The Place of Faith

I’ve been noticing the place that faith has in the miracles and healings of Jesus. Faith played a big part in whether or not people were healed or experienced miracles in their lives. One example of a lack of faith was when Jesus returned to his hometown in Mark 6:1-6, it says,


“And He could do no miracle there except that He laid His hands upon a few sick people and healed them. And He wondered at their unbelief.” Mark 6:5

Then also there is the lack of faith of the disciples themselves. When Jesus and Peter, John and James were on the mount of transfiguration, the disciples had a man bring his son to them. The disciples attempted to cast out the demon, but were unable to. It says in Mark 9:17-18

“And one of the crowd answered Him, “Teacher, I brought You my son, possessed with a spirit which makes him mute; and whenever it seizes him, it dashes him to the ground and he foams at the mount and grinds his teeth, and stiffens out, And I told your disciples to cast it out, and they could not do it.” Mark 9:17-18

Jesus response to this is to call them the “unbelieving generation”. He wonders aloud how long he is to put up with them. It sounds like he is getting tired of the immaturity and the doubt.

I can really relate to the disciples because many times my faith is small. I struggle to understand why God answers some prayers and allows others to linger for months or years. I wonder at the evil in the world and why he allows people to do such horrible things. I wonder at the haphazard and chaotic world we live in and the randomness of tragedy. Before I am too hard on the disciples for not being able to cast out this boy’s demons, I need to admit that the results probably would have been near the same if I had been there. They often have been in different circumstances.

To those of us who are more pessimistic that optimistic, Jesus gives us these words in Mark 11:23-24

“Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, Be taken up and cast into the sea, and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it shall be granted him. Therefore, I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them; and they shall be granted you.”

I think one of the keys of this is to meditate upon and focus not on the mountain, but on the size of God and his omnipotence. For many of us, we see the size of the mountain and realize how big it is and begin to feel overwhelmed. We think about all the times we have failed in the past and get our eyes off of God and on to ourselves. We know that we are weak and often fail. The old tape begins to play that says, “You won’t change. You can’t change. Everything will stay the same.” And we make the mistake of believing it. Instead of replacing that tape, getting our eyes off of ourselves and on to how great and awesome God is. If our eyes are there, then our faith will grow. If our eyes are on the mountain, we will get discouraged and bow again to hopelessness.

Some examples of faith in miracles and healings

The leper believed Jesus could heal him Mark 1:40-41

The woman who had a hemorrhage for twelve years Mark 5:25-34

The woman whose daughter was near death Mark 7:28-29

The father who brought his son to Jesus Mark 9:24-25

Bartimaeus receives his sight Mark 10:51-52

The Centurion’s servant John 7:6-10

Prayers that God Answers

      We have all had times when it seems that heaven is closed and God is not listening to us. Many of the great saints of the past have testified to going through times like that. So, how do you know that your prayers are heard? How to know that your prayers are pleasing in God’s sight? A friend told me a long time ago that even when God is silent that doesn’t mean he isn’t working and that is true. There are a couple of qualities of prayers that touch the heart of God and move mountains.


      James 1:5-8 tells us that if a person wants wisdom to ask of God, but to ask in a manner that is without doubting. James says the one who doubts is like the one who is double-minded and unstable. That person should expect nothing from God because this is the opposite of faith. You and I are to prayer with the expectation that God will answer. He may not answer the way you want, but you pray by faith trusting God that he knows best how to answer you. See Mark 11:24-26

     Sometimes I have been guilty of praying about something and then God answers it soon after and I have forgotten that this was something I prayed about. I don’t go back to him and immediately thank him for it. Or I may not recognize immediately that it is an answered prayer. I heard about a lady who went to a prayer meeting where they were going to pray for rain. It was farm country and the farmers were all worried about the drought. An elderly lady showed up and told them that none of them were serious about praying for rain. She pointed out, “I see none of you really expect anything. Not one of you brought an umbrella.” Some Christians look at prayer as something to be as a last resort. When all else fails. Like breaking the fire extinguisher glass in case of an emergency. God is not 911. He is available at any time.

