The Divine Triangle of Victory: Romans Series #15

In the Atlantic Ocean there is a great mass of water bounded on three sides that is called the Bermuda Triangle, and some call it the Devil’s triangle. It is said that airplanes fly into that Bermuda Triangle and disappear. Ships sail into that vast place of water and they disappear. I really do not think there’s anything really to it. Yet, my goal is not write about the Devil’s Triangle, but Divine Triangle.

The Divine Triangle is not a myth – it’s a miracle. It doesn’t cause things to disappear – it brings things into being. Where is the Divine Triangle? It is located in Romans 11:36:  “For from him and through him, and to him, are all things.”

May God write that upon your heart – “From him, and through him, and to him, are all things; to whom be glory forever.” Paul is writing about the sovereignty of Almighty God. It says everything begins with God. He is the source of all things. Everything is accomplished through God. He is the force of all things. And everything returns back to God. He is the course of all things.

All things are from him and through him and to him. Almighty God is sovereign. This is the theme of the Bible. How does the Bible start? In the beginning God. All things are from him, or of him. How does the Bible end? In the book of the Revelation 1:8, we read, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and was, and is to come.” It’s the theme of the Bible.

All things come from Him, and they go back to Him. It’s true in the material world. How did this material world get here? In Colossians 1:16-17, we read, “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers – all things were created by him, and for him. And he is before all things, and him all things consist.”

Jesus is the producer of creation. How did everything get here? Jesus put it all here. Random and impersonal chance does not create complexity and design.

Jesus also the preserver of creation because “By him all things consist.” That is, they adhere together. He is what keeps the molecular structure of this universe from flying apart. Every atom by nature would want to fly apart except that God has built into every atom an attraction that holds it together. He has built the gravitational force into our universe, and what some call the law of nature is but the power of Jesus, who is the one who keeps it all together.

He is the glue of the galaxies. It’s the Lord Jesus who fuels the sun with its power. It’s the Lord Jesus who veils the moon with its beauty. It’s the Lord Jesus who guides the planets, through the universes. There’s no natural law. It’s the laws of God that nature obeys.

In Isaiah 40:26, “Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things” Now, when you look at the stars you say who did all of this? Let’s read further, “Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number; he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for he is strong in power. Not one fails.”

The Bible says that God calls all the stars by name. Have you ever thought about God has a name for every star in the universe? There are an estimated 1 septillion stars or 2 trillion galaxies, each containing 1 trillion stars.

If you were to hijack a light beam you would travel at 186,282 miles per second. Just blink of your eye and you would have traveled around the earth seven times. In eight minutes you would travel to the sun, a distance of 93 million miles. The next closest star is Alpha Centaurus, which is 4 ½ light years away.

What is a light year? This is the distance light travels in one year. At 186,000 miles per second, light will travel 6 trillion miles per year. Alpha Centaurus is 27 million miles away from earth. Our Milky Way has approximately 100 billion stars in it. The furthest star from earth is Earendel, located roughly 12.9 billion light years. The distance is 80 billion, trillion miles away and this is not end of the Universe. God gives all of these star’s names. There are billions upon billions upon billions upon billions of stars.

Jesus is, is the producer of creation!

Jesus is also the purpose of creation. We read “all things were made by him, and for him.” The word “for” is the Greek preposition with the idea of progress toward an

object. The universe came from Him, the universe is sustained by Him, and everything comes back to Him.

It is true in the material universe. It is true in the spiritual universe. Think about the things that we have in the, in the spiritual universe. How did you get saved? “For of Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things” Your salvation began in the heart and mind of God. The Bible says before He swung this planet into space, you were in His heart and in His mind. And Christ died before the foundation of the world in the heart and mind of God, and God knew you before you were born, and your salvation did not originate with you –it originated with God.

“We love Him because He first loved us.” It is of Him. And then it is through Him. Jesus came to this earth, suffered, bled, and died for us on the cross and with His rich, red, royal blood paid the, the price of our salvation.

And then it is to Him. Why did He do all of that? So that we could know Him and love Him and worship Him and honor Him. It is true in salvation.

“For of Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things” Not only is it true in salvation, but it’s true in sanctification. Once we are saved, how do you live the Christian life? “For of Him, and through Him, and to Him.” God gives us the ability to live the Christian life.

