Mark
9:22b-24 “But if You can do anything, take pity on
us and help us!” Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who
believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears,
“Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”
This weekend Pastor JJ was
at our College/Career Age Retreat, so Mike (from our small Group Bible study
delivered the Sunday Sermon message on the above passage and the topic of
“Believing”. He gave us five questions on the subject of believing to think
about.
1. What does believing
mean? The word in Greek is “πιστεύω pisteuō”,
which means “to have faith – i.e. credit to God; entrust” (Strong’s Dictionary
of Bible Words & Webster’s). Conviction of the truth that God tells the truth
and that Jesus Christ is Truth. If God said it, then that settles it. Do I
believe it? Do I obey His holy Word and do what He says? To believe is to obey
His Word. Galatians 3:5-6 “He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among
you, does He do it by the works
of the law, or by the hearing of faith?— just as
Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”
2. What does one
believe? Believe in our personal relationship to God (Father, Son and Holy
Spirit) and the sovereign authority of the Trinity. Isaiah 45:12 I have made the earth, and created man upon it: I,
even my hands, have stretched out the heavens, and all their host have I
commanded. We believe Creator
God’s perfect Word, not man’s flawed word. There is no prophesy of the Holy
Scriptures that is a private interpretation. What truly matters is not people
think, but what God thinks. 1 Peter 1:15-16 As He who called you is holy, you
also be holy in all your conduct, because it
is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”
3. On Whom do we
believe? Romans 10:8-10 What does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the
word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and
believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the
heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made
unto salvation. The word “confess” in Greek is "ὁμολογέω homologeō",
(homo means “same” / Logeo means “word”), literally "same word", to acknowledge,
to agree with God. Profess is the same word in Greek, with the meaning to
acknowledge and declare. We get our word “professional” from this. They put
their knowledge into practice and practice what we preach. We don’t just
confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, we don’t just agree with the message,
we are the message in profession by living out our belief in obedience. Does
that make sense?
4. What difference does believing make? Galatians
3:21-22 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For
if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness
would have been by the law. But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the
promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. Believing faith is the
vehicle to righteousness, but the profession of and obedience to God’s Word,
Will and Way in a transformed life is the fulfilling evidence of redeemed soul
and regenerated heart. The flip side of King is Subject, the flip side of
Master is Servant, and the flip side of Lord is Slave. In America , the
connotation to slavery is negative, but only because the term “bond slave” is
foreign to us today. The bond slave of Christ is a loving term, where we
willfully choose to know, live for and serve the Lord, where our delight and
will is the delight and will of our Redeemer King, who loves us, reconciled us,
saved us and made us whole. This is not oppressive bondage; Jesus died for our
sins so that we may be restored, live and have life eternal.
5. Why can we put our
trust in God? 2 Chronicles 7:14 “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, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” The word of man is always changing and unreliable.
God is never-changing and totally reliable, always and forever faithful to His
Word. God is not a respecter of men and conditions; God is a respecter of His
Word. God created (1) physical life, (2) biological life, then (3) spiritual
life. There is nothing too big for God. You put full trust in a chair to hold
you, so believing, you sit without a doubt or though of otherwise. Put your
full trust in our amazing, Almighty, Lord God. Rejoice and have true joy in the
Lord. To believe means to obey. Allow God to bless you today. Believe.
In
Christ, Brian