Tag Archives: faith

Stay On The Ship

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Acts 27

I was talking to my pastor yesterday about how easy it can be to believe a lie. If you take time to listen to people who reject God, you being to understand their point of view. That can be a good thing, and I hope we are all investing ourselves in people we love and who are rejecting God. But when our understanding of their viewpoint becomes acceptance, we have a problem.

Paul was heading to Rome to be tried for bogus crimes the Jews made up to get rid of him. The ship he was sailing on got caught in a hurricane-force storm that pummeled them for weeks. The soldiers did everything they knew what to do to save the ship from being torn to pieces. They naturally feared for their lives, so Paul encouraged them with a word from God:

But now I urge you to keep up your courage, because not one of you will be lost, only the ship will be destroyed. Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, “Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar, and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.” So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me. (Acts 27:22-25)

In other words, stay in the ship and God has promised me you will be saved. Some of the sailors panicked, however. In their minds, and from what they believed about ships and storms, they determined the better option was to escape to land by lifeboats. They began to lower the lifeboats with the intention of abandoning the ship, in opposition to the Word of God.

When Paul saw what they were doing, he said to the centurion guarding him:

Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved. (Acts 27:31b)

So the ropes were cut, the lifeboats dropped empty into the raging sea. And although the ship was lost, not one of those men lost his life.

I think the moral of the story is the Word of God. Do you believe it or not?

We must sift everything we hear through the words God spoke. We must shape our world-view, our morality, our stand on what is right and what is wrong, our definition of sin and its punishment, our understanding of grace and mercy and love, through the lens of Scripture.

We all hear things from time to time that sound reasonable, maybe even scriptural. And maybe we think: “Ok. I can see their point. Maybe they have something there.”

BUT WAIT!

Before you go any further with that thought you better ask yourself: what does Scripture say? Not just a random verse taken out of context. What does God really say, how did it play out in the lives of the Old Testament Jews, how did Jesus embody the words spoken by the prophets?

Dear ones, there is one Truth. Anything that veers from that Truth is merely opinion and is nothing to stand on. Anything that is not Truth is a lie.

There is one salvation. There is one ship. To attempt to save yourself any other way is death.

I can confidently say that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life and no one goes to the Father without going through Jesus. I can say you must be born again. I can say that faith comes through hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

I can tell you that Scripture is God-breathed and it is the first and final authority.

I can say those things unapologetically, having built my life on the truth of it, because those words are in the Bible and the truth of them is demonstrated in those precious pages, and in my life.

Again I ask you concerning to the Word of God: do you believe it or not? Your life depends on your answer.

Losing Faith

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Matthew 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30

I kind of feel bad for the Greek lady. She got on her knees and asked Jesus to help her, and His first was response was – NO! But she didn’t lose her faith. She stayed right there and boldly expressed her faith in Jesus’ ability to heal her daughter.

Is that how I react when God’s answer to my prayers isn’t immediate, when His first response is, NO or WAIT? Let me learn from this non-Jewish believer to hold onto faith no matter what.

God is faithful. Always. So I’m not losing my faith in Him.

The Lord Helping Me

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Joshua 12-17

There are two separate and opposite approaches to following God in these chapters. God had given the land to the Jews marked it out for them so each tribe knew what was their’s. However, there were people already living on that land and in those cities. Taking the land would require more than a U-Haul. It would require wars – victories and defeats. It would require strength and faith and obedience.

So here is approach #1: CALEB (14:10-15)

At 85 he was as fit as he was at 40. (I am neither). God had promised Caleb a portion of the land after he and Joshua had spied out the land and came back with a report saying they could defeat the giants living there. The other spies threw fear into the people and the whole nation was forced to wander 40 years in the wilderness as punishment for their lack of faith in God.

Now it was time to do what they should have done 40 years earlier. Caleb had been ready then. He was ready now. Here is his approach:

You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, BUT, the Lord helping me, I will drive them out JUST AS HE SAID. (vs 12b) (emphasis mine)

Caleb was ready to take the land at 85! Why? He trusted God. He knew God would help him do what God told him to do.

