Is Seeing Believing? Part 2

In part one we saw that the living Word became flesh. His name is Jesus. The Word is God speaking. God and His Word are one. The Word is the will of the Father, just as Jesus, the Word made flesh was the will of the Father. What God says, is. What God says, will become. If He did not want it to be so, He would not have said it, He would not have sent it. The Word is always now, it is a present tense fact because God is always now. In this part we will see the reason why so many in the church struggle with the questions, as to whether or not what God says in His Word is for today? Does God really do today what He did through the early church? Is what God did in the early church to be expected in the church today?

In Matthew's gospel we see a scene where Jesus is with the twelve apostles and makes a statement concerning the events that awaited Him in Jerusalem, "From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day. (Matthew 16:21) After Jesus gives His apostles some final instructions, He once again tells them what is about to happen to Him, "You know that after two days is the Passover, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified." (Matthew 26:2) In the minds of the apostles they may not have been able to process this or they may wonder why Jesus would even want to go to Jerusalem if this were going to happen, nevertheless, what Jesus tells them, happens exactly as He said it would.

After the resurrection, Jesus appears to His apostles. John's gospel singles out the apostle Thomas and reveals why so many in the church today question whether or not what God says in His Word is for today? Does God really do today what He did through the early church? Is what God did in the early church to be expected in the church today? "Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, "We have seen the Lord." So he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe." (John 20:24-25) Notice that the only way that Thomas was going to believe that Jesus rose from the dead was to see and touch Him. It did not matter to him that Jesus told him that it would happen and then reminded him again that it was about to happen and it did happen. The only way Thomas was going to believe the Words of Jesus was to physically see Him and touch Him.

Unbelief is one of the reasons why some many in the church today reject the fact that God and His Word (which are one) still do today what we see recorded in the New Testament. The power of God in the Body of Christ has not passed away with the apostles or in any dispensation. What most call faith today is no more that a mental assent to the Word of God. Mental assent acknowledges the truthfulness of God's Word, but never acts upon it. It's like standing outside of a bakery desiring to have some of the fresh baked goods but never going into the bakery to purchase or possess them. You see them, you smell them, you think just how great they will taste. Your brain acknowledges these things but you do not act upon the truthfulness that brain has made real through your senses. Just like Thomas, you can only believe God's Word based on sense knowledge, what your five senses can make real and never act on what God said. This is the kind of faith that every human has, but it is not the faith that pleases God (Hebrews 11:6)

John continues to record, "And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, "Peace to you!" Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing." And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him,  "Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." ( John 20:26-29) True Bible faith, the faith that please God, is to accept and act on God's Word regardless of the things in the natural. It is accepting and acting on God's Word only because God said and because He said, we do not need physical proof. This is the very way that one is saved. You accept Christ as Lord and Savior without physically seeing Him. It is the same principle across the board when it comes to everything else that God's Word says. We do not need physical proof, what God said is proof enough!

Although John's gospel singles out Thomas, Mark's gospel reveals another issue that keeps most in the church today in bondage to these erroneous teachings that what God did in the ministry of Jesus and the early church passed away with the apostles because we have the Bible and do not need these things today. Mark records, "Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen." (Mark 16:14) Notice that not one of the apostles believed what Jesus told them concerning what would happen to Him in Jerusalem.

We saw in the life of Thomas that unbelief was why he would not believe the Lord's Word. Here in Mark's gospel not only is unbelief a problem but the other reason why so many in the church today do not believe and act upon God's Word is due to hardness of heart. Jesus said, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:21) and "For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man." (Mark 7:21-23) To defile means to debase the pureness or excellence of something. A hard heart lowers the character, quality, and value of God's Word. Unbelief is the culprit behind a hard heart.

Now that the reasons why so many in the church today doubt the integrity of God's Word has been exposed, my prayer is that you no longer let the doctrines of man sway you from truly believing that God's Word is God speaking, now. God and His Word are one! The Word is the will of the Father, just as Jesus, the Word made flesh was the will of the Father. What God says, is. What God says, will become. If He did not want it to be so, He would not have said it, He would not have sent it. The Word is always now, it is a present tense fact because God is always now.

In part three we will look at the havoc that has touch so many in the church all due to teachings that breed doubt, fear and unbelief in their lives rather than teachings that build true Bible faith in the integrity of God's Word.