Hebrews 11:1,6 (NKJV) Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen…But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
As Christians, we need to know that there is always a fight of faith between what we believe and what we are seeing or experiencing. It’s not hard for the devil to steal the seed, which is the Word of God in our lives, unless it has germinated, taken root, and grown into a tree. He will bring us tribulation, cares and anxieties, and cause us to have doubts and unbelief in God’s love and His Word. We too can easily be like the disciples who said to Jesus “don’t you care that we are perishing?” even though Jesus had given them the Word that they were going across to the other side. They doubted the love of Jesus when they saw the wind and waves, and when water was gushing into the boat.
All of us have had seeds planted in us, but have you ever wondered what kind of soil you have and how fruitful those seeds have been? A test would be to examine our own thought life when cares, anxieties and tribulation come our way. Are we able to regurgitate convictions from the Word of God? If yes, that means we will experience peace in our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, and we will also be able to minister to our family members and fellow brothers and sisters who are facing crises of their own. We have been fruitful with the Word that has been planted in our hearts.
However, if the answer is no, that means the soil of our hearts may be hardened, and the seeds have fallen on stony ground or among thorns which have choked the Word. It means is the world has consumed us—we have neither the time for the Word of God, nor are we interested in studying or listening to it; our misplaced priorities such as the pursuit of riches and the desires for other things have choked the Word. It has become unfruitful because the Word was stolen when still in seed form, or it didn’t put down much root when it was still trying to grow.
We need to know that the choice is ours regarding how open, receptive, and accepting we are of the Word. So the choice is also ours as to whether we allow the seed to be stolen or grown into a tree. A tree like the Mountain Ash that grows to over 100m in height and 7m thick in trunk is impossible to uproot unless heavy machinery is engaged. Likewise, the devil has no chance to steal a tree, but he can steal the seed.
Sermon Series: The Seed Can be Stolen but It Is Difficult to Uproot the Tree!
你最好的防护
希伯来书11:1,6 信就是所望之事的实底，是未见之事的确据……人非有信、就不能得神的喜悦。因为到神面前来的人、必须信有神、且信祂赏赐那寻求祂的人。
作为一名基督徒，我们需要知道在我们所信的与我们的眼目所见的或经历之间一直存在着信心之战。神的话语是我们生命中的种子，对于魔鬼来说，偷取种子轻而易举，除非它已经发芽，扎根并长成了一棵树。牠会带给我们苦难、挂虑和忧愁，使我们怀疑和不相信神的爱和祂的道。我们一不留神就会像那些门徒一样，对耶稣说:“我们丧命，你不顾吗?”， 尽管耶稣已经告诉他们，他们要渡到另一边去。当他们看到风高浪急，看到水涌入舱里时，他们就怀疑耶稣的爱。
我们每个人都有种子种在我们里面，但你可曾想过，你的土壤是什么样的,而这些种子又结了多少果子? 当挂虑、焦虑和苦难来到时，我们需要省察自己的心思意念。我们是否能够反刍从神的话语而来的确信？如果是的话，这意味着我们能在基督耶稣里体验到内心和思想上的平安，我们也能服事那些正面临各自的危机的家人和弟兄姐妹们。因着栽种在我们心里的道，我们就能结丰盛的果子。
然而，如果答案是否定的，那意味着我们的心壤已经变硬，种子落在了石头地上或荆棘里，把道挤住了。这也意味着世界吞噬了我们 – 我们既没有时间学习神的话语并且对此也不感兴趣；我们放错了优先次序，比如对财富的追求以及对其他事物的欲念，这些都把道挤住了。种子不能结果因为道在它还是种子的时候就被偷走了，或者在它还在生长的时候就没有扎多少根。
我们需要知道，我们可以选择对神的话语有多敞开、能有什么程度的接收和领受。也可以选择是允许让种子被偷走，还是让它长成大树。像长在山上的桉树，它能长到100多米高并拥有粗达7米的树干，除非使用重型机械，否则不可能连根拔起。同样的，魔鬼偷不了树，但牠能偷种子。
讲章系列：种子会被偷走，但很难把树连根拔起！