Power of Prayer

The Finding Emet radio program teaches about living the truth of the Bible from a Hebrew perspective. It features the teaching ministry of Brother Daniel Rendleman. The program encourages listeners to have a closer relationship with Yahweh through prayer. It emphasizes the importance of repentance and offering the fruit of our lips as sacrifices to Yahweh. The program shares a story about a father seeking a miracle for his sick son and the power of prayer in that situation. Hello, and welcome to the Finding Emet radio program. Emet is the Hebrew word for truth. This program will help you understand and live the truth of the Bible from a Hebrew perspective. The Finding Emet radio program features the teaching ministry of Brother Daniel Rendleman of Emet Ministries. Prepare your heart to receive the Emet, the truth of the scriptures. More audio lessons and teaching articles are available at the www.emetministries.com website. Please visit our site to find all things spiritual, including a free online Bible search program, or submit your prayer requests. That's www.emetministries.com, or www.findemet.com. CD copies of this teaching are available for free by submitting a request at the website. Let's welcome our teacher, Daniel Rendleman, as he helps us find the Emet. We're going to have an exciting look today as we look to the scriptures from Genesis to Revelation and understand how prayer, how talking to the Creator changes our lives, can change our surroundings, change who we are. And today as we look through the scriptures, we're going to be using the sacred name that is called about in the Hebrew tongue, and we're going to be using his name, Yod-Heh-Vav-Heh-Yahweh. This is often found in your Bibles, your English Bibles, as capitalized Lord or God. We're going to be using his real name, the name of Yahweh, as revealed in Exodus chapter 3 and Exodus chapter 33. We're also going to be using the name of the Savior, and that is Yahshua, which means Yahweh is salvation. To begin, let's consider a few things, and the first thing we need to consider is how close to the Creator do we want to be? How much intimacy is there between us and the Father, and how much do we want there to be between us? We can do these quote-unquote spiritual things like getting the latest how-to book or having that spiritual bumper sticker on our car, jewelry, even having that Christian fish on our car, yet we can still be void on the inside. We can still feel spiritually empty sometimes because we're not changing our actions. We might be changing around us, but we've got to change our actions. There's an old saying that says the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and yet accepting and expecting different results. It just doesn't happen. We've got to change our actions to change the results. Many people repeat the same actions with their faith and expect to be closer to the Creator, so the question is do we want to be more intimate with Yahweh? Are you satisfied? Are you pleased with where you are right now in your spiritual walk? Are you happy with your spiritual walk? Are you daily encountering His presence? Are you walking in the presence of the Creator? If we could all be honest, we'd have to say we could be closer. You know, we're just not there as Adam was in the Garden of Eden. We could be a little bit closer. Let's face it. The cares of the world, the busyness of family, the pain of sickness, the worries of crisis, of terrorism, of money matters, teenagers, all that drains our spiritual hunger and it erases our desires for divinity. The question is what are we going to do about it? See, we've got to break out of the norm and enter into the realm of the spirit through becoming more like the people we read about in the scriptures. Now, this isn't easy and can be quite weird at times, yet it's weird because it's different. It's not weird because it's wrong. I mean, just try sleeping on the floor tonight instead of sleeping in your bed. It's not wrong to sleep on the floor. It's just weird and very uncomfortable, you could say. So if our spiritual life is lacking, then we need to try something different. We need to take a step towards intimacy with Yahweh. This isn't buying into the latest buzz or fad, but coming closer to Yahweh and doing that through the power of prayer. Now, when our ancestors had strayed from the Creator, they were exiled, they were in sin, what did they do to return to the Creator? Do you know? Think back about it. What did Ezra and Nehemiah do? What did Solomon and David have a heart to do? What took place in Hosea's chapter 11, 12, and 13, and Ezra 5 and 6, and in the Song of Solomon chapters 1 through 9, and 1 Chronicles 16 and 17? Look in your scriptures and you'll find that as the nation of Israel realized that they were far from the Creator, that they had strayed from Him, that they were in exile, they rebuilt the temple. They started back the sacrifices. They began to worship in the prescribed ways that the scriptures had said. You see, the temple was the home or the abode of Yahweh's presence, and it was rebuilt as an outward action to welcome Yahweh's presence, to express devotion. And to rebuild the temple did not happen overnight. We're going to learn that prayer is not some type of microwave magic. To rebuild the temple was not easy. It took time. It was a consuming action because the temple had been messed up. It was daily and it took a lot of plans. And so here we are. We desire to return to Yahweh, to the ancient paths, to return as they did, our ancestors. And they were far from the Creator. They rebuilt the temple, which leads us to a very important verse, which is found in Hosea, found in Hosea, and that is verses, chapter 14, verses 1 and 2. You see, the key to closeness with Yahweh is teshuvah or repentance, and it's found in the sacrifice of our lips. And so I'm turning right now to Hosea, to Hosea, and we're going to look here to Hosea and see chapter 14, verses 1 and 2. It says, Shomeron will bear her guilt, for she has rebelled against her Elohim. They will fall by the sword. Their little ones will be dashed to pieces, their pregnant women ripped open. Return, return, Israel, to