Which leads to approach #2: THE TRIBE OF JOSEPH (17:14-18)

They had already taken the land God had given them. Well, kind of. The Canaanites didn’t go down easily and were still living shoulder to shoulder with the Jews. The descendants of Joseph were living in the land, but they were outgrowing it. There just wasn’t room for the Canaanites AND the Israelites.

So they went to Joshua and complained about the crowded living conditions. “We need more land,” they said.

I think Joshua probably shook his head and rolled his eyes “No you don’t,” he replied. “You just need to use what God has already given you.” He told the people to get off their couches and continue the work God had assigned them. “Clear the land…you can drive out the Canaanites. Problem solved.”

We see Caleb ready to plunge head first into battle knowing God would be with him. We see Joseph’s clan hitting a road block of their own making, and wanting to take a detour. They wanted the blessing without the work. They wanted God to give them, without having faith God would help them, get what they needed.

In which approach to following God do you see yourself? I know God has given you a task, has given you land to clear so to speak. Do you grab His hand and go to work? Or do you sit back and expect Him to give you land already cleared by someone else?

Do you expect blessing without obedience, favor without faith?

There is still land to possess, souls in need of a Savior, sins that need to be annihilated in your life and mine. God says, “Go.” How do you approach obedience? How do I?

God WILL go with you. He WILL fight for and with you. Do you trust Him? I pray that you – and I – will say with Caleb:

I know that what God is asking me to do seems impossible but, the Lord helping me, I will take the land.

Living What We Believe

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Leviticus 8-11

I recently saw the phrase, “Christian Atheist,” referring to believers who live like God doesn’t exist. I think it can refer to people who believe some, but not all Scripture is true. People who go to church, maybe even preach, who are holding onto sins they refuse to surrender to God. They are Christians who believe God makes exceptions to His rules, and live like they will avoid the consequences spelled out in Scripture.

Nadab and Abihu fit that category. There have been times I have fit that category.

Are you a believer? Is Jesus your Savior? Do you read your Bible, go to church, sing in the choir or teach Sunday School? Then the question is, are you living the truth of what you know? Or are there sins you have yet to surrender to the cross?

James tells us our faith without works is dead. (2:14-26). Faith without living lives that honor God with every choice is as useful as a corpse. Having faith in God yet living like He doesn’t exist is not faith at all. It’s what Christian Atheists are made of.

Dear Christian, if we want to live what we believe, we need to stop right now and confess our sins. All of them. We need to repent, which means turn from those sins, and with the help of the Holy Spirit never repeat them again. It means to surrender to the demands of God as spelled out in His Word, and receive the grace and mercy Jesus died to give us.

Then one step, one choice at a time, we must live to glorify God and not ourselves, to point our loved ones to Jesus as He is revealed in Scripture. We must love our neighbor enough to speak truth, love God enough to stand firm.

It means living like our Holy God really does exist, and to be as serious about sin as He is. It means living what we believe so that others will see Jesus in us and want what we have in Him.

Listen

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Exodus 4-7

The thing that stood out to me today is that the Israelites did not listen to what God was telling them through Moses because of their circumstances and emotions (6:9). They were discouraged because they were being treated unfairly.

Understandable because Pharaoh really wasn’t being fair. They really were being mistreated and most likely couldn’t see a way out.

But instead of going to God, trusting God, they cut Him off. Instead of being open to hearing His voice, they stopped listening.

Boy, can I relate. I haven’t gone through a fraction of what these Israelites did in Egypt. Yet when faced with my own hardships I’ve been known to give God the cold shoulder. My prayers are fewer. My expressions of love more guarded. My time in His Word is met with silence.

And when I stop listening, I fall deeper and deeper into self-pity and even despair. It’s at those times I’m discouraged, and can’t see a way out.

God, help me – help all of us – to keep the lines of communication open between us and You. I don’t even want to think about all we miss when we allow our circumstances to drown out Your voice. Help us to trust You, and submit ourselves and our circumstances into Your capable hands. Speaking for myself, I don’t want to miss anything You want to say to me.

