Sincere Faith

In church this weekend we were reminded of Hebrews 11:6

“So, you see, it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”

That statement has been true every time I sought God. It was true before I came to Christ, when I became a born again Christian and is true today - for myself and all those who sincerely seek God. Before I came to Christ I would sincerely ask God to help me and he would help me but unfortunately I would go back to my old ways and wouldn’t even thank him. When my life became lost in a dark hole I had fallen into over time and there seemed to be no constructive way out -I cried out to God and surrendered my life, he gave me new life. When I sincerely seek God now, he answers.

The Holy Spirit reminds me of different times before I came to Christ when God was there with me. He reminds of different things, people and incidents. The lights come on in the attic and in the heart when we sincerely seek God- admittedly “mostly” after we come to Christ.

The power of God comes into our lives but in order for the power to stay on we must continue to leave that power switch on in our lives. It does no good to have electricity connected to our house if we aren’t going to use that electricity. The same is true with God’s Holy Spirit.

Jesus said his Holy Spirit never leaves…. so we must seek Him instead of what our flesh feels.

John 16-17 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world at large cannot receive him, because it isn't looking for him and doesn't recognize him. But you do, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.

God rewards those who sincerely seek Him. “Sincerely.” When you are sincere about something - your intentions and focus are not wishy washy they are targeted on a desired objective. Our Christian lives can’t be like an unsettled way of the sea.

James 1:3-7 “For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything. If you need wisdom- if you want to know what God wants you to do- ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. They can’t make up their minds. They waver back and forth in everything they do.”

Noticed that James says, “…. has a chance to grow” – our faith growing or not growing is contingent on if we are going to sincerely seek and trust God or not seek or not trust God in our life and times of trial.

When you are in a burning building, you are sincerely seeking for a way out of that burning building. When you cry out for help you are sincerely waiting for someone to answer. When a loved one is in a hospital bed, you are sincerely praying and asking God to intervene and heal. When you’re feeling uncertain and fear wants to take residence within your soul, you sincerely pray and God gives us the peace beyond understanding.

God’s word says, “a righteous person will live by faith.” Hebrews 10:38. A righteous person sincerely seeks God- sometimes with "every" ounce of their strength but God won’t allow the test to overcome us- if we sincerely seek him.

I heard another pastor speak on radio about a coming storm, a storm the Lord has shown me through a series of dreams. A storm that many people within the church and not in the church can sense coming. A storm where it won’t be so pleasant as it is right now for us as Christians in the United States.

The only way for us endure such a storm and not walking away or turning away from God and be salt and light to people in need in such a time is ONLY through faith. Faith endures all storms. Through our faith in Jesus Christ the Holy Spirit changes us and empowers us to thrive and endures every struggle, trial, testing and good and bad time.

Lamentations 3:25 “The LORD is wonderfully good to those who wait for him and seek him.”

I was telling the youth about a tree my parents had in one their gardens growing up. The tree was anchored with a rope so it wouldn’t fall over but instead of removing the rope as the tree grew they left that rope on and because they didn’t remove that rope, the tree never matured a deep root system to keep it securely rooted in the ground and when the rope finally rotted away and we had a big wind storm that tree fell over.

The worldly things that we try to secure our lives with -don’t last and when they finally do fail us, our lives will be like that tree in my parent’s garden because we never endured the smaller storms in life with God’s help but instead trusted in the “worldly” ropes of this world.

Ephesians 3:16-19 “May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”

Colossians 2:7 Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him, so you will grow in faith, strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done.

A brother in Christ and I were working at the church when we saw a tiger tail butterfly. It was probably one of the biggest butterflies I had ever seen. It was yellow, black and violet blue. It glided in the air like pieces of tissue paper stretched over a fragile frame in effortless flight. Unburdened by life it circled in the air and knew where the tastiest nectar could be found.
Now that I think back on the experience I reference it to this scripture:

“Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Jesus Christ. And now, dear brothers and sisters, let me say one more thing as I close this letter. Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into the practice all you learned from me and saw me doing, and the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:6-9

Keep the faith… seek and trust in the Lord.

Jeremiah 29:11-13 For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me.