"But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."
Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV)
And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, "Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him." Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me." And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.
Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?" So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.
Matthew 17:14-20 (NKJV)
One of the toughest issues we seem to grapple with is faith. Faith tests our hearts. Do we really believe or do we only say we believe? The story of this man who brought his epileptic son to Jesus is a particular challenge to overly comfortable theology.
The man brings his son to the disciples and they try to minister to him but nothing happens. This is the point where we, many times, fall back on our comfortable theology and say,"It must be God's will for him to be this way." But here comes the rub. God in the flesh comes into the picture and what happens? The young man is healed from that very hour. Hmmm.... Houston we have a problem here.
But the rub gets even bigger. The disciples asked Jesus how come they couldn't get it done and Jesus tells them that it was because of their unbelief. Yikes. Jesus didn't say it wasn't my will or not in my timing it was because of their unbelief. He placed the responsibility squarely back on them.
I don't know about you but that tests my heart. As human beings we continually reach to be right; to be justified; to have someone say that we're okay. But, truthfully, we are fallen, imperfect beings who frequently struggle. That's part of the human condition and it is okay to acknowledge it, but it can also be a trap if we try to pass off our weakness, shortcomings and sin as God's best for our lives. You would do me no favor by telling me that a lie I have bought into is the truth. You might make me feel better momentarily but the long term implications will be costly.
Herein lies the challenge of faith. Do I believe God or do I believe something else? When challenged with scripture that tests my preconceptions how do I respond? Does my heart leap at the possibilities or do I fall back on my theology to justify myself and try to dodge the implications?
Faith, belief, unbelief matter. In Mark 6 and Matthew 13 we read accounts of how Jesus did very little among his own people because of their unbelief. Unbelief will effect your prayer life. It will make a difference in receiving what God has for you. Jesus said, in Mark 11:24, "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them." Take Jesus at His word -- you'll be glad you did.
If faith mattered to Jesus it matters to us.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Monday, May 7, 2007
The Speaking Voice
Knowing God. Walking with God. Experiencing God. Phrases that seem to delight some believers and frighten others. Some just can't get past the subjective element of experiential Christianity. It seems to be a prescription for disaster. An opportunity for everyone to do what is right in their own eyes. They're right.
Christianity is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit. Therein lies the rub. The very subjective, spiritual aspect of this relationship leaves room for all kinds of nuttiness. People use "I heard from God' as an excuse or manipulative device all too often.
Nevertheless, man's infallibility doesn't change the truth of God's Word. The Bible testifies, from Genesis to Revelation, of a God who is living and active and working in His people. We find no place where the Bible says that this kind of supernatural interaction was to have stopped. The first calling for the believer is to know the Lord. Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice" (John 10:27). In John 14:26, Jesus said, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you." The voice of the Holy Spirit is a speaking, active voice. When we don't hear or hear amiss, the fault lies with us, never with the Lord or with the Word of God, for that matter.
We can, and should, test what we hear against the Word of God. That is the standard and the source of doctrine. I absolutely believe that every Christian can hear the voice of God but what we hear, or think we hear, will never establish doctrine.
Relationship is tougher than religion. Religion requires the keeping of some rules or duties that we can check off, somehow thinking we have done the will of God. Relationship, by its very nature, is nebulous. You have to pursue it. God is a spirit and those who worship him must worship in "spirit and in truth", as Jesus told the woman at the well in the 4th chapter of John. It might be easier to have a cut and dried belief system that revolves around church attendance and a few good deeds but that kind of Christianity will never be as transformative and rewarding as fellowship with the God of the universe.
Does God speak to us? The Bible says he does. My experience says he does too. Do I hear His voice with 100% accuracy? Absolutely not. Paul said that we know in part and prophecy in part. New Testament prophecy is simply sharing what God is saying -- hearing His voice and relating it to people. The fact that we don't hear perfectly should not discourage us from the fact that we can hear His voice.
The Lord really opens doors when we dare to listen and respond. I was praying for a young man who didn't want to tell me what his problem was, when the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, "Ask him about his alcohol problem." At that moment I had a choice -- do what I felt the Spirit was saying and risk looking foolish or ignore the Spirit and miss an opportunity. I stepped out and it led to an encounter that changed his life. Recently I was driving behind a building and the Holy Spirit said to stop as I neared the end of the building at a blind corner. I didn't have to -- there was a stop sign for people coming around the other side of the building. I had the right of way. Just as I stopped a car came flying through the stop sign at the corner of the building -- right where I would have been.
