Last night, as I prayed, it occurred to me that when Jesus said will I find faith, He was talking about us, those who claim to believe. Faith for what you ask? Faith the substance of what I believe, the ability to live or die, the ability to hear from God. Faith that God's thoughts for you are good. Faith that we are who God said we are, sons and daughters of His. Faith that He did not leave us powerless. Faith that all things are possible to them that believe. Faith that the Comforter will lead us into all truth. But the fearful, doubtful and unbelieving, of who everything is unclean and corrupt, cannot receive anything from God for their double mindedness. Most of them vote for a pretrib rapture, the easy button, no faith required. The downside of no faith is fear, sound familiar! A faithless and perverse generation is what we live in. What are you going to do about it?
Believing is the only answer. But what do we believe? Well, what are you able to believe? Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness. God told him to sacrifice his son, and he almost did, but God stopped him. Abraham didn’t have any written word to look at and say, Oh look, God stops me. No, in fact he thought God would raise him from the dead, which God could have done. But, raising Isaac from the dead was not God’s will. Delivering from death was God’s will. We who are able to be delivered from death will by our faith, which to God is righteousness.
Some want to put their finger into Jesus' nail holes or their hand in His side before they will believe. They defeat them themselves. The purpose of faith is to prove that you believe God, not having seen Him. Blessed are those who believe without seeing. Being limited to faith by works (being a good person, reading the bible, going to church) is different than faith in God.
What do these scripture mean?
Jeremiah 33:19 And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying, 20Thus saith the LORD; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season; 21Then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers.
Isaiah 13:9 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. 10For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. 11And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
Matthew 24:28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together. 29Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 30And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
Jeremiah 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: 32Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
They mean the old Covenant is broken!
Still there are those who want to hold onto the old covenant, Those who say I'll blah, blah, blah.. No you won't, not in heaven or on the earth. They prefer the old wine, the law, the new wine faith though Jesus, is an unseen substance and unsettling to those who think that they are fine by their works. Faithless! Not lovers of truth.
What is the new covenant doctrine of finding faith at the return of Jesus. All these (scriptures) are true by themselves, yet when you stack them up they come to an end. Is that end truth or not? If we are to be built line upon line, our faith depends on what and with what we are built. If we are to be found worthy to escape, free from fear and unbelief, we must be built with something. Faith! Faith in what? Working out your own salvation, with fear and trembling takes on a new meaning if we are to live to see the return of our Lord, the King of Kings. Jesus finding faith at His return. But, at the same time being careful where you stand least you fall. We are that generation. We cannot look to the past for the times to come, no man has seen them, and they are unlike any time before or will be after. Many things are written about these times, but understanding comes by the Holy Ghost, not the wisdom of man. The Father writes His doctrine on our hearts, your heart, but do you have ears to hear? Can you build with these?
John 10:15 As the Father knoweth me (Jesus, and I though Him), even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. 17Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. 18No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.
Philippians 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
1 John 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world (and faithless) knoweth us not, because it knew him not. 2Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
Revelation 3:8 I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.
Daniel 11:32 And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. 33And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they (hearers not the doers) shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil, many days.
Zechariah 12:8 In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them.
2 Corinthians 1:20 For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.
1 Peter 1:9 Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.
Hebrews 4:10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. 11Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. 12For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
2 Corinthians 10:4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
Revelation 11: 4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. 5And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.
Revelation 6: and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
What is the sum of these words? Do they join together?
Acts 17:11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. 12Therefore many of them believed
2 Peter 1:20Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
John 16:13Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
Does your faith allow you to receive what the Holy Spirit has to show you what will come? Or will you be ever seeking never coming to the knowledge? Faith pleases God.
L,J,P&HG
Dave
Thursday, February 14, 2008
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11 comments:
Faith in Him is what pleases God Amen and Faith in His Word is what pleases God, not faith in faith or faith in men...Amen...there is only one thing we can trust and that is the Word of God, because that will remain the same for all eternity not one jot nor tittle shall pass from it until it is all fulfilled. Amen
Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
18For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven...
