Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.
Many nights when I have gone outside, I will stop momentarily to gaze up at the Moon that is shining brightly in the sky, but a lot of people don’t even realize how much influence that it has upon this Earth. The moon has unseen gravitational forces that will pull upon the Earth and cause the water on our planet to be redistributed. On the sides of the Earth, that are closest and furthest away from the Moon, high bulges of water are created, and as the Earth slowly rotates, it creates two high tides and two low tides every 24 hours. When these tides rise and fall, they create currents in the water. When the tide rises, the water will move towards the shoreline and is known as a flood current. When the tide begins to fall, the water will move away from the shore and is referred to as an ebb tide. It’s amazing to think that the Moon is so powerful that it can actually cause the water current to reverse its direction.
This reminds me the Christian Life.
To possess faith in Jesus Christ is an incredibly powerful thing, because when you are filled up with it, it can move mountains, it can overcome sin, and like the gravitational forces of the moon, it can cause a sinner to completely reverse their direction in life. It can cause someone to become a completely different person in their heart than what they were in the past. Where there was once disobedience, compliance is found. Where there was once rebellion, submission will appear. We are saved through faith, but genuine faith will have a powerful effect on a person’s heart, just as it did in the life of the Apostle Paul.
1 Timothy 1:12-16 And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. And the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief. Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.
Like the beloved Apostle, true faith is going to result in taking a different direction in life, shunning the old person that you used to be, and being transformed into a new creature in Christ Jesus.
2 Cor 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Romans 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Ultimately, to enter into eternal life we must be completely transformed, which is to change in one’s condition, nature and character. We must go through a spiritual metamorphosis, turning away from what we once were, to what God wants us to become. Think about a frog who began their life swimming in the lake just like a fish, but the more they grew the more they changed. They eventually developed front and back legs so they could live on land, becoming a different creature than what they once were. Like a tadpole, each of us started out our life as sinners, swimming in a sea of our own corruption. But through the grace of God and the power of faith, we can become a new man of God, capable of walking on higher Ground that was unattainable in our past. But conversion such as this will only happen when you truly believe in the Lord Jesus with all of your heart; and it is only through the power of faith that one will truly strive to become pleasing to God in everything.
Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Just as you can see the unseen forces of the Moon through the changing tides, you can see the outward effects of faith in somebody’s life. When somebody professes faith in Christ, but they really have no outward evidence of submission to the will of God, then the faith that they profess is void. Works that result from one’s sincere faith in God, are the outward proof that they really believe in Him with their heart.
James 2:18-26 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest ,well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
The Apostle Paul understood what faith truly was, because he and the rest of the Apostles had undergone the same transformation that results from genuine faith in God. The direct results of faith are works of repentance, displaying not only to the world our love for Him, but to God himself who sacrificed Himself on the cross to deliver us from our sins. This was the message that the Apostle Paul preached wherever he went.
Acts 26:16-20 But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision: But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.
From Moses, to Peter, and to the Apostle Paul, faith in Jesus Christ can have incredible effects on a person’s life. It can turn them from darkness to light. It can turn them from a sinner into a saint. It can even turn them around and reverse their direction, just like the power of the Moon…….
…….Turning the Tide
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you all, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.
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