From the Pastor

Pastor Mike Burns
Victory Church
903.567.2072 (Ext. 3002)
MBurns@wordofvictory.org
Wishful Thinking or Genuine Faith?
When we read about the heroes of
the faith in Hebrew 11, we learn that “by faith [they] conquered kingdoms,
performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouth of lions,
quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were
made strong, become mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women [even]
received back their dead [sons] by resurrection” (verses 33-35). Through faith,
the Old Testament saints accomplished some incredible things. Or perhaps better
stated, God accomplished incredible things through those who believed in Him.
That is an important clarification. The biblical heroes did not simply believe;
they believed in God. Their faith was
unseen, but was not blind. God was the source of their power and strength.
He was their focus and the object of their faith. Their confident trust and
full dependence was placed in Him.
Void of the right object, faith
is nothing more than wishful thinking. It is pitiful and powerless. But placed
in God, faith is the essence of salvation and the heart of the Christian life.
The pages of Scripture are filled with examples of people who walked by faith.
People like Abel, Enoch, Abraham, , Esau, Jacob, Moses, Joseph, Rahab (now
there is a story!), David, Mary, and many others are examples of not perfect
individuals, but examples of people who walked by faith. You and I are no
different. We are not perfect people, but we can be numbered with those who
daily “walk by faith.” Let’s do it.
Published on Thursday, January 17, 2013 @ 1:35 AM CDT
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