Category Archives: “What Is” Series

“What Is” Series: Faith

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Faith is the key to our relationship with God

“Optimism is the Faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can not be done without hope and confidence.”–Helen Keller

What is faith? According to Merriam-Webster, faith is:

  • allegiance to duty or a person–loyalty; fidelity to one’s promises; sincerity of one’s intentions
  • belief and trust in and loyalty to God; belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion; firm belief in something for which there is no proof; complete trust
  • something that is believed with strong conviction, especially a system of religious beliefs; faith without question

Examples of faith could be:

  • Light switch: You go into a dark room. You turn on the light switch; but before you do this, you know that if you turn it on, there will be light. A glimmer of faith.
  • Chair: The chair represents faith so that when you sit down on it, you believe that the chair will hold you and that it won’t break.

There are countless scriptures in the Word of God that tell us what faith is and who our faith is to be in–God:

Hebrews 11:1: “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (NIV) In this particular chapter, Paul gives us examples of individuals who lived by faith: By faith Abel; by faith Enoch; by faith Noah; by faith Abraham; by faith Isaac; by faith Jacob; by faith Joseph; by faith Moses; by faith the people passed through the Red Sea; by faith the walls of Jericho fell down as well as countless others are listed because of their faith in God.

Romans 10:17: “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ.” (NIV)

II Corinthians 5:7: “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” (NIV)

Hebrews 11:6: “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” (NIV)

Mark 11:22: “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. (NIV)

I Corinthians 2:5: “So that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.” (NIV)

I Corinthians 16:13: “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage, be strong.” (NIV)

Romans 1:17: “The righteous will live by faith.” (NIV)

Galatians: 4:4-6: “There is one body and one Spirit–just as you were called one hope when you were called–one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all, and in all.” (NIV)

So why do so many people struggle with a “lack of faith?”

According to GotQuestions.com, many people struggle with a lack of faith because “we follow our perceptions of what is true rather than what we know to be true in faith.”

As Christians, our faith is based on our belief in God and in His Son, Jesus Christ. His Word is a testimony of His faithfulness and His promise to us is actual evidence of our faith and hope in God (Hebrews 6:17-20: “Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.” (NIV)

“The main reason we struggle with faith is that we don’t truly know the God in whom we profess to have faith.”–GotQuestions.com

In order to “know” God and “have faith in God”, we need to know Him by spending more time in His Word and getting to know Him in a more intimate way by conversing with Him through prayer and listening to His “still, small voice.” In other words, we need to spend time in God’s presence on a daily basis. We don’t have to spend hours on our knees. The song, “In The Garden”, says that “He walks with me and He talks with me and He tells me I am His own.” God can only become more real in your life if you allow Him to “walk and talk with you.”

God is standing at the door “knocking and asking” for you to let Him in–to get to know you more–and make Himself more real in your lives.

In conclusion, I want to leave you with Paul’s prayerful words to the Ephesians:

Ephesians 3:14-19: “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through FAITH. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge–that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (NIV)

May the Lord bless each and every one of you as you grasp “how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” for you.

Blessings,

Yvonne

“What Is” Series: Truth

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References

“To those involved in a dying world, Satan will come with evil’s undiluted power to deceive, for they have refused the truth which could have saved them. They see truth as a lie and the lie as truth. They accept the lies of the devil.”–Billy Graham

Jesus is the truth and sin keeps us from the truth. But what is truth?

According to the dictionary, truth is “conformity to reality or actuality; a true statement. That which is real in a deeper sense; spiritual or genuine reality; a true thing; a verified fact; a true statement or proposition. An established principle, fixed law or the like; as, the great truths of morals; righteousness; true religion; to assert as true; to declare.”–Princeton’s WordNet–Wiktionary–Webster’s Dictionary

But is truth “absolute/universal?” When someone defends their actions and when asked if they are “lying”, they normally say “that is the absolute truth” whether they are lying or not.

According to the definition of “absolute” truth, it is something that is true at all times and in all places. It is something that is always true no matter what the circumstances. It is a fact that cannot be changed.–Wikipedia

“Tolerance has become the one cardinal virtue of the postmodern society, the one absolute, and, therefore, intolerance is the only evil. Any belief in absolute truth is viewed as intolerance, the ultimate sin. Those who deny absolute truth will often say that is is alright to believe what you want, as long as you do not try to impose your beliefs on others. But this view itself is a belief about what is right and wrong, and those who hold this view most definitely do try to impose it on others. They set up a standard of behavior which they insist others follow, thereby violating the very thing they claim to uphold (another self-contradicting position). Those who hold such a belief simply do not want to be accountable for their actions. If there is absolute truth, then there are absolute standards of right and wrong, and we are accountable to those standards. This accountability is what people are really rejecting when they reject absolute truth.”–www.GodQuestions.net

“There are three evidences for the existence of absolute truth. First, there is the human conscience; second, science; and third, religion. Religion is really evidence that mankind is more than just a highly evolved animal. It is evidence of a higher purpose and of the existence of a personal and purposeful Creator who implanted in man the desire to know Him and if there is a Creator, then He becomes the standard for absolute truth, and it is His authority that establishes that truth.”–GotQuestions.net

“Society no longer cares about the truth. It doesn’t matter what one regards as “truth” just as long as they are sincere. Truth is subjective, society says, and it is up to each individual to decide for themselves what is right and wrong. We need to remember that anything other than the truth needs to be rejected. Our culture shuns authority and looks down upon biblical values.”–LivingWaters.com

This appears to be the mentality of our society today–a lack of conscience to do what is morally right. Doing and saying what you want without regard to whether it is absolute truth or not. A world without a conscience would be a dangerous place to live.

If that is the “truth”, then lets look at what the Word of God has to say about truth (NIV translation):

John 14:6: “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

John 8:31-32: To the Jews who believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

John 16:13: “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. he will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.”

John 4:23-24: “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”

I John 3:18; “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.”

II Timothy 2:15: “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”

Ephesians 4:15: “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.”

Psalm 25:5: “Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.”

Psalm 86:11: “Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth.”

From these scriptures, we absolutely determine that there is a Creator who will lead us into all truth which is Jesus Christ. Jesus never changes and the Word of God points us to the way, the truth and the life.

When I first thought of writing about “truth”, my first thought turned to the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, among these life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Then I asked myself, what does “inalienable” mean. According to Vocabulary.com, it is “something that is yours forever, that can’t be taken away and given to your little brother. The word refers to a ‘natural’ right that cannot be revoked by an outside force.”

If that is the case, then Christianity (Salvation) is for all believers–that which is given to all and cannot be taken away by any outside force.

The Word of God is our compass in the world we live in today. It gives us the directions and information on how to live a life pleasing to God in every area of our lives.

Philippians 4:8 says, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me–put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”

May we try to live in the truth as we follow Jesus’ teachings and apply them to our lives daily.

Blessings,

Yvonne