One of the greatest lessons I’ve ever learned about being a Christian is that holiness is not the way to Jesus – Jesus is the way to holiness. “For it is of Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things.”

Not only is it true about salvation and sanctification, it’s true about stewardship. We talk about giving something to Jesus. In the truest sense we do not give Him anything. The Scripture states, “Of thine own have we given unto thee.”

When Fathers’ Day is approaching children was ask their Dad for money that they might buy a gift for their Dad for Father’s Day. “For of Him, and through Him, and to Him. Of thine own have we given unto thee” Anything we give to Him, He already gave to us.

I. Our Prayer Focuses On The Purpose Of God

This divine triangle relates to prayer. When you learn that prayer is a cycle, like in the material world or the spiritual world, that, it will help you to understand how to pray effectual prayer.

What is the origin of effectual prayer? The origin of effectual prayer has its roots in the purpose of God. The prayer that gets to heaven starts in heaven. Remember the cycle is “from Him,” “through Him” and “to Him.”

Prayer is God’s way of getting heaven’s will done on earth, not man’s way of getting man’s will done in heaven. What we do when we pray is close the cycle. “From Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things.” God is a sovereign.

Why has God, allowed us to pray? Have you ever thought about that? Prayer is so mysterious. I mean God knows what we have need of before we ask Him so why should we ask God for what He already knows we need? Since God loves us, why should we have to persuade a loving God to bless us or give us what we need?

What is the purpose of prayer? Could God do it without our praying? He will not do it without our praying and if we don’t pray, we will not have for the Bible says, “We have not because we ask not.” What is the reason for prayer? There are at least two reasons for prayer.

A. The Privilege With God

God has given us the privilege of working with Him. God in His administration of the universe has called us as laborers together with Him. In II Corinthians Chapter 6:1 we read, “We are workers together with him.”

Please think about this truth. Almighty God said to you and me, I want you to help me run the universe. You say that is arrogance. Paul said, “We are workers together with him.”

We work together with God as we work with one another, and we work with God in administrating the universe. God wants to move through His people. Why would He do it that way? I want to make it very clear God could do it without us, but we couldn’t do it without Him. God finds joy in the fellowship of doing things together. God says I want to let you help me to run the universe, and the way we’ve going to do it is through prayer.

B. The Passion With God

We have the opportunity to cooperate with God. When we pray, we have the privilege of working with God. Additionally, there is the passion that we have with Him. Without prayer, a lot of people would not ever think of God. God wants us to be perpetually dependent upon Him, so He teaches us to pray,

Prayer is the way of disciplining us. Have you ever prayed and not gotten your prayer answered? Of course. Then, we ask ourselves, why didn’t God answer my prayer? Is there something wrong in my life? Have I been out of fellowship with God? Is there unconfessed, unrepented of sin in my life? Then, there are many times we find that there is iniquity in our hearts and the Lord will not hear us. God, the origin of prayer, is also the purpose of God. God has a purpose in His heart and in His life. He wants to work in me through prayer. Prayer did not begin with us. It began with God.

There was a time when the disciples were out fishing after the resurrection of Jesus.

Jesus said, have you have you caught anything? The disciples said, “We have toiled all night and have taken nothing.” The sentence begins with we – it ends with nothing. Anything we begin with ourselves, we will end up with nothing

Jesus said, cast your nets out on the other side. And they said, “at your word we will. We have to get a Word from God in order to be successful and fruitful. The origin of prayer has it roots in the purpose of God. A lot of times, we don’t get our prayers answered is that we’re not  rooted in the purposes of God.

Prayer does not bend God’s will to fit our will. Prayer finds the will of God and gets in on it. We need to remember that the origin of effectual prayer has its roots in the purposes of God.

II. Our Prayer Figures On The Power Of God

We need to understand that prayer comes “through Him.”

A. The Desire To Pray

God gives you the desire to pray. Did you know that you don’t have a natural desire to pray? You have a natural desire not to pray. But God, when He puts His Spirit in you, gives you the desire to pray.

B. The Direction To Pray

How is prayer through Him? First, Not only does He give us the desire to pray, He gives us the direction to pray.