Yahweh your Elohim, for your guilt has made you stumble. And then verse 2 here, take words with you and return to Yahweh. Say to him, forgive all guilt, accept what is good. We will pay instead of bulls. We will give the offering of our lips. The offering of our lips, and that is a powerful verse there that shows how the offering of our lips is similar to the sacrifices that took place during temple times. And again in Hebrews, in the book of Hebrews, chapters 13, verse 15, listen to this verse. It says that through him, through Yahshua, the Messiah, therefore let us offer to Yahweh a sacrifice of praise continually, for it is the natural product of lips that acknowledge his name. Don't forget, doing good and sharing with others, for with such sacrifices to Yahweh is pleased. And so this idea of the fruit of our lips, of coming to Yahweh in prayer, is found in Hosea, it's found in the Old Testament, in chapter 14, verses 1 and 2, and it's found in the New Testament, the Messianic writings in Ephraim, in Hebrews, chapter 13, verses 15. And so we see that as our ancestors sinned and as they strayed from Yahweh, they rebuilt the temple, and so through our prayers, we can rebuild. It seems that there's many incentives here to pray to Yahweh, to offer him the fruit of our lips, and it's the idea that we can pray to him and to seek him with the fruit of our lips, and while we do so, it's as if we are actually sacrificing the bulls and the goats. You see, it's through our prayers, through tefillah in Hebrew, through davening, that we can express ourselves and we can speak to Yahweh, that our prayers can unlock the blessings and that Yahweh will answer us as we come to him, and as we come to him, not just with words, but with a state of mind, and acknowledge dependence upon him, that he is the creator, he is the one that can restore us to where we want to be, that can bring that intimacy to where we want to be. I'd like to share with you a story here about a mail carrier who lived in a small town in the Midwest, and we found out that his wife, Kathy, they had only one child, and his son was named David, yet when David turned seven years old, he was stricken with a mysterious illness, and each day, the boy would grow weaker and sicker. The mail carrier, his name was Ike, he would drive hundreds of miles to visit countless doctors, but it was to no help, no avail. The parents could see their baby boy's eyes, they could see in his eyes that time was running out, and they could sense the angel of death was hovering in his bedroom. Little David desperately needed a miracle, and it so happened that a wise old man, kind of a sage, lived in the same town as Ike, the mail carrier. He was not a doctor, but local people came to him with ailments that resisted a cure, and it was rumored that this man could talk to angels and perform all kinds of miracles and wonders. Well, for this family, Ike's last option was to pay a visit to see this old sage. When he learned of David's heart-rending condition, that this seven-year-old boy was going to die soon, the wise man was greatly saddened, and he was begged to do something in the way of prayer and blessings, surely this healer could reach into heaven for him. So he took Ike's hand in his, and he promised to do the best that he could. Well that night, the old mystic ascended into the spirit world, utilizing prayers and meditation only known to a few people. When he reached the gates of heaven, he was stunned, because the gates of heaven were locked. The fate of this little boy had already been sealed. The night passed, and the morning sun began to rise in the eastern sky over the little town. Ike and the old sage met outside the post office in the early morning, and sorrowfully the old man, well, he told the mail carrier the news. I'm afraid there's nothing I can do, the sage said. It has already been decreed that the gates of heaven remain locked to your only son. Well the father was shattered. Tears began streaming down his face as he begged the old man to try one more time. I have nowhere else to turn, the doctors cannot help. David is my only son, my only child, and you are my only hope. Your prayers are my only hope. Without having the heart to say no to this broken man, the old mystic said, I cannot promise anything, but I will try one more time. I will make one more attempt. That's when a bizarre idea suddenly came to the old mystic. He quickly summoned his young assistant and made a peculiar request. He said, Thomas, my assistant, go at once to the nearest city and bring to me ten hardened criminals and no less than ten. Well Thomas was shocked. He knew better than to question the old man, but this was odd. Surely this man who could talk to angels hadn't fallen off his rocker. Bring me ten pickpockets, burglars, looters, the worst scoundrels possible, the old man said. And hurry, Thomas. Well Thomas drove into the city and to his surprise he was able to gather ten thieves quite quickly. In fact he was amazed at how easily they agreed to accompany him to the home of his master. Even these villains had heard of the mysterious healer in the not so distant town who possessed supernatural powers. So Thomas, his assistant, did this deed and he brought this band together to the house of the mystic. And the wise old sage thanked them for coming. He invited them into his house. Some of the nastiest criminals of the state sat around his living room. They boasted and recounted their favorite crime stories. Then the old man motioned for them to be silent. Something about him commanded their respect. So they all listened carefully as the mysterious old sage, who could perform miracles, the healer who could cure the most dreadful ailments, asked each of one of these thieves to assist him in what would be the most difficult, the most impossible miracle of all. The next morning at the break of dawn the robins chirped and the roosters crowed. A sweet-scented summer breeze blew over the town and the mail carrier was dancing wildly down Main Street. He was looking like the happiest man on earth. A car pulled up alongside the dancing mailman. It was Thomas, the assistant at the wheel. In the back seat was the