What Do You See?

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1 Samuel 16&17

Walking with God, having faith in God, living in submission to God, doesn’t see obstacles, but possibilities. The Israelite army, along with King Saul, saw only a formidable giant and a powerful army across the valley. They were paralyzed with fear. It took a young man who believed in God with complete assurance to see the possibilities.

When you look at what we as Christians are up against these days, what do you see? Do you see the insanity of the liberal agenda, and cower in fear? Do you see a president too powerful to fight? Do you consider the media an army too strong to stand against?

Or can you, like David, see an enemy that has no power over our God? God used a boy to destroy Israel’s enemy. I think He is looking for some Davids today to step up, pick up the Sword of the Spirit, arm themselves with the power of His might, and get this victory started.

If you and I call on His Name, humble ourselves, stop our own sinning, and submit to God like David did, I know the battle will be the Lord’s. As crazy as things are today, Satan will never be stronger than God. Victory is a possibility.

Do you see it? Are you a David?

What About Here?

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Numbers 23-26

How many times have I wanted God to DO something? I pray, but a door closes. I pray again, and His answer continues to be “No!”

So, I figure if I do something different, He’ll do what I want Him to do. I decide to go to church every Sunday instead of just occasionally. Maybe God will do what I’m asking from over here.

Again, the door I want open shuts in my face. So I decide to try something else. I write a bigger check and place it in the offering plate. Maybe God will answer me from here.

But when the answer is still “No!” I move on. I actually start inviting people to church. Surely God will do what I want from here.

Balak learned that no matter where you stand, if your request is a sin, God’s answer will be “No!”

Friend, if you think God’s not hearing you, even when you try to clean up your act thinking God will answer your prayer if you do, you might want to take a closer look at your request. God loves you enough not to give you permission to sin.

But if God’s “No” is a “Wait,” then trust Him. Give it to Him, then continue to serve Him out of love and in humility, believing He works all things for the good of we who love Him. Storm the throne of heaven with your request, if your request aligns with Scripture and is consistent with God’s character. Be patient for His will to be done.

Learn from Balak and Balaam. You can muster up all kinds of faith, you can say all the right words, and try to get to God from different angles in order to get Him to do what you want. But if your request is a sin, take the “No” as His love toward you. Because that’s what it is.

Rash Decisions

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Genesis 12-16

Have you ever reacted in the moment, then lived to regret it? I sure have. And so too, I think, did Abram. More than once.

First, when famine hit Canaan, Abram packed up and moved to Egypt. I don’t see him consulting God about that. It appears to be a blatant act of disobedience. But, the grass is greener on the other side of the Nile.

Entering Egypt placed him and his family smack dab in the middle of enemy territory. Abram wasn’t ready for that. Which leads us to rash decision #2.

Abram told his beautiful wife, Sarai, to lie to the King of Egypt. Dangerous move, there, Abe. Again, I don’t see Abram calling on God about the situation. Maybe, like Adam, Abram thought he could hide from God. Maybe he knew he shouldn’t be in Egypt in the first place and thought he’d gotten himself into this mess, he’d get himself out. (been there, done that myself a few times).

Both of these decisions indicate Abram’s lack of faith in God. Hold onto that thought. Because bad choice #3 tells the same tale.

God had promised Abram children. Lots of children. But at this point, Abram hadn’t fathered even one. So when Sarai came up with an idea, Abram went with it. Do you see either of them going to God first? I mean, God was the one who had made the promise. Maybe He would have had a better idea than having Abram sleep with a slave girl. Just saying.

Anyway, Abram went ahead without God, and the world has been paying for it ever since.

Have you found that reacting in the moment turns out to smack you in the face? That has been my experience more often than I care to admit. I would venture to say every life choice I’ve made without including God has ended badly. Some of those choices have minor consequences. Some of those choices have resulted in consequences I still experience decades later. Some choices effected only me. Other choices have caused others to experience pain.

But all is not lost. With all the mistakes Abram made, look at 15:6. And he believed the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness.

