Bad Things Do Not Come From God - Part 11

We have seen that the Father's will and nature unfold throughout the Old Testament, but it wasn't until Jesus entered man's history that we see the Father's will and nature perfectly revealed. (Hebrews 1:1-4) When we see Jesus we see the Father. If we had known Jesus, we would have known the Father. (John 14:6-10) These things indicate that everything that Jesus said and did was the will of the Father.

John had a particular reason behind writing what he did in his gospel. (Keep in mind that although John did the writing, the Holy Spirit gave the inspiration)...
And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name. (John 20:30-31) Please note this; that believing you may have life in His name. The word life is the Greek word "zoe" which means "life in the absolute sense; life as God has it; that which the Father has in Himself and which He gave to the Incarnate Son to have in Himself." This is the same quality of life that Christians are to experience their entire time on planet earth. Honestly, does this really sound like bad things come from God? Absolutely not!!! With that said, let's look a little deeper into the gospel of John and see repeatedly what Jesus Himself says concerning His mission of revealing the Father's will and His the Father's true nature.

First, Jesus is by Himself and He has an encounter with a woman of Samaria at Jacobs well. At the end of His conversation with her, His disciples return to Him and urge Him to eat, but look closely at Jesus' response...
Jesus said to them, My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.
(John 4:34) Notice Jesus' mission, "...to do the will of Him who sent Me.." So whatever we see Jesus do or and what ever He says, He is revealing the Father's will.  

Next we see Jesus healing on the Sabbath which causes the Jews to be filled with indignation so severe that they sought to kill Him because He healed on the Sabbath. Look at Jesus' response to the Jews...
Then Jesus answered and said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel. (John 5:19-20) Notice that Jesus does not initiate the things that He does, "...the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do..." Jesus only does what the Father Himself does. He only does the Father's will.

Not only does Jesus' actions perfectly reveal the Father's will, but they are also proof that He is from or that He has been sent by the Father. We also will see that Jesus only does and speaks the things that He hears and is taught from the Father...
But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish — the very works that I do — bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. (John 5:36)
For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
(John 6:38)
"...I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."(John 8:26)
"...I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things." (John 8:28)

Now let's look at another very important key in the life and ministry of Jesus...
And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him. (John 8:29) Not only does Jesus perfectly reveal the Father's will and nature, but EVERYTHING that He does and says pleases the Father.
Again Jesus has an encounter with the Jews. Look at the words that Jesus speaks to them...
If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him."
(John 10:37-28) These two verses should quicken the hearts of every Christian especially those who believe that bad things come from God. Jesus is pointing to the works that He does as the work of His Father. Next He says something that should awaken every Christian from the slumber of doubt. If one cannot believe that He is the Christ, the Savior, God the Son, the Son of God, then the works that He does should bring one to understand that the Father is in Him revealing Himself through the works that Jesus is doing.

The fact that Jesus perfectly reveals the Father's will and nature is the most crucial point of knowing that bad things do not come from God, especially to one who accepts Christ as Savior, confesses His Lordship from their mouth and believe in their heart that God raised Him from the dead. Of course this takes faith because most Christians are taught and trained to believe the opposite. Next time we will spend some time looking at the life and ministry of Jesus as recorded in the gospels. In doing so we will once again let the Word of God assault and destroy the lie that says God causes bad things to happen.

Bad Things Do Not Come From God - Part 10

The Apostle Paul said, For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 3:11) So we begin by looking at the life and ministry of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Gospel of John...
Jesus said to him, (Thomas) "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him. Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves. (John 14:6-11)

Christ is the way, the Truth (reality) and the life concerning all aspects of the Father. To know Christ is to know the Father. By studying the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, we will see clearly that He perfectly reveals the Father in all matters. If Christians fail to believe this truth concerning Christ as the one who perfectly expresses the Father's will in ALL matters they will continually be overshadowed with doubts which means that they will always struggle with issues that are clearly the Father's will such as healing, finances, etc. and especially as to whether the bad thing that they encounter in life come from God. Christ has already set them free through His death, burial, resurrection, ascension and glorification and yet beneath the, "I believe that" lies doubt that neutralizes what they say they believe.

