“Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20. By the new and living way, which He has consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh. 21. And having a high priest over the house of God. 22. Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”
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“We love (God) because He first loved us…”
"I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations. 10. For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds."
“And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief.”
When Jesus and His inner circle of Peter, James and John came down from the Mount of Transfiguration, they saw a crowd of people questioning the other disciples. The problem was that a man brought his son to be healed and he was not healed by the disciples. Jesus told the man, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him that believes.” The man gave an honest answer, “Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief.” Jesus healed the man’s son. This incident reveals, the power of belief in Jesus, even if it is weak. I am glad that I can say “Lord, I believe," and I hope that you can as well. I want to share with you the reasons that I believe. I believe because of the testimony of scripture. The coming of Jesus is prophesied in various ways and by various means throughout the Old Testament. The coming of Jesus is recorded in the four gospels, and the testimony of Jesus’ disciples is written in Acts and in the letters. Disciples, like the apostle John, gave eyewitness accounts of what Jesus did. The apostle Paul, who had persecuted the church, encountered the risen Christ, was converted and became a devoted follower of Jesus Christ. Paul believed because of his encounter with Jesus on the Damascus Road, but he also believed because of prophesies given in the Old Testament. I haven’t read anything that could convince me that the testimony of scripture is not true. I believe because God speaks to me through nature, through His creation. Psalm 19:1 declares, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork.” This convergence of biblical insight, and the prophetic voice of nature, serves to seal the validity of belief. Paul pointed out the validity of this belief in Romans 1:20: “For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead: so they are without excuse.” “They” in that verse refers to unbelievers. God has given testimony of His reality through creation; therefore, people who do not believe are “without excuse.” The wonder of God’s creation could not have happened by a cosmic accident. I don’t know how God did it all, except that the Bible says that God spoke and it happened. The mechanics of all of it is way above my pay grade. I believe because of my personal experience with Jesus Christ. All that I have mentioned is enough to make one believe, but we prove this belief when we place our faith in Jesus Christ. When I was about twenty years old, I went through a period of unbelief. I had always believed in God before that, but my mind became clouded with doubt. I had accepted Jesus at an early age, but I had never realized the power of Jesus in my life. I don’t know how the Lord did it, but in a matter of minutes He made Himself real to me in a way that I had never experienced. I don’t really know what happened, except that Jesus, in His infinite grace, called me back from the dark world of unbelief. I can’t say that I haven’t had a doubt since that time, but I can say that whatever doubt arises is dissipated in belief. The Holy Spirit will not allow me to let doubt take control of my mind and heart. I realize that what I have written has not fully described the profundity of belief in Jesus Christ. The fact is that one has to experience Jesus for himself, or herself, to know what it truly means. If you have experienced that profound belief, you know what I have tried to say in this article. If you haven’t, you need to go to the Lord in prayer and let Him minister to your heart by faith. Do it! Bro. Joe “And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”
"For thus saith the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:In returning and rest shall you be saved: in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and you would not."
“Be careful for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known unto God.”
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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