Why is it that the unsaved SOOO often want a “sign” from God. This is in spite of the testimony of creation, their conscience, the Bible, and the Christian. The cross is the only thing that can truly convince sinners of the reality of who Jesus is. Once they understand that the holes in His hands and His feet are there because of their own sin, they will fall at His feet and cry, “My Lord and my God!”
A man once told me not to long ago, “I find it hard to believe some of the things in the Bible,” I smiled and asked, “What’s your name?” When he said, “Steve,” I casually answered, “I don’t believe you.” He looked at me questioningly. I repeated, “What’s your name?” Again he said, “Steve,” and again I answered, “I don’t believe you.” Then I asked, “Where do you live?” When he told me, I said, “I don’t believe that either.” His reaction was to become (understandably) angry. I said, “You look a little upset. Do you know why? You’re upset because I didn’t believe what you told me. If you say your name is Steve and I reply, ‘I don’t believe you,’ it means that I think you are a liar. You are trying to deceive me by telling me your name is Steve, when it’s not.”
Then I pointed out that if he, a mere man, felt insulted by my lack of faith in his word, how much more does he insult Almighty God by refusing to believe His Word. In doing so, he was saying that God isn’t worth trusting—that He is a liar and a deceiver. The Bible says, “He that believes not God has made him a liar” (1 John 5:10). It also warns, “Take heed, brethren, least there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief”(Hebrews 3:12, emphasis added). Martin Luther stated, “What greater insult…can there be to God than not to believe His promises.”
I have heard people say, “I just find it hard to have faith in God,” not realizing the implications of their words. These are the same people who often believe the weather forecast, accept what the newspapers say as true, and trust their lives to a pilot they have never seen whenever they board a plane. We exercise faith every day. We rely on our car’s brakes. We trust history books, medical journals, and elevators. Yet elevators can let us down; history books can be wrong; planes can crash. How much more, then, should we trust the sure and true promises of Almighty God? He will never let us down . . . if we trust Him.
The Scriptures tell us that we should “above all, [take] the shield of faith” (Ephesians 6:16). This part of our armor is essential because it extinguishes all the “fiery darts of the wicked.” If you don’t have faith as your shield, you will be wounded, perhaps fatally, by the enemy.
Faith is spiritually what oxygen is physically. Without faith, the unbeliever gasps, writhes, and then dies. We know that without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Without faith, the sharks will devour us. With faith, it is possible not only to please Him, but to float above the infested waters of this world. It is also possible to move mountains, subdue kingdoms, work righteousness, obtain promises, and stop the mouths of lions.
God has even given us an honor roll of soldiers who have gone before us in battle. Hebrews 11 lists those who through faith obeyed their Commander and were afterward promoted to Headquarters. Many, like Paul, carried in their bodies the scars of the Lord Jesus. We are told that they “were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: and others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings…of bonds and imprisonment: they were stoned…sawn asunder … slain with the sword” (Hebrews 11:35–37). They exercised faith throughout the battle, proving its worth. It’s now up to us to follow their example. These soldiers of the cross found that faith in God gave them the ability to be “strong in the Lord and in the power of His might,” to be “more than conquerors,” because they knew that God was for them, that He always caused them to triumph—through faith.
Wonderfully illustrated and truth!
Thanks… but ALL glory goes to God. Gina, get prepared for the things He has in store for you!
Interesting perspective on faith. I was reading John 6 recently (Jesus feeds the 5,000) and saw something I had never noticed before. The day after Jesus performed the miracle with the loaves and fishes, he ran into the same crowd, who was out looking for him. He tells them not to seek physical food, but to rely on him, the Bread of Life for fulfillment. Their response? “What sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you?” What, multiplying a child’s lunch for 5,000 adults doesn’t cut it?? But, seriously, there are many people like this in the world. They ask for a sign, but even when the sign materializes, they still can’t recognize it or believe. Their eyes are blind, their ears are deaf, and their hearts are hard. We must pray for them and continue to live as examples of God’s grace and love.