old sage. "'My dear friend,' he exclaimed, "'it appears by your delightful face and your dancing shoes that you have good news to share.'" "'I thank you with all my heart,' cried the mail carrier. "'My beautiful boy David received a miracle overnight. It is as though he was never sick. He is out milking the cows right now, doing the chores even as we speak.'" "'Indeed, this is very good news,' said the man, who could talk to angels. "'Be well, my friend,' said the old sage, and drove off. When Thomas was puzzled, he turned to his mentor in the back seat, "'How can this be? You're a gifted healer. But those men I brought to you yesterday, they were burglars. They were safe-crackers. They were muggers and thieves. Why did you not ask the Almighty for outstanding citizens, and why would you pray with such shady characters?' It just didn't make sense. And this is what the noble and kind sage told him. He said, "'When I prayed that first night for our friend and his only son, the gates of heaven were locked. There was nothing I could do. The poor man's heart was shattered. How could I refuse him when he pleaded with me to try again? Then a thought came to me. "'So I asked you to bring me that assortment of villains, which you did. Then last night I prayed again, but the gates of heaven were still locked.' Thomas was confused. "'So what happened?' he said. The driver just had to know. How did you cure Ike's son if the gates of heaven remained locked?' Well the mystic then cracked a smile. "'Ah, this time I had a band of thieves to assist me,' he replied. "'You see, Thomas, a good thief knows all about breaking and entering. They pick the locks.' The criminals broke into heaven, and that is how my prayers were able to sneak into the heavenly sanctuary. Well the car continued on into the small town the sage called home. It was still early, but the streets were coming to life, and if you knew where to look, you would have seen a number of professional criminals. Intermingled among the honest townspeople, they suddenly stopped and discreetly tipped their hats to the healer's car as it passed by. And you see, this simple story is actually a profound metaphor that contains great formula for us. You see, through our prayers, we can break open the locks of heaven. As we judge ourselves in prayer, we can tap into those unanswered prayers, those miracles, those healings. You see, in Hebrew the word for prayer is tefillah, and it actually means to judge oneself. The root word means introspection, the realization of self. When we do prayer, we realize that we can't do things alone. We need Yahweh. We need Him. And you see, the Hebrew people have lived their lives constantly in blessing and praying always as the word says in the New Testament. And so our prayers should include this kavanah, or spiritual devotion, concentration, or intent. You see, when we pray, it shouldn't just be about reading liturgy or reading prayers, but about speaking out of earnest desires, speaking to Yahweh in prayer and speaking blessings. The word for blessing in Hebrew is baruch, and so we say baruch atai Yahweh, blessed are you Yahweh. It's a simple form of connecting to Yahweh, and really that's what prayer is. It's like Jacob's Ladder. Tefillah really means an attachment. Genesis 28, you can read the story of Jacob's Ladder. It connected the earth and the shamayim, the heavens, and so this ladder is symbolic of prayer, as prayer changes us, and it changes our surroundings, and as we begin to pray and do tefillah, we begin to see ourselves become more like Yahweh. And so I'd like to read to you James, Yaakov, the book of Yaakov, and in Yaakov 5, verses 13, starting here it says, Is someone among you in trouble? He should pray. Is someone feeling good? Well, he should sing songs of praise. Is someone among you ill? He should call for the elders of the congregation, and they will pray for him and rub olive oil on him in the name of Yahweh. And the prayer offered with trust and munna will heal the one who is sick. For Yahweh will restore his health, and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore openly acknowledge your sins to one another, pray for one another, that you may be healed. For the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Eliyahu, Elijah, was only a human being like us, yet he prayed fervently that it would not rain, and no rain fell on the land for three years and six months. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the land produced its crops. You see, we just don't believe that our prayers can stop the rain. We don't believe that our prayers can cause rain, yet they can. For Eliyahu is a man just like us, and the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man, as a dacha man, avails much. It is powerful when we come to Yahweh and we pray to him, when we judge ourselves, when we understand that the latest spiritual fad is not going to bring us closer to him, that it's prayer, it's connecting with him, the fruit of our lips, and offering to him the sacrifice of praise. For if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and heal their land. That's De'vrei Hayyamim Beit, 2 Chronicles 7.14. You know, there's a story goes of a town in the Midwest going through a terrible drought, and the minister called together everyone, and he said, we're going to have a prayer meeting, we're going to pray for rain, we're going to believe it, and everyone in the town came together, and they got together, and the minister jumped on top of a tractor, and he said, we're going to pray for rain. We've been in this drought for too long, for so many months, and our crops, and our homes are just, it's terrible. He says, I've asked all of you to come out, and let us pray in faith, emunah, that the heavens would give us rain. And so everyone was so excited, and they were just ready to be prayed up. And he said, are you ready to pray? And the crowd said, yes, we are. And the minister said, then where, where are your umbrellas? You see, the minister was looking, if the people had faith, if they had, in Hebrew, emunah, if they had trusting belief enough that if they were going to pray for rain, they were going to bring umbrellas. If