Amen, Praise God, and I thank Him for His Holy Spirit which leads us into all truth...Amen
Amen, Dave.
Faith does please God. Without faith, we cannot please God.
Thank you for sharing.
God bless,
Ryan
Helen,
You said:
there is only one thing we can trust and that is the Word of God,
I would also add the Holy Spirit who leads into all truth. Who brings life to the Word, because the letter kills. The voice of Jesus, whose sheep know His voice.
Romans 8:4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
L,J,P&HG
Dave
Jesus is THE WORD, The Holy Spirit is The SPIRIT OF JESUS/GOD, all agree. Anything the Spirit speaks to us can be found and confirmed in the Word. The Holy Spirit will not speak anything to us that is outside the perimiters of the written Word of God. The Word is brought to life by the leading and guiding and teaching and revealing of The Holy Spirit...Amen...The Word cannot be understood but by the Holy Spirits guidance and revealing The Truth to us..Amen
And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of.... my Spirit.... upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth,... which proceedeth from the Father,.... he shall testify of me:
God Bless Helen B.
To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.
See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:
Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.
And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.
Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:
For our God is a consuming fire....Amen brother Dave on this we agree...the new convenant, and God is a consuming fire...Oh and I do believe He is able to keep His people, in the fire, out of the fire, above the fire or through the fire...His choice....Amen. He is the author and finisher of our faith...He chose us we didn't choose Him...we love Him don't we...Amen...He is ever Good and ever Faithful..Amen..God bless Helen B
Helen,
Good scriptures. Very true.
I wanted to make a comment, however, on the point of, "in the fire, out of the fire, above the fire or through the fire...His choice". I understand what you mean here but we need to be clear that it is our choice in God.
Although it is true that many will not have a choice, because the life they chose to live left them with only one outcome, to die for Christ (dieing in the Lord) that they may have a better resurrection than that if they chose to deny God, we need to know that God allows us the liberty to choose.
We must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling before God, and we must know that for EVERY trial, God makes a way of escape.
To live is Christ, to die is gain. I pray that God would give His people strength that they would be able to stand in the dark day to come. If people choose not to change their lives, today, to make sure everything is pleasing to the Lord, they will be left with only one choice(if their judgment does not come early). Those who choose today to serve God in Spirit and in Truth and to live a holy and acceptable life unto the Lord can be found worthy to escape and can be hid in God.
God bless,
Ryan
Yes I agree Ryan about choices, we choose wether we are going to serve God with all our mind body spirit and soul, and He then chooses when where and how He is going to afford us His keeping power, whether in the fire, out of the fire, or through the fire...does that further clarify how I believe? There are no grey areas with God, no inbetween levels..its black and white hot or cold..HE said I would that you be HOT or COLD if you are LUKE WARM I WILL SPEW you OUT OF MY MOUTH...now HE couldn't get much more graphic or clear about what HE means there now could HE???!!! Amen, God is good HE never leaves us guessing now does HE..AMEN..it surely is an exciting time to be alive IN THE LORD...AMEN???!!! LOVE YOU GUYS IN THE LORD...Helen...may we all be counted worthy to escape that which is to come and stand before our LORD...no human looks foward to death, even JESUS said "IF it be possible let this cup pass from ME...never the less, not MY will but THINE be done"...Amen!!!
Quote: "We must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling before God, and we must know that for EVERY trial, God makes a way of escape."
I'm not sure that I agree with the above statement, it is temptation the Lord promises a way of escape from:
"Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man:
but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able;
but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry."
