Immediate Belief

 

If You can?” echoed Jesus. “All things are possible to him who believes!” Immediately, the boy’s father cried out, “I do believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:23-24)

Belief is not a static activity. You don’t receive it then not use it in life and expect it to be strong. Belief requires the person to exercise faith for it to grow. The father in this passage believed Jesus could do miracles. He was unsure if Jesus would do a miracle for him and his son or if He would do this particular miracle.

Was his uncertainty because he felt lower in status than Jesus? Did he feel he didn’t deserve to be in Jesus’ presence? Was the father afraid people would laugh at him if his son wasn’t healed? Or had the father not grown in his faith so that his belief would include trusting in God’s care for his demon-possessed son’s life?

What keeps you from going to Jesus? Unbelief? Lack of faith growth? Feeling unworthy? Fear of what God and/or people will expect of you from that point? Never giving your dreams and hopes to God, like the hopes the father had for his son’s life? Each person can have these and other blocks to growth in faith in God.

God gives belief to anyone who will accept it. Belief resides in your heart, but it’s not belief until it is acted upon. Faith must be lived out. Each person must wrestle with his doubts of faith and grow stronger in his belief in God. The wrestling is internal. When the wrestling with doubts and faith in God results in positive actions of belief, faith grows.

Will you act upon the belief God gifts to you? 

Wrestle with and toss off your doubts. Grow in your faith in God. Give your doubts to God, like the father in this passage did, and grow closer to Him. You are never alone; God is always with you. Become like the father and immediately believe God can do that for which you need.

Desire of My Heart

 

“Good teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (Mark 10:17 [NASB])

Jesus spoke to the rich man (the rich, young ruler) who sought to be closer to God. This wealthy man asked Him what he must do to inherit eternal life. Notice a couple things in this passage. The man recognized who Jesus is. Jesus recognized the desire in the man’s heart and what kept him from absolute surrender to God.

Jesus asked why he called Him good; only God is good. He noticed this man recognized God in Him. People who do good things or teach well are not inherently good. Goodness comes as a gift from God to those who are in a relationship with Him. For the rich man to call Jesus good meant He saw God in Him. This man saw Jesus’ relationship with the Father. A person can only have a relationship with holy God when he or she is holy. No person is holy innately. Each person sins and falls short of God’s glory, His holiness (Romans 3:23). God will not be around unrighteousness. Like darkness and light cannot exist in the same place, holiness and sin cannot exist in the same place. This rich man recognized Jesus’ holiness, His absolute goodness, which comes from being part of the triune Godhead. He called Him good.

Another thing we should notice is Jesus looked at the rich man, his external dress, which proclaimed his wealth, and his heart, which had kept God’s Ten Commandments. The man did everything he knew God wanted but still recognized he did not have the relationship with God his heart desired and was not innately good. Jesus understood these things about the rich man and recognized the one thing he had not given or acknowledged as coming from God, the gift God had given him, his wealth. Many people who have a gift from God forget they did not earn the benefits of that gift by themselves. God gave them the ability. For this rich man of Mark 10, God gave him the mind to create and steward wealth. This means God gave him the wealth since He gave him the ability to become wealthy and steward it wisely.  Jesus met the rich man at this point in his relationship with God. This rich young man had kept the Commandments. He sought God. The rich man strove to be closer to God. Yet, when Jesus explained the thing that kept him from his desired closeness to Him, the man hung his head in sorrow. He refused to give up his wealth to be closer to God. This rich man had not come to the place in his spiritual growth to recognize or be willing to recognize God gave and would continue to provide for him after he gave back to God what He had given him. God gave the rich man the gift of prosperity. The rich man held onto it as if he owned it since he thought he created it. He was unwilling to recognize his wealth came from God and, therefore, if God asked for its return, he should give it. The rich man was just the steward of God’s wealth for a time.