they were going to be praying for rain, they were going to wear their raincoat, and they were going to be ready for the rain to come. And so that's emunah, the sexual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much that when we have that emunah, that trusting belief, when we, as Hebrews 11 says, when we have that belief that is being confident of what we hope for, and convinced of things we do not see. Friend, when we pray, we really need to believe. When we pray that the sick would be healed, we need to believe it. We need to see it and understand that, that as we do that with emunah and tefillah, it's like a one-two punch. It brings the shekanah, the glory of Yahweh, as we come to Him in faith, faithful, trusting emunah and tefillah. And so we have to do that. We have to approach Him in a way that is pleasing to Him and offer to Him the fruit of our lips. We're not going to go out and sacrifice. Our ancestors did that. They rebuilt the temple. We're not going to rebuild the temple, yet we can come to Him through the sacrifice of our lips. And so by doing so, it does powerful things. You see, the Hebrew words, as we're looking at here, like tefillah, it means to judge oneself. The word baruch, as we say, baruch atai Yahweh, it's an adjective describing who Yahweh is. We're not asking Yahweh to bless Himself. When we say baruch atai Yahweh, we're saying that Yahweh is blessed. We are describing His essence and His presence. And so when we come to Yahweh, we can come to Him about anything and everything. We can use the prayers of Judaism, the liturgy that they've established. We can use our own prayers. We can use scripture verses. We can come to Him and talk to Him. And through the power of prayer, things can happen. You see, the word says, do not be anxious about anything. But with everything, through prayer, petition, and thanksgiving, present your request to Yahweh. And then the peace, the peace that passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Yahshua HaMashiach. And indeed, in Leviticus chapter 20, verses 24 through 25, but to you I have said, you will inherit their land. I will give it to you as a possession, a land flowing with milk and honey. I am Yahweh, your Elohim, who has set you apart from the other people. Therefore, you are to distinguish between the clean and unclean, and between the clean and unclean animals and birds. And do not make yourselves detestable with an animal, bird, or reptile, for I have set you apart for you to regard as clean. Rather, you people are to be kadosh, holy, set apart for me, because I am Yahweh. I am kadosh, holy, and I have set you apart from the other peoples so that you can belong to me. And you see, Yahweh wants us set apart to Him. He wants us to seek Him. He wants us to know Him deeper and fuller. And that is one of the reasons why Yahshua came, was to set us apart, and one of the reasons why the Torah was given, so that we could be set apart by His Word. Yet the problem is, sin is what separates us, or sets us apart, from Yahweh. When we choose to disobey the Torah, we are disconnected from Yahweh. And so it's through tefillah, through prayer, through judging ourselves, that we can come closer to Him. In Yeshayahu 29, Isaiah 29, it says, Because these people approach me with empty words, and the honor they bestow upon me is mere lip service, while in fact they have distanced their hearts from me, and their fear of me is just an idea of human origin, I will have to keep shocking these people with astounding and amazing things, until the wisdom of their wise ones vanishes, and the discernment of their discerning ones is hidden away. You see, it tells us here that sin separates us from Yahweh. But there are those who draw near to Yahweh with our mouths and our lips, yet our hearts have been removed, our hearts have been removed, separated from Yahweh by sin. And so, and also in Isaiah 59, I want to read you a few verses here. In Isaiah 59, verses 1 through 3, it shows how sin separates us from Yahweh, how it breaks out in us, and so sin has brought the separation. And through Tefilah, we're brought closer to Yahweh. And in Isaiah 59, verses 1 through 3, Yahweh's arm is not too short to save, nor is his ear too dull to hear, rather it is your own desires, your own crimes that separate you from Yahweh. Your sins have hidden his face from you so that he doesn't hear, for your hands are stained with blood, and your fingers with crime, your lips speak lies, your tongue utters wicked things. You see, Yahweh's desire for his people were to be ones who were set apart, set apart to him, yet because of our sin, we actually separate ourselves from him. The word for separate in Hebrew is lado, it means to divide, to sever, to set apart, to have a distinction, difference, a withdrawal, to be excluded from, a cutting away. And in Yeshayahu 59, verses 1 through 3, let's see how this cutting away is done. How are we disconnected from Yahweh? It says here, for your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with crime, your lips speak lies, and your tongues utter wicked things. By our decisions, by our actions, by our character, by our lips, by our fingers, by our tongue, by our hands, we separate ourselves from Yahweh, and yet it is we should be separating ourselves from the world unto Yahweh. For example, the rich young ruler Yahshua talked about, it was his attachment to this world, the Elam HaZeh, that stopped him from following Yahweh, the rich young ruler. You know, Yahshua asked him, what have you done? He said, oh, I've obeyed all these mitzvot. He said, well, go and sell everything you have, come and follow me. He would not do it. He just would not do it, and that's found in Matthew chapter 19. He wouldn't do it because of his attachment to things in this world. His attachment to this world separated him from the Creator, and so we have to be careful for that, that the power of prayer, though, can bring us near to Yahweh by the fruit of our lips, as we read in Hosea. And again, in Galatians chapter 6, verse 7, it tells us, do not delude yourselves. No one makes a fool of Yahweh. A person reaps what he sows. You see, in life and in scriptures, there's a