EXAMINE YOUR OWN FAITH – Pastor Chris
Sunday, August 2, 2020
Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves… (2 Corinthians 13:5).
There’re those who think the Lord permits calamities or is responsible for misfortunes that people suffer. It’s like the fellow who lamented, “I’m out serving God, working for Him every day; yet, He allowed the devil to kill my baby.” But that can’t be true! The Lord isn’t responsible for evil or the mishaps that people experience; it’s not consistent with His nature. He is love personified; there’s no darkness in Him.
Whatever you may have suffered that’s inconsistent with the provisions of Christ in His Gospel, didn’t come from God. Life is spiritual and you’re responsible for your life—the things that happen with you. It’s about your faith and how you use it. Jesus said in Matthew 17:20, “…If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” This is a sovereign declaration; the question is, what are you doing with your faith? How are you putting your faith to work?
The Bible says, “Now the just shall live by faith…” (Hebrews 10:38). Using your faith to deal with the crises of life every day is your responsibility. James 1:22 says, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” That’s the key; doing the Word. You act your faith by “doing” the Word; we’re Word practitioners.
If things aren’t working out as you expect them to, the fault isn’t with God, for He is perfect. Since He’s perfect, then you have to check elsewhere for what might have gone wrong. It could be that you didn’t understand Him or His Word well enough. Perhaps you didn’t do exactly what He said; or maybe your timing was wrong. Therefore, the right thing to do will be to examine your own faith as read in our theme verse.
The life of faith given to us isn’t a deception. The Lord isn’t hiding behind faith so He wouldn’t do what He said He’d do. Faith always works. If it didn’t work, then it wasn’t faith. Keep growing your faith by increasing your knowledge of the Word.
PRAYER
Dear Father, you’re perfect and in you there’s no variableness, neither shadow of turning. I take charge of my life, growing my faith through the Word and strengthening it by use. I thus produce victories and triumphs in every situation and circumstance, in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
FURTHER STUDY: Psalm 18:30; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Hebrews 13:8
1-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN Romans 6:15-7:1-6 & Psalms 60-63
2-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN Ephesians 5:9-16 & Isaiah 53
Leave comments on today’s devotional at www.rhapsodyofrealities.org