     We are to pray that first and foremost God’s will is done. A believer puts the will of the Lord ahead of Himself (Matthew 6:33). Sometimes we think we know what we want. But, if we knew all the variables and possibilities as God does we might not be so sure. You should always be willing to say, “Not my will, but yours be done.” Jesus prayed that same prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night he was betrayed Matthew 26:39, 42. It is arrogant to think that we could possibly know more about the situation than God.

     The little book of James also says that some who James was written to were not receiving an answer. James said, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.” Sometimes a delay in an answer is a good opportunity for us to check our motives at the door. Why do you want this particular prayer answered? Is God going to be glorified if it is answered? Will it help you achieve your goals and the purposes he has for you? Or is it just for your own selfish ambitions? Sometimes we really just need to be honest with God about why we want what we want. He already knows our hearts anyway.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple John 2:13-25

     I can remember a pastor who preached on this text years ago when I was a college student at a Campus Crusade for Christ conference.  I believe that was the same conference where I decided to sign up for summer missions, which eventually led me to go to the state of Nevada for a summer on mission trip. 

     John identifies John 2:13 as happening around Passover.  John is the only disciple who puts this story at the beginning of Jesus' ministry.  It is possible that this happened twice.  The Passover would have occurred around March-April around the full moon.  The temple and Jerusalem would have been extremely crowded with people.  It is possible that the moneychangers and animal pens were temporary for this ceremony.  The problem with it was that the outer court was the only place for non-Jews to pray and worship.  Mark's version of this story says that Jesus called the money changers a robbers den, which may refer to the rates of exchange that the merchants were charging for the exchanges.

     Jesus took his time gathering up the rope that would be needed to drive out the animals.  It must have been extremely crowded and this would have been a difficult task met with immediate resistance and hostility.  But, Jesus drove them out of the temple because he was concerned for his Father's house.  The concerns of the Father were more important to him than anything else.  His Father's house was to be a house of prayer and not of anything else.  This action is looked at as fulfilling Malachi 3:1 and Zechariah 14:21.

     Herod had started the reconstruction of the temple around 19 B.C. and even here while Jesus was in the temple there was still some building going on.  The whole complex was not completed until 63 A.D. and then it was destroyed 7 years later.  Jesus was asked for a sign and he pointed to his death and resurrection.  This is still the main proof that Jesus who he said he was, the empty tomb.  The disciples did not understand this statement at first, but then they did after his resurrection verse 22. (John 10:18)

     This passage is about priorities.  John earlier said that it is through Jesus that the world was made and for whom it was made and holds together.  We were made for a purpose.  Other things, even good things, can come in and crowd out what is best.  Jesus had a zeal for his Father and his purposes.  We need to keep in mind that we are not just made for our own goals and purposes, but for his.  How is what your doing pleasing the Father?  How are you using your gifts and talents to please Him?

   It says the people believe in Him because they saw his signs verse 23.  Yet, this was not a saving belief.  This is the same belief that after he fed them with bread and fish that they wanted to follow him in John 6:26.  They wanted to make him king, yet their understanding of the kingdom he wanted was skewed.  They got their stomach full and therefore wanted more.  Jesus clearly knew the thoughts of man in John 6:26 & Matthew 9:4.  Jesus doesn't judge us the way others do.  He sees the motives and thoughts of the inner man.  What he saw on this occassion was not to be trusted in.  Yet, even though he sees all the dark places of the heart he was still willing to come and die on a cross out of love for you and me.

