"WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE?"

      The word “belief” has  been misused and misunderstood over the years.  For example, if your trusted and truthful friend tells you an incredulous story, and you say, “I believe you,” the word “believe” takes on a different level of trust and meaning than if the storyteller is known for “stretching the truth” or outright lying.  __“Through Him (Jesus) you have confidence (belief) in God,  who raised  Him  from the dead . . . So your faith and hope are in  God.”  1 Peter 1:21.  To have this kind of Biblical belief is to have confidence, trust, and no doubt as to the truthfulness of the words and the impeccable reputation of your information source.  .  __”We (Paul and others) have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God.  On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.”  2  Cor. 4: 2.

     To be able to believe what you hear from the Bible is not a mental problem, but a problem with the will of the heart.  To believe you must want to believe.

Two Choices

      The facts are these:  Jesus is Lord of all heaven and earth, He is the Son of God, and He came to earth to show us the Father, and to redeem us and make it possible for us to be pure and holy in His Father’s eyes.  Your response to these facts can be one of two basic responses.  One, you can turn away in unbelief and be without God, or two, you can choose to believe in Jesus and respond to His love. 

     Your path to a relationship with God depends on you.  God has set in motion all that He can do to draw you to Him.  It is your response to His love for you and to His plan of salvation that will determine whether you become a child of God or not.  __ “ . . . From morning to evening he (Paul) explained and declared to them the kingdom of God and tried to convince them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and  from the Prophets.   Some were convinced by what he said, but others would not believe. “  Acts 28: 23-24.   

      Later on in verses  26 and 27 Paul makes a final statement about these unbelievers. He says that a prophecy long ago by Isaiah is true:  there will be those who hear but will not understand;  those who see but will not perceive.  Their hearts are hard;  they have closed ears and eyes.  Otherwise, they would have heard, understood, and turned, and God would have healed them! __”And 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.”  Hebrews 11: 6 .

     You must hear His truth, and then you must believe in Jesus and His death, burial, and resurrection.  __”Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of (about) Christ.”  Romans 10: 17.  When you have come to this point of believing in Jesus and what He can do for your life and soul, then you are ready to repent of your sins, confess the name of Jesus to others, and be washed in the waters of baptism to cleanse your soul and give you a new birth.

Make The Right Choice!

     Do you want to believe?  Then trust Jesus and His word! After the death of Jesus, Thomas had doubts about Jesus being alive again.  He said that unless he could see the nail marks in His hands,  and put his hand into his side, he would not believe it.  Later . . . ___” . . .Jesus came and stood among them . . .He said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here . . . Stop doubting and believe.’ Thomas said, ‘My Lord and my God!’  Jesus  told him,  . . . ‘Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’”   John 20: 26-29.  We pray that your belief will become strong and that your response to Jesus will be, “My Lord and my God!”

 

 

 

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