The presence of God

Luke 5:17-19

“And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.”

God we know is everywhere but aside from that, there is also the presence of God that descends on a place when the word of God is being preached or taught, or real heartfelt worship is going on in a place. This is the kind of presence that was present in our text. Whenever such a presence comes, it is for a purpose. It is one thing for the presence to be in a place it is another thing for that presence to

Living by faith

Habakkuk 2:4

“…but the just shall live by his faith.” KJV

I want to reiterate here why it is vitally necessary that you learn how to live by faith. Over and over again I see that Christians coast along without actually knowing the principles of this faith life. 

The reason is that every aspect of the believer’s life is faith ruled, this is the reason the Scriptures say, the just shall live by faith. Check this out:

Prayer, a vital aspect of the believer’s life does not get answered without faith. James 1:6, Mark 11:24

We walk by faith. 2Corinthians 5:7

We stand by faith. 2Corinthians 1:24

Without faith we cannot please God. Hebrews 11:6

Anything that is not of faith is sin. Romans 14:23

All things are possible through faith. Mark 9:23

It is by faith we have access into the grace of God. Romans 5:2

Jesus wondered if He would find faith when He comes back. Luke 18:8

The righteousness of God is revealed through faith. Romans 1:16,17

Faith acts as a shield over all the other weapons of warfare. Ephesians 6:16

The woman of Canaan

Matt 15:22-28

“And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.”

Here is another woman that walked in such faith that she received commendation from the Lord. She is known only as the woman from Cannan.

She came to Jesus to ask of Him help for her daughter who was tormented of the devil but He did not answer her.  After His disciples spoke to Him to send her away, He responded by telling them the reason He was not answering her. This was His reason:

“But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

If you were the one that got this response, what would be your response? Most people would be discouraged and move away but what does this woman do?

“Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord,  help me.”

This is the stuff that distinguishes faith people from every other person. Faith is what makes people to keep persevering when others give up. It takes faith to worship God when your answer is negative. But after worshipping, rather than get better, it became worse. 

Before worshipping, she was just given a “No”. Now she is called a dog, she is reminded that she belongs to an inferior class, who do not deserve such blessing. But this woman came to receive and was not going to settle for any other thing except that. This tenacious faith brought forth wisdom that enabled her to lay hold on her desire.

“But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.  And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.”

This woman came to the Lord determined to receive and she went through the period of silence,  rejection, prejudice and provocation. At the end of it all she was commended that she had great faith.

Be that detrermined with your faith and you also will receive whatsoever you desire.

How do I know if I am in faith?

Habakkuk 2:4

“…but the just shall live by his faith.” KJV

2 Thessallonians 3:2

“And that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men: for all men have not faith.” KJV

Let me take a break from the faith lessons from those unsung heroines and share this thought with you today.

Someone can read our two texts for meditation today and think there is a contradiction in Scripture or just be confused. That is you

Faith walk of women

Hebrews 11:35

“Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection.” NIV

The scriptures talk about women receiving their dead back to life. Let us examine the faith walk of one of such women:

“And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually.  Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither. And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there.” 2Kings 4:8-11

The story continued with Elisha speaking into the woman’s life that she was going to have a child because up to that point she and her husband did not have a child. It happened as the man of God said it would and then one day the child died. Here was where her stand of faith came in. She laid the child on the man of God’s bed and went looking for him. But everytime anybody met her and asked if everything was alright, she would answer, “it is well”. She never spoke contrary to what she wanted.

“For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say…  and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.” Mark 11:23

She had what she said, all things became well in her household.

Today, all things can be well too for you if you will choose to say only things that agree with God’s word for your life.

Moses' mother: Her faith

Hebrews 11:35

“Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection.” NIV

We are still learning from Moses’ mother faith lessons. This next act of hers should speak to parents when it comes to believing God for their children especially when it is time for them to leave home. 

By faith she kept him in the house for three months, then put him in an ark made of bulrushes and put him by the bank of

Still on Moses’s mother

Exodus 2:1-3

“And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi. And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months. And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river's brink.”

We are continuing our study of the faith of Moses’s mother. We saw yesterday that it was because she saw something on the child that enabled do what she did concerning the child. To me what she did next was a more

Moses' mother: Her faith

Hebrews 11:35

“Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection.” NIV

There are some women in the Bible from whom we can also learn the faith walk or principles of faith. In the chapter from which our text was taken only Sarah was mentioned by name, so we want to dig out the

Faith is the evidence of things not seen

Hebrews 11:1

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” KJV

In this verse I see something that I believe that can help you to have a closer walk with the Holy Spirit. It is the place of faith in relating with the Holy Spirit. Our text for meditation says, “faith is the evidence of things not seen”. Let us look at this in another translation and see how that will help you to walk with the Holy Spirit.

“…the conviction of things not seen.” NASU

“…it (faith) gives us assurance about things

The difference between hope and faith

Hebrews 11:1

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” KJV

Let us continue in our study of the difference between hope and faith. This by no means is to undermine hope because hope in itself in the right place is a strong force to man. But this study is necessary to help

Faith and Hope

Hebrews 11:1

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” KJV

Have you heard this statement before, “your best days are not behind you, they are ahead of you”? I am sure you have heard it said, maybe you too have said it to somebody or even yourself. Now as good as this sounds and makes you feel good, do you know that is all you get from it,  a good feeling. 

