Hebrews 11:1 "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."
Pleasing God through our works is impossible. We could never do enough, be enough, or give enough to please God. Proverbs 3:3-4 says “Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.” Love and faithfulness – that is what pleases God. The Bible is full of examples of ordinary people who are obedient to God’s calling and they all have one thing in common - Faith. Obedience is the result of faith (Romans 1:5). Without faith we have no reason to be obedient. If we don’t believe that God is who He says He is, or that He will do what He says He will do (Beth Moore), why bother walking in obedience? 1 John 5:3 says “This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome”. So in order to love God and obey his commands, we must first have faith in Him.
Consider Mary, who because of her faith and obedience was blessed with the honor of giving birth to our Savior. Consider Queen Esther, who in faith approached the king to plead for her people, even though doing so without permission could result in death. Her people were saved from annihilation. Consider Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who in faith, would not bow down to the gods of Nebuchadnezzar. They were rescued from the fiery furnace. Faith was their foundation. God rewarded each of them and He will reward you for yours as well.
Feeling a little weak in the faith? Take the example of the father who brought his son to Jesus for healing in Mark chapter 9:21-24: Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?” “From childhood,” he answered. “It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.” “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for him who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” In a moment of sheer and utter honesty, the father admits his doubt and begs for help in overcoming his unbelief. We to, can do the same. We can pray that God will build our faith that we might honor and glorify our Father and His Son. We can pray that God will help us overcome our unbelief so that God can perform in our lives like he performed in the lives of Esther, Mary and Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. THIS is a prayer that He LOVES to answer.
Todays post was submitted by Kelly Coxe
Good stuff Kelly!!! As we all know, the Bible says ...the faith of a mustard seed can move mountains!! Wow, that's very powerful;however, I can't help but think that I want to have a VERY, VERY strong faith in my Savior! Take for example, the sixth chapter of Judges, in which we learn about Gideon. As I see it, Gideon was actually a bit of a whimp or a bit cowardly because he was afraid of what others thought, or of what would happen if he placed an offering at the altar per God's instruction. However, he did do what was instructed, even if he sort of tip-toed to the altar in the middle of the night so as not to be seen. The Lord can work with that attitude because of the promise of the power of just a little faith. That being said, I can react to Bible history in a different manner than the person about which the history or parable is written. Although Gideon is an ispiration, I see that I would rather be strong like Paul or David or those previously mentioned above-->Mary, Shad, Meshach, abednego,...Be a blessing!
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