2 Corinthians 13:5 – “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves.”
I am doing a Beth Moore Bible study with a dear sweet college gal. It is called, “Believing God.” Though it is not the first time I have done this study, it is challenging me in new ways.
The goal of the study is to merge our theology with our reality. The core teaching can be summed up in five sentences:
1. God is who He says He is.
2. God can do what He says He can do.
3. I am who God says I am.
4. I can do all things through Christ.
5. God’s Word is alive and active in me.
I read these, and at first I thought, “Pfff, easy to believe. Of course I believe these.” Intellectually. Then I started examining myself and my faith. I started to wonder, “Do I LIVE like I believe these statements?” Do we live like we’re believing God?
Believing is a phrase used in this study a lot; it basically means “having faith in”. Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. It fills the gap between our theology and our reality. Beth says faith is the root of faithfulness to God. In fact, our faithfulness (serving and obeying God) is the outward expression of our inward faith. I find my soul longs to be faithful to God in every way! I deeply desire to have more faith. In fact, I want to go a step further and leave a legacy of faith to my children. How can I do this? How can I increase my faith and pass it on?
I’ve come to find out that faith can’t just be manufactured. It is a fruit of the Spirit, which means that in order to grow in our faith, we must be filled with the Holy Spirit. Faith is the byproduct of hearing the Word of God, whether through sermons, teachings, lessons, Bible studies, or daily readings. Faith also comes to those who personally ask Christ to increase their faith, especially in times when unbelief knocks. I can ask Him to help me in my unbelief, and can believe that He will do so!
So how does unbelief creep in? I am amazed at all the ways. Life experiences, well-intentioned people who present a false image of God to us (“God doesn’t do anymore”), our attempts to package our faith in a neat little box that we can understand, etc. Essentially, our primary obstacle in believing God is choosing to believe our own eyes and ears over His Word. It is vital, therefore, that we know what His Word says, especially about who God is. God is neither a genie in a bottle nor an apathetic bystander. If we think we’ve grasped Him and His abilities, then we’ve been deceived. God is bigger than we will ever be able to imagine or understand. He is beyond awesome. His power and might have no limits. His ways are beyond our ways, yet are ALWAYS good, infinitely right, and perfect for the kingdom. Every time we grasp a new concept about God, we need to think, “He’s this…and MORE!”