principle that says, we reap what we sow. What we do is what we experience. And even with this rich young ruler, as he had been sowing, he was going to reap. And even though he was doing these mitzvot, he was too attached to this world. He would not separate himself from this world, separate himself to Yahweh. Yet that is the key, that is the key to having power in prayer, it's separation, it's being kadosh, kedoshim, it's being set apart, as it said in Isaiah, that we are to be in Leviticus. And so, with prayer, we have a way to separate ourselves from this world, look to Yahweh in devotion, come to him in emunah, in faith, in kavanah, and seek his face. There was a story about a rabbi, and he told the story, but there was this man that prayed to Yahweh, and he would pray to Yahweh to heal him. And he just prayed, he said, Yahweh, heal me, heal me, heal me. And Yahweh says, okay, I'm going to heal you. And there's a knock on the door, there's a doctor at the door. The doctor's there, he says, I'm here, so I can help you. But the man, he shuts the door. A few minutes later, the man's back doing his prayer, and he says, Yahweh, heal me, heal me, heal me. And then, there's another knock at the door, it's a surgeon. He says, I'm here, I can heal you. And the man, when he's about to die, rudely shuts the door in his face. Well, then the man dies. And in heaven, the man is just angry, he's mad. And he looks up at Yahweh, and he says, why did you not heal me? Why did you not do this? And Yahweh spoke to him, he says, I sent you a doctor. I sent you a surgeon. They've come to heal you. The healing is there, you just did not open the door to it. And you see, the point is, folks, we're not to rely on miracles for our healing. We are to rely upon Yahweh. Yahweh can heal us. And sometimes, he may give us that miraculous healing. Sometimes, it may be through doctors. But through the power of prayer, through opening that door, that's when the things happen. That's when our life changes. She was said to ask, to seek, and to knock. So we have to ask ourselves, what are we clinging to? What are we clinging to in our life, like that rich young ruler, that we won't stop and leave alone? What do we need to separate from our lives so that we can be separate unto Yahweh? Think about it. I mean, Israel, as they came out of Egypt, could not shake the bondage in their mind. They couldn't get rid of it. So that's why they stayed in the wilderness. Forty years it took. Forty years it took for Israel to get all of Egypt out of them. And friend, when it comes down to prayer, we can come to Yahweh. We can see the answers are there. Even as the scripture says, Yahshua said, He said, ask and it will be given unto you. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door shall be opened unto you. We just got to open that door sometimes. That's the power of prayer. It opens the locks. It opens the doors. It provides the surgeon. It provides the healing. It provides the healer. You see, we've got to make that spiritual effort, though, to see a little farther. Not to be attached to this world and to the barriers of this world, but to really and truly seek Yahweh in our prayer time and understand that our prayers actually function like the sacrifices did. Again, in Hosea, chapter 14, verses 1 and 2, Return, Israel, to Yahweh your Elohim. Your guilt has made you stumble. Take words with you. Return to Yahweh. Say to him, Forgive our guilt. Accept what is good. And we will pay, instead of bulls, the offering of our lips. Now, there are those in Judaism who have taken this to say, You know what? Our prayers have taken the place of the sacrifices and the sacrificial system. Yet, we know as believers that it was Yeshua's blood. He was sacrificed once for all and once for many. Yet, it is through our prayers that they act like the sacrifice, the sacrifice of our lips. Now, the Word says in Yirmiyahu, in Jeremiah 29, 13, that when you seek me, you will find me, provided you seek me with your whole lip, your whole heart. And so, to seek Him with our whole heart, we've got to separate ourselves from the things of this world, the things that hinder us. We've got to come near to Him. We've got to seek Him in all of our ways. In the Hosea 5, 6, there's another concept here. And it says this, Their deeds will not allow them to return to their Elohim, for the spirit of whoring is in them. They don't know Yahweh. Israel's ignorance will testify in His face. Israel and Ephraim will stumble in their crimes. Yehudah too will stumble with them. With their flocks and herds, they will go in search of Yahweh. But they won't find Him. He is withdrawn from them. They have betrayed Yahweh by fathering foreign children. Now, within the month, the invaders will devour their land. You see, that's where we're at. We're in exile. We've had all these things happen to us. And because of that, we've been separated. So now, if you read a little more, in Hosea 6, verse 1, Come, let us return to Yahweh. For He is torn, yet He will heal us. He is struck, and He will bind our wounds. After two days, He will revive us. On the third day, He will raise us up, and we will live in His presence, in tevila, in prayer and blessing. Let us know. Let us strive to know Yahweh. That is Hosea 6, verse 3. And that's the heart of prayer, to know Yahweh, to come closer to Him. So here's the question. Where's the bondage in your life? Where's the attachments, like that rich young ruler had, that he wouldn't give up? Where are the gates locked in your life? Do you have some concepts that keep us from truth in your life? Do you have some ideas that maybe are bondage? Do you have some doctrines, some characteristics? Do you have some habits? Maybe it's stuff. Maybe it's jobs. Maybe it's your desires. Maybe it's toys, whatever. Yahweh's given us free will to choose. We can deny and live in self-deception or we can come to Yahweh. We can come to Him. You know, it's kind of the idea about the tsunami that killed so many people earlier this year. And everybody wants to know, where was Yahweh when this happened? Where was Yahweh? And yet, there was one Hasidic rabbi who said, where was man when this took place? Where was