While the entire Bible reveals the Father's will, much of His purpose remained hidden until they were fully revealed in Christ...
In Him (Christ) we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself (Ephesians 1:7-9)

The writer of Hebrews expresses Christ revealing the Father in all matters in this way...
God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. (Hebrews 1:1-4)

Look closely at verse three...
"Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person...
A more literal translation of this verse would read...
Jesus Christ is the radiance or exact reflection of the Father's glory as well as the exact representation and reproduction of the Father's nature and character.
So with this in mind, we must conclude that the Old Testament as well as the Epistles cannot be properly interpreted without a clear understanding of what Jesus both taught and demonstrated in His life and ministry. No one ever revealed the Father's will, nature, character and purpose perfectly in every way until Jesus Christ.

I pray that you take some quiet time to consider these truths concerning Christ's relationship with the Father and how it is in Him that the will of the Father is perfectly revealed. Although some of these truths may be somewhat difficult for some to comprehend, do not lose heart. Jesus said, However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth..." (John 16:13) By leaning on the guidance of the Holy Spirit concerning these truths, the doubts that have kept you from living in a totally victorious life will begin to wane and faith with begin to rise.

Bad Things Do Not Come From God - Part 8

Although there are many other incidence in the Old Testament that we could address that have been used as so called evidence that God causes bad things to happen or that it is His will for bad things to happen, we will close our discussion of the Old Testament with this final word.

In the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, there is a very important statement the the LORD reveal concerning His nature that we must apprehend if we are going to see Him in the true light of His true nature.
Malachi 3:6 "For I am the LORD, I do not change..." The LORD God is unchangeable! He is not merciful one moment and then become merciless the next. He is not gracious one moment and then become discourteous the next. He does not abound in goodness and truth and then become bad and lie.
"God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? (Numbers 23:19-20) He does not change! Change implies imperfection and we all know that God is perfect in all He is, all He does and all He says; in everything!

Remember God made Adam a perfect man. He was not mortal nor immortal. He was made in the very image and likeness of God. He was made a little lower than God Himself which means he was above all other things that God had created; he was also given dominion over all of Gods works (Psalm 8:5-6)
It was God who looked at what He had created and said, "Indeed it is very good." God's original plan for man was for him to be in perfect union with Him and to live forever experiencing His very divine nature. Eve may have been deceived, but God gave command to Adam and therefore it was Adams choice that brought the horrible destructive nature of sin upon humanity. It was Adams choice to turn all his authority over to Satan resulting in mankind's slavery to Satan and sin and all their destruction.

We have looked at God's revelation of Himself to Moses...
"Now the LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children's children to the third and the fourth generation." (Exodus 34:6-7) Although throughout Israel's history we see them struck with plagues and in bondage to other nations, but it was not God's doing nor His will for them. His will and plan for Israel was...
"Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation."(Exodus 19:5-6)
It was Israel's continous rejection and rebellion against God that removed them from God's protection, provision and blessings and placed themselves under a curse; slaves to Satan and sin. 

We saw that it was Satan not God who brought all the horrific things on Job. We saw that it was not God's will for these things to happen but Job had given Satan place through fear...
"For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, and what I dreaded has happened to me."
(Job 3:25) We also saw that God does not use Satan as His tool to do evil against humanity, but saw that God is just in every situation and circumstance and acts accordingly...
"As for the Almighty, we cannot find Him; He is excellent in power, in judgment and abundant justice; He does not oppress." (Job 37:23)

We also looked at many Old Testament passages that reveal God's true nature which He had previously revealed to Moses. And now we see that Malachi tells us that God is unchangeable. It is unfortunate that many Christian leaders for centuries have convinced far to many Christians that bad things come from God when in fact it is completely contrary to scripture. It is sad that most Christians today do not have a Biblical understanding of faith and therefore rely on their sense knowledge to live out their Christianity. Sense knowledge says, "when bad things come into one's life it must be God's will for them." It is true that the faith message was twisted like many other revelations that the Holy Spirit has revealed to the church to reform and restore her, but that is certainly no reason to have true Biblical teaching of faith removed from pulpits. The entire Christian life comes down to "faith working through love."

As we explore the New Testament on this very critical topic, my prayer is that the reader rely on the Holy Spirit to have their understanding enlightened in the knowledge of Jesus Christ so that they will truly come to know the truth of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. My prayer is that the doubts that have been placed in the hearts and minds of most Christians from faithless people who preach faithless sermons be assaulted and destroyed so that they can live a free, successful and abundant life in Christ and that we all come to a greater revelation of what He has accomplished for humanity through His death, burial, resurrection, ascension and glorification.

