Tag: hope

In Awe! pt-5

Methods Over Majesty

 

For several weeks we have been looking at awe and the effect it has on our lives.   All of us have a capacity for awe.  We were created with it.  The problem is we often get it misdirected from where it was intended to go.  Often the place we direct our sense of awe to is ourselves.  We become the center of our universe and we seek to control our lives and determine our own destiny.  It is what all of us who belong to the human race face every day.  It is what got Adam and Eve in trouble in the beginning and it continues to get us into trouble ever since.  The temptation of Eve in the beginning was not to eat the forbidden fruit, but the effect that act would have.  The tempation was that we could be like God.  “For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God..” Genesis 3:5a.  It was the same temptation that got Satan cast out of heaven.  “I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most High.’” Isaiah 14:14.  We tend to desire for ourselves what is God’s alone.

One of the ways that this is shown in our lives is the way we approach God and the way we live our lives.  What we tend to do is relate to God not as He is but through the methods we have learned to connect with Him.  As a result the methods become more important than encountering God.  As a result our sense of awe turns inward. In 1 Samuel 4 is a story which illustrates this well.  The children of Israel are up against an old enemy which has been attaching them for many years.  The Philistines have brought out their armies once again to fight against Israel and the two armies have lined up ready for battle.  And the first battle Israel loses badly.  4000 men die.  And Israel, who believed God was with them began to ask what was wrong because they lost.  They did what you and I often do.  But where they went wrong in the story is no one went to ask God what went wrong.  And in the land of Israel at this time was a famous prophet who was known for hearing God speak and delivering direction from God.   Direction that was proved correct many times.

Israel instead of inquiring of God relied on what they had done in the past.  God had told them in many past battles to have the ark of the covenant lead the way into battle.  “After the battle was over, the troops retreated to their camp, and the elders of Israel asked, “Why did the Lord allow us to be defeated by the Philistines?” Then they said, “Let’s bring the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord from Shiloh. If we carry it into battle with us, it[a] will save us from our enemies.” 1 Samuel 4:3

Notice the verse.  Israel thought the ark would save them.  They didn’t look to God at all, just the method they had.  It was a method that God had started and had used many times before.  The problem wasn’t that they sent the ark out but that they trusted in the method without seeking the one who created the method.   As a result they ended up losing even more men when they went into battle and they lost the ark as well.  The Philistines captured the ark and took it home with them.  The very place where God chose to place His manifest presence was no longer with God’s chosen people.

We as Christians often get ourselves in trouble for the same things.  We develop methods, which in themselves are not bad, but they take the place of a life-giving, in-depth, living relationship with the one who created everything.   The one who was supposed to capture our attention and our awe.

If you continue to read the story we find that God was still involved.  The ark was placed at the feet of the most powerful god the Philistines had and in the morning their god  was on his face before the ark.  They set him back up and the next morning he was on his face again broken in pieces.  The Philistines we beginning to see that their god was not the Almighty God.  God still honoured His covenant with Israel and the ark was returned.

When we focus on the methods, like reading our bible or praying, or attending a church, which are all good, instead of connecting and being in awe of the one who started the methods we end up missing out of what God wants to do and going in a different direction.  And like Israel God will still be involved, not to bless what we are doing, but to call us back to a renewed personal daily relationship where we can connect with Him.

 

A Question of Character

What do we do when our plans fall apart and the things we believe God called us into seem to come unglued?  All that hard work and preparation which seems to be wasted.  Or

maybe the dreams we have in our hearts seem to be like a distant ship sailing away from us off the horizon, and we seem to be getting further and further from what we feel God has spoken.  The feelings of defeat which can go with this can be hard to live through.  And at times we feel like giving up, and wonder ‘Did God really say?’

Continue reading A Question of Character

Now Faith is!!

Faith.  It is something that is wonderful and powerful in the life of a believer.  But it is also extremely misunderstood as well.  So many people are under the belief that they don’t have enough faith.  And they live under condemnation and self ridicule because they cannot seem to get enough faith together to act, or to get God to act on their behalf.  Many Christians today can be heard to say ‘If only I had more faith.’

Faith is extremely important in our lives because “And without faith it is impossible to please Him..” Hebrews 11:6 ESV.  Jesus also said to the blind men who came to Him to be healed  “According to your faith be it done to you.” Matthew 9:29 ESV  So it is important that we have faith, and much of what God can do in our lives is because of faith.  But what is faith?

First we need to dispel the belief that is faith is a magical substance that we need to exercise like a muscle to enable God to work on our behalf, or that we need to pray for God to grow our faith or to give us more faith.  There is no specific ‘measure’ of faith given where some get a little and others get a lot.  There is simply faith, and you cannot grow it or strengthen it at all.

Faith is a gift given to us by God yes, ‘For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God..’ Ephesians 2:8 ESV.  And the faith God gives you simply allows you to start your walk with Him and begin a life altering empowered relationship with the King of kings.  So God gives us faith.  We don’t exercise our faith or grow our faith because faith comes from God ‘ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.’ Romans 10:17 ESV.  Faith comes by hearing the “word” of God which when read in the Greek is a spoken word.  “Hearing through the word ‘rhema=spoken’ of Christ”.

Faith is a gift from God and it grows by hearing God speak and by acting on what He has said.  But we still don’t know what faith actually is.  So what is faith?

Faith is simply the confident quiet assurance that God is who He says He is and He will do what He said He will do.!  That is it.  No magical formulas,  no special efforts and no exercise and effort required.  Faith is believing God period.  Abraham was a perfect example of faith for us to follow.  James records Abraham’s faith when he wrote “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God.” James 2:23 ESV  Abraham believed God and acted on what God said to do, and his belief was what pleased God.

If we go back to the rest of our original scripture in Hebrews 11:6 it says “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”  Faith is believing God is who He says He is and that He will do what He said He will do.  That allows us to walk forward by faith because our faith is in the nature and the character of God and not on our circumstances.  It allows us to weather any storm because we walk with a God who said He will never leave us or forsake us.

Faith is simply a confident assurance in the character of God allowing us to follow as He directs us to.  This also allows faith to deepen because as we hear God speak to us and act on what He says So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.’ Romans 10:17 ESV our understanding of His nature deepens and when we move forward into what God has said we then see Him doing what He said He would.   So our faith is in God, because He is faithful.

We don’t need to work up faith and we don’t need to pray for more or look for ways to grow our faith.  It doesn’t work that way.  We simply need to believe that God is who He says He is and that He will reward us because we are seeking after Him, and not looking for what He can do.  And as we step out believing what God speaks and directs us to our understanding of His nature grows which allows us to step out further as He leads and our understanding grows again and again and again.

Jesus said “For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of 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 17:20 ESV.  A little belief in God goes a long long way.  If we will stop looking for the magical essence that allows God to move and start getting to simply know God and allow He to show us His nature and to speak to our lives so we can act on His direction instead of our plans we would then see Him in action which would deepen our assurance in Him allowing us to see more of who He is and opening the door to God doing some very powerful things in our lives.

All it takes is for us to answer the question “Is God who He said He was, and will He do what He said He will do?”