NO BIBLE NO BREAKFAST DAILY BIBLE REFLECTIONS AND MORE

SCRIPTURE READINGS: GENESIS 37:1-4,12-28, ROMANS 10:5-15, MATTHEW 14:22-33

REFLECTION 

“Oh! You of little faith”, is the theme for our reflection. Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as “… the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” We the disciples of Jesus are to have faith in Him if we wish to be victorious or overcome challenges in our lives our faith must not be little but overwhelmingly firm. We shall discuss the following facts

1. We have been saved through faith in Jesus Christ.
2. Faith comes, grows and it is sustained by hearing the Word of Christ.
3. Faith in Jesus overcomes fear and failure.

Firstly, it is important to acknowledge the fact that we must not be of little faith because we have been saved through faith. Paul acknowledged this fact when he wrote to the Romans, “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame…” (Romans 10:9-11). Mark tells us that “Afterward Jesus appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” (Mark 16:14-16) In other words, it is impossible to follow Jesus without having faith in Him. When the jailer asked Paul and Silas,”…what must I do to be saved?”… they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” (Acts 16:30-31)  Dear friend, we are saved because we believe in Christ. In other words, without faith in Christ as our Lord and Saviour, there is no salvation.

Secondly, Faith comes, grows and is sustained by hearing the Word of Christ. How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? ¹⁵ And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” ¹⁶ But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” ¹⁷ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:14-17). It is for this reason, Jesus said that “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16). It is when we encounter Jesus through the hearing of the Gospel that we are able to have faith in Him and are saved. Again our faith grows and is sustained until His second coming if we study and abide by His Word. If many people will be saved through faith and if Christians will grow in faith we must preach the Word of God without ceasing. It must be taught or preached everywhere we find ourselves including our homes.

Thirdly, faith overcomes fear and failure. When the disciples were terrified at the sight of Jesus walking on the water,  “Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt (Matthew 14:27-31). Dear friend, the winds or storms of life are in the form of sickness, poverty, disappointment and challenges that are there to put fear in us but if we have faith in Christ and do not doubt His power and Lordship over our lives and our challenges we shall overcome the fear and surmount the challenges that come our way through Jesus Christ. Joseph trusted in God and regardless of the maltreatment the brothers gave him, God was still with Him therefore he did not die at the hands of His brothers as recorded in Genesis 37:12-28. We shall recall that when they reunited in Egypt and the brothers came to beg for his forgiveness, he said to them “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. (Genesis 50:20). Like Joseph, Paul assures us that ” for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) This is another proof that even in persecution and in the hands of our enemies we must continue to have faith in Christ for He will see us through victoriously. There are countless examples of people who had faith in Christ and overcame their predicaments. We recall the woman with the issue of blood for 12 years, ”…she said to herself, “If I only touch his garment, I will be made well.”  Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well” (Matthew 9:21-22). Again, Jesus said to blind Bartimaeus, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.” (Mark 10:51-52). It takes faith for the impossible to be possible, It is, for this reason, Jesus told His disciples “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26). My dear friend, I encourage you today not to be a mere church attender or goer but be a true disciple and believer of Jesus Christ “for  without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)

In summary, we have reflected on them  “Oh! You of little faith”. We have discovered through our reflection on the given Scripture readings that we have been saved through faith, faith comes, grows and is sustained by hearing the Word of Christ and faith overcomes fear and failure. May the Holy Spirit increase our faith to continually trust Jesus Christ at each step of our journey in life. Amen.