It's Time to Come Out

Without a doubt, the Apostle Paul was a real man of God. He was given abundance of revelation concerning Jesus Christ and what His advent to earth and His ascension to heaven means to all believers. His travels lead him into some very interesting situation to say the least, but as he told Timothy, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." (2 Timothy 4:7) What a testimony. He did not waver when it came to doing what the LORD had commissioned him to do, nor did he retire. He finished what the LORD had called him to do.

One of Paul's trips took him to Philippi where he and one of his traveling companion Silas a prophet, had an encounter with "a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling. This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation." And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And he came out that very hour. (Acts 16:16-18) 


Wow it sounded like free publicity for Paul. However, sometimes things may look or sound right, but believers are to discern what is going on and exercise their authority in the name of Jesus and demand that which is contrary to God’s will to come into alignment with it. This is exactly what happened here. Although this woman was speaking truth concerning Paul's mission, it was still the enemy that was trying to bring confusion to the Jews and Gentiles of Philippi.

The people of Philippi knew that this woman had a spirit of divination although what she was saying was true, Paul discerned what was going on, acted in faith, and used the authority in the name of Jesus to cast the spirit out. If he didn’t it would have appeared to the Jews that Paul was working with the wicked spirit and it would have appeared to the gentiles that there was no difference between the power of darkness and the power of God. This would have destroyed Paul's credibility as a true servant of Christ and would have squelched the gospel from having an effect.

I have met many Christians who think of the Name of Jesus as they do a good luck charm. They put more faith in a hand full of beads, a horoscope or a rabbit’s foot than in the name of Jesus. Their thinking is, “Well maybe it will work” or “Hopefully something good will happen”. But if your thinking is wrong, your believing will be wrong and if your believing is wrong then what you confess will also be wrong and it will be witnessed by your actions or inaction's.

The name of Jesus belongs to all believers and all believers have the right to use His name. When the devil or his gang tries anything, by faith any believer, even if they were saved today can command them to leave in the Name of Jesus and it must leave. PTL

Does Anyone Want a Fig?

The Gospels of Matthew and Mark present some wonderful lessons on faith. We will look at one particular instance and begin in Matthew's gospel and then look at Mark's account of the same events that take place.

Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, let no fruit grow on you ever again. Immediately the fig tree withered away. And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, how did the fig tree wither away so soon? (Matthew 21:18-20) There are many points to consider here but I want to focus on the disciples response to what they saw and then Jesus' answer. The fact that the diciples asked Jesus a question concerning what they saw, should trigger something in believers. Rather than just being amazed as to what happened and moving on, they wanted to know, "How the fig tree wither away soon quickly."

A point to consider here is, why do so many believers read the Word of God, which is a very good thing to do, but do not question the LORD when they do not fully understand certain things in the Bible especially when Jesus said that the Holy Spirit would guide believers into ALL truth. (John 16:13) The disciples really wanted to know and understand this marvalous thing that has taken place...
So Jesus answers and said to them Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
(Mark 11:22-24)

"Have faith in God" literally means have God kind or God like faith. This was exactly what Jesus was doing. He was exercising "God like faith". Doubt would respond something like this, "Well that was Jesus and that is why He was able to have God like faith." However, we need to consider the next two verses and not let doubt neturalize faith. Jesus' resonds by saying, "WHOEVER says...and does not DOUBT in his heart, but BELIEVES...” What Jesus says is not figurative, it is not rhetorical, there is no subliminal, hidden, mysterious message that has to be figured out nor is it because He is the Son of God. Jesus tells them that His ability to do what was done to the fig tree is to simply to believe, have God like faith.

Jesus continues, "...but believes that those things he says will come to pass, he will have whatever he says." Keep in mind that Jesus has also presented an even greater miracle in the beginning of this Verse (23)..."For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes..." Jesus is telling His disciples as well as the "Whoever" that they will have the ability to do miracles like what happened to the fig tree and also be able to move mountains by simply having faith without doubt. Jesus reveals something important to the disciples and us. It is obvious that the Father’s will is much greater and diverse than most believers have faith for. Jesus continues…

"Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them." WOW, what an incredible statement of fact that Jesus makes here. It does seem from what Jesus says here, that believers are to determine what it is that they want to happen, believe that they have received and then they will have it. We must keep in mind that the things that we believe and ask for for must be according to the will of God. "Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything ACCORDING TO HIS WILL, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him." (1 John 5:14-15) But the fact remains that if believers act in faith without doubt that they will receive.

