August 26, 2012
Morning Worship
Text: Hebrews 11:6
Subject: Faith
Title: Your Faith is Your Testimony
I’ve been talking for these past few weeks about faith. More importantly the source of your faith. How many of you know that if we are ever going to see full blown revival break out – I’m talking about going beyond where we are now in this state of revival – if we are ever going to get there it is only because we believe God. In Mark 11:22 Jesus told his disciples, “Have faith in God”. This was after He had spoken to a fig tree and cursed it and hours later when they walked by the tree again it had withered.
How many of you think that when Jesus spoke to the tree nothing happened until later? The truth is, when Jesus spoke His word to that tree something took place on the inside. It just took a day for it to be seen on the outside. Now here is what a lot of church people say about that. This was Jesus, the Son of God. Now we can’t go around trying to do the same things that He did. That’s crazy! So we read on in Mark 11, Jesus said, “Don’t try this at home. I am a trained professional!” Isn’t that what a lot of people want the bible to say? But that’s not what it says. 23“I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. 24Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
Really quickly here look at a few points.
1. Doubt is the opposite of faith. And since we are talking about faith in God, if you doubt, then you are doubting God.
2. There is a strong connection between faith and “saying”. You may have faith but your “saying” releases God’s power to work on your behalf.
3. The word that is translated “believe” is the same word that means, “to have faith”. so if you say to the mountain you can have faith in God that He will do what you have asked. Verse 24 could read, 24Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, [have faith in God] that you have received it, and it will be yours.
2 Timothy 1:12, That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.
The word know in the Greek literally is see. I see whom I have believed or I see whom I have my faith in…
Now, when Paul wrote that did He see God? No, but by faith he didn’t have to see God.
But he knew God just as if He were standing right in front of him. Jesus told Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed…” So Who is your faith in?
6And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
I believe this is God’s Word…
I believe it is for me…
I accept it as mine…
And I appropriate it to my life…
I. PLEASING GOD… How many of you are God pleasers? You know, there are a lot of times when people may disagree with me about certain things, and I want people to like me – what kind of a pastor could I be if people didn’t like me – so in a sense I am a people pleaser. But my desire to please people will never overtake my desire to please God. So if there is ever a conflict between pleasing people and pleasing God, guess what… you are going to lose. God will always come first. I hope it is the same way in your life. Now, having said that, how do you please God? It has to be “BY FAITH”. How is your faith? Do you know everything you need to know about faith? Most of you probably think that you have a pretty good handle on the topic of faith, but listen, don’t get too overconfident in your understanding. If your understanding is that good then shouldn’t we be seeing your faith put into action? Does your faith begin and end with Jesus the Savior? You are saved by grace through faith…? What is it then that Paul means when he wrote in Colossians 1:10, 10And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully 12giving thanks to the Father… I really want to look at the phrase in verse 10, may please him in every way… Pleasing Him is connected to what? Faith! So by faith you should be bearing fruit in every good work… By faith you should be growing in the knowledge of God… By faith you are 11being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might… None of those things are for eternity. They are for right now. So pleasing God is directly tied to your understanding of His nature. Faith in the bible? Faith in prayer? Faith in treating people right? None of those things work. Have faith in God… If you have faith in God as Savior you’ll get saved. But what about faith in Him as the healer, deliverer, miracle worker, provider? You see, faith in Him as Savior won’t get you healed. You have to know Him as the healer. If you want to be delivered you have to know Him as your deliverer and so on… Look at the story of the woman with an issue of blood. Mark 5:27-28, 27When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed. Now what do you think that she heard about Jesus? When her faith was put into action who was her faith in? Jesus the healer… When Mary told the servants at the wedding feast to do whatever Jesus told them to do, who was her faith in? Jesus the miracle worker… When you don’t know how you are going to pay your bills, who do you turn to? Hopefully it is God your Provider and not your government… Now do those things please Him? They sure do. Why? Because we get them by faith. Faith always pleases God.
