with Jesus perfection becomes powerful and the incense burns up to God and Jesus is praying with us and for us. Our little prayer drops mixed with Niagara Falls power of Jesus prayers goes up to God and Jesus continually intercedes for us.

Jesus is painting this picture in the Book of Revelation. You want to talk about Good News! Incredible hope for a future is centered in prayer. Do we really want a future with Jesus? Jesus said the world will go on until the time of the end.

When we pray, there is an incredible thing that happens. We can receive power from Jesus. How can we cherish sin when we have the opportunity to receive Jesus power?

Revelation 20:9
They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them.

Who is they? They were supposed to be the saints, they were not intended to be destroyed. God did not want to destroy anyone. He did not want to destroy one single human being. The saints made a choice. The refused to partner with Jesus. They gave in to the power of the devil.

When you partner with Jesus, the devil has to leave. The devil cannot stand the brightness of Jesus.

Back in 2003, a year after Pastor was married, they went to visit some relatives in Boston, Massachusetts. They arrived on Thursday in Gloucester. Friday night was coming and the Korters walked out on the beach to read God’s word by flashlight, praying and welcoming the Sabbath.

The sun had set and it was dark now and they were still sitting on the beach. Pastor has a very bright flashlight and they are facing the waves. The pastor has his arms around his wife and he felt something touching on his ear. Pastor thought it was a bug. He swatted it 2 times and after the 3rd time, he turned around and shined his flashlight and there was a coyote’s face. The coyote was stunned and then ran off.

That is the same thing that happens when we pray. We are putting the bright spotlight of Jesus on the devil. The devil will turn and run.

Today Jesus is asking you to make a choice. You can either be deceived or partner with Jesus. You can come just as you are. Come with your weakness, puniness, helplessness, and just ask Jesus for His peace and love.

Come and surrender and talk to God in prayer today. Jesus wants to be your partner in this life.