Tag: Faith

²⁷ And they came again to Jerusalem. And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to Him, ²⁸ and they said to Him, “By what authority are You doing these things, or who gave You this authority to do them?” ²⁹ Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer Me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. ³⁰ Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer Me.” ³¹ And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ ³² But shall we say, ‘From man’?”—they were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was a prophet. ³³ So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.” ~ Mark 11:27-33

The next morning, Tuesday, they arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders came to Him, and it was like they attacked Him, ‘By what authority are You doing these things?’ ‘And who gave You authority to do this?’ But Jesus was and is way smarter than they were and would not allow Himself to be trapped by their questions. So, instead of giving them a right-out answer, He, instead, asked them a question in order to receive an answer. He asked about John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin? But they were on their toes. They knew Jesus was clever and was always trying to lead them to admit and receive the truth. So, after discussing it among themselves, they simply answered, ‘We don’t know.’ So Jesus wouldn’t answer their question either.

See, Jesus didn’t just toss out a random question when He asked about John’s baptism—He was shining a light on the hearts of those chief priests, scribes, and elders. He knew their question about His authority wasn’t sincere; they wanted to trap Him, not learn from Him. By asking, “Was John’s baptism from heaven or from men?” Jesus cleverly turned the tables. John had pointed straight to Jesus and proclaimed Him the Messiah, so if they admitted John’s work was from God, they’d have to face their own rejection of Jesus. It was like Jesus was saying, “You already know the answer, but will you admit it?” His question wasn’t just a debate tactic—it was an invitation to truth, a chance for them to see that He was sent by God. But their hearts were too hard, too tangled up in pride and power to take that step. Jesus’ wisdom left them speechless, showing us He’s not just smart—He’s the Truth itself, calling us to trust Him fully.

Those religious leaders squirmed under the pressure and finally muttered, “We don’t know,” because they were caught between a rock and a hard place. Say John’s baptism was from heaven, and they’d have to explain why they ignored him and, by extension, Jesus. Say it was just human, and they’d lose the crowd, who loved John as a prophet. So they dodged the question, too scared of the people and too stubborn to face the truth about Jesus. Their answer wasn’t just a cop-out; it showed they cared more about looking good than knowing God. It’s a warning for us—when we dodge Jesus’ call or question His place in our lives, we’re not fooling Him. He sees our hearts, just like He saw theirs. That’s why this moment matters—it’s Jesus asking us, too, to stop hiding and let Him be LORD, no matter what it costs.

Heavenly Father, lead me in the truth of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Help me to submit totally to Him and let Him be LORD of my life. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

²² And the Philistines came up yet again and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim. ²³ And when David inquired of the LORD, he said, “You shall not go up; go around to their rear, and come against them opposite the balsam trees. ²⁴ And when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then rouse yourself, for then the LORD has gone out before you to strike down the army of the Philistines.” ²⁵ And David did as the LORD commanded him, and struck down the Philistines from Geba to Gezer ~ 2 Samuel 5:22-25

When David was anointed king over Israel, the Philistines heard about it and went in search of him, apparently to execute him. Remember, David was actually living with the Philistines, the enemy of the Israelites, because King Saul was hunting him in order to kill him. The Philistines even gave him and his men the city of Ziklag (1 Samuel 27:6). It is likely that they even considered him their friend and ally because when he was anointed king of Judah, the Philistines stayed where they were because Abner, along with Israel, had anointed Saul’s son king of Israel. But as soon as Ish-bosheth was assassinated and David was anointed king of Israel, they went in search of him. David then inquired of the LORD, shall I go up and fight against the Philistines? And the LORD said go, and so he went and defeated the Philistines (2 Samuel 5:17-21).

The Philistines regrouped and tried again, according to 2 Samuel 5:22-25. This time, when David inquired of God whether he should go up and fight the Philistines, God answered no. Do not go up and fight, but go behind them and wait. Then, when you hear the sound of marching in the balsam trees, rouse yourself, for then you will know that your God has gone out before you to defeat your enemy, the Philistines. And David did as God instructed.

Remember that David is a warrior; his instincts are to get up and fight. Com’on men, strap on your swords; we got a fight in front of us. But God said no, not this time, don’t do what you do best, but rather, wait for me, and you will have victory. It’s difficult to just sit and wait, not knowing what is going on or how long you will have to wait. Especially right after having such a great victory as the one earlier against the same Philistines. The words, “I can do all things,” springs to attention in the mind in times like those.

You have to rest in the assurance that God can use anything and anyone. This time, He chose to have David wait, which is a lesson in trusting and obeying, even when it seems almost nonsensical. If the general of today’s army told his men that is what he was doing, waiting for a certain sound in the tops of certain trees, they would probably lose all confidence in their commanding officer. But, the Word of God says, …to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams (1 Samuel 15:22b^NIV). For David, his full confidence was in God, and for his men, their confidence was in knowing that David had a relationship with God and heard from Him.

So, the next time you feel like running on ahead with a certain project or a certain way of doing things because you’re good at it, pray, listen, and wait for the LORD. He doesn’t always do things the same way every time. He is a God of variety and color. It does not matter how silly it seems to others or even to yourself, but if you get a word from God, follow that word and trust and obey, no matter how silly or how nonsensical it may sound to others or to you.

