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- Apr 25, 2006
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Easy street
'Anyone signing up ... has to go through plenty of hard times' Acts 14:22
'And verily,' Jesus said unto them, 'whoever prays the prayer of commitment shall be well sorted. No troubles, no hassles, no nothing. Hey, I may even throw in the winning lottery numbers for anyone willing to take up their cross and follow me'. If you can find that verse anywhere in your Bible; your church is probably the type awaiting a giant UFO to descend and take you off to the promised land of Zog.
Actually Jesus promised the opposite, 'In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I've conquered the world' (John 16:33). When Jesus explained the cost of following Him, some of His disciples walked away. Yet the impact of those who didn't is still felt in the world today. By the time they wrote their epistles, His apostles had learned to see every test in life as a chance to strengthen their faith and multiply their effectiveness.
Tests of faith are opportunities to surrender something of value to God. In a test of faith you'll feel assaulted and stretched by circumstances, yet not distant from God; tried by them, but not judged or guilty.
The Psalmist writes, 'For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver ... you brought us to a place of abundance' (Psalm 66:10-12 NIV). A test of faith doesn't really test anything unless it pushes you beyond your last test.
written by Bob Gass
'Anyone signing up ... has to go through plenty of hard times' Acts 14:22
'And verily,' Jesus said unto them, 'whoever prays the prayer of commitment shall be well sorted. No troubles, no hassles, no nothing. Hey, I may even throw in the winning lottery numbers for anyone willing to take up their cross and follow me'. If you can find that verse anywhere in your Bible; your church is probably the type awaiting a giant UFO to descend and take you off to the promised land of Zog.
Actually Jesus promised the opposite, 'In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I've conquered the world' (John 16:33). When Jesus explained the cost of following Him, some of His disciples walked away. Yet the impact of those who didn't is still felt in the world today. By the time they wrote their epistles, His apostles had learned to see every test in life as a chance to strengthen their faith and multiply their effectiveness.
Tests of faith are opportunities to surrender something of value to God. In a test of faith you'll feel assaulted and stretched by circumstances, yet not distant from God; tried by them, but not judged or guilty.
The Psalmist writes, 'For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver ... you brought us to a place of abundance' (Psalm 66:10-12 NIV). A test of faith doesn't really test anything unless it pushes you beyond your last test.
written by Bob Gass