man? Why did this have to happen? Where was man praying to stop this from happening? Indeed, in John 5, verse 14, it says, stop sinning or something worse may happen to you. You see, we're comfortable with the idea that Yahweh's there and He just loves us so much that we would never be punished. We'd never go through things. We'd never see tribulation. You know what I'm saying? Yet, it says to stop sinning or something worse may happen. You see, sometimes we suffer because of sin. Sometimes, because we've refused to separate in our lives between the holy and the profane, the common and the set apart, we have to suffer because of that. Yet, like the woman caught in adultery, Yeshua says, go and sin no more. Go and sin no more. But there are places in our lives right now, and I'm sure things are coming to mind just for you right now. You could say, yes, I have this issue. I have this area, and you know, I need to lay it down. I need to stop doing this. I need to stop saying this. I need to stop thinking this. And I need Yahweh's help. Do tefillah. Do prayer. Through Amunah and believe it. Yahweh can set you free. James chapter one, Yaakov chapter one, verse eight, it says, a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. You see, we can't love the world and love Yahweh at the same time. We can't cling to things of this world and cling to Yahweh at the same time. Our prayers will not be powerful unless we let go and we begin to separate, begin to call a distinction between the pure, between the clean and the unclean. Indeed, in Leviticus chapter 10, Vayikra, verse 10, in chapter 10, it explains our purpose in life, explains why we're here, to be a light to those around us. In verse 10, it says this, you will distinguish between the holy and the common, between the unclean and the clean, so that you will teach the people of Israel all the Torah that Yahweh has given through Moshe. You see, as we begin to separate ourselves from this world, from the unclean, from the things that are just not set apart and unto Yahweh, we're going to be a light. We're going to teach the world around us. And so, we've got to understand to really experience power in prayer, we have got to detach ourselves from this world and attach ourselves to Yahweh. I said earlier that prayer to Phila is a type of attachment as we seek Him. And in James chapter 4, a few verses here, what is causing the quarreling and fights among you? Isn't it your desires battling inside you? You know, we always think it's the devil making us do stuff. Well, in Yaakov chapter 4, it says it's what's inside of us. Verse 2, it says, you desire things and don't have them. You kill and you are jealous. You still can't get them. You fight and quarrel. The reason you don't have is that what? You don't pray. You don't do to Phila. You don't ask Yahweh. Or, you pray and don't receive because you pray with the wrong motive, that of wanting to indulge your own desires. You unfaithful wives, don't you know that loving the world is hating Yahweh? We've got to detach. We've got to connect to Yahweh. Whoever chooses to be the world's friend makes himself Yahweh's enemy. Or do you suppose the scripture speaks in vain when it says there is a spirit in us which longs to envy? But the hesed, the grace he gives, is greater. That is why it says, Yahweh opposes the arrogant. But to the humble he gives hesed. Here's a key verse, Yaakov chapter 4, verse 7. Therefore submit to Yahweh. Take a stand against the adversary and he will flee from you. Come close to Yahweh and he will come close to you. Clean your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts, you double-minded people. Wail, mourn, sob. Let your laughter be turned into mourning, your joy into gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of Yahweh and he will lift you up. This goes along right with what we read in Isaiah. That it's our hands that have caused us to sin. It's our thoughts, our words. So we can humble ourselves. We can turn into phila in prayer and draw near to Yahweh. And it's the idea that we do the action first. And as we do that action, we are drawn near to him. That we cleanse our hearts and we draw near to him. Galatians 5.17 says, The old nature does what is contrary to the spirit. So what's the remedy for the old nature? It's the Torah, the loving instructions of Yahweh. Romans 7.14, it says, Torah is spiritual. That's what it says. Really, I'm not going to read it to you. Go look it up. Romans 7.14, the Torah is spiritual. So if we want to be closer to Yahweh, if we want to have more intimacy with him and know him more, we need to do something different. We need to do the opposite. So if we're living our life today attached to natural things, yet we want to experience Yahweh through the power of prayer and detaching ourselves to this world, attaching ourselves to him, do the opposite of what you're doing now. Again, the ancestors, they rebuilt the temple. They went back to the old way. We have to do the same. It says in Romans 7.14, we know that the Torah is spiritual. And you see, that's just one purpose of prayer is to increase our awareness of Yahweh in our life. It's to increase the awareness of Yahweh and the role that Yahweh plays in us. You see, if we only pray when we feel inspired, that is, when we are already aware of him, it will never increase our awareness of him. You know, if you want to do something well, you have to practice it continually, even when you don't feel like it. You know, if you want to lose weight, you've got to exercise, even when you don't feel like exercising. This is the issue, not just for losing weight or playing a sport or learning an instrument. It's the issue of prayer. We have to pray even when we don't feel like it. And if we only wait till inspiration strikes us, we will not have the skills we need to pray effectively. We've got to begin to pray regularly, and come on, in that mindset, as I said, of devotion, and through emunah, really trusting in Yahweh. The future is uncertain, and the past doesn't matter. We have to have total trust in Yahweh. That is emunah. And again, prayer, it's not just words. The power of prayer, it's coupled with actions. It's a state