PRAY WHIT HANDS OUTSTRETHED TO HEAVEN !

PRAY WHIT HANDS OUTSTRETHED TO HEAVEN: Those of us who come from denominational ministries may find it difficult at first to lift our hands in prayer. I can remember when I first came around people who lifted their hands in prayer. It was the hardest thing I had ever done in my life to lift my hands and pray. Someone may ask, "Do you have to do it ?" No, you don't have to do it, but if we are going to obey part of the verse, why not all of it ! Why not pray New Testament style ? If Paul was writing to the church under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God, I am under obligation to obey. If part of it is inspired of God, then all of it is inspired, and we need to pay attention to it. SANCTIFYING PRAYER: (1 Timothy 4:1-5). "Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God had created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. And every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the Word of God and prayer." King James version. In the amplified Bible the same Scripture reads. "But the Holy Spirit directly and expressly declares that in latter times some will turn away from the faith, giving attention to diluting and seducing spirits and doctrines that demons teach, through the hypocrisy and pretensions of liars whose consciences are seared (cauterized) who forbid people to marry and [teach them] to abstain from [certain kinds of] foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and have [and increasingly clear] knowledge of the truth for everything God has created is good, and nothing is to be thrown away or refuse it is received with thanksgiving." In this passage, Paul is not referring to centers or the heathen world. He is talking about believers who depart from the faith. Verse one says that ". . . Some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils." In the next three he mentioned some of these doctrines of devils: "For bidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats. . ." Most of us have met individuals who have fallen prey to such erroneous teaching. But all, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, said concerning meats, (foods) ". . . Which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving to them which believe and know the truth. And every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving: for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer." The devil will use any means he can to lead people away from God. There once was a minister who was on fire for God and had a remarkable ministry in reaching the loss. He could get more people save accidentally than most people can on purpose. But he got off on the subject of diet, and he started teaching people what to eat and what not to eat. He preached Old Testament dietary laws and spent all his time trying to regulate people's diets. If he got anyone save, I don't know of it. The devil undermined it his ministry of reaching the lost. People have asked me, "do you eat pork ?" Certainly I eat pork. I sanctified it "by the word of God and prayer," people ask me do you eat catfish, certainly I do cat catfish. I sanctified it "by the word of God and prayer," as Paul teaches. You can eat skunk if you wanted to, because ". .. Every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving" (v.4). We can regulate our diet however we want as long as we receive it with thanksgiving and it is sanctified with prayer and the word of God. Then nothing we each need hurt us. Nothing I eat ever hurts me, because I sanctified it. So many people tell me they can't eat this or they can't eat that because it hurts them if they do. I need not, if you will sanctified it as Paul teaches us in this passage of Scripture. We need to be careful of segments of the world which have gone off into these areas, because Paul says that they have given "he to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils."