Dealing with Unbelief, Abide in the Word and Locate Your Faith

From Bola Tobun

Dealing with unbelief

"Let us labour therefore to enter into God's rest lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief" (Heb.4:11).

Heb 4:2b says "the word preached did not profit them not being mixed with faith in them that heard it".

To live the extraordinary life you have to be a believer in the revealed word of God. 

The bible describes unbelief as an evil heart (Hebrews 3:12) which prevents us from entering into God's rest (God's best) and thereby making the word unprofitable.

We need to daily ask for a fresh revelation of God's word that Christ will dwell in our heart's through Faith. Eph 1: 17-21 and Eph 3: 14-21  are  prayers we should encouraged to pray everyday and as we consistently hear God's word, Faith will come; and no situation will be impossible because we believe (Mark 9:23) For with God all things are possible.

Therefore make His word final authority in your life, desire and feed on His word as if your life depended on it and because you believe nothing shall be impossible.

 *Abiding in The Word* (by Pastor Segun Okubanjo)

I believe it is important that we remind ourselves of this important truth to abide in the word because of the times and seasons we are in. 2Tim 4:3-4  tells us: "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;  And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables_*"

That is why we are admonished in Heb. 2:1‘_therefore  we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.’_*

It’s easy to think this exhortation to give the more earnest heed is not directed to us but directed to unbelievers; but it is something “mature” Christians must be challenged with also. So that we should not become desensitized to the glory of Jesus’ message, thinking we know it all, and have experienced it all.

A lot is going on in the Body of Christ now, that the emphasis on God’s Word is no longer there. There are so many traditions of men, fables, politics, and many other things going on. Some even interpret the scriptures in the light of their present political persuasions etc. forgetting that it's only the Word of God that abides forever.

Bro. Paul when in Miletus on his way to Jerusalem sent for the Elders of the Ephesian Church and spoke passionately about his ministry. He charged them,knowing he might not see them physically again and said in Acts 20:32 "And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified._*

It is the Word of God that is guarantee to build us up consistently. Other activities we do as Christians is good but the foundation is the Word. The word will lead us to enjoy our inheritance in Christ Jesus.

Let us look at the main text of our study this week.

John 15:4-5_Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

The word ‘Abide’ means to remain, dwell, to rest, to tarry, to continue permanently in the same state. This shows what our dispositions should be towards the Word of God, we are to remain in the confines of the Word.

One of the thoughts that gets to me is the vital dependence on Christ Jesus that we can absolutely do nothing without Him, also the vine is not able to do its work in the world without its branches; the branch stretch far from the root, to bear its strength and sweetness to those who stand outside away from the vine.

We need the Lord Jesus, but He also needs us. Without us He cannot bless men as He would. What a sublime thought is here-that Jesus needs something which I can yield to Him!

Service to God and man is possible only through abiding union in Him, for it is in Him that we live, move and have our being. Have a blessed and fruitful day.

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.—Luke 6:45

‘Locate Your Faith’

You can locate your faith by your own words. Your words are your faith speaking. Now, it’s good practice to consciously speak good words over your circumstances. But if you want to find out where you really are in your faith walk—or why some things aren’t going right in your life—then listen to yourself talk when the pressure is on. See what comes out of your mouth when you’re not making a conscious effort to speak something good. In other words, see what comes out of the abundance of your heart. Then you’ll know if you need to make some adjustments. It’s like a bank account. The bank sends you a statement each month. If you want them to add more to the final balance, what do you do? Put more money in the bank, and the next statement will show the difference. It’s the same way spiritually. When you want something to show up outside, deposit the treasures of God’s Word inside. Feed on the Word continually. Treat your inner man like a bank vault and just keep depositing God’s Word in there. Once the Word is deposited in your inner man, you’ll believe it; once you believe it, you’ll say it. And then your entire being will reflect the treasure of God’s Word.

Confession: I deposit healing Scriptures in my heart. I don’t talk about symptoms, even when the pressure is on. I open my mouth and say, “Thank You, Father. Your healing power is working in me.”

Christ the I AM – “I Am the way and the truth and the life.”

Jesus the way to the Father

John 14:5-7

⁵ Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?’⁶ Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷ If you really know me, you will know^[b] my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.’ 

Acts 4:12

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.

Eph 4:17-20
17He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

19Therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens of the saints and members of God’s household, 20built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. (Eph 2:13; Mark 15:38)

Christ the I Am – “I am the Resurrection and the Life”

Raising of Lazarus

John 11:1- 43

 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die;

John 1:4 In Him is Life

In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.

1John 1:1-3

1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us.

Romans 6:5

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. (Col 2:12)

Seated in heavenly places

Eph 2:4-7

4But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ, even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved! 6And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7in order that in the coming ages He might display the surpassing riches of His grace, demonstrated by His kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

Colossians 3:1-4

1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Christ the I AM – “I am the Good Shepherd”

^{John 10:14-1814} ‘I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me – ¹⁵ just as the Father knows me and I know the Father – and I lay down my life for the sheep. ¹⁶ I have other sheep that are not of this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. ¹⁷ The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life – only to take it up again. ¹⁸ No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.’(chosen, belonging) (Ps23; Is 40:11; Psalm 28:9)

^{Ezekiel 34:11-16
11} ‘“For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. ¹² As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. ¹³ I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land. ¹⁴ I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. ¹⁵ I myself will tend my sheep and make them lie down, declares the Sovereign Lord. ¹⁶ I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice. (Luke15:1-7 Parable of the lost sheep)

Isaiah 53:11
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.(Psalm 119:176; 1 Pet 2:21-25)

The Mercy and grace of God through Christ

Wednesday Prayer Group

July 5^th 2017

Is 42 1-4 (Matt 12:15-21)

1“Here is my servant, whom I uphold,

my chosen one in whom I delight;

I will put my Spirit on him,

and he will bring justice to the nations.

2He will not shout or cry out,

or raise his voice in the streets.

3A bruised reed he will not break,

and a smouldering wick he will not snuff out.

In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;

4he will not falter or be discouraged

till he establishes justice on earth.

In his teaching the islands will put their hope.”

Isaiah 40:11¹¹ He tends his flock like a shepherd:
    he gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
    he gently leads those that have young. (John 10:11-18)

Titus 3:3-5 God's Mercy to Us

3For at one time we too were foolish, disobedient, misled, enslaved to all sorts of desires and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.

4But when the kindness of God our Saviour and His love for mankind appeared, 5He saved us, not by the righteous deeds we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. 6This is the Spirit He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour, 7so that, having been justified by His grace, we would become heirs with the hope of eternal life. 8This saying is trustworthy. And I want you to emphasize these things, so that those who have believed God will take care to devote themselves to good deeds. These things are excellent and profitable for the people

Ephesians 2:1-10 1As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh^a and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so that no one can boast. 10For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Heb 4 14-16

 14Therefore, since we have such a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we profess. 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin. 16Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Eph 3:18-19