Do you know why?  It is because it is not actual a faith statement but a statement of hope. Hope is a good thing, don’t

Bible Faith and Natural Faith

Heb 11:1

“NOW FAITH is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].” AMP

There's a vast difference between what is known as Bible Faith and natural faith. Bible faith is actually Word faith which is based on the Word of God only and not in anyway based on what is felt or seen. Whereas natural faith is based on what is seen and felt, you see or feel therefore you believe.

You cannot get anything from the Almighty God through

Forgiveness

Mark 11:25-27

“And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him and  let it drop (leave it, let it go), in order that your Father Who is in heaven may also forgive you your [own] failings and shortcomings and let them drop. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your failings and shortcomings.” AMP

Since we are talking about love, let us also pay attention to something that is a necessity in this love walk – forgiveness. The reason for this is because while some are celebrating love, some are remembering again a relationship that didn’t work out, a heart break, etc. 

We have to understand that people  in relationships will hurt one another and the same thing applies to married people, more so

Celebrating love

1 Thess 1:2-3

“We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers; Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;”

Today is February 14 and almost everywhere in the world if not everywhere people are remembering and celebrating love. So I want our meditation to be along this theme. Paul in 1Corinthians 13 tells us after all said and done these three things are the ones that will abide, faith, hope and love. So I see these

All things are possible

Matthew 19:26

“With God all things are possible.”

Mark 9:23

“All things are possible to him that believeth.”

Sometimes when we talk the power of faith or the potential of anyone who can believe God, it sounds like an undue exaggeration. But when you examine the two texts for our meditation today more closely, then you can better appreciate what we are talking about. There is a common denominator in the

The report of the Lord

Hebrews 11:2

“For by it (faith) the elders obtained a good report.”

Yesterday we looked at the fact that it is when we believe the report of the Lord that the power of the Lord is revealed to us. The report of the Lord is every word of God spoken or written. But our text for meditation today takes it to another dimension, it is about you obtaining a good report in  life. 

Now you know what it means to receive a good report if you have ever been to school. A good report in school is when report paper is made of straight As or in some lesser cases you have some Bs. But a good report to someone

What is the arm of the Lord?

Isaiah 53:1

“Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?”

What is the arm of the Lord? It speaks of the power, might or strength of the Lord. Now our text asks, to whom is this revealed, that is who is it that the power, strength and might of God is shown. It is that person who believes the report of the Lord. What is the report of the Lord? It is every word that proceeds

Faith begins where the will of God is known

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

Let us take more thing from the prophet Zechariah. This is found in the tenth chapter, first verse:

“Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; so the Lord shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to every one grass in the field.”

What has this got to do with faith you ask

The prophet of hope

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

We are still on learning faith lessons from Zechariah. We have said that according to a commentary, Zechariah was regarded as a prophet of hope because he gave the people something to look forward to through his prophecies. I also see him as a person of the spirit who knows the place of the Spirit

From the life of Zechariah

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

Another prophet we want to look at is Zechariah, he prophesied to the people at the same time as Haggai and he was referred to as the prophet of hope. This was because he gave the people at his time something to

Lessons from the faith of Jabez

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

There is the story of a man whose life was described in not more than two or three verses in the Scriptures but whose story has brought forth many books and challenged many lives to great accomplishments. I am talking about

Faith life of Jonah

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

We want to examine the faith life of another minor prophet, though I think this prophet is more famous for his running from God and his complaints so much so that it is not even noticed as an act of faith. Jonah was called by God to go and preach to a city called Nineveh. Jonah did not want to do it because according to him he knows that the people would repent and God will forgive them. 

Therefore, he decided to run away but God caught up with him and he ended up in the belly of a whale. His experience and utterances

Faith in God always brings the victory,

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

Let us continue with the three Hebrew children, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. We saw yesterday that their faith was in the person of God, His character not just in His ability. What I want you to see today is that faith in God always bring the victory, it is never late. People capitulate when they feel pressured or when it looks as though they will be thrown into the fire and God has not

The three Hebrew men

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

There were some three Hebrew men that their faith in God quenched the violence of fire. Let us learn some faith lessons from them also because though theirs was a literal fire, people are facing ‘fire’ like situations everyday from which they need to be delivered. You may be in one today even as you are reading this. The story is found in the whole chapter three of the book of Daniel. 

Nebuchadnezzer set up a golden statue of

Faith life of Micah

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,  Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

We want to learn some faith lessons from another minor prophets. His name is Micah. He prophesied during the reign of three kings of Judah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah. Ahaz was one of the worst rulers of Judah while Hezekiah was one of the best rulers. So, he prophesied under the worst of conditions 

Faith life of Habakkuk

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,  Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

We are still on Habakkuk. So far we have seen in his faith journey that when you find yourself in a situation you do not understand, complaining will not get you anything from God. The thing to do is to go and wait on the Lord until He speaks to you. Habakkuk eventually did so and got this revelation, “the

Faith lesson from Habakkuk.

“And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,  Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

There is another prophet I will like us to learn faith lesson from, he is the prophet Habakkuk. The book of this minor prophet began this way:

“The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see. O Lord, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save!” Habakkuk 1:1,2.

Habakkuk was burdened with what he was seeing around him and he began to complain. Sometimes that is the way we are with God, we get so burdened with the cares of life and injustices we see around us and we feel God is