12/29/2018
We receive the blessing of Abraham through faith in Jesus Christ. It is in this way, through our faith in Jesus, that we also receive the Holy Spirit. So once again the power of faith, and specifically our faith in Christ, and His ability to save us from the law, quickens us. Are you prepared for the reformation of the law, by placing total faith in Jesus, and to receive both the blessing and the Spirit this allows us?
“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree"— so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.”
Galatians 3:13-14 ESV
What is faith? We often say we believe, and we equate that to faith... we use these words as synonyms for one another, but are we right in doing this? Well, not entirely. When Jesus performed a miracle those who saw it believed He did this, but believing in that miraculous event they had witnessed only allowed them to have faith that Jesus was who He said He was... the Son of God. They believed in what they saw, but that allowed them to have faith in what they couldn’t see.
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.”
Hebrews 11:1-3 ESV
So belief is trusting that something is true; it is having confidence in something or someone, or in other words it is based on the tangible, and the visible. Believing in the Miracles in our lives, like the healing of a loved one, are meant to bolster our faith... they are not a substitute for it.
As a boy I was swimming in a lake, and far from the shore I became too tired to continue. I began to sink down into the water... I was drowning. Suddenly I had an incredible feeling of peace and joy, then I heard the voice of the Lord tell me some wonderful things before finally instructing me to stand up. I thought to myself “what good will this do because I am far from land and the water is so deep?” But I did as I was instructed and low and behold my feet touched the bottom and as I extended my legs my head broke the surface... I was only a few feet from the bank of the lake. I walked out onto dry land with no water in my lungs and collapsed there from exhaustion. That was a miracle, and I believe to this day that I was saved. This belief in what I experienced has allowed my faith in God, and Jesus Christ, who I have not seen, to flourish.
So Jesus died on the cross before all those present, He was placed in the tomb where He was resurrected from the dead, seen by His apostles, and later ascended into heaven. They witnessed this, and believed this. We, on the other hand, are like even the many first century believers who hear of this and must trust it is true by faith. We did not witness it... to us it is unseen... we take this as true by faith. We also take the Word of God as true... although we hold the Bible in our hand, it takes faith to transport those written words into the Divinely Inspired Word of God.
So it is by faith that we receive the blessing of Abraham, and by faith in Jesus that we receive the Holy Spirit, but once they begin to work in our lives and we have tangible evidence of their presence... then our faith is greatly strengthened, and just as mysteriously as I was physically transported from the depths of a lake to its shore, our faith transports us to the doorstep of belief. We trust in these things we cannot see, our faith, just as completely as we trust in those things we see... our beliefs. It is at that moment that miracles Bridge heaven and earth and the duplicity of our being (spiritual and physical) becomes real to us.
How is your faith? Has it lead you to believe?
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for the mustard seed of faith that you have carefully planted in each of us, and I thank you for the miracles that you perform in our lives so that our faith will be strengthened. Holy Father I read the Bible, your Word, and believe it to be true... not because I have witnessed these events, or been to these places, but because my faith in you allows me to walk the narrow bridge to where you are waiting for me. The evidence if your presence in my life allows me to reach that point where my next step of faith is belief. I listen to the voices of Andrea and Matteo Bocelli sing these words and they cease to be a song, but speak to me of you...
“I close my eyes
And I’m seeing you everywhere
I step outside
It’s like I’m breathing you in the air
I can feel you there”
They take me to that place where what is unseen becomes seen, and they bring tears of emotion running down my cheeks. My love for you ceases to be faith and becomes belief. Thank you for your presence in my life each day, and for leading me beyond my mustard seed of faith to where you are. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God who calls me to Himself, and in whom I believe. Praised be your name, now and forevermore.
Fall on Me Song:
https://youtu.be/ChcR2gKt5WM
Rich Forbes