God will give us direction as to what we are to ask for?  We know the Bible says that “God will supply all of our need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Yet, sometimes we want things we don’t need, isn’t that true? Only the Holy Spirit of God is going to show us how to pray for things that we may not want, but that we really need.

Sometimes we want things we do not need; sometimes we need things we do not want; and sometimes we want things we already have, but the Holy Spirit of God gives us the desire to pray, and the Holy Spirit of God gives us the direction to pray so we can know the will of God.

In Matthew 16:19, we read,  “And I (Jesus) will give unto you the keys of the kingdom of heaven” How would you like to have the keys to the Kingdom of heaven? How would you like to have the key that unlocks the treasury of heaven? Jesus says, “I give unto you the keys of the kingdom of heaven and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

In the Greek language it is whatever you bind on earth has already been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth has already been loosed in heaven.

In other words, it has already begun with God – now you need to ratify on earth that which is done in heaven. What we need to do is to look to heaven, to find out what God’s plan is in heaven, and then transfer it to earth and loose it on earth. The secret of success in the Christian life is to find out what God is up to and join Him.

Many times, we’re asking God to rubberstamp our plans and bless this mess. How did Jesus pray? Jesus prayed in John 15:16, “Then answered Jesus, and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, the Son (speaking of Himself) can do nothing of Himself, but what he sees the Father do, for what things soever he doeth the Father, these also doeth the Son likewise.”

What Jesus was saying, I look into heaven, I see what my Father is doing and I see what the Father wants. Then I ask accordingly and this is what I get from Him.

We need to look into heaven. We need to see things that are in heaven. When we see what is bound in heaven, you bind it on earth. You see what is loosed in heaven and you lose it on earth.

C. The Dynamic To Pray

God that gives you the desire to pray. God gives you the direction to pray. And, it is God who gives you the dynamic to pray because you must pray in faith. Where does faith come from? Faith from Him, through Him, and to Him.

It is not possible to make yourself to believe in God by yourself. But, when you’ve been alone with God, when you have been worshipping Him and God speaks to you, then faith wells up in your heart. Prayer is of Him. It is through Him. It is the Holy Spirit who gives us the desire to pray. It is the Holy Spirit who gives us the direction to pray. It is the Holy Spirit who gives us the dynamic to pray. Prayer is of Him and through Him.

III. Our Prayer Features Praise To God

We read, “From Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever.”

A. The Difference Between Answered & Unanswered Prayer

God is in the business of getting glory to Himself and the reason so many times that our prayers are not answered is that we are not interested in the glory of God. Often, we are interested in our own personal aggrandizement. When you get interested in the glory of God, you’re going to see prayers start being answered.

The Apostle James said, “You have not because you ask not, and you ask and receive not because you ask amiss that you might consume it upon your lust.” But we are to ask God for the glory of God.

B. The Difference Between Thanksgiving And Praise

It is prayer and thanksgiving that complete the triangle – of Him, through Him, and to Him. Thanksgiving just simply says, Lord, thank you. Thanksgiving enjoys the gift. Praise enjoys the giver when we just simply praise the Lord. Prayer goes into God’s presence to carry something away. Thanksgiving goes into God’s presence, praise goes into God’s presence just to stay there forever and ever and ever.

The reason why we pray in the name of Jesus, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. Now think about this truth. Why do we pray in the name of Jesus? That God would be glorified. “Ask in my name,” Jesus says, that the Father may be glorified in the Son to whom be glory forever and ever.”

There are times when we do not feel like praying. There are times when we might not feel physically good and do not feel like praying. Yet, we know it really doesn’t matter how you feel. Pray in the name of Jesus. It is by the grace of God our prayers are answered. Our prayers are not answered through our sweat but by His blood. There are times when we may have run out of time to pray and at times, we have missed an opportunity to pray. In those times, we need to come to the Lord and say I know have missed it, but I am standing on a promise and truly want your Son to be glorified.

As we come to a close in this chapter, I want to give a definition of prayer. Prayer is the Holy Spirit finding a desire in the heart of the Father, putting that desire into your heart, and then sending it back to heaven in the power of Jesus.

Here is the divine triangle: “From Him and through Him and to Him are all things”. And when we learn to pray that way, we’re going to pray as Jesus prayed, and we are going to see God do some wonderful things in prayer.

Back To Blog