2 Corinthians 4:13-18 NIV “It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” For this Bible study we will focus on verse eighteen. “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” When we look with our eyes, we can see a lot right now. On TV there are numerous channels showing us the latest bad news or people arguing about what is going on. On the internet there are numerous websites that show negative things. We can see the effects of the pandemic. We can see the violence going on in our communities. Even if we look at newspapers instead of digital sources, there is negativity in newspapers. A lot of the things we see are temporary. How much negativity are we looking at daily? How does what we look at daily affect us? How important are our eyes? Jesus said that our eyes are very important. Matthew 6:22-23 NIV “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” Jesus knows we need to look at the right things. What we look at most will determine what is inside our hearts and minds. So many people look at things that hurt them. I used to look at movies, websites, TV shows, and other things that weren’t good for me. It took me years to understand these verses will help me if I apply them to my life. We have so many people dealing with anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts. We have people overdosing on drugs and others dying from suicide. We also have people dealing with anger and using guns in ways that are harming others and themselves. There are people dealing with loneliness and looking at pornography that is harming others and themselves. We need to remember that what we see on this earth temporary. There are things we can’t see yet that are more important than the things we see right now. Too many times we compare what we have with what someone else has. Too many times we covet what someone else has. Too many times we are disappointed with what we have, who we are with, and where we are in life. We can’t see the Holy Spirit, but it can have a positive impact on our lives. Hebrews 12:2-3 NIV “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” Jesus saw sin and the negative effects of sin firsthand. He came down here, died on the cross, and rose on the third day to provide the answer to the problem of sin. We can’t see Jesus yet, but we can see the results of what he did while he was on the earth in the past. All the negativity that is on TV, the internet, and in newspapers is a lot. It can be overwhelming at times. When we add the things we personally shouldn’t look at, to that, it seems like life is hopeless. Thank God he sent Jesus to be the answer we need. Thank God our faith is in Jesus and what he did. He provided us a way to be forgiven for all the times we sinned. He provided us a way to have hope for a better future than the present we are living through. He provided us a way to experience perfect love that drives fear out of us. Will we fix our eyes on him? Will we believe in Jesus and what he did for us? How can we be certain if we didn’t see it with our eyes? 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 NIV “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.” Paul wrote that there were over five hundred people that saw Jesus after he rose from the dead. That’s a lot of eyewitnesses! I may not have seen him then, but I believe the ones that did and the ones that wrote about it. I will continue to place my faith in him and fix my eyes on things unseen. How do the things you look at daily affect you? What are some things you can’t see, but know are real? Is your faith affected more by what you see or what you can’t see?
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Hebrews 11:1 NIV “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” I looked up sure and certain in the Merriam-Webster dictionary and saw that they are synonyms of each other. Other words that are synonyms of them are clear, positive, doubtless, and confident. I replaced sure and certain in the verse above with two of those synonyms and it still made sense. “Now faith is being positive of what we hope for and positive of what we do not see.” “Now faith is being confident of what we hope for and confident of what we do not see.” While I was using the Merriam-Webster dictionary I looked up the definition of faith. It says one of the definitions is: “belief and trust in and loyalty to God.” So, looking at that definition, do we hope? Do we have hope in God? Do we have hope for a better future? Are we confident about trusting God? Are we confident there is a God? Are we clear about what we do not see? Some people dismiss God because they can’t see God. Some people dismiss faith because it lacks evidence to them. How can we hope and be clear about what we do not see? We need to hear. There is evidence that we base our hope on. There is evidence that allows us to be confident in what we do not see. We need to focus on what we are listening to and what we are listening for. Romans 10:13-17 NIV “for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our message?” Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” Paul shared that for a person to have faith, they must hear the message. He was talking about the Israelites, but it applies to us as well. People can’t have faith in a God they can’t see without hearing the message and the message comes from the word of Christ. John 17:8; 20 NIV “For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me.” “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message…” Jesus prayed for his first disciples in verse eight and during his prayer he acknowledged that he spoke what God the Father told him to say. The first disciples believed Jesus, believed his words were from God the Father, and that Jesus was sent by God the Father. Not only did Jesus pray for the first disciples, but he also prayed for the disciples that would come later in verse twenty. He knew people would believe once they heard the message from the first disciples. John 10:16; 27 NIV “I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.” “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” Jesus told some Pharisees and Jews that he has sheep that are in different sheep pens. Whoever listens to the voice of Jesus and follows him is his sheep. We can know his voice through reading what Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John wrote about him in their gospels. We can also read about Jesus in the other New Testament scriptures. Isaiah 55:10-11 NIV “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” Through the prophet Isaiah, God told the children of Israel and us that his word has purpose when speaks. God’s word will do what he intended it to do. God speaks and things happen. God speaks and his will is done. John 1:1-2; 14 NIV “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.” “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John clearly tells who Jesus is in the first chapter of his gospel. Jesus is the Word of God that became flesh and lived with mankind. When we hear God’s words in Isaiah 55:11, we know that all Jesus did was according to the will of God. He didn’t say or do something unless it was part of God’s plan and according to God’s will. We also know from the prayer Jesus prayed in John 17 that he did in fact accomplish all that God sent him here to do. Jesus shared the message God had for mankind and his disciples were taught and equipped to share it once Jesus returned to God the Father. That is why we can have faith. That is why we can be confident in what we hope for. That is why we can be confident in what we do not see. We have heard God’s words. We have heard the message through the words of Christ. John 16:13-15 NIV “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.” Jesus told his first disciples what the Holy Spirit would say to them. This is important for us. The Holy Spirit only tells us, fellow disciples of Jesus Christ, what he hears from Jesus and God the Father. Even though we are not eyewitnesses of Jesus Christ like the first disciples, we can still have a relationship with his based on their message and the Holy Spirit that lives inside everyone that believes in Jesus Christ. How much time do we spend listening to the word of God? How much time do we spend listening for the voice of Jesus? Elder Kevin Adkins Trust (compiled and edited by BibleStudyTools.com Staff on 4/6/2021) Top Bible verses about trusting God Psalm 56:3-4 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me? Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. Psalm 13:5 But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. Isaiah 26:3-4 You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. Psalm 40:4 Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie! Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. Psalm 37:5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. 7 daily steps to make sure you’re leaning on the Lord
And that’s exactly why we can trust in the Lord with all our hearts. He cares for us each and every day. He gives us what we need to thrive. He pours blessing after blessing upon us. Of course, following each of these daily steps isn’t easy. That’s why Jesus said we have to deny ourselves and follow him (Matthew 16:24). Trusting God takes a whole-hearted commitment from dawn till dusk. But we’re never alone in it. The Importance of Trusting God
Daniel being protected from the lions after being thrown in the lion’s den after praying to his God as was his usual custom, despite a king’s decree not permitting this. (Daniel 6:3-23) When we stand up for our faith God will stand up for us and vindicate us. We see this also in the lives of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. (Daniel 3) The Lord is always with us during our trials. (Matthew 28:20)
Peter and the miraculous catch of fish. (Luke 5:1-11) Jesus turning the water into wine. (John 2:1-11) When we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, we can be assured that ALL that we NEED in life shall be added to us. (Matthew 6:31-33)
James continued his thoughts for the twelve tribes scattered in the world. In these verses he told how children of God should behave once they have God’s word inside them. There is a saying that says something like, “we have two ears and one mouth because we should listen twice as much as we talk.” James told those reading his letter something similar. Listen to what people are saying and do not rush to speak. I have a bad habit of waiting to talk instead of listening to what a person is saying. Maybe you have that habit as well. James connects the bad habit of rushing to speak with being quick to get angry. How many arguments or disagreements happen because someone is not listening well? We mishear or hear only what will trigger us, then we feel justified to be angry and act based on our anger. Verse twenty clearly says, “man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.” We get in our own way of living a life pleasing to God when we act based on our anger. Now is the time for the children of God to behave and act in a way different than the world. Too many people have been hurt by religious people claiming to be Christian. A lot of people listen to the word of God. There are multiple ways to listen to the word of God now compared to back when James wrote his letter. James called for people to do what the word says. I also challenge you and me to do what the word says. Only by doing what the word says will we be blessed. Only by doing what the word says will we be a blessing to someone else. Do you like listening to the word of God? During this pandemic, have you listened to the word of God more than, less than, or about the same as before the pandemic? What ways do you listen to the word of God? What have you been doing this week based on the word of God? |
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