Faith Archives

March 30, 2023March 30, 2023

Follow Without Reservation

¹ Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, ²saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. ³If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” ~ Matthew 21:1-3

Jesus didn’t tell the disciples exactly where the donkey was or whose donkey it belonged to. Jesus just said, when you go in, you’ll see the donkey and her colt. In fact, Jesus goes even further, saying that if anyone tries to stop you, just tell them that the LORD needs them. The disciples had to be led by faith and the Spirit alone. They had to believe and put their full confidence in Jesus that He would make a way for them to untie the donkey and her colt without the owner calling them thieves, causing them to fall into big problems.

Many of us today are called by God to do something. Sometimes, it takes great faith that we feel we lack because of the possible consequences. But just as Jesus gave the disciples favor with the owner of the donkey and her colt, if they had the faith to do as He commanded, so will we have the favor to complete what we’ve been called to do if we do it in faith and obedience.

LORD, please strike fear from my heart so that I might abound and be transformed in Your perfect love, and my faith in You might grow and flourish. Help me to fully and heartedly believe that You are good and that Your plan for my life is good. Please remove all doubt from my mind and heart so that I can follow You without reservation or hesitation. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Don’t Let The Enemy Silence You

³⁷As He was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of His disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, ³⁸saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” ³⁹And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.” ⁴⁰He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.” ~ Luke 19:37-40

Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem. He hadn’t made it down the Mount of Olives yet; nevertheless, the Pharisees were there. They remained quiet until the disciples began to rejoice and proclaim who Jesus is. The enemy is fine with us believing Jesus existed. He’s even fine with us believing that He died on the cross and rose again. But the moment we start speaking about who Jesus is, the enemy can’t remain silent. The enemy has to speak. He has to try to silence the Truth. Why?

Unless we understand and proclaim who Jesus is, we make His name powerless. Unless we proclaim that Jesus is King of kings and LORD of lords and believe that He is God incarnate, we cannot be saved. The enemy will try to intimidate you. He’ll try to condemn you. He’ll even try to twist Scripture to confuse you so that you’ll miss out on Jesus. You’ll miss out on His salvation. You’ll miss out on His peace, grace, joy, healing, and so much more. If the enemy can silence you, then the enemy can snuff out the Light that is within you.

Dear LORD, please help me to never allow Your Light in me to be dimmed. Protect my faith. Don’t allow any fear, doubt, intimidation, or twisting of Scripture to uproot my faith in You. Strengthen my faith so that I might overcome every fiery dart the enemy sends my way. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

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Faith Revisited Pt. 6: How to Attain Faith

Paul stated that faith came by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ, but what does that mean? What is hearing, and how does it relate back to the word of Christ? How does hearing grow faith? If it’s impossible to please God without faith, wouldn’t it be important how to attain, retain, and grow faith? Join Reverend Kenny Yates as he opens our eyes to the mystery and importance of hearing in his message, Faith Revisited Pt. 6: How to Attain Faith.

Romans 10:17
Hebrews 3:16
1 Corinthians 10:1-5
Deuteronomy 5:23-24
Hebrews 4:2 (ESV)
Luke 8:16-17
Hebrews 4:12a
2 Timothy 1:6
2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV)
Isaiah 55:10-11
Jeremiah 1:12
Luke 8:17
Proverbs 25:2 (NKJV)
Deuteronomy 29:29
Luke 8:18
Proverbs 13:22
Luke 16:11 (NIV)
Isaiah 53:1
Mark 4:24-25

How to Attain Faith

The Importance of Faith

¹ Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. ²For by it the people of old received their commendation. ³By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. ⁴By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. ⁵By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. ⁶And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him.

Hebrews 11:1-6

¹²For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing His riches on all who call on Him. ¹³For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” ¹⁴How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? ¹⁵And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” ¹⁶But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” ¹⁷So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Romans 10:12-17

Leave The Box

¹²But you made the Nazirites drink wine, and commanded the prophets, saying, ‘You shall not prophesy.’ ~ Amos 2:12

Many of us live our lives in a box, and because we live in the box, we drag God into the same box as well. God is all-powerful, but His power is restrained or limited by our faith. Jesus, God in the flesh, marveled at the unbelief of Nazareth, His hometown (Mark 6:1-6) because He could only do a few miracles and heal a few sick. If we refuse to believe God is more than Salvation and try to convince others of the same thing, then it’s not the beliefs we’re trying to stop; it’s God.

God wants to do more than save us from our sin. He wants to give us life more abundantly, but we have to believe it’s possible. We have to leave the box in order to see all that God has in store for us. We have to remove our biases and truly seek the Truth of God.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Leave The Box.

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Faith Revisited Pt. 5: The Diligent Seekers

During Jesus’ earthly ministry, He taught many important things, but He often spoke in parables. These parables are filled with Truth and wisdom, but unless you understand the parable and why Jesus told them, the parables become useless to us. Knowing and understanding parables are the first steps, but after that, you have to put that knowledge and understanding into action. Join Reverend Kenny Yates as he opens our eyes to the importance of The Parable of The Sower in his message, Faith Revisited Pt. 5: The Diligent Seekers.

Luke 8:4-8
Luke 8:1b
1 Corinthians 4:20 (NIV)
Matthew 13:1-3
Mark 4:1-3
Mark 4:10-12
Hebrews 4:2 (NKJV)
Mark 7:13
John 8:31-32
John 14:6
Luke 8:11-12
Hebrews 10:29
Luke 8:13-15
Mark 4:33-34
Luke 8:16-18
Acts 4:20

The Diligent Seekers

The Parable of The Sower

¹ That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. ²Such large crowds gathered around Him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. ³Then He told them many things in parables, saying:

“A farmer went out to sow his seed. ⁴As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. ⁵Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. ⁶But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. ⁷Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. ⁸Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. ⁹Whoever has ears, let them hear.”

