Your Faith – April 28, 2009

Your Faith

Matthew 15:26-28

Jim Stephens

04-28-09

 

Scripture:

 

26 “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs,” he said. 27 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “but even dogs are permitted to eat crumbs that fall beneath their master’s table.” 28 “Woman,” Jesus said to her, “your faith is great. Your request is granted.” And her daughter was instantly healed.  (Matthew 15:26-28 NLT)

 

Observation:

 

Jesus was outside of Israeli territory in the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon.  Even there his reputation had preceded him and a Canaanite woman came down from the hills, dogging his steps, begging him to heal her daughter.

 

She forced her way to Jesus and dropped to her knees before him, pleading for healing for the daughter she loved.  Jesus insulted her with a racial slur.  She persisted, refusing to react to the racial remark.  Jesus healed her daughter and praised her for her “dogged” faith and determination.

 

Application:

 

What a lesson to me!  She loved her daughter so much that she put up with rejection and prejudice and didn’t react in any way.  She just kept pressing in and pleading for a miracle.

 

Jesus praised the faith he found in two people.  One a Roman military commander who loved his dying servant and understood real authority and its relationship to real power, and one a Canaanite woman who loved her daughter so much she didn’t react to rejection and even to being called a dog.

 

I wonder how Jesus feels about my faith?

 

Prayer:

 

Father, forgive me for being so easily distracted and reactive to external influences.  I want to have “dogged” faith like the Canaanite woman.

 

Is It Easier? – April 22, 2009

Is It Easier?

Matthew 9:5

Jim Stephens

04-22-09

 

Is it easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or ‘Get up and walk’?  (Matthew 9:5 NLT)

 

Jesus arrived back in Capernaum and began teaching the crowds and healing the sick among them.  Some caring friends brought a paralyzed, crippled man to him, hoping for healing.  Mark (Mark 2:1-12) and Luke (Luke 5:17-26) both add that Jesus was teaching in the house where he and his disciples were staying and that these friends carried the man up the stairs on the outside of the house.  They dug through the clay roof so they could lower their crippled friend on his mat right in front of Jesus.

 

When Jesus saw their faith and their friend’s need, he said to the man, “Take heart, your sins are forgiven!”

 

Well, when Jesus spoke forgiveness of sins to this paralyzed man, the religious people just freaked out!  They started whispering among themselves, “Who does Jesus think he is, the Son of God?!”

 

Jesus knew their thoughts and asked them a question, “Is it easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or ‘Get up and walk’?  Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Stand up, take your mat, and go on home, because you are healed!”

 

There’s a lot going on in this story, but I just can’t get away from the question Jesus asked the religious people, “Is it easier to say, ‘You are forgiven’ or ‘You are healed?’”

 

It takes the miracle power of God and his Amazing Grace to truly forgive from the heart, just as it does to heal.  For some who have been deeply wounded by others – by life – it takes just as much grace and faith them to look at those who have hurt them and say from the heart, “I forgive you” as it takes God’s miracle power to heal a paralyzed man.

 

Is it easier to say “I forgive” or to say “You are healed?”  Both are pretty much impossible without the grace and power of God.  Both are possible if we have faith in his power and love and if we are willing to take the step of faith.

 

Prayer:

 

Lord, help us to more and more take the radical steps of faith to say to people that have hurt us, “Your sins (against me) are forgiven.”  And help us to look at people who are paralyzed by sin, by fear, by discouragement, by their inability to acknowledge their need, and say, “Be healed in Jesus’ Name!”  Amen.

If You Want To – April 21, 2009

If You Want To

Matthew 8:1-3

Jim Stephens

04-21-07

 

Scripture:

 

1 Large crowds followed Jesus as he came down the mountainside. 2 Suddenly, a man with leprosy approached Jesus. He knelt before him, worshiping. “Lord,” the man said, “if you want to, you can make me well again.” 3 Jesus touched him. “I want to,” he said. “Be healed!” And instantly the leprosy disappeared. (Matthew 8:1-3 NLT)

 

I don’t want to oversimplify this, but I believe I see the components of a “By Grace Through Faith” miracle in this short story:

 

The Believing Heart:  “Master, if you want to, you can heal me.”