It also seems that the one thing that will prevent God from answering whatever we want according to His will is simply doubt. Unfortunately, many believers are waiting for God to reveal His will and His purpose, when in fact God is waiting for believers to exercise their faith and receive what He has already given in Christ. The faith that Jesus is talking about, is not mental assent or head faith, but faith from the heart (the spirit). The difference is, faith from the heart believes without question, whereas head faith says I believe BUT...

If you are born again you already have faith, so now it's time to assault and destroy the doubt(s), (the buts)!

Oh Boy, What Did I Just Do?

We saw in the last post Gods true purpose for man. However, Genesis 3 reveals the act of treason on Adams part which brought a curse upon all humanity. We see that the woman began to reason within herself  the truth claim of the serpent which was not the truth at all and she ate of the tree. Adam responded to the voice of his wife transgressed the commandment of God. Although the woman, Eve was made equal and comparable to Adam and that she was deceived, God had given Adam the responsibility and authority over all the He had created. This means that Adam was the one charged with committing treason against God thereby forfeiting his rights and authority given to him by God, to Satan by way of transgression. How do we know this?

Then the devil, taking Him (Jesus) up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours." (Luke 4:5-7) The devil could not have made such a claim if he did not have the authority over all the kingdoms of the world. But in fact he did have the authority because we see the devil's claim, "for this has been delivered to me.". Adam did indeed forfeit (deliver) everything to the devil.
2 Corinthians 4 reveals why many people do not except the gospel when it is preached, "whose minds the god of this age (Satan) has blinded" (2 Corinthians 4:4). Besides this, if the devil did not have this authority then it certainly would not have been used as an instrument of temptation against Jesus at all.

Make no mistake, Satan’s desire is to have authority. "How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: 'I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High." (Isaiah 14:12-14) Adam’s act of transgression relinquished his position as the god of the world to Satan which means that God is not ruling over the kingdom’s of this world, yet. "Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!" (Revelation 11:15) Of course this speaks of events yet to come.

However, the kingdom of God is revealed on the earth. First through Jesus Christ, "From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." (Matthew 4:17) Through His disciples, "And as you go, preach, saying,'The kingdom of heaven is at hand". (Matthew 10:7) Then after Christ's work on earth in His physical body was accomplished, through His church, "And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." (Matthew 16:18) God’s authority on earth is in and through the church. Remember, Satan wants authority which should cause us to understand why he works so hard at lying and trying to deceive believers. However, there is great news for those who place their faith in the Lordship of Jesus Christ, because those who do will be partaker of total and complete restoration of mankind. Hallelujah

Being Victorious Through Humility

I Peter 5:5-9 gives believers a principle for living victorious lives. Believers are called to be clothed with humility in both their outward appearance and conduct as proof of a humble heart. Humility then releases the unmerited unearned ability and desire to do Gods will (Grace). That means that no matter how difficult a circumstance or situation a believer finds himself in Gods promise it to elevate a humble believer above them.

However, there is a very important key to not letting life's difficulties pressure believers into discouragement, fear, anxiety and disappointment, "Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7) The Amplified Bible says it this way, "Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully." Wow, what a wonderful Father that we have in heaven. Our heavenly Father does not want His children to worry or be anxious about anything. He wants believers to cast all anxieties, all worries and all concerns, once and for all upon Him. This means to cast our cares on Him and not take them back. This can be a difficult task for believers because Peter reveals where anxiety, worry and concerns come from, "...your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." (I Peter 5:8)

The devil uses lies, deception, accusation and persecution to create circumstances and or situations to cause believers to fret, worry and or be filled with anxiety and concerns because it neutralizes faith. This is why Peter tells believers to be "sober, be vigilant", that is, not showing agitated emotions due to the concerns of the world but being watchful (on guard) because the devil who is an evil spirit has access to us everywhere we go. The devils primary objective is to contend with and oppose believers all the time to get there focus off of the LORD and on anxieties, worries and concerns. What are believers to do?

"Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world." (I Peter 5:9) Stand against the devil! Do not be weak in faith! Do not waver at the promise of God that He will exalt you and that He will take all anxieties, all worries and all concerns if we give them to Him. The crises of this life come to all of us. The difference is believers have the Word of God, the Spirit of God and the name of Jesus to use to resist the devil and stand in faith. We must get out of the habit of worry and anxiety and get into the habit of exercising faith knowing this; the weakest believer has the authority to overpower the devil if his faith is in the Son of God. Hallelujah

The Game of Worry

Worry is the state of engaging in chains of thoughts and images of a negative and an uncontrollable nature in which mental attempts are made to avoid anticipated potential threats. In a sense, worry is a game of the mind. One moment a person is worrying about one thing and before you know it something else seems to become more of a potential threat and new negative thoughts and images replace the former ones. However, worry in not a game. Games are designed to be recreational and fun mainly based on pure strategy, chance or a mixture of the two and usually have a goal which a player aims to achieve. The definition of worry deals with torment not fun.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:25 Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? We certainly have to think about things and even make plans concerning our future. However, the main thought that Jesus is conveying here is God does not want believers burdened with the cares of this life, period.

