Text: John 20:24-29
Memory verse:
âBlessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.ââ
ââLuke⏠â1âŹ:â45⏠âNKJVâŹâŹ
Having known the Lord, one thing you need to do is to train yourself to live according to the Spirit. We have been so used to the natural life that embracing the new life in the Spirit becomes so challenging. It takes grace and our commitment to the new life to achieve it.
The natural life is built on what you see, feel, hear, or what your natural senses tell you. That was the faith that Thomas exhibited. Even though he had known Christ, he was still operating the principle of the natural life, which says, âYou believe when you seeâ. âThe other disciples therefore said to him, âWe have seen the Lord.â So he said to them, âUnless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.ââ ââ(John⏠â20âŹ:â25âŹ). Bible faith is not based on what one sees but on what God says.
Bible faith doesnât consider what it sees, hears, or feel, yet it doesnât deny it. Bible faith doesnât deny symptoms because they are real. Yes, just like sin and the devil are real, so is ache real. Rather, it focuses attention on what the word of God says and not on the symptoms. It doesnