God respects our choices, and we either welcome Him or reject Him. Whenever we acknowledge He is the Lord of our home, cell group, company, and church services, He is free to manifest and do as He wills through the work of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, we must desire God’s presence and come with a heart of expectation and faith, believing that God can do mighty deeds. We must also honour God, be open to receiving Him, and let Him minister through His servants as He wants to do mighty work among us. Finally, we must connect our faith in the Almighty God whenever we meet as a church and worship Him.
We must have the same attitude and faith as the four friends of the paralytic who, despite the crowd, lowered him from the roof to where Jesus was teaching. They had a dogged determination and faith that they would not return home unless their friend walked home with them. We need to have the same determination to be immovable by doubt and unbelief and by what we see, feel, and experience, but to stand on the promise God has given us.
Matthew 14:30-31(NKJV) But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
The devil knows how to steal the word and derail our faith in God by making us look at our circumstances. We are too used to “seeing is believing”. Peter walked on water after he had received the word “Come,” and indeed, it was a walk of faith that defied the law of gravity. Peter began to be affected by the surroundings instead of focusing on Jesus. Fear came into his heart when he saw the boisterous wind, and he doubted the Word. He started in faith but ended in fear when he looked at the circumstances. What gives substance to our faith is the Word of promise. It is a constant fight between what we believe and what we see. Faith pleases God. Strong faith is taking God’s Word for it.
Mark 4:39-40 (NKJV) Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”
When Jesus walked on water, He gave Peter the word “Come”. Similarly, before calming the storm, He told the disciples, “Let us cross over to the other side” (Mark 4:35). These instructions were the anchor and substance of their faith, and Jesus expected them to have faith in His Word. The lesson for us is: Don’t be moved by the circumstances; strong faith is taking God for His Word.
Sermon Series: Faith cannot coexist with Doubt
坚信不疑
神尊重我们的选择，我们要么选择欢迎祂，要么选择拒绝祂。每当我们承认祂是我们家庭、小组、公司和教会服务的主，祂就自由地显现并通过圣灵的工作来做祂想做的事。因此，我们必须渴望神的同在，带着期待和信仰的心而来，相信神可以做大事。我们还必须荣耀神，敞开心扉接受祂，让祂通过祂的仆人服事，因为祂想在我们中间做伟大的工作。最终，每当我们作为教会来聚会和敬拜祂时，我们都必须将我们对全能神的信仰联系起来。
我们必须具备与瘫子的那四个朋友同样的态度和信心，尽管人群拥挤，他们还是把他从屋顶缒到正在讲道的耶稣面前。他们有这种顽强的决心和信念，除非他们的朋友和他们一起走回家，否则他们不会回家！我们需要拥有同样的决心，坚决不受怀疑和不信的影响，也不为所见、所感、所经历的事所动摇，而是要立于神赐予我们的应许之上。
马太福音14:30-31 只因见风甚大，就害怕。将要沉下去，便喊着说，主阿，救我。耶稣赶紧伸手拉住他，说，你这小信的人哪，为什么疑惑呢？
魔鬼知道如何通过让我们审视自己的处境来偷走神的话，从而破坏我们对神的信仰。我们太习惯于“眼见为实”。彼得在领受了主说“来吧”之后就在水上行走，这诚然是一次违背了万有引力定律的信心的行走。但彼得没有定睛在耶稣，反而是受了环境的影响。当他眼见狂风呼啸，恐惧涌上心头，就对神的话起了疑惑。他凭信心起步，却因注目环境而以恐惧告终。给予我们的信心以实底的是神应许的话语。我们心之所信与我们目之所见之间是一场旷日持久的争战。信心取悦神。坚强的信心就是相信神说啥就是啥。
马可福音4:39-40 耶稣醒了，斥责风，向海说，住了吧，静了吧。风就止住，大大地平静了。耶稣对他们说，为什么胆怯。你们还没有信心吗？
当耶稣在水上行走时，祂对彼得说：“来吧”。同样，在平静风浪之前，祂对门徒说：“我们渡到那边去吧”（马可福音4:35）。这些话语是他们信心的锚和实底，耶稣期望他们相信祂的话语。对我们而言，其中的功课是：不要被环境所动摇；坚定的信心就是神说啥就信啥。
讲章系列：信心不能与怀疑共存
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