On the day after Thanksgiving my oldest son asked if he could borrow my car. As he did that same voice spoke to me and said, "He's going to have an accident." This time I ignored the voice. Two minutes later he came running back into the house to get me. I knew why. He hadn't gotten fifty yards from the house. He's usually a very careful driver but that morning he decided to press ahead with fogged windows right into the sun coming up over the road and right in his eyes. He was blinded, took the turn short and took out a minivan. I was kicking myself, not him.
I've actually learned to hear God's voice through the misses as well as the hits. My son's wreck was an aggravation and encouragement at the same time.
We serve a wonderful God who loves and cares for us. He is active and working and speaking to His people. Jesus died for so much more than to make us good or religious. We can know and walk with Him today in a real life love relationship. Don't miss the opportunity that each of us have in Christ. God is no respecter of persons. He'll speak to you if you will only begin to listen.
Christianity is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit. Therein lies the rub. The very subjective, spiritual aspect of this relationship leaves room for all kinds of nuttiness. People use "I heard from God' as an excuse or manipulative device all too often.
Nevertheless, man's infallibility doesn't change the truth of God's Word. The Bible testifies, from Genesis to Revelation, of a God who is living and active and working in His people. We find no place where the Bible says that this kind of supernatural interaction was to have stopped. The first calling for the believer is to know the Lord. Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice" (John 10:27). In John 14:26, Jesus said, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you." The voice of the Holy Spirit is a speaking, active voice. When we don't hear or hear amiss, the fault lies with us, never with the Lord or with the Word of God, for that matter.
We can, and should, test what we hear against the Word of God. That is the standard and the source of doctrine. I absolutely believe that every Christian can hear the voice of God but what we hear, or think we hear, will never establish doctrine.
Relationship is tougher than religion. Religion requires the keeping of some rules or duties that we can check off, somehow thinking we have done the will of God. Relationship, by its very nature, is nebulous. You have to pursue it. God is a spirit and those who worship him must worship in "spirit and in truth", as Jesus told the woman at the well in the 4th chapter of John. It might be easier to have a cut and dried belief system that revolves around church attendance and a few good deeds but that kind of Christianity will never be as transformative and rewarding as fellowship with the God of the universe.
Does God speak to us? The Bible says he does. My experience says he does too. Do I hear His voice with 100% accuracy? Absolutely not. Paul said that we know in part and prophecy in part. New Testament prophecy is simply sharing what God is saying -- hearing His voice and relating it to people. The fact that we don't hear perfectly should not discourage us from the fact that we can hear His voice.
The Lord really opens doors when we dare to listen and respond. I was praying for a young man who didn't want to tell me what his problem was, when the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, "Ask him about his alcohol problem." At that moment I had a choice -- do what I felt the Spirit was saying and risk looking foolish or ignore the Spirit and miss an opportunity. I stepped out and it led to an encounter that changed his life. Recently I was driving behind a building and the Holy Spirit said to stop as I neared the end of the building at a blind corner. I didn't have to -- there was a stop sign for people coming around the other side of the building. I had the right of way. Just as I stopped a car came flying through the stop sign at the corner of the building -- right where I would have been.
On the day after Thanksgiving my oldest son asked if he could borrow my car. As he did that same voice spoke to me and said, "He's going to have an accident." This time I ignored the voice. Two minutes later he came running back into the house to get me. I knew why. He hadn't gotten fifty yards from the house. He's usually a very careful driver but that morning he decided to press ahead with fogged windows right into the sun coming up over the road and right in his eyes. He was blinded, took the turn short and took out a minivan. I was kicking myself, not him.
I've actually learned to hear God's voice through the misses as well as the hits. My son's wreck was an aggravation and encouragement at the same time.
We serve a wonderful God who loves and cares for us. He is active and working and speaking to His people. Jesus died for so much more than to make us good or religious. We can know and walk with Him today in a real life love relationship. Don't miss the opportunity that each of us have in Christ. God is no respecter of persons. He'll speak to you if you will only begin to listen.
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