The Spirit-Given Word of Faith:  “I want to.  Be healed!”

The Grace-Faith Result:  The leprosy was gone.

 

When I am helpless in my need, I come to Jesus with a believing heart.  Then I must listen for the Spirit-quickened word that produces receiving faith in my believing heart.  Then I speak and act on the miraculous results that his power produces.

 

4 Then Jesus said to him, “Go right over to the priest and let him examine you. Don’t talk to anyone along the way. Take along the offering required in the law of Moses for those who have been healed of leprosy, so everyone will have proof of your healing.” (Matthew 8:4 NLT)

 

This is not “mind-over-matter” or “fake it till you make it.”  An actual power transaction occurs that changes observable circumstances.

 

I’ll bring my mixture of faith and fear, confidence and doubts, to Jesus and let him speak a faith-quickening word to my heart and soul.

 

Prayer:

 

Father, I will read and meditate on your word daily so that I may have the foundation of a believing heart.  Speak your faith-producing word to me as I need it and I will respond in the faith you give me.  The result is in your hands.  Amen.

Your Faith – April 13, 2009

Your Faith

2 Corinthians 13:5

Jim Stephens

04-13-09

 

Scripture:

 

Examine yourselves to see if your faith is really genuine. Test yourselves. If you cannot tell that Jesus Christ is among you, it means you have failed the test. (2 Corinthians 13:5 NLT)

 

Observation:

 

It’s dangerous to drift along – taking things for granted.  How quickly we can drift from faith to religion.  How easily we can drift from conviction to compromise.  How easy it is to drift from living by faith to loving the world.

 

Paul’s letter to the Corinthians was a kind of faith check-up.  Paul told them they couldn’t afford to wait for a letter or visit from him to see if their faith was real.  They needed to give themselves regular faith check-ups.

 

Application:

 

I need to make sure that my faith is current and genuine.  A proper foundation of hearing and doing God’s word has always been important to me, but if I don’t give myself regular faith check-ups, I can drift along from solid foundation to soggy swamp.

 

Daily Bible reading and journaling is one faith check-up.  Accountability with another believer can be a good faith check-up.  A relationship in which someone asks me the important questions can help.

 

But ultimately, it’s my responsibility to make sure I’m solid in the faith and to do something about it if my faith check-up comes up negative.

 

Prayer:

 

Father, I purpose to give myself regular check-ups to make sure my faith is solid – action and not just words.  I purpose to maintain relationships with people who will ask the important questions and help me not to drift along taking things for granted.  Thanks for your word and your spirit to prompt me and guide me daily.  Amen.

 

Not Yet Seen – April 4, 2009

Not Yet Seen

2 Corinthians 4:17-18

Jim Stephens

04-04-09

 

Scripture:

 

17 For our present troubles are quite small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us an immeasurably great glory that will last forever! 18 So we don’t look at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever. (2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NLT)

 

Observation and Application:

 

As I read this today, I thought of the expression, “Seeing is believing.”  Paul told the Corinthians that spiritual reality is just the opposite.  In the spiritual realm, “Believing is seeing!”

 

Everything we can see and touch is temporal – it’s here today, but gone in eternity.  The only things that will last forever are the things we consider intangible; God’s word to us, our values, relationships, character, acts of love and service, things that bridge the gap between the visible and unseen world.

 

Paul said that one way we keep focused on the eternal things is to talk about them, to “say what we believe.”

 

We’re not keeping this quiet, not on your life. Just like the psalmist who wrote, “I believed it, so I said it,” we say what we believe.  (2 Corinthians 4:13 The Message)

 

I believe that what God says about me is true, even when I don’t see it with my eyes.  I believe that what God says about my past, my present, and my future is more true than how I feel, what I remember, what others think, or how it looks from where I stand right now.

 

I’m learning to speak what I believe and not just what my eyes see or my mind thinks.  Like Paul, I’ll say what I believe.