Jesus Briefly Humbled

    Today's bible study led me to Hebrews 2:9-18.  This passage is titled in my bible "Jesus Briefly Humbled".  At first, it may sound a little confusing because it talks about a period where Jesus was made "a little lower than the angels".  This is a passage about Jesus' incarnation.  The fact that Jesus became a human being and did not give up his deity, but he gave up his position in heaven to come to earth. 
     To understand this, it is important to realize that Jesus existed before he was born in Bethlehem.  The Bible gives us many glimpses of Jesus in the Old Testament.  One that I think of is in Daniel 3:25.  Danie's friends were thrown into a pit of fire.  It was so hot that those who threw Daniel's friends in died because of the heat of the flames.  Yet, Nebuchadnezzar states when he looks into the fire "Look! I see four men loosed and walking about in the midst of the fire without harm, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods!"  I believe this is Jesus who the king saw.
      There are other, even earlier passages, where Jesus appears in the Old Testament.  In Joshua 5:13-14, Joshua sees a man with his sword drawn.  When Joshua asks him if he is for or against them he gets this response.  "No, rather I indeed come now as captain o fthe host of the Lord."  Joshua's response was to bown down and worship him.  Any time someone worships an angel the angel stops him, but the captain didn't stop Joshua because he was the preincarnate Jesus.
      But, this passage made it clear that Jesus gave up that position in heaven.  In Philippians 2:7-8 it says that Jesus "emptied himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men, and being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."  I believe that is what this passage in Hebrews 2:9-18 is really talking about. 
     It says that Jesus did this in order to make powerless him "who has the power of death, that is, the devil."  He did this by making "propitiation for our sins".  The word propitiatioin is the word hilaskomai in the greek which means to atone, to make reconciliation for.  It would be like having a large debt note hanging over you and someone takes the note and writes over it "paid in full" and pays the debt for you.  It was a debt that you were not in a position to begin to pay and was due and he stepped in a paid it for you.
     

God stays silent

   In Joshua 9, Joshua and the Israelites have entered the promise land and are beginning to take possession of their inheritance from the Lord.  They have already destroyed Jericho and neighboring Ai.  It says that the people of Gibeon feared Israel and "acted craftily and set out as envoys, and took worn out sacks on their donkeys and winskins, worn out torn and mended" Joshua 9:4.  In other words, they wanted it to appear as if they had been traveling a long time.

    They did this in order to deceive them and in order to make a treaty with them.  So, it says in Joshua 9:14 that Joshua made peace with them and "did not ask for the counsel of the Lord."  Later, they arrive at Gibeon and realize their mistake, but by then it is too late.  These people end up becoming a snare to Joshua and the people of God and lead them into idol worship.

    I could be wrong here, but one of my observations in this passage is that it appears to be that Joshua and the leaders were flattered that they had heard about them.  The Gibeonites tell Joshua "Your servants have come from a very far country because of the fame of the Lord your God; for we have heard the report of HIm and all that He did in Egypt."  In a sense, they are saying that they not only heard of the Lord's fame, but the leaders as well.  They are appealing to their pride.

    John in 1 John 2:15-16 warns against the love of the world and the pride of life.  In fact, the Bible is full of warnings about pride.  It can keep us from asking the counsel of the Lord.  In fact, our very faith leads us to understand our utter dependence on God for anything good.  But, the flesh doesn't want to bow to God or anyone else.  In 1 John2:15-16 "Do not love the world, nor the things in the world, if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world."

    One other thing I noticed in this passage is that God could have spoken up, but did not do so.  He could have come to Joshua in a dream and warned him that they were close neighbors, but he didn't.  This is one of the interesting things about this passage.  God had already given clear instructions about what they were to do.  He allowed Joshua and the leaders to make their own decision.  You see the doubt that some had in verse 7, that they might actually be close neighbors.  Some people had doubts, yet nobody spoke up. 

     So, then when we ignore the words of God there are consequences.  Joshua realizes that towards the end of their lives that the people will allow their hearts to wander from God.  In Joshua 24:19-20 he says, "Then Joshua said to the people, You will not be able to serve the Lord, for He is a holy God.  He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgression of your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then He will turn and do you harm and consume you after He has done good to you."

      It reminds me a little of a passage in proverbs that talks about setting a guard over our heart.  We always have to be consciously aware that other things, people and circumstances are seeking to become idols in our hearts.  The world looks attractive and beneficial otherwise people wouldn't stray.  And it is easy, to allow other things to take the place of God.  That is why it is so important to remain humble and to examine our hearts and make sure that the Lord is where he should be in our lives.  So often, other things creep in and take that spot little by little.  I'm speaking to myself as much as anyone else who might read this.  I know that it is easy to get busy and distracted.