Jesus acknowledged the rich man saw Him correctly. He has a close relationship with the Father. This rich man recognized Jesus’ holiness and sought the answer to his heart’s desire - how he could have a closer relationship with God. Jesus commended the man. Then, He looked at the man and saw his heart. This rich man had followed the Ten Commandments given by God through Moses. Yet, he truly was not ready to have a relationship with God because He was unwilling to acknowledge from Whom his gifts came and to Whom they ultimately belonged.

Each of us at points in our lives seeks to be closer to God. The nature He put within us when He created us craves closeness with Him. As we seek this closeness, God helps us realize what may stand in our way of having this closeness with Him. Like Jesus, He shows and tells us what we need to give up to have a closer relationship with Him. For some people, God may ask they be willing to work among the homeless. For others, He may ask they give up some of their personal resources. Still others, God may them to join a Bible study or to believe in Jesus Christ for salvation. For every person, God asks we give back to Him the gifts He gives to us. These gifts could be the ability to make wealth, be athletic, be a scholar, be organized and a good planner, be a good woodworker, plumber, roofer, gardener, or do whatever is your gifting. Each of these are gifts from God. These gifts are a person’s wealth. Gifts often interfere in our having a close relationship with God. We want to keep them to ourselves because people identify us by these wonderful things we do and are. We like people to acknowledge we are good at something and give us praise and admiration. People’s applause for us is important to our psyche and ego. Until we can give everything to God that He gave us, wealth or any kind of acuity, we will not have a close relationship with Him. These gifts become an idol or god in our minds. The rich man did not want to give to God his personal wealth. He did not recognize it was already God’s, and he was just the steward. This man’s wealth kept him from the closer relationship with God that he wanted God does not give gifts for us to hoard for ourselves, but to serve a purpose in His plans, to bring Him glory, and to draw us and other people closer to Him.

What gift do you have that you refuse to part with so you can be closer to God? What are you hoarding instead of acknowledging as God’s and being His steward? Will you give back to Him for His purposes what He gave to you - wealth, skills, mental acuity, efficiency, organization skills, patience, joy, musical ability, athleticism, and the glory that comes from people because of these? Or, will you keep them for yourself and not refuse the close relationship with God that your heart, mind, and spirit desires? I need to give back to Him the gifts He gave me to use for His purposes (organization, efficiency, and planning skills) instead of allowing them to determine my day and what gets done. What about you?

“Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4 [NASB])

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21 [NASB])

Chosen

"You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.” (John 15:16 [NASB])

This Bible verse reminds me of when I was a child playing with the other children on our street. About 14 of us would get together after school and on weekends to play in the front yards of each neighbor. Sometimes, we would play football, ride our bikes, skate, skateboard, and play hopscotch or hide and seek. No yard was out of bounds. We had a carefree time just being kids, except for one thing. Choosing sides for the teams. I don’t know about you, but I was always nervous about the choosing of teammates. I was afraid a team captain would not choose me until last, when one of them had to choose me. For my fragile ego, this fear overrode the anticipation of fun.

Jesus explains throughout the Gospels that before He came to walk on the earth and we had the chance to hear, see, and be with Him, He loved us. Jesus loved us enough to lay aside the comforts of His heavenly home to live with us. That speaks volumes. What speaks louder to the child still in me is that Jesus chose me. He did not have to say, “Eeny meeny miny, mo.” I was not the first or the last, but I was chosen; I am chosen. What makes this child melt into God’s arms is what Jesus said in verse fifteen. He said, “I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.” Not only am I chosen, but I am His friend. An endearing title.

Time still remains for people to accept Jesus’ calling of their name to be on His team. No one will be the last chosen by Him until His return to earth to take His followers to His kingdom. Jesus will call His “friends” at that time to follow Him. He will make them perfect and complete. Right now, the captains stand opposite each other and call out the names of people to be on their teams. Only two options exist. Towards which captain will you walk and make your allegiance, Jesus or self?

Expectant at the Rampart

(Author:Keirn OConnor Source:https://www.flickr.com/photos/keirn/77876813/) 

“I will stand on my guard post and station myself on the rampart; and I will keep watch to see what He will speak to me, and how I may reply when I am reproved.”

