Tag: Obedience

The Father of Faith

God called Abram out of a pagan world and made him some amazing promises. Abram responded in faith. “Faith obeys God” (The Bible Knowledge Commentary, page 46). He left everything to follow God’s plan.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report….But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:1-2, 6).

abraham-stars

Abraham is the embodiment of faith. In life’s circumstances he believed God. No wonder he is commonly referred to as the father of faith. He took God at His word and did what was asked of him.

I am awed with that phrase “Father of Faith.” Being old, having a wife that was very old, he became a father. Although, his son was named Isaac (laughter; God has made me laugh), for all intent and purposes, he could be simply called “Faith.” Isaac was the direct result of faith. Looking at Isaac, one could quickly see faith in action. No one could dispute it.

“And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb: He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform” (Romans 4:19-21, Emphasis mine).

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Rescued Never to Drown Again

We need to be like the man who was drowning in the ocean.  A ship passing by threw out the lifeline to him; he grabbed it and was pulled into the ship (the place of safety).  Once on the vessel the ship’s crew encouraged him to let go of the lifeline.  He continued to grasp tightly the rope and refused to let it go.

The captain pleaded, “You are now safe.  Let go of the rope.”  The man persistently refused.

Again he pleaded, this time trying to loosen the man’s grip on the rope.  The man fought back adamantly and said, “I will not let it go.  When I grabbed onto this rope I grabbed it for life.”

You and I were also sinking in sin (Psalm 40:2) and were brought by the Great Rescuer, Jesus Christ, into the ship.  How can we let go of the lifeline now?  We must remain in the ship in order to be saved. (Acts 27:31)

In Hebrews 2:1-3 we are warned against drifting away from the faith.  As believers allowing the gospel to slip away from us we find ourselves drifting downstream and having no anchor (Hebrews 6:19) to hold us secure.  We have, through neglect, let go of the lifeline.

“Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation…” (Hebrews 2:1,3)

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O Taste and See that the Lord is Good

Perhaps, you have not been taught any type of Christian tradition. Maybe you have not been searching for answers to, “What must I do to be saved?” You may have even had bad experiences with churches and so-called Christians. This story is for you.

A farmer had an orchard of orange trees. His friend came to visit one day, and the farmer offered him one of his oranges to refresh him. The farmer was surprised when his friend refused to eat one of his oranges. This had happened on one other occasion, and it provoked the farmer to ask, “Why don’t you ever want to eat one of my oranges?”

His friend hesitantly responded, “I really don’t like your oranges.”

The farmer asked, “What is wrong with my oranges?”

The friend answered, “They are very bitter!”

The farmer looked at him with a puzzled look and asked, “When have you eaten one?”

He responded, “One day I picked one of your oranges, at the edge of the orchard, close to the road. I found it to be very unpleasant.”

The farmer roared in laughter. He explained, “The trees that I planted at the edge of the orchard are indeed bitter. I did this on purpose to discourage the children from stealing the oranges. However, the trees in the middle of the orchard are very good and produce a very sweet fruit. You just needed to come into the orchard, pick an orange, eat and enjoy.”

Many times a person on the edge of accepting the truth of Christianity and God’s Word experiences bitter things like guilt, conviction, and condemnation (blame). But, when he moves on into the midst of the church, he finds that the closer he gets to God, the more pleasant and sweet the Christian life becomes.

“O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him” (Psalms 34:8).

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A Barrier and a Reminder

In 1900 a hurricane ravaged Galveston Island. Only one old bridge connected the island to the mainland. It served as the evacuation route for thousands. The coming hurricane was spotted, and advance warning was given. There were no visible signs of the storm so the residents of the island decided to do nothing. Six thousand people were killed when the storm hit, and Galveston was destroyed. “Today a strong concrete sea wall stands as a barrier against such disaster, but also as a reminder that a century ago, thousands of people heard a message of warning and chose not to respond.” (Adapted from A Man After God’s Heart by Luis Palau.)

Faith in Jesus and obedience to His commands is the only way to heaven. Obedience leads us upward to heaven. Disobedience leads us downward to hell.

There is no other way to heaven besides Jesus Christ. He is the truth, and we should obey His teachings. He alone provides eternal life.

Man would prefer to choose his own path to heaven. Many try to do that, but it leads to a dead-end street.  There are no options. Jesus Christ is the only way.

“To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins” (Acts 10:43).

The fly that refuses to heed advice follows the corpse to the grave.
(African Proverb)

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