When we believe the Lord, when we obey Him, when we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

Which makes us righteous, too, just like Abram! Aren’t you glad God doesn’t write us off when we make those rash decisions? I am. There may be consequences, but there is forgiveness when we ask Him.

In Good News Club this week I was talking to the children about peer pressure. When faced with a hard decision, I encouraged the kids to think first. Is what they are considering right or wrong? If they do that thing, would it please God? That advice isn’t just for kids.

May we all think before we react in the moment. May we ask ourselves if our reaction is right or wrong according to God’s Word. And, maybe most importantly, would my reaction please God?

I think if Abram had thought about what he was doing, if He had prayed first, the world might look a bit differently today. If I had done the same, thought, prayed first, my life might look differently today, too.

I’m thankful for the life of Abram, a flawed individual who loved God, and whom God used in spite of his failures. I’m thankful for the cross, for forgiveness, and for prayer to a God who wants to help me make the right choices, ones that will be the best for me, and will glorify Him.

For The Sake of Christ

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Hebrews 11:24-28

The other day in Good News Club, one of the children asked if Old Testament people went to heaven since they lived before Jesus went to the cross. I said, “Yes. They had to believe in Jesus just like we do, only they called Him the Messiah. they didn’t know His name. But if they put their in faith in God to keep His promise, they went to heaven.”

Then today I read Hebrews 11 and, maybe I’ve seen it before, but Scripture actually says Moses not only believed in Christ, he gave up the treasures of being the son of Pharaoh’s daughter to suffer for the sake of Christ. And that was thousands of years before Jesus was born!

Jesus! The baby whose birth the whole world is celebrating this weekend.

Jesus! The real flesh and blood Son of God who went to the cross to redeem us all.

Jesus! Our Savior who lives in heaven preparing a place for all of us who believe.

Jesus didn’t become the Savior. He was always the Savior. And there is no other name anywhere that will bring us to the Father. People have been putting their faith in Jesus since the beginning of time.

Have you?

Trust The Process

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Mark 8:22-26

I had to sit here and think about this passage this morning. On the surface it seems as though Jesus goofed a little trying to heal a blind man. Took Him two attempts to get it right.

Now, just in case you think for a minute that’s what is revealed in these verses, think again. God doesn’t “goof.” He doesn’t fail – EVER – and have to try again.

So why was the man partially healed before he was completely healed?

The first thing I notice is that the blind man didn’t beg Jesus to heal him. His friends did. So I believe Jesus needed to address the man’s own faith.

So we see the man allowing Jesus to lead him outside the city. Scripture doesn’t identify it as such, but I believe this demonstrates the man’s faith. He probably expected to be healed right there in the city like everyone else. Instead, he followed Jesus some distance without being healed, without turning back, not even knowing where Jesus was leading. That speaks faith to me.

Secondly, it doesn’t appear that Jesus spoke with the blind man at all before he spit on the blind eyes and touched the blind man. His first words seem to be the question, “Can you see anything now.” The man answers, “Yes. Kind of.”

Was he disappointed? Maybe he thought seeing a little was better than not seeing anything at all. But it certainly couldn’t have been what he’d expected from Jesus who had the reputation for healing all kinds of people. His answer seems to indicate acceptance. I think it reveals faith, because he didn’t walk away. He allowed Jesus to touch Him once again.

This time he was completely healed.

Makes me wonder how I’ve reacted to prayers not answered exactly as I expected. What do I do if God doesn’t answer as quickly as I had hoped? Do I accept the process? Or do I get frustrated at the necessary steps it takes to have my prayers answered according to the will of God?

Why does God often use chemo and radiation, a long and painful process, to heal cancer? Why do our wayward children sometimes take years and thousands of steps before they return to faith? Why don’t marriages heal, conflicts disappear, ministries bear fruit the moment we pray?

I think there are lots of reasons, lots of lessons to be learned, lots of people to be touched by the process as they see the faith of God’s children not waiver.

Oh, to be able to see God’s hand as clearly as the man we read about today. Oh, to trust the process because we trust the Lord!