 

Prayer:

 

Father, you know how easily I get bogged down in what I see, what I feel at the moment, and what my mind reasons to be real.  I purpose to believe what you say and to say what I believe.  I’m going to need a lot of help with this!  I’m working on it.  Help me get better at it today.  In Jesus’ Name.

If Only – March 20, 2009

If Only

Joshua 7:7

Jim Stephens

03-20-09

 

Scripture:

 

Then Joshua cried out, “Sovereign Lord, why did you bring us across the Jordan River if you are going to let the Amorites kill us? If only we had been content to stay on the other side! (Joshua 7:7 NLT)

 

Observation:

 

Israel had crossed the Jordan River by God’s power, conquered Jericho by God’s power, and now, at the little town of Ai, thirty-six Israeli soldiers died in a shocking defeat.  We know it was because of Achan’s sin at the conquest of Jericho and we know there are some great life-lessons to be learned from this story.

 

Joshua didn’t know all this yet and his immediate reaction was “If only we had been content to stay in the wilderness!”

 

Application:

 

When things go badly, I tend to default to the “If only!” mode.  I micro-examine everything and get tangled up in thinking, “If only I had..!” or “If only she hadn’t..!”  The other thing I’ve especially got to watch out for is “What if!”  Looking forward anxiously thinking, “What if that doesn’t work!” or “What if it all goes wrong?”

 

“If only’s” and “What if’s” will paralyze me.  Looking back with hopeless regret and looking forward with fearful anxiety get me stuck.  “If only’s” and “What if’s” render me ineffective as a leader and keep me from taking steps of obedient faith.

 

Overcoming “If only’s” may require repentance and recalibration or forgiving and forgetting.  Overcoming “What if’s” requires careful attention to what God has told me to do and what he has promised to do.

 

Prayer:

 

Father, please forgive me for the sins that cause me to look back and think “If only!”  Please fill me with your good Spirit and remind me of your good promises so I can push past the “What if’s” and walk in hopeful, joyful, obedient faith.  Amen!

 

Flood, Harvest, Wet Feet – March 19, 2009

Flood, Harvest, Wet Feet

Joshua 3:15-16

Jim Stephens

03-19-09

 

Scripture:

 

15 Now it was the harvest season, and the Jordan was overflowing its banks. But as soon as the feet of the priests who were carrying the Ark touched the water at the river’s edge, 16 the water began piling up at a town upstream called Adam, which is near Zarethan. And the water below that point flowed on to the Dead Sea until the riverbed was dry. Then all the people crossed over near the city of Jericho. (Joshua 3:15-16 NLT)

 

Observation:

 

It was the best of times – it was the worst of times!  It was the worst time to cross the Jordan River because this normally calm, slow-flowing stream was at flood stage in this harvest month.  It was the best time to enter the land because it was harvest time and once the Israeli people entered the land, the manna would stop and a nation of hungry mouths had to be fed.

 

It all depended on God.  There was no way they could cross safely unless God stopped the water.  There was no way they could conquer the walled cities of the land unless God gave them victory.  But the way God set up the plan, the priests who carried the Ark of God’s Presence had to step into the swirling, rushing waters of the Jordan River and get their feet wet!

 

Application:

 

It still depends on God.  Each of us faces obstacles to our progress that only God can remove.  Each of us faces opposition to our destiny that only God can eliminate.  But it still depends on our willingness to take simple steps of faith into the swirling, rushing waters of our Jordan River and trust that God will do what he alone can do.

 

Let’s get our feet wet today!

 

Prayer:

 

Father, Today I will take one bold and scary step into the dark, muddy water of my overflowing Jordan River.  Today I will get my feet wet.  I’ll take another step forward tomorrow.  The rest is up to you.  Amen.

 

God Will Do This – March 16, 2009

God Will Do This

1 Corinthians 1:8-9

Jim Stephens

03-16-09

 

Scripture:

 

8 He will keep you strong right up to the end, and he will keep you free from all blame on the great day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns. 9 God will surely do this for you, for he always does just what he says, and he is the one who invited you into this wonderful friendship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:8-9 NLT)

 

Observation:

 

God got me started on this spiritual adventure.  There I was, living my life, a recently returned Viet Nam veteran who wanted to settle down and buy a house, work hard and grow my business, and build a good reputation in my small Eastern Washington town.