   "Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life."  Proverbs 4:23

  

Resurrection

     When I was a pastor back in 2004, our church considered having an Easter egg hunt.  I was asked by some church members if we would do one or not.  Some congregation members told me that they did not the year before because it quote "would confuse the children about the true meaning of Easter".   After thinking about it, we decided to take that risk and have one.  I remember it very well because it was the first of many fights with one particular family.  We had 17 children at that event that day.  I remember my son, who was four at the time, found the most eggs that day.  We read the resurrection story to them out of the Bible, decorated eggs and did an Easter egg hunt.  Miracle of miracles, nobody seemed very confused at the end of the day.

       It does make you think though, why the world would celebrate Easter with a bunny instead of an open tomb.  That family did have a point to make, even though they lacked the grace to make their point very well.  It is that Easter is of first importance for the christian.  Paul said it this way in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 "For I delivered to you as of first imporance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the scripture and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the scriptures." To lose sight of the imporance of what Christ did on this week is to lose the essence of who christians are and what Christ did.  It is the very fabric of of our faith and without it the life of Christ is simply a very tragic story.

      Does the Easter Bunny confuse the issue?  It does seem that the secular world enjoys taking what are christian holidays and trying to make them about something else.  Instead of the christ child coming at Christmas we have Santa and instead of the death and resurrection of  Jesus we have the Easter Bunny and candy.  If that is the focus you want for you family it can become something that is all about gifts and sales and candy and self.  But, that is the danger everyday.  Being selfish and forgetting about Christ is something that is possible any day of the week.  I think if all you need is a bunny and some candy to get your eyes off Christ then your focus wasn't very strong to begin with.

     "But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, bringing the spices which they had prepared.  And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus Christ."  Luke 24:1-3, NASV


     

eyes like flames of fire

     I recently read through the book of Daniel and also part of Revelation.  I noticed the description of Jesus in Revelations 1:13-16 sounds a lot like a passage in Daniel 10.  Notice how Jesus is described in Revelations

   "I saw seven golden lampstands; and in the middle of the lampstands was one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His breast with a golden girdle, And His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like flames of fire; and His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been caused to glow in a furnace; and His voice was like the sound of many waters."  Rev 1:12b-15

      Now, compared that with what is said in Daniel 10:6  "His body was like beryl, his face had the appearance of lightning, his eyes were like flaming torches; his arms and feet llike the gleam of polished bronze, and the sound of his words like the sound of a tumult."

     And it is interesting that Daniel and John's reactions when they saw this appearance was much the same.  They fell at his feet.  John adds "like a dead man." Revelations 1:16.  Seeing such a vision scared them to death!  This is far from the meek and mild Jesus of the New Testament gospels.  This is a Jesus with power and glory and power.  There was a couple of things that struck me about this vision and Jesus appearance.

    One is that Jesus is timeless.  The Bible describes you and me as shadows.  We are here for a season and gone, like water vapor or smoke.  Jesus appeared much the same even though several hundred years separate the two passages.  His strength didn't diminish nor did he get tired.  He had a great and awesome appearance in Daniel and also to John.  This is because Jesus is timeless.  He created time and stands above it and is not mastered by it.  Jesus would declare this by saying that he is the Alph and Omega, the one who is, who was and who is to come; the Almighty." Rev 1:8

    The other thing that struck me about this passage is that Jesus had eyes like fire.  I think this has to do with the piercing, pentrating gaze of our Lord.  That there is nothing hidden from his eyes.  That there is no thought that alludes him.  That he sees all things and nothing is a mystery to him.  When the Pharisees and scribes were reasoning about Jesus in Luke 5:21 they said "Who can forgive sins but God alone."  Jesus response was "Why are you reasoning in your hearts?"  In other words, he knew the thoughts of their mind and where their hearts were.  The same is true today.  There is nothing hidden from his eyes.  Wonder what it would be like if we lived as though Jesus was always watching us?

    The third thing was his voice.  The sound of the Lord's voice is described like the rush of many waters.  It had a deep, abiding power and authority to it.  This is the same voice that said "Let there be light" and there was light.  It is a voice of power and authority.  We sometimes pray and act as though God cannot truly answer our prayers.  Maybe it is because of vision of who Jesus is is still on the humble carpenter rather than the risen Lord?