May 17, 2006
The Word May 17, 2006
What Kind of Believer Are You?
Luke 8: 6-7 (King James Version)
The Parable
“And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprang up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.
And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it.”
Luke 8: 13-14 (King James Version)
Jesus’ explanation of the Parable
“They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.
And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.”
-Today we are going to address two types of believers, the “credit” and the “have faith in.” To get the best understanding of the “credit believer” we need to define the word credit. According to the Encarta World English Dictionary it means, “praise or recognition for something done or achieved.” They believe the word of God because of His credit history. They have seen things that He has done for others. However, when times get hard they no longer believe. For example, they go to church and learn that by his strips we are healed (1 Peter 2:24). They even hear a personal testimony of how He delivered Sister So-and-So from cancer. Not even a few days later, they learn they have cancer. At first, they hang in there and believe that God can and will heal them. Over time, their cancer gets harder to deal with and that is where they loss faith. When things get hard they lose sight of God’s word.
-The “have faith in” believer is much the same as the “credit” believer. The major difference is how they lose their faith. Just like the “credit believer” they hear the word and receive it. However, they lose their faith because they choose not to let go of the cares of this world. Say they believe that “no weapon form against them shall prosper,” (Isaiah 54:17). Nevertheless, when that weapon attempts to take away some major thing in their lives, that is when they disregard the word of God and do everything in their power to keep that thing in tact. They do not wait for God to handle it for them. They take matters into their own hands.
“Lord, give me the faith in you to look past the hard pressing times and past the idea of losing my way of life. Give me the faith to stand in the midst of the storm.”
What Kind of Believer Are You?
Luke 8: 6-7 (King James Version)
The Parable
“And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprang up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.
And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it.”
Luke 8: 13-14 (King James Version)
Jesus’ explanation of the Parable
“They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.
And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.”
-Today we are going to address two types of believers, the “credit” and the “have faith in.” To get the best understanding of the “credit believer” we need to define the word credit. According to the Encarta World English Dictionary it means, “praise or recognition for something done or achieved.” They believe the word of God because of His credit history. They have seen things that He has done for others. However, when times get hard they no longer believe. For example, they go to church and learn that by his strips we are healed (1 Peter 2:24). They even hear a personal testimony of how He delivered Sister So-and-So from cancer. Not even a few days later, they learn they have cancer. At first, they hang in there and believe that God can and will heal them. Over time, their cancer gets harder to deal with and that is where they loss faith. When things get hard they lose sight of God’s word.
-The “have faith in” believer is much the same as the “credit” believer. The major difference is how they lose their faith. Just like the “credit believer” they hear the word and receive it. However, they lose their faith because they choose not to let go of the cares of this world. Say they believe that “no weapon form against them shall prosper,” (Isaiah 54:17). Nevertheless, when that weapon attempts to take away some major thing in their lives, that is when they disregard the word of God and do everything in their power to keep that thing in tact. They do not wait for God to handle it for them. They take matters into their own hands.
“Lord, give me the faith in you to look past the hard pressing times and past the idea of losing my way of life. Give me the faith to stand in the midst of the storm.”
posted by Phybee | 9:54 PM
1 Comments:
I believe one reason why people want an answer and God to move right now is because of the world we live in. We want everything right now. Everyone seems to be in such a hurry. People even seem to be in a hurry even when they don’t have any where to go. That is the mind set. I need it yesterday. You are so right, we can’t take that attitude to God. He does not work on our time but his.
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55: 8-9
We are not and will never be on God's level or time table.
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