Showing posts with label discernment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label discernment. Show all posts

Wednesday

Where Should Our Focus Be? - A Dose of Encouragement


Where is your focus?

Where is my focus?


Where are we told our focus should be?






What are we focusing on?


What should we really be focusing on?



Have you noticed the I, I, I mentality that people are exerting these days?

So many blog posts, tweets, facebook posts are all trying to direct us to focus in on 

what we feel, 

          what we think, 

                    what we want to do, 

                              who we want to be, 

                                        where we want to get to etc.


I saw a tweet a few months ago where someone wanted to encourage us to know 


"who we were and to cultivate the person we wanted to be"



Even in Christian circles and unfortunately also in some churches we are being led in the same direction with the focus being on how great we are and how we can be better if we see and know and push on to be the great person who is within us.


BUT


Does the Bible tell us that?


Does the Bible focus on us?


NO





The Bible always focuses on Jesus
 and is constantly directing us
 to His Death on the cross
 and
 not to ourselves.




Jesus is the one who leads us to God, 

               Jesus is the one who stood in our place, 

                              we cannot do anything without His strength, 

                                             we are not the overcomers Jesus is the overcomer.




Preachers like to take the story of David and Goliath and turn it all to be about us.
We are not going to overcome our giants as so many people preach today. 
God will do that. 




Any limelight is not for the preacher, 
and
 not for the congregation 
but for 


Jesus.



Preachers like to preach about us and our mountains.  
But what does the Bible really tell us?
Prayer will move mountains.
Faith will move mountains.  
We should not take the credit for anything we must give all the credit to God.



Preachers quote Mark 11 v 23


For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.

and preach on it giving the impression that if we believe it, then it will happen.


However as with all scripture it must be taken in context and then we see more of what Jesus had said hence giving a clearer picture.


Mark 11 v 20-24 


The Lesson of the Withered Fig Tree
20 Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. 21 And Peter, remembering, said to Him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.”22 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

This clearly shows us that:

  • Our prayers will be answered if we have Faith in God.
  • God will move the mountains.


Preachers also like to quote Matthew 17 v 20

20 So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. 

However again let's take it in context and see the clearer picture. 


Matthew 17 v 19-21
19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?”20 So Jesus said to them, “Because of your [e]unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. 21 However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”

Nothing will be impossible for us because nothing is impossible for God.  
If God was not there then the things would be impossible for us.


We also know that Scripture backs up scripture and so looking at other places in the Bible such as Nahum we see the definite proof that it is God who has all power and not us.




The mountains do not tremble before us they tremble before God.


And further this is the reason it is God who has power over the mountains


Psalm 95 v 3-5


For the Lord is the great God, And the great King above all gods.  In His hand are the deep places of the earth; The heights of the hills are His also.  The sea is His, for He made it; And His hands formed the dry land.

because they are His.


Why does faith do anything?   
To bring glory to God.
Not to bring attention to us.


What is man’s purpose on earth?  
To glorify God and enjoy Him forever.







So why should we be told that we are great?  or that we are the conquerors of our Goliaths?  or that we are strong?  or that we are the overcomers?  or that we can work miracles?




We can't 

But God can.


We can't, but God can!

Let us focus on Jesus and His love for us shown by His death on the cross and our salvation through faith by the grace and mercy of God.

Only by knowing Jesus and the Bible better will we grow in faith.


If you are wondering about this faith we are talking about then please click on the short 3.2.1. video on my sidebar.