Heavenly Father, thank You that you can use anything and everything, anyone and everyone. Nothing is too difficult or too easy, but all things are possible for You. Thank You, Father, that you work everything to the good of those who love You. Teach me to wait on You. Teach me to trust and obey. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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²⁶ Eight days later, His disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” ²⁷ Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” ²⁸ Thomas answered Him, “My Lord and my God!” ²⁹ Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” ~ John 20:26-29

Even though Thomas walked and talked with Jesus daily, his faith and understanding of who Jesus is was flawed. He refused to believe unless he could touch the scars. He refused to believe unless his eyes could see. This one incident became his legacy. We don’t remember Thomas as anything other than ‘Doubting Thomas.’ How sad is that?

Thomas did many great things for the LORD, but all we remember and talk about was his moment of doubt and unbelief because of his lack of understanding.

The true identity of who Jesus is wasn’t revealed to Thomas until he saw Him face to face. The identity that Jesus isn’t just our Savior, but our God.

Jesus isn’t just another one of God’s creations with a special purpose. No. Our Savior is so much more. He’s the Light of the World. The King of kings. The LORD of lords. The Alpha and the Omega. He is our Savior and our God.

Jesus didn’t come into being at His birth or even the creation of Heaven. Jesus has always been. Therefore, be encouraged. Our savior is more than us. He isn’t one of us elevated. He is God who lowered Himself to our level to save us from our own sin. He didn’t have to do it, but He did. He did it for the sake of the Church.

Get to know your savior. He’s not just another man. He’s the very creator of the entire universe. He is God. Don’t allow the lack of understanding to take away all that you have done for the LORD and taint your legacy. Build your faith through the Word of God so that you might not stumble in a time of faith testing.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Know The Savior.

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¹⁷ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. ~ Romans 10:17

Faith and hearing, hearing and faith are tightly intertwined together to build [ὁ (ho) Pistis] The Faith.

It seems to me that faith cannot be built or had without hearing. We must first hear. We covered the difference between faith and The Faith [ὁ (ho) Pistis] in our first video in this series, so we won’t rehash that.

Now, if hearing is so important to my The Faith, then I really need to understand what hearing is, if I am going to mix it with my faith to produce an action. Therefore, it would seem to me that it is much more than just mere sound entering through my ear canal. It’s a hearing with the heart. It’s a spiritual hearing. A hearing with the desire to understand and grow.

Oftentimes, we hear, but we never really listen. It goes in one ear and out the other. We don’t think about it. We don’t dwell on it. We don’t try to understand it. We don’t meditate on it. We don’t let it change us. We allow the Word of God to become just words and not the Living, Active Word that penetrates our soul and awakens our sleeping spirit within us.

If you want your faith to grow, you have to seek faith. You can’t continue in the same old pattern, hoping for a change. You have to actively seek God if you want to find Him. You have to be active in Christ if you want your faith to grow.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Allow The Word To Penetrate.

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²³ So after he had eaten food and after he had drunk, the old prophet saddled the donkey for the prophet he had brought back. ²⁴ When he left, a lion attacked him along the way and killed him. His corpse was thrown on the road, and the donkey was standing beside it; the lion was standing beside the corpse too. ~ 1 Kings 13:23-24^CSB

There was a prophet in the time of King Jeroboam of Israel. This prophet directly heard from the Word of the LORD to go speak against the high places Jeroboam had built. Of course Jeroboam didn’t take too kindly to being called out the way he was, so he reached out his hand to call for the prophet to be seized. But as Jeroboam did this, his hand withered, and he couldn’t pull his hand back to him. So, he pleaded with the prophet to pray for him, and he did so his hand was restored.

After he did this, Jeroboam pleaded for the man to remain with him, but he refused because the Word of the LORD told him not to remain there and drink or eat in that place. Now, as he was leaving out of Bethel, an old prophet heard of him and sent his sons to get him. He came and told the old prophet that he couldn’t stay with him because he had a command from the Word of the LORD to follow. The old prophet told him that he was also a prophet, and an angel came to him and said that the prophet needed to stay with him and eat and drink.

Now, while they were eating and drinking at the table, the Word of the LORD came not the prophet but the old prophet who had deceived him. The prophet was told he wouldn’t make it home because of his disobedience to the LORD. He then saddled his donkey and left. He was killed by a lion before he got out of the city.

I want you to really think about that for a second. The Scriptures say the old prophet deceived him, but it wasn’t the old prophet that died. It wasn’t the old prophet who was punished with never hearing from the Word of the LORD again. It was the prophet who was deceived and disobeyed. That may sound harsh, but think about it. The LORD Himself came to him, gave him orders, and showed him signs and wonders, yet he still listened to the voice of man instead of God. His faith was in man, not God.

God has called each and every one of us to do something. He’s given us sign after sign, answered prayer after answered prayer, but then sometimes someone else comes along who is older or has been a Christian longer and begins to weigh in on your call. They begin to cast doubt in your mind. They’ll point out that they’re older and, therefore, wiser or that they’ve heard from God as well. This is the enemy using a willing victim. Someone who already has preconceived notions about your call, so the enemy will use them to try to get you off your path. Does that mean that they aren’t of God and they’re now evil? No. The old prophet is never called a false prophet. His deception of this young prophet didn’t take away from his overall call. Was he wrong? Yes. But the young prophet who heard directly from God was still even more wrong because he should’ve followed God instead of Man.

Don’t allow someone to dissuade you from your call just because they’ve been a Christian longer than you have or because they’re older. Let the Spirit guide you. Take instruction and guidance from those who are in step with the Spirit. Not everyone you meet will be in tune with the Spirit, but they may have an opinion. Know the Shepherd’s voice by spending time with Him. By worship and prayer. Reading your Bible and meditating on His Word. Asking for a sign and paying attention so you’ll see it when it’s there.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Let The Spirit Lead.

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