In Matthew 6:26-30, Jesus wants us to see how much more value people are to God over the animals that God takes care of. He wants us to understand that worry does not add to ones life. We are to consider the beauty of flowers, they just grow, they do not put any effort in and of themselves to do so. How about the most magnificent king of Israel with all his colorful robes and splendor?  Even Solomon magnificence does not compare to Gods creation, yet people, especially His children are more valuable to Him than these splendors. If God is willing to take such care of flowers which grow one moment and are cut down and use for fuel the next, will He not provide so much more for people. "O you of little faith" carries two thoughts.  One is that just a little faith will deactivate worry and is enough to believe God for provision; and or worry becomes a product of those with little or weak faith. Either way, worry takes life away!

Matthew 6:31-32 To worry about the things in which Gods Word says are our in Christ is no different than acting like a lost person who has no hope. Basically worry is sin. God already knows what we are in need of and when we do not believe that what He has promised He is able to perform then we are rejecting His Word and actually believing the devil's lies more than Gods truth.

Finally Jesus tells us a way to get rid of worry. Matthew 6:33 It goes back to the beginning of this passage, ‘Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven” A believers duty is to seek, pursue and desire God and His realm not the things of this earthly realm and He promises to take care of us so that we do not lack but that our needs are always met. It is an act of our will and an exercise of faith to give ALL of our concerns to the LORD, but we must be  convinced (have faith) that God will do what He says.

So therefore give ALL your concerns to the LORD and take one day at a time if and when it comes.
(Matthew 6:34)

Can you HEAR Me Now?

My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen carefully to my words. Don't lose sight of them. Let them penetrate deep into your heart, for they bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body. (Proverbs 4:20-22 NLT) Have you ever made a promise that you either could not or did not keep? Many people have. Before I was saved I would make promises and sometimes failed at carrying them out. However, not long after I became a believer I completely stopped making any promises. Many believers
look at Gods Word and see things like, "For they (Gods Word) bring life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body" and marvel at the promise(s) of God. However, let's begin to see Gods Word as facts! This is what faith is built upon.

Luke 5 is one of numerous passages of scripture that paints a clear picture of hearing the Word of God and and responding to the facts. In Luke 5:12-15 we see a leper who asks Jesus if He is willing to heal Him. Jesus said, "I am WILLING, be cleansed". We see Gods willingness to heal this man but verse 15 holds a key that we need to see, "However, the REPORT went around concerning Him all the more; and great multitudes came together to HEAR, and to be healed by Him of their infirmities."  Isaiah 53:1, John 12:38 and Romans 10:16 all ask the same question, "Who has believed our report"? We see in Luke that a multitude heard His report, believed and were healed. But a little further into Luke 5: 16-26 we see a different perspective towards God Word.

On a certain day Jesus was teaching and as He taught the power to heal was present. But why do we suppose that these men mentioned here brought a paralyzed man on a bed to Jesus? It should be obvious,  they must have HEARD and because they heard and responded, Jesus sees their faith in action. Understand, there was power to heal all who would hear, even for the Pharisees and teachers of the Law, but the scribes and Pharisees "began to reason."

"For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it." (Hebrews 4:2) This is contracting the promise that God gave Israel that Canaan, the Promised Land, would be a place of rest for them in the same way Christ is the ultimate promise of rest to those who believe in Him. Moses preached Gods promises to Israel and they did not mix it with faith (receive the Word as facts) and their unbelief caused a generation to die in the wilderness. When the Word is preached today the same danger exists. If believers do not hear the Word and let it penetrate deep into their hearts and act upon it, unbelief becomes the product and believers will be unfruitful. (See John 15:1-11).

There are many reasons why people, including believers, will not hear Gods Word and act in faith, but the effect is the same, unbelief. Think about this, "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?" (Numbers 23:19)

Let's Get Happy

Do you know anyone who would like to live from day to day eating their food with gladness and simplicity of heart? Well Acts 2:46 tells us that the early church lived this way. When we look at the depth of this we see that gladness means; Rejoicing that displaces worry and gloom and fills the mind with joy. Simplicity of heart means; Having a satisfied, sincere, thankful and pure heart desiring the things of God and not the things of the world.

