Hebrews 4:1-2
Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith.
Faith needs to line up with the Word of God. Firstly, the foundation of faith is in the Word of God, and not feelings. If it were based on feelings, when you wake up in the morning and feel that everything is in order, you will feel that the Lord is with you. However, if you wake up in the morning and feel that something is wrong or you do not feel good, you will think that God is not with you. If faith is founded on feelings, it will go up and down each day. Faith is also not founded upon circumstances, such that when circumstances change, faith will crumble. Faith is founded upon the Word of God because His Word is the never changing foundation. Hence faith cannot be separated from the Word of God.
God's Word need to be received by faith. Otherwise, it is merely words on paper. Many people read the Bible and even memorize the Bible. However, God's Word does not bring Him strength, because they do not have the faith to receive. When David Livingston was preaching the Gospel in Africa, the man-eating tribe was chasing him down. He was about to cross the river and was praying anxiously, "Lord! Please give me a confirmation." Afterwards, he opened the Bible and read Matthew 28:20 where the Lord's promises, "Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Holding fast to this promise, Livingston prayed, "Lord, since you have promised me this, I will keep going by faith."
The same verse will stir up faith in the hearts of some, while for others they may feel nothing when they hear it. The key is whether you receive the Word by faith. When I was preparing to go into full time ministry, God gave me this verse in Exodus 8:25-27. There it clearly said to leave Egypt and head towards the wilderness. The background was this: Moses was leading the Israelites out of Egypt and Pharaoh told Moses, "Go, sacrifice to your God here in the land." Moses answered him, "God wants us to leave Egypt and worship Him in the wilderness. " Perhaps you would think that this is just a historic event, but to me, it was the foundation of faith that God gave me. God's will is for me to leave my original job and enter into the ministry He has called me to.
God's Word needs to be received by faith and the foundation of our faith needs to be upon God's Word. Faith should line up with the Word of God so that it can bring power to your faith. When you read the Word of God, do you read it with faith? Use faith to grab hold of God's promises today!
Pray with Pastor Tong Liu
Lord, I thank you for not only giving us your word, but for your Holy Spirit that dwells inside us to bring us true faith. We welcome your work in our life and may your Word be strengthen our faith so that we can have victory in you each day. I thank you and pray in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!
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