In chapter one, Habakkuk cried out as the voice of Judea aghast at God’s devastating judgment of the them by using the Chaldeans to correct and reprove them. In chapter two verse one, Habakkuk determined and expected to hear from God. He wanted a chance to hear from God more, to understand better, to receive more instructions, and, possibly, to complain. Habakkuk, as the trained priest of the temple or a prophet, knew to wait for and listen to God, and how to do that.

What did Habakkuk say in verse one? He made one statement and reiterated it to emphasize how important it was to him. He said, “I will stand on my guard post and station myself on the rampart.” A guard is a person who is a servant of another, a commander. His job is to do what the boss tells him to do. For the commander to speak to him, the guard must be in his assigned place, on guard watching and waiting expectantly. A guard’s job at his post on the rampart was to watch for incoming enemies or couriers bringing news. The rampart was a place on the wall away from the noise of the city. It was high enough to see far and wide from the wall so couriers or enemies would not catch the citizens unaware. If the guard was at ground level, he would have no advance notice of anyone approaching the gates. The guard and citizens would be caught off-guard when news or enemies arrived. The guard’s job was to watch and wait expectantly, then report what he sees and hears to the commander and people.

Habakkuk made the analogy he is the guard. He would stand on guard at his post on the rampart waiting with expectancy and patience for God to meet with him. Habakkuk was the guard, the watchman, for the Judeans waiting for revelations from God. His job was to be the mouth for God’s pronouncements to the Judeans and for anyone else to whom God wanted to speak. Habakkuk expected God to speak and so prepared and positioned himself to wait expectantly and patiently for Him.

Habakkuk chose to hear from God. He intentionally stationed himself on the rampart because he listened to God’s judgment of the Judeans in chapter one. Habakkuk recognized the sins of his people and understood they deserved God’s judgment. He also realized when he told the Judeans about their judgment from God, anger, confusion, fear, and questions would arise. Habakkuk, as a Judean, wanted to understand better. That’s what the word “see” means in Hebrew. It means to hear, perceive, consider, and understand. As a priest of Yahweh God, Habakkuk wanted to know God better and understand His heart more. As a priest to the Judeans, he wanted to understand well so he could give the Judeans reasons for their judgment from God.

Habakkuk sought God because he knew God; he had a personal relationship with Him. He sought Him because it was a discipline that became a habit in his life. Habakkuk sought God because he had a relationship with him of love and servanthood. He devoted himself to God. Habakkuk’s determined seeking of God-waiting patiently and expectantly knowing God wanted to be with Him-was his devotion time, his quiet time, with God.

A guard on the rampart is an analogy for being a child of God who seeks Him through devotion and quiet times. So often people say, “Well I am open to God to talk to me all day. He can speak to me as I work or drive, so I don’t need, nor do I have time for a quiet time each day. God understands that.” Yes, God understands you are busy, and you put your busy-ness before Him. Your devotion to God is not absolute like Habakkuk’s when your schedule is more important than your time with Him each day. A quiet time is a time you expectantly and patiently wait for God to speak to you externally through His Word and internally through the whispers of His Spirit. It would be hard to hear God over conversations with other people, music in your car, busy-ness in your office, or the roar of the vacuum. That’s not saying God can’t break into your day, if He wants. By living this way, it says God is not important enough in your life. You are not devoted totally to Him and so set aside a time to wait and expect Him to meet with you.

Why do we have quiet times and devotionals?

Ø  To deepen our relationship with God through communing together.

Ø  To hear a word of encouragement, love, correction, or instruction.

Ø  To draw strength and peace from His Spirit.

Ø  To find calm during your busy-ness.

God knows how to fill the needs of our hearts, minds, bodies, and spirits. Quiet times with Him do this.

Why do we have quiet times? Because as a child of God, we naturally yearn to be close to Abba, Daddy.

Don’t neglect yourself by chasing butterflies. Go to God, the butterfly Maker.