Unfortunately many believers today look at the early church and somehow think that their world was problem and trial free, that life was just simple and carefree. This kind of thinking is far from the truth. The early church faced more opposition than believers in the USA have ever faced, yet they had gladness and simplicity of heart. The main reason for this kind of lifestyle is because they took their Christianity very seriously. When they confessed the Lordship of Jesus Christ, they understood that all of their rights, opinions and views were freely forfeited to Christ their King! The Apostle Paul reveals this very thing to the church at Corinth, "For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's."
(I Corinthians 6:20) We must keep in mind that the first converts were Jews. This means that they would face disfellowship by the religious leaders and family members who feared the religious leaders (See John 9)

On the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2) Peter preached Christ and exhorted the people to "Be saved from this perverse generation". Today the world is still very much perverse but God's Word still stands as a guiding light to truth. Jesus said, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you FREE." (John 8:31-32). Paul tells us, "So then FAITH comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17) Gladness and simplicity of heart comes to anyone whose foundation is the Word of God and BELIEVES! This is not a general or unspecifed faith in Christ, but a directed faith the Jesus perfectly reveals the Father's will in actions, attitudes, words and commands and God's will has not changed. What they experienced in the early church should be experienced today! All it takes is faith.

No Yeast Please

The disciples of Jesus had just witnessed the supernatural on two separate occasions among a multitude of 5000 and 4000 men, not counting women and children. Jesus healed the sick, diseased and injured and then multiplied the fishes and loaves which feed both groups with abundant leftovers. He and His disciples departed from the multitudes but then encountered a group of Pharisees who were seeking a sign to be showed to them. Jesus refused knowing that signs and wonders would not convince them that He was the Son Of God. Matthew 16:5-7 and Mark 8:14-17 reveals two important things.

First the disciples were concerned about their lack of bread to eat even though they just witnessed the Father's will to heal and provide. Next Jesus uncovers an issue that had gripped the disciples and prevented them from seeing and understanding spiritual things. It had stifled their faith resulting in a hardened heart. Jesus warns them to beware of the leaven (teachings) of the Pharisees, Sadducees and Herod. He was telling them that the teaching of the Pharisees, Sadducees and Herod had influenced them and that their poisonous doctrine had blinded them and prevented them from understanding the supernatural because it neutralizes faith and causes hard hearts. So what are the three leavens that had blinded the disciples eyes and minds, neutralized their faith and cause a harden heart?

Luke 12:1 reveals the leaven of the Pharisees, it is hypocrisy which is transliterated from the Greek to mean play-acting. Today it is called “LEGALISM”…Having strict rules that breeds dead works, behavior modification and performance. Legalism says, “If I can do enough good things, give enough money, pray, praise, study avoid sin God will bless me". It breeds perfectionism which leads to the a sense that we will never please God. Legalism focuses on us, rather than on Christ and His completed work at Calvary.

ACTS 23:8 reveals the leaven of the Sadducees. This is the leaven of unbelief. Today it is called theological liberalism. Theological liberalism rejects the supernatural and looks for alternative explanations for the supernatural found in Scripture or when it is encountered in the church today. They basically go through the motions of ceremonial religion as if that was all Christianity consists of. The problem is unbelief. The effects of this poisonous unbelieving leaven is, unbelief prevent believers from being free and receiving all that Christ has done for them.

Matthew 10:1-14 is a good example of the leaven of Herod. The leaven of Herod is using worldly practices to accomplish goals, better known as pragmatism, the means is justified by the end. For Herod, pragmatism meant that he was willing to do anything and justify anything in order to accomplish his goals. Worldly practices in the church today use whatever means to accomplish our goals not Gods plans or put another way, to get things the way we want them to be. Worldly practices encourage dishonesty, deception and or manipulation to get the required results. These methods express unbelief that the Father will do what actually is needed. There are many man made, man inspired programs in the church today that use worldly practices to entice people to visit a church as well as to keep people in the church.

Unfortunately many believers today have fallen prey to these poisonous doctrines that have been promoted in the church for centuries. Believers must seek Gods help in removing any and every one of these leavens from their lives and allow faith to arise and believe that God can and is willing to take care of all spiritual, physical, financial and material needs. The day of unwavering faith in Christ is upon us and the church must respond if we are going to stand in this evil day. Remember, "A little leaven, leavens the whole lump".