 

But God invited me into a wonderful friendship with his son Jesus Christ and that changed everything.  I began to think in terms of purpose rather than purchasing power – of significance rather than success and security.  Jean and I made choices that changed everything for us.

 

Application:

 

God got me started on a spiritual adventure by inviting me into a wonderful friendship with his Son Jesus Christ.  The choices we’ve made through the years have kept us on the adventure path right up to today.

 

I don’t know what’s next or how it will all turn out, but I know God will surely do this for me because he always does just what he says, and he’s the one who invited me to the party!

 

Prayer:

 

Father, thanks for getting us started on what has turned out to be quite an adventure.  We had no idea it would lead us where we’ve gone in the past forty years.  It’s been quite a ride!  I’m ready for the next episode of the great adventure, because I am confident that you always do what you say you will do.  What’s next?  Amen.

 

If You Can – March 2, 2009

If You Can

Mark 9:21-23

Jim Stephens

03-02-09

 

Scripture:

 

21 “How long has this been happening?” Jesus asked the boy’s father. He replied, “Since he was a little boy. 22 The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us, if you can.” 23 “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.”  (Mark 9:21-23 NLT)

 

Observation:

 

It was hard for Jesus to catch a break.  He took Peter, James, and John with him to the top of one of the mountains that rings Lake Galilee for a once-in-history event and Peter half-spoiled it by talking when he should have been watching and listening.  Then they came down and at the foot of the mountain they found the rest of the disciples in a heated argument with some religious teachers over who is and isn’t qualified to perform exorcisms.

 

The father of the demonized boy couldn’t care less about the religious argument.  He just wanted Jesus to set his boy free and heal him.  Years of efforts by Jewish priests had accomplished nothing and Jesus’ disciples hadn’t been able to do it either.  So the man said to Jesus, “Do something if you can!  Please!”

 

Application:

 

God has been challenging me to trust him more.  He’s challenging me to press through my anxieties and face my fears and simply trust him.  The two biggest battles for me are “If you can” and “If you will.”  The most effective tool I have to work my way through these questions is God’s Word.

 

Prayer:

 

Father, I believe you can do everything you say you can do.  I believe you will do everything you promise to do.  I believe you can be trusted to lead, guide, and provide.  I choose again to believe you, to trust you, and to obey you.  Amen.

 

Afraid – February 25, 2009

Afraid

Mark 4:40

Jim Stephens

02-25-09

 

Scripture:

 

And he asked them, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still not have faith in me?” (Mark 4:40 NLT)

 

Observation:

 

At the end of a long day of teaching from a boat pulled up against the shore so Jesus could be heard by the crowds, Jesus said, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.”

 

Jesus lay down in the back of the boat to rest and immediately fell asleep.  A fierce storm came up and threatened to swamp the boat.  His disciples panicked and woke him with the cry, “Don’t you even care that we are going to drown?”

 

Jesus’ reply was that they should think the situation through clearly.  If Jesus said, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake” then apparently he intended to get all the way across and not drown in the middle.  If they had faith in him, they might wake him to calm the storm, but they wouldn’t accuse him of not caring and of setting them up to go down with the ship.

 

Application:

 

When the circumstances of my life are out of my control, my options are faith or fear.  When I begin to be afraid, Jesus’ question is just what I need to hear, “Why are you afraid?  Do you still not trust me?”

 

Think it through:  1) If Jesus said, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake,” then he’s got a plan that goes beyond this storm.  2) If I’m doing what Jesus said to do, then what’s next is up to him.  3) If I’m afraid, then I’m not trusting him fully.  The solution is to choose faith.

 

One of the Psalmists said it this way, “Why am I discouraged? Why so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again— my Savior and my God!” (Psalm 43:5 NLT)

 

Prayer:

 

Father, I get really nervous sometimes when the storm is fierce and the waves are high.  Please forgive me when I let my fear say silly things.  I choose faith.  I choose to trust your care, your wisdom, and your timing.  This boat is going exactly where you want it to and I’m on board!  Amen.