¹⁰The disciples came to Him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?” ¹¹He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. ¹²Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. ¹³This is why I speak to them in parables:

“Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand.
¹⁴In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:

‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
    you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
¹⁵For this people’s heart has become calloused;
    they hardly hear with their ears,
    and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
    hear with their ears,
    understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.’

¹⁶But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. ¹⁷For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.

Matthew 13:1-17 (NIV)

Jesus spoke in parables so that He could separate those who weren’t diligently seeking Him and the things of God. If He spoke plainly to everyone, all would have the wisdom of God, but if He spoke in parables, then only thought who were diligent seekers of the Truth would find the Truth. They would find wisdom and understanding. This is all so that we might build our faith because, without faith, it’s impossible to please God.

Faith Revisited Pt. 4: Hidden Faith

Jesus told the parable of the talents. Each person was given a certain amount of talents and was later judged by what they did with those talents. This begs the question of what that parable means and what that has to do with us (the Church) today? Join Reverend Kenny Yates as he opens our eyes to the necessity of faith in his message, Faith Revisited Pt. 4: Hidden Faith.

Matthew 25:14–30
Romans 12:3
Luke 18:8

Hidden Faith

¹⁴For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. ¹⁵To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. ¹⁶He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. ¹⁷So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. ¹⁸But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money.

¹⁹Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. ²⁰And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ ²¹His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ ²²And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ ²³His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’

²⁴He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, ²⁵so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’ ²⁶But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? ²⁷Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. ²⁸So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. ²⁹For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. ³⁰And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Matthew 25:14–30

Let Your Faith Grow

³¹It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, ³²yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade. ~ Mark 4:31–32

A mustard seed faith starts out really small. Sometimes, you don’t even know it’s there at first. But you hear the Good News about Jesus. You receive the Good News, and you believe the Good News. Then it begins to grow into the largest of all garden plants, and nothing will be impossible for you.

This faith not only moves mountains, but it ministers to the needs of others as well. Jesus has given us the keys to the kingdom of God, and He expects us to do the work, not Him. Have you ever noticed that Jesus is not moved by need? Just because someone needs clothes doesn’t mean Jesus will come down and clothe them. Or feed the hungry. Or heal the sick. Or spread the Gospel to remote areas. Why? It’s not His job. Jesus said that as long as He was IN the world, He was the Light of the World. Jesus is no longer in the world. That’s why He said we are now the light of the world. He has left us in charge, and we, the Church, are responsible for what happens and what authority rules the world.

If we want to see miracles, revival, an outpouring of the Spirit, and a change in the atmosphere, we have to have mustard-seed faith that can grow. We have to have faith that can grow beyond “I know it’s possible.” We have to have faith that can grow to “I believe it’s possible.” Our faith can’t be stagnant. Our faith has to be able to grow.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Let Your Faith Grow.

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Have Seed-Like Faith

³⁰And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? ³¹It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, ³²yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” ~ Mark 4:30–32

The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed. What is so special about a mustard seed, you ask? Well, let’s analyze what Jesus was teaching. Jesus wasn’t saying you just need a little bit of faith, but rather, He was saying you need a little of seed-like faith that can grow into great faith. I can have a little faith but never see anything happen because my faith is limited to my own biases. But if I remove my biases, then my faith has room to grow.

We need to have seed-like faith that can be planted and let it grow into something big. For instance, if you have the spirit of fear, your seed can’t grow because you’ll be too afraid to leave your comfort zone. So, it’s not just any old little type of faith; it’s seed-like faith. It’s faith with potential. It is a mustard seed faith.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Have Seed-Like Faith.

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Allow God To Be Big

¹⁵And He said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. ¹⁶Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. ¹⁷And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; ¹⁸they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” ~ Mark 16:15–18

Jesus promised that all who believe would be able to access certain signs. In fact, He said that these signs would accompany or follow believers. Therefore, these are our inalienable rights in the LORD. No one or nothing can take that away from us. Why? Because in these things, God is glorified.

God receives glory whenever His mighty Name is used in a righteous way. He wants to heal the sick, open the eyes of the blind, and make the lame walk again. He wants to perform signs and wonders and miracles and perform many mighty acts of healing, but His Church won’t let Him. We limit God by our faith. If our faith is much, God can do much, but if our faith is little, then God can only do little. God will be as big in your life as you allow Him to be.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Allow God To Be Big.

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Ask Until You Get An Answer

¹¹ Then I said to Him, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?” ¹² And a second time I answered and said to Him, “What are these two branches of the olive trees, which are beside the two golden pipes from which the golden oil is poured out?” ~ Zechariah 4:11-12

God showed Zechariah a vision but didn’t explain it to him until he inquired it of God. Sometimes God shows us a little piece of the puzzle to get our attention so that we’ll seek Him for more. The answer doesn’t always come right away or even after the first time we ask. Sometimes, it takes asking more than one time. Why? There are multiple answers to this question. Sometimes, it’s like Daniel, and something is keeping your answer from getting to you, but other times it’s to help us grow our faith.

If God answered every single question the very first time we asked, then how could our faith ever grow enough to withstand any kind of storm? Sometimes, God remains silent for a short time to help grow our faith. A seed can’t grow without a little bit of rain sometimes. Paul said that trying times produce endurance. These small tests help prepare us for bigger tests to come. If we don’t have the faith to keep asking after the first, second, or even fifth time, how will we be able to ask and have faith in a time of trouble?

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Ask Until You Get An Answer.

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Tag: Faith

Follow Without Reservation

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