II. COMING TO HIM… We have done bible studies before on the names of God from the Old Testament. Jehovah – Jireh, the God who provides… Jehovah – Shalom, God our peace, Jehovah – Raphe, the God who heals… Jehovah – Tsidkenu, God our righteousness… Jehovah – Nissi, God our banner. It is good to know and understand God’s nature that is revealed by His names. But it is another thing to come to Him by faith believing that He is who He says He is and will do what He said He will do. First there has to be faith. Then you have to come to Him on your own behalf. Here is where we get into trouble I think. You get to a place where you are struggling and it doesn’t seem that God is paying attention. What do you do? You try to find someone who can pray and just call on the Name of the Lord on your behalf and get an answer for you. Sounds good, doesn’t it? But the truth is you are trying to ride into His presence with confidence on somebody else’s coattails. And the Lord has told you that it pleases Him when you come. Hebrews 4:16, 16Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. The word “confidence” is “boldly” in the King James Version. And can you guess what the word means? ASSURANCE! It is not the same word that is translated “faith”, but it has the same meaning. You approach – not someone else for you – you do it with confidence, with assurance, with faith, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. There have been times when people have come up front for prayer for a particular reason and the Lord has said, “no. Let them pray and you just agree with them.” Why? Because mature Christians need to step out and say what they are coming to God for and then put their confidence, or faith, or assurance in Him to work. If you are going to please Him, then you have to come to Him.
III. BELIEVING GOD EXISTS… If you are here this morning you probably believe in the existence of God. As a matter of fact over 90% of Americans believe in a God of some sort. What evidence is there that God exists? Paul tells us in Romans 1 that He has revealed Himself to us by creation. 18The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. Now here is the problem. So many people believe that God exists, but they deny that He desires to be intimately involved with your life. I said earlier that people believe in prayer. They put their faith in prayer but don’t really have an intimated relationship with God. Throughout church history people have believed that you can get closer to God by abusing your body. Self-flagellation, mortification – these things done as a penance in order to get God to accept you by sacrificing your flesh. But the word says anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards… not because of what you do, but because you please Him by faith. How does God reward you? It depends on where your faith is. If you come to the God who heals, how do you think He will reward you? If you come to the God who saves what will happen? If you sow financially into the kingdom of God, by faith, what level do you expect to receive back? 30, 60 or 100 fold? Well a lot of people will say that just because you sow with your money, that doesn’t mean that you’ll receive back financially. Well, you see, that’s where we see a difference in faith. The word of God says in Galatians 6:7, A man reaps what he sows. 2 Corinthians 9:8-9, 8And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9As it is written: “He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” 10Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. My argument here isn’t about the prosperity message. It is about what level of faith you are coming to God with and how He is going to reward you. Who is it that God rewards? He rewards those who earnestly seek him…
Hebrews 11:1, Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2This is what the ancients were commended for. What were they commended for? Their faith! 2This is what the ancients were commended for could literally say, “this is what their testimony is about. What was it about? It was about their faith. 4By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead. Why was Abel’s offering better than Cain’s? It doesn’t have anything to do with animal sacrifice. It has everything to do with faith. Abel had faith in God. Cain had faith in his offering. Abel’s faith is still speaking… Because his faith is recorded in the bible and his type of faith is still working in the world today. 5By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. Genesis 5:23, Altogether, Enoch lived 365 years. 24Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away. By faith Enoch just wanted to be with God, and God took him away. 7By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. Faith in the God who saves. That his testimony and it still speaks through God’s Word.
8By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise. Faith in the God who is able to make His promises come true.
17By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” 19Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead… Faith in the God who raises the dead… His faith produced fruit. His testimony still stands.
At what level is your faith? Do you understand that your faith in God is your testimony and that your testimony can influence others?
Now how do you get your faith level to that point? I mean, to where your faith in God will bear fruit that will be a testimony to others? First of all, by hearing the testimony of the faith of others. Faith comes by hearing… and hearing by the word of God… Secondly, by stepping out in faith to just trust God and take Him at his word. Even though you don’t see it, knowing that God is faithful and His word is true and you can place all of your trust, confidence, assurance or faith in Him and Him alone.
The devil will come to you and try to tell you that faith doesn’t work. Why are you believing that? Why are you quoting all those verses? Do you think God really works that way? What are you trying to do, be like Jesus?
As soon as the devil starts with that you need to hang on because your victory is near. He wouldn’t be worried about it otherwise. But when the devil sees your faith increasing, he’ll do everything he can to put a stop to it, because he knows that the next thing that happens is that your faith in God is going to start bearing fruit and then others will start knowing God that way and trusting Him for more and more.
Doesn’t the bible say that, Those who honor Me I will honor?
Isn’t that what faith does? It honors God.
What kind of a testimony do you have? Is your faith pleasing God?
Is He rewarding your faith?
Are you diligently seeking Him?
It’s never too late to start. And the best way to get to that point in your faith is just to want more of Him. He must increase… I must decrease…
Your faith is your testimony. Let it begin to increase today.
