HOW MUCH FAITH DOES IT TAKE ?

There are all kinds of stories and counsel about faith in the Bible.

  • Some great faith—great results.
  • Some weak people, with faith—great results.
  • Some counsel—little faith—great results.
  • Some little faith, rebuked—great results.
  • Some prayers without faith—no results.
  • Some praying early—Jesus.
  • Some praying all night—Jesus.
  • Some praying in a solitary place—Jesus.
  • So, faith takes lots of prayer !

Question:
HOW MUCH FAITH DOES IT TAKE ?

Answer:
All the faith you’ve got, in God Who makes up the difference for what it takes.

Then, do not fail to acknowledge and thank Him for His answers and actions in your life—the big ones and the little ones and the ones different than you asked for.

And faith grows !

Find some Bible verses to say out loud to God over and over—‘wear them out’—God loves to hear us say what He said.

FOLLOW JESUS and FEAR GOD ?

Decide to follow Jesus !

LEARN to fear God !

Walk closer with Jesus !

Father in heaven, give me the Holy Spirit !

He will give good things to those who ask Him !


Jesus’ disciples were learning Truth for three years walking with Jesus.
When Jesus was sleeping in the back of the boat (hmmm), violently tossed by the wind and waves washing over the boat—the scared disciples woke Him saying, “Don’t you care that we drown ?”
When Jesus commanded the storm to stop—instant calm—and rebuked His disciples for little faith—they were more terrified by this than by the storm !
“They feared exceedingly and said to each other, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”


“Fear of God” is all over the Bible.
“Call on Me, and I will show you great and mighty things which you do not know.”
He wants to do that in your life and mine.
Our God is an Awesome God, today !

“FEAR OF MAN” PLUS

“The fear of man brings a snare, But whoever trusts in the LORD will be safe.”

Not long ago I learned this Bible verse, and I use it every day—because it is the Word of God, and God’s Word has power in our lives.

I find that “the fear of man” includes a lot more than just being afraid that someone might physically hurt me.

Fear of Man includes—

— Expectations of others.
— Expectations of me, influenced by others.
— Thinking what others may think, consumes too much of my thinking.

ISAIAH 5:20

This morning (1-13-26) on American Family Radio, Jeff Schreve was illustrating how the democrats/the left totally oppose everything President Trump does, says, stands for. He used Isaiah 5:20 to underscore his point.

“Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”

Meaning of Isaiah 5:20

The following copied from the internet, including this disclaimer:
“Auto-generated from sources. May be inaccurate.” (That’s interesting—this time they? got it right.)

“Isaiah 5:20 serves as a warning against moral confusion and the distortion of truth. It highlights the danger of reversing moral values, where what is traditionally seen as good is labeled as evil, and vice versa. This verse addresses the people of Judah, emphasizing the consequences of straying from God’s commandments.

Themes

Moral Relativism: The verse critiques the tendency to redefine morality based on personal or societal preferences rather than absolute truths.

Judgment: The term “woe” indicates a solemn warning of impending judgment for those who mislead others by distorting moral truths.

Spiritual Vigilance: It calls for self-examination and discernment among believers to avoid falling into the trap of accepting falsehoods as truth.

Cultural Context

In the time of Isaiah, the people faced significant moral and spiritual decline. The prophet’s message remains relevant today, urging individuals to uphold biblical values and discern right from wrong amidst cultural pressures.”

PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE ?

Teaching of pre-tribulation rapture says, or implies . . .
— not all the elect will go up in the rapture
— there is a second chance to get saved if you missed the rapture
— people get saved after the rapture, and they experience mega tribulation and martyrdom (but we don’t, we won’t, because we’re gone ?)
— there is a second coming of Jesus and a third coming of Jesus
— we Christians will not escape ‘regular’ tribulation, but we will escape ‘great’ tribulation
— compelling people to get saved to avoid The Great Trbulation supercedes compelling people to get saved to avoid hell
— descriptions in the Bible of The Great Tribulation don’t apply to us who won’t be here (so what’s the point of most of Revelation ?)
— three (or . . .) interpretations or beliefs about the end-times time line are always mentioned first—then, “I believe this way”—and then, every question, every detail is covered definitively as fact
— so other beliefs, other interpretations, are left in the dust, regarded as ridiculous


Question:
What effect does most end-time teaching have on the listener/reader ?


Important:
Teaching about repentance and believing in Jesus for forgiveness so your name is written in heaven—this message must prevail over any emphasis on end-time teaching.

PREACHERS PRACTICED WHAT THEY PREACHED

Preachers practiced the Second Amendment decades before it was written.

In fact, it was the preachers in America that inspired the Revolution, and the Second Amendment, by their actions, and scared King George the most.
King George said so.

WHY DO WE WANT TO KNOW ‘WHY?’ ?

Why do we want to know “WHY?” ?

Why do we try to explain “WHY?” ?

We think that if we can explain why things happen, especially bad things, we can somehow change what happens, for the better.

Explaining why things happen remains very limited.

Changing what we can change, for the better, remains very limited, despite our best efforts.

The problem of evil—explaining evil—stays with us, mostly unchanged.

So, what can we say ?
What can we say that hasn’t been said ?


All I know is to say what God said:

“The day you eat of it (the forbidden fruit), you shall surely die.”

“The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.”

“The thief (the devil) comes to kill, steal, and destroy—I (Jesus) came that you may have life, and have it more abundantly.”

“In the world you will have tribulation (trouble), but be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world.”

SENIOR SORROWS – – – WHAT DOES GOD THINK ?

What is God’s perspective on the inevitable deterioration in senior years ?