of mind. Be in prayer always, the scripture says. It's acknowledging our dependence upon Yahweh. Now think about that for a minute. If Tefillin is acknowledging our dependence upon him, if when we pray, we're actually saying, Yahweh, we trust you, we believe you, we know you're going to meet every need we have, then it would make sense to believe that when we don't pray, we're telling him that we don't need him. Wow. When we don't pray, we're being prideful. We're letting self and ego rule. Hey, I don't need Yahweh. I can do this all by myself. I don't need him. Why do I need Yahweh? Sometimes we say that. We might not say it in physical words, verbal words, but we say it through not praying. Because when we pray, we are humbling ourselves in the sight of Yahweh, and he is lifting us up. Yet when we don't pray, we are actually acting in ego and in pride. In 2 Corinthians 9, verse 10, it says here that he who provides both seed for the planter and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed and increase the harvest of your righteousness. Zedaka. That as we pray, it's like planting seeds, and that Yahweh will increase it. Yahweh will do that work. It says that the righteous will live by faith in Habakkuk 2, verse 4. And Habakkuk is not just what we believe. It's what we do. Emunah is not just what we believe. It's what we do. It's faithfulness. It's having a true belief in what we're going to do. That if we're going to believe it's going to rain, we're going to have our umbrella. If we're going to believe and pray about something, it's how we act on what we believe. That's really what Emunah is, how we act on what we believe. It is being. And the word Emunah, the word for faith, translated faith, it comes from the root word, Amen, which means, so be it. So Emunah, it's a verb, it means to be. Emunah, may it be. So when you pray in Emunah, you're praying as if it already is. And indeed, Yaakov 2.14, what good is it if someone claims to have Emunah but has no actions to prove it? So faith, Emunah is the establishment of concepts that verify the unseen. And without Emunah, no one can please Yahweh. And again, that's that prayer of faith that we learned that Eliyahu had. And Emunah, it's the way we connect with Yahweh. Simple faith. It's devotion to Yahweh. And so, as we begin to pray, we have to make sure that we have that. And the scriptures call us to pray. In Galatians chapter six, verse two, it says, bear one another's burdens and fulfill the law of Messiah. Wow. Bear one another's burdens and fulfill the law of Messiah. You know, His law is for us. And the word tells us, what's the greatest commandment? To love Yahweh with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And the second is likened to it, love your neighbor as you love yourself. That's what Yeshua said. Well, here in Galatians, it says, to bear one another's burdens and fulfill the law of Messiah. How do you love your neighbor as yourself? You bear his burden. You enter his world and you care for him. You pray for your neighbor. To intercede. The power of prayer. Intercession. Webster's dictionary defines to intercede as to go or pass between. To act between parties with a view to reconcile those who differ. Webster says it's to interpose, to mediate, or to make intercession. And to mediate, it's to go between two extremes. To go between two parties. To negotiate between two persons. When we mediate, or when we intercede, it's very similar. You know, lawyers do this, right? They intercede. It's a go between. Like an ambassador. And mediating or interceding involves delegation. It involves authority. And representation. So Yeshua is the ultimate intercessor. In 1 Timothy 2.5 it says Yahweh is one. And there is one mediator between man and Yahweh. Yeshua HaMashiach. Yeshua is the ultimate intercessor. He is Yaakov's ladder. Jacob's ladder. He is the one who has picked that lock for us so that even though the gates of heaven might look like they're closed, might look like they're locked, they have been opened for us. John 16.26 In that day, you will ask in my name and I will do what you ask. If you ask the Father on my behalf. You see, Yeshua is going between the Father and us to present us to Him. And we are to do as the disciples. We are to pass along this ministry of intercession. We are to go along and distribute the work of Yahweh. Remember when the disciples, when Yeshua took the bread of the loaves and they multiplied it, they distributed the work of Yahweh, that miracle to all those around them? And they fed 5,000 people? Well that is our ministry. To distribute the work of Yahweh. It is our calling and function. Yet it's not to replace Him. It is to release Him. Let me say that again. Through our prayers, through our actions, we don't replace Yahweh. We release Him to work because Yahweh needs a human being on earth to represent Himself. He needs someone to stand in the gap. John 20.21 As the Father has sent me, I am sending you. We are to do as Yeshua did. He was an intercessor. He was a mediator. We are to be a representative. And remember, the representative is one who is sent with authority. As long as we represent something greater than us. You see, friend, we are co-laborers with Yahweh. We've been called to believe in the victory of Golgotha, of Yeshua's death, to rise up as sent ones authorized by the victor. And our challenge is not so much to heal as to believe in the healer. Just like those loaves and fishes, Yahweh, the producer, wants us to distribute His power of prayer. You see, Yahweh, the intercessor, wants us to intercede. And He wants to intercede through us. Yahweh, the mediator, wants to mediate through us. Yahweh, the representative, Yeshua, the representative, wants to represent through us. Yeshua, the go-between, wants us to go between through prayer. Yeshua, the victor, wants His victory enforced. This might surprise you, but we don't deliver anyone. We don't reconcile anyone. And we don't even defeat the enemy. The work is done. Reconciliation is complete. Yeshua has done it. He said, it is finished. Deliverance and victory are complete. We have got to pray to Him for the release. We have got to apply it. Yahweh