On the other hand we all know people who say they believe in Jesus but when asked about judgment day they might say something like:. Having faith in Christ means that you believe that Jesus has saved you from all your sins in an instant. The chapter goes on describing that it was the faith of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses and the countless who came after them that saved them.
Not their works. Elsewhere in scripture, Paul says that faith is a gift of God and salvation must be apart from works or we could boast one day that we got ourselves to Heaven.
Eph Anywhere salvation happens in the Bible it is not a process, but it happens in an instant when someone puts their faith in Christ.
Luke , Acts , Acts , Acts , Luke The Bible describes faith as confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see Heb. In other words faith is certainty even though it has not happened yet. There is nothing less certain than adding works to salvation. But then, when it comes to check out time, the person at the counter offers you the insurance and you decide to buy it just in case.
Do you actually have faith in the product? No, it is a lack of trust in the maker. It is not complete faith. Adding works slaps Jesus in the face. And the tugs of the wind and the rain actually help to strengthen the sapling into a tree that can withstand torrential storms without a shell.
Your faith is the same. And that might be a good thing. Faith was never meant to be static or unchanging. Questioning your faith means you are taking seriously the task of pursuing truth and figuring out what it means to live according to it.
This is what discipleship is all about! Kids ask a lot of questions. But the humility and openness that enable children to believe in the unseen also spark greater wonder and curiosity. Childlike faith is open to learning something new, to changing shape, to being wrong, and to asking hard questions. It is curious and eager to explore without demanding five pages of proof to verify each discovery.
So let yourself wander back to preschool. Dare to pursue what you desperately want to know but are too afraid to ask. The worst thing that can happen: you find out you might be wrong about something. Seriously: learn from my mistakes. Now is not the time to distance yourself from the people who love and care about you. Struggling with faith can be hard, and they can help you. Do you have someone in your life who you look to as a model for your faith in particular?
Consider confiding in that person. But try to give them the benefit of the doubt. And you might be surprised by how well they understand what you are going through. Sometimes the people who feel most strongly about their faith are the ones who have fought hardest with it.
Many pastors get into ministry because they want to help people struggling with faith. Pastors are also more likely to have wrestled with the major questions about God themselves. Are you hungry for a fast response to these questions that are weighing on you? Be honest with God about that. Be honest with yourself. God can handle your honesty. See the entire book of Job.
But there is a catch. And the texture might feel rubbery, a little overdone, and fake. Grappling with the hardest questions about faith is like cooking tough cuts of meat. When you try to cook the tough cuts fast, they only get tougher and harder to digest. But when you take the time to slowly break it down in a barbecue pit or crockpot, the toughest and most gristly meat can become the most tender, delicious, and flavorful meal. You might end up with a totally different meal than the one you were trying to cook.
But something amazing happens when you let questions stew low and slow. You might even discover that you were asking the wrong question and end up changing recipes halfway through.
Trust the process. Be patient. God still sends famine. But what He sends now is different from the drought and pestilence you read about in the Old Testament. Famine is different. God uses the weakness of human nature to work his will, because human nature does not change. We are pressured by lack and motivated by plenty. Repeatedly in the Bible God used an effective method to awaken his people from spiritual sloth and pressure them to repent: He cut off their food supply—famine—until they were so hungry they cried to Him for mercy.
They had grown indifferent to the things of God and had begun to put their own homes and farms above the rebuilding of the wall and the temple. So God sent Haggai to them to point out the connection between their disobedience and their failure to prosper in any area:.
Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes. Haggai Got holes in your bag? Your finances will feel it first.
Nothing you do prospers. Famine works over a long period. There is always a reason for famine. Mostly likely you have failed to do something He told you to do or have not stopped doing something He told you to stop doing.
You should go to God to find out the reason for famine. Famine travels behind unanswered prayer. The famine God sends is a long, thorough ordeal meant to get your attention, to force you to examine yourself, to make deep and lasting changes in your soul.
He sends famine for the same reason. You may be angry at many people and want to tell them all of. But you need to —prepare to take a stand first.
This is post in my series on the Law of Attraction in Action. You CAN use your power to manifest your desires.
0コメント