Friday, 4 April 2014

The Power to Change

How would your life change if you committed to meeting with God everyday?
The writer of Hebrews tells us the Word of God “is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12). 
God’s Word is power. God watches over His Word to perform it (Jeremiah 1:12). His Word is His plan, and His plan is something He makes happen. And so He promises, “So will My Word be which goes forth from My mouth; it will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11). God’s Word never fails! The writer of Hebrews says the Word is “active” (energēs: energy, power, Hebrews 4:12).
According to 2 Timothy 3:16, God’s words are “God breathed” — not in-spired, meaning some kind of vague power or ghost breathed into man’s preexisting words, but literally breathed or spirited out of the mouth of God. So these words did not originate in the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21).
God’s Word is precious, valuable, a treasure. Psalm 138:2 says, “Thou hast magnified thy Word above [KJV; modern translations read the Hebrew al and Septuagint Greek epi as “according to,” but both roots mean “upon” or “above”] all thy name.” That means God ranks His revelation of Himself above His name. (It’s interesting that Jehovah’s Witnesses reverse this order with their low view of the Word as “a god” [John 1:1] and their high view of the name “Jehovah.”)

Monday, 17 March 2014

Faith that astounds: God’s Desire for Our Faith

Centurion
CC Photo by: garyknight
When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. ‘Lord,’ he said, ‘my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.’
Jesus said to him, ‘Shall I come and heal him?’

The centurion replied, ‘Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, “Go,” and he goes; and that one, “Come,” and he comes. I say to my servant, “Do this,” and he does it.’

When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, ‘Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.

… Then Jesus said to the centurion, ‘Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.’ And his servant was healed at that moment. Matthew 8:5-10,13
The uncomfortable reality of our need for faith