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Devotion 1 – Faith is Essential to Pleasing God

  Devotion 1 – Faith is Essential to Pleasing God   Heb.11:6 – “ But without faith it is  impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” God’s greatest desire and pleasure is to be believed by us.  He has limited us to one supreme way to have a relationship with Him – faith. We should take note of the t wo words that underscore this verse – impossible and must. Faith is not just something good to put into practice, the Scripture clearly says that it is impossible to please God if we do not practice it. Hence, faith is the entrance point to a relationship with God and is essential in the life of the believer. One of the synonyms for faith is trust. Have you ever had someone distrust you? Have you ever had someone you deeply love had helped again and again distrust you? It is a very discouraging and painful experience. No one has given more, loved more, or done more for humanity than God. He
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Devotion 2 – Faith is not Being Brainless

  Devotion 2 – Faith is not Being Brainless   “If I seem to walk out of step with others, it is because I am listening to another drumbeat.   That is an exact description of faith: Christians walk as though listening to another drumbeat.”   - Henry David Thoreau This is a walk of faith; it is what makes the Christian different from the non-Christian. Unfortunately, the walk of faith is often greatly misunderstood even among Christian. Prov.3:5-6  – “ Trust in the  Lord  with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding ; in all your ways acknowledge Him , and He shall direct your paths.”   Authentic faith is not a call to sacrifice our intellect and to live brainlessly. Faith and intellect do not necessarily contradict each other. In fact, the book of Proverbs exhorts us constantly to seek after wisdom and understanding:   Prov.2:2-3 – “ Incline your ear to wisdom and a pply your heart to understanding…and lift up your voice for understanding.”   Prov.2:11  
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Devotion 3 – Faith is not Blindness & Foolishness

  Devotion 3 – Faith is not Blindness & Foolishness   2 Cor.5:7  – “ For we walk by faith, not by sight.”   The dictionaries define “faith” as a “belief that is not based on proof” or an “unreasoned belief”. So, is faith by definition “blind”? If no, what is the difference between “biblical faith” and “blind faith”? The difference between biblical faith and blind faith is simple. Biblical faith is believing in the Word of God even though the evidence of it is not yet seen. Blind faith is believing in something without any ground of evidence, or even conflicting evidence which is against our reasoning. Thus, if our faith is not justified by the Word of God, we are exercising “blind faith”. The above verse is not encouraging us to walk blindly by faith, but rather, to be mindful of the promises of God in His Word and to be conscious that this world is not our home; we have an ultimate destiny in heaven. Paul is encouraging us not be discouraged by the disappointments, pain,
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Devotion 4 - Faith Does not Guarantee a ‘Good Life’

  Devotion 4 - Faith Does not Guarantee a ‘Good Life’ Rom.8:28 - “ And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose”.   This is perhaps one of the most memorized and quoted verses Christians use to encourage a fellow believer who goes through difficult trials and suffering. This Scripture brings comfort, direction, and hope to Christians every day. Sadly, it is also one of the most misquoted and misunderstood verses in the Bible.  This verse is not a promise or guarantee of a ‘good life’ if we fulfil the condition of responding in love and faith amid trials and suffering.   If we study the life of Paul, who is the author of the verse, we can see the many things God had allowed him to suffer despite his faith and close relationship with God.    2 Cor.11:23-27  – “ Are they ministers of Christ? I speak as a fool - I am more: in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently,
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Devotion 5 - Faith Despite Doubt

  Devotion 5 - Faith Despite Doubt Can we have doubt yet continue to walk in faith? Mk.9:23-25 – “ Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things  are  possible to him who believes.”   Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “ Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” If we would all be honest, all of us can identify with this man , every believer occasionally has this internal struggle with doubt. “I believe; help my unbelief” is a perfect summary of the internal struggle that every Christian experiences.   Faith is not something we have or do not have, it is more like a process, which we are either progressing toward or regressing into. It involves ups and downs, victories and setbacks, triumphs and disappointments. The key point of this passage is this: It is not necessary for us to have 100% faith for Jesus to give us a miracle. We will continue to grow and mature in our walk of faith as we step out in obedience to act on our convictions of His Word
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Devotion 6 – Definition of Faith

  Devotion 6 – Definition of Faith Heb.11:1;6 – “ Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen…   without faith it is impossible to please Him ”   Faith is probably the most important thing in our Christian life, as the scripture clearly says that we cannot please God without faith. How do we define faith?   St. Augustine said, “Faith means believing what you don’t yet see, and the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.”   However, faith is not always a desire for something better, but rather the conviction and an awareness of God’s invisible kingdom. It means we become aware that we are surrounded by an invisible kingdom and that which is seen is not the whole explanation of life, there are realities which cannot be seen or touched, and yet which are as real as anything we can see. In fact, they are more real because they are the explanation of the things which can be seen.   Heb.11:3 – “ By faith we understand that the univ
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Devotion 7 – Abraham’s Faith

Devotion 7 – Abraham’s Faith   Abraham stands in the Bible as the preeminent example of a man who lived by faith. He is also given a high position of respect in three major world faiths - Islam, Judaism and Christianity, and was extolled in Scripture as “ the father of all who believe ” (Rom.4:11). Thus, he was commonly called the Father of Faith.   1)     Living by Faith means surrendering our Future to God Completely   Gen.12:1-2  – “ Now the  Lord  had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house to a land that I will show you.   I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing.”   Heb.11:8 - “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going .”    Abraham lived in the Ur of the Chaldees, known as Southern Iraq today. From the records of archaeologists, we know that
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