- Joined
- Feb 9, 2004
- Messages
- 17,078
Working Faith #112
After my father died, a pall bearer at the funeral offered me this assurance,"Your dad believed; he talked to me about it more than once." I've thought about that statement quite often. But the nagging question always comes back, "What did my dad believe?"
You see, there are different kinds of faith. There is a faith that simply acknowledges the facts. You might say, "Oh yes, I believe what the Bible says about Jesus." Then there is a faith that goes a little further. You might not only believe what the Bible says about Jesus but those truths stir your conscience. But when someone offers a challenge, you turn away from your faith. Then there is a spectacular faith; faith for miracles. The trouble is, these kinds of faith do not lead you to heaven. You must not only know the truth, you must be convicted by it and act upon it. You must not only believe what the Bible says about Jesus. You must also understand who Jesus is and what He came to do. You must trust in this Jesus. You must be convinced before God of your need for the forgiveness offered through Jesus. When your conscience is stirred by the teachings of the Bible, you must confess your sin before God and ask His forgiveness. You must trust in the sacrifice of Christ as the only adequate payment for your sins. You must believe God will perform the ultimate miracle on you. You must believe God will cleanse you on the inside and give you a new heart that yearns to follow Him. This is the kind of faith the Bible speaks of when it says, "Without faith it is impossible to please [God]" (Hebrews 11:6)
After my father died, a pall bearer at the funeral offered me this assurance,"Your dad believed; he talked to me about it more than once." I've thought about that statement quite often. But the nagging question always comes back, "What did my dad believe?"
You see, there are different kinds of faith. There is a faith that simply acknowledges the facts. You might say, "Oh yes, I believe what the Bible says about Jesus." Then there is a faith that goes a little further. You might not only believe what the Bible says about Jesus but those truths stir your conscience. But when someone offers a challenge, you turn away from your faith. Then there is a spectacular faith; faith for miracles. The trouble is, these kinds of faith do not lead you to heaven. You must not only know the truth, you must be convicted by it and act upon it. You must not only believe what the Bible says about Jesus. You must also understand who Jesus is and what He came to do. You must trust in this Jesus. You must be convinced before God of your need for the forgiveness offered through Jesus. When your conscience is stirred by the teachings of the Bible, you must confess your sin before God and ask His forgiveness. You must trust in the sacrifice of Christ as the only adequate payment for your sins. You must believe God will perform the ultimate miracle on you. You must believe God will cleanse you on the inside and give you a new heart that yearns to follow Him. This is the kind of faith the Bible speaks of when it says, "Without faith it is impossible to please [God]" (Hebrews 11:6)