Sometimes we have to go through, trials and then in the end come forth victorious...God doesn't remove the trial, He is with us
through the trial when we commit ourselves entirely to HIM..amen..God said He would have a tried and a tested people, if He were to prevent us from trials, then how would he test us? and He does test us to see what we are made of you know..He allows us to go through trials that we may come
forth as gold..tried in the fire...Amen...God Bless...I'll leave you alone now for the rest of the day...lol
Helen,
You said:
Anything the Spirit speaks to us can be found and confirmed in the Word. The Holy Spirit will not speak anything to us that is outside the perimeters of the written Word of God.
Response: I'm sure that you do not intend to confuse others, but I believe that what you said is some what true, but not the absolute truth. When Jesus said: Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeded out of the mouth of God. He didn't mean the law or Old Testament alone because the New Testament wasn't written then. We cannot exclude those "Words" (New Testament). Much of the book of Revelation is all new words. Further revelations come daily to Spirit filled believers that have ears to hear as well. Because the Holy Spirit will show us things to come. Those words are not written either. While a jot or title will not pass away people must understand that God still speaks to those who can hear. Let it suffice to say that what we hear will agree with what is written, and that it will be born witness of the Holy Spirit, though it is not necessary that any of the words have been written before, ever.
L,J.P&HG
Dave
Helen,
In response to your comment, "I'm not sure that I agree with the above statement, it is temptation the Lord promises a way of escape from":
I understand what you are saying regarding the actual scripture that you referenced here, that it specifically says temptation. However, we do need to have ears to hear in the Spirit regarding all that the Lord would teach us.
If we live our lives as Christians, than we must desire nothing less than to be Christ-like. If we look to Jesus alone, not any prophet, not any apostle, than why can we not accept that for every trial God can and does make a way of escape?
I am not saying that God will keep you from every trial, that would be contrary to God's word (the very life that we live is the trial of our Faith, how can it be avoided). However, if we do not accept the fact that Jesus escaped every single trial that came against Him, than how can we be joint heirs and walk as He walked?
The only time Jesus did not escape was when He submitted Himself to the enemy, there was a way of escape (legion of angels could have been called down), but Jesus chose it not. He chose to obedient unto death, that we might have life. We need to be of wisdom and understanding that we can hold fast to the promises of God and not let ourselves be defeated before the battle even comes. The Lord said rejoice that you are worthy to be tempted for those that endure will be given a crown of life. If we do not allow God to show us the way of escape, and believe Him at His word, we will continually run around the mountain, never allowing ourselves the opportunity to climb to the top, where God would have us to be.
These comments are not intended to be an argument, debating doesn't further the kingdom of God. However, God desires us to hear from His mouth and live our lives, everyday, accordingly. I desire for all of His people to be set free, to walk in liberty, to be able to hold fast to the truth that when we see Him, we will be like Him. That God can keep us from the hour of temptation that is to come upon the whole earth.
We serve a Great God, this you know. I just become a little saddened when people look, lawfully, to the scriptures to teach them all things, when they should be of age, knowing that it is the Spirit of God alone that can lead us into all truth. This is the very reason why Jesus came, that we could have fellowship with the Father. True that all of the words within the Book will be fulfilled and never pass away, but if salvation was obtained by works, God would have never given us the Spirit because the Bible would have been enough to teach us what He would have us to know. This is the difference between the wise and foolish virgins.
My prayer is that all who read the words that are shared on this blog would have ears to hear, and that they would look to the Spirit of God to lead them into all truth.
God be with us,
Ryan
Lest any one be confused: May I clarify what I believe to be true one more time, as it is not my desire to confuse any soul.
The Holy Spirit will NOT speak something to the child of God that in any way contradicts the written Word of God,
Changes the Word of God,
adds to the written Word of God, detracts from the written Word of God,
replaces the written Word of God, or that is in opposition to the written Word of God,
Or that is not in agreement with the written Word of God. Although the Holy Spirit may speak on a level that we can understand on a dialy basis as individuals, with personal intimate words for us. Those words will always line up with the critera above.. I could go on but at this time I won't.
Amen
God Bless
Helen
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