wants us to do that. And Yahweh, you could say, even needs our prayers to release His power in this world. To release the power of the Mighty One of Israel. In Ezekiel 22, verses 30 and 31, And I sought a man among them who could build a barricade or stand in the gap to oppose me on behalf of the land so that I would not destroy it. But I found no one. Therefore I am pouring out my fury on them, consuming them with fire of my rage, bringing their own ways on their own heads. Now I said earlier that sometimes we suffer because we sin. Yet we learn here in Ezekiel 22, verses 30 and 31 that our prayers can stop some of that punishment, can stop some of those things from happening. And Yahweh is seeking one who would stand in the gap. We have a responsibility to ask, to seek, and to not. To not have, you know, an idea that it's microwave magic of prayer, instant success all the time. That we are committed to prayer, committed to Yahweh. We're going to detach ourselves from things of this world. We are submitted to Yahweh, the Word says. Come near to Yahweh. Come near to Yahweh. He will come near to you. And we want our life to be different. We want to take those steps that are necessary for our life to be different. And the key is found in prayer. To come to Yahweh. Now it's customary to start prayer time three times a day. Yeah, three times a day to pray at least three times a day. In fact, in the scriptures, the Shacharit is the morning or dawn prayer. And it's a time, you know, many people spend quiet time with Yahweh in the morning. The scriptures, though, teach us in Bereshit 19.27 when Avraham established morning as a time for prayer. Yet it shouldn't be our only time of prayer. We should pray in the morning. We should also pray in the afternoon. In Hebrew this is called Mecha or the time of the afternoon offering. In traditional Judaism, this is a prayer time found in Genesis 24.63. We also see that Eliyahu, Elijah, battled the false prophets in the afternoon. It's in the afternoon. And it's time that we seek Yahweh not just in the morning, not just in quiet time, but also in the afternoon. And finally, that's when we have time to pray. Avrit is a Hebrew word for evening prayers. And this is a time of prayer when the sun is going down. This comes from the experience of Yahweh at nighttime. Eliyahu, Matthew 7. Keep asking and it will be given to you. Pray three times. You see this in the morning, in the afternoon, and at night. Our day should be built around specific prayer times, yet we should continue in a time of prayer. Just as the scriptures say, pray always. Pray always. You know, walk in the prayer and understand that it's through connecting with Yahweh that that's when the things happen. That's when we're made closer to Him. Again, that verse in Hosea, as we wrap this up, we can look to the scriptures and understand that it's through the fruit of our lips that we can offer to Yahweh, that sacrifice of prayer. And we can see that Yahweh uses that to bring us closer to Him. Take words with you. Return to Yahweh. Say to Him, forgive all guilt. Accept what is good. We will pay, instead of bowls, the offering, the fruit of our lips. And Yeshua, the Messiah said in Matityahu, Matthew 7, Keep asking and it will be given to you. Keep seeking, you will find. Keep knocking, the door will be opened. For everyone who keeps asking receives. He who keeps seeking finds. To him who keeps knocking, the door will be opened. Is there anyone here who if a son asks for a loaf of bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? So even if you are bad, know how to give your children good gifts? How much more will your Father in Heaven keep giving good things to those who keep asking Him? Always treat others the way you would like them to treat you. That sums up the teaching of the Torah and the Prophets. Friend, I hope you've learned something today. Hope you understand here that if you want to be closer to Yahweh, you've got to do something different. You've got to break the mold. You've got to break out of the normal and really seek Him through Emunah, through trusting belief and through prayer. To feel it, doveting, just coming to Yahweh and understanding also that we can't come to Yahweh with open hands if we're attached to the things of this world. We've got to detach to this world and seek Him with our whole heart. And when we do, we will find Him. That's the power of prayer, the power to connect to Yahweh, to attach ourselves to Him and walk in intimacy. Let us pray. Father Yahweh, Avinu Melkenu, our Father, our King, we thank You for Your Word. May it not return unto You void, but may it go forth and plant seeds. Father, remind us to pray. Father, we don't want to be prideful, but we want to pray to You. We want to humble ourselves in Your sight that You would lift us up. Father, we seek You, we bless You and we praise You. Baruch Hashem, Yahweh, Yahshua and Behemru, Behemru Amen. Father, we thank You for Your Word that sets us free for Your love. Father, for Your blessings. Father, may this teaching go forward and may You bear much fruit in this Word. May we pray more. May we pray in Kabbada, in devotion. May we seek You in Emuda, in faith, in faithful trusting. May we not be like that rich young ruler who would not give up to seek Yahshua, but may we go and sin no more. Reveal things in us, Father, that need to be cleansed out. Help us to seek You and to find You when we seek You with our whole heart. And we thank You, Father. We bless You. We pray this prayer, Father, through the blood and the name of our Savior, Messiah, Yahshua. Father, we thank You. Baruch Hashem, Yahweh, Amen. Thank You for this teaching. Look forward to serving You, bringing You the Word of Yahweh. Please visit our website at www.emetministries.com. www.findemet.com CD copies of this teaching are available for free by submitting a request at the website, or write to us at Emet Ministries, 1310 Trent Street, Newberry, South Carolina, 29108. That's Emet Ministries, 1310 Trent Street, Newberry, South Carolina, 29108. Thank you again for listening to Finding Emet with Daniel Rendleman. May you find the Emet, and may the Emet, may the truth, set you free.