We “call on Him in every trouble”, every challenge, every test, every detail.
He “delivers us” over and over again.
We “glorify Him” just like His Word tells us.

Some experience more deliverance than others, and come to the end of life with glory and praise for God’s goodness.
But most of us experience decline in senior years—in health, in strength, in mental function, in what we can do, in what doesn’t work like it used to, in pain, in failure, in loss, in heartache, in heartbreak, in all the cryptic descriptions of Ecclesiastes 12. *

So, how much of this should we fight and claim victory over—with the multitude of Bible verses that promise miracles—yes, even experienced before, with faith.
So, how much of this “going down” are we supposed to accept and ‘adjust to?’ because that’s just what happens in this fallen world.

Is is possible to know what God thinks ?
I know it is dangerous to say what God thinks.
We can confidently say what God says in His Word.
In His Word He tells us His Will.
In His Word He tells us His Promises.
In His Word He tells us how He kept His Promises.

But now, personal, in my life, where do I claim overcoming with His Promises, and where do I resign with His Promises.
I’ve been walking with Jesus too long with too much reality, to spin His Promises with my words to suit my comfort level.

All the people who walked with Jesus before me, like Daddy, enduring to the end, “faithful unto death”, certainly had God’s smile of approval and reward, “the crown of life”.
If we endure, even when we start to ‘lose it’ in later years, “If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself. Remind the believers of these things.”

* May I suggest reading this chapter from your Bible, before reading the following.
Ecclesiastes 12, with translations of the cryptic (help from Bible Lessons International).
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth,
before the days of adversity come
[times of sickness, sorrow, senility]
and the years approach of which you will say,
‘I find no pleasure in them,’
[deterioration of the physical body robs life of joy]
before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is darkened,
[even the beauty of seeing God’s creation grows dim as one ages]
and the clouds return after the rain,
[never a clear day, never a sunlit morning, always gray and gloomy]
on the day the keepers of the house tremble
[the body’s arms shaking (from age or fear)]
and the strong men stoop,
[the legs]
when those grinding cease because they are few
[the teeth]
and those watching through windows see dimly,
[the eyes]
when the doors to the street are shut
[lack of hearing]
and the sound of the mill fades away,
[ears]
when one rises at the sound of a bird
[sleeplessness]
and all the daughters of song grow faint,
[bad hearing, fading sexual desire]
when men fear the heights and dangers of the road,
[standing, fear of falling, difficulty walking]
when the almond tree blossoms,
[white, gray hair]
the grasshopper drags himself,
[elderly walking bent over]
and the caper berry is ineffective—
[normal sexual desire is gone]
for then man goes to his eternal home
and mourners walk the streets.
[waiting for you to die]
Remember Him before the silver cord is snapped
and the golden bowl is crushed,
[the value, yet frailty of human life]
before the pitcher is shattered at the spring
and the wheel is broken at the well,
[household items, daily chores]
before the dust returns to the ground from which it came
[humans made from dust]
and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
[breath from God]

When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is this: Fear God and keep His commandments, because this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, along with every hidden thing, whether good or evil.”

DESPERATE TO UNDERSTAND

Man wants to understand God.

Man desperately tries to understand God.

Man thinks that more words to explain God will help us understand God.

Man wants God to fit our thinking.

Man wants God to be like us.

We assign human factors to God. *

Man wants to make God to be in our image.

Since Almighty God does not, will not, fit the many terms (boxes) we have created for Him—and since man knows there is God—and since man must have a god, man is compelled to create gods that do fit what we say god should be.


There is a fine line, parallel, between theologians creating extra-biblical terms to explain the God of the Bible
AND
Pagans creating hundreds of obviously ridiculous gods to worship and make sacrifice to please their god(s).

In reality, which is more ridiculous—having the Truth and adding to it—or not having the Truth and inventing it ?
And, important point, pagans are not limited to places where they actually craft wood and stone and metal objects to worship.
‘Theologians’ of all stripes create their explanations for what they worship—and then worship their explanations.

The educated God (god) scholars have invented boxes for each of their well-defined doctrines—
—and man, by nature, buys it

THE ONLY BOX FIT FOR GOD IS THE BIBLE ! ! !

They vehemently defend their ‘sacred doctrines’ like they come straight from the Bible.
How about just organic “straight from the Bible” ?

Proof of straight from the Bible or not—Does the average listener know which words from the theologians are God’s Words and which are man’s words ?

That distinction is blurred !—
—MUCH TO OUR SPIRITUAL DETRIMENT!

AND, accepting theologians’ wording as ‘gospel truth’ leads to more depending on their words—more than digging in God’s Word.

  • person, “three persons, one essence”, “unity and diversity”, “revealed truth” not in the Bible “that invites believers into a deeper relationship with God”

DID GOD REALLY SAY ENOUGH ?

The Bible is enough.
It tells us what we need to know.
It does not tell us what we don’t need to know.
We don’t need to speculate—we dare not speculate—about what the Bible does not tell us.

Apply this to everything else.
Read the Bible for what we must know about . . .

  • origins
  • sin
  • salvation
  • end times
  • heaven
  • hell
  • any doctrine

Consider:
“Did God really say ?”
That trick worked the first time in the garden—it tricked Eve and Adam.
That same trick works over and over ever since.

Consider this also:
Did God really not say ?
Ask both questions whenever dealing with any issue.

It’s okay, it’s good, it’s wise, it’s essential to be a strict, purist, literalist follower of Jesus with what He tells us in the Bible.

Closing question:
Does not the Bible clearly and unmistakably give direction for our lives—more than enough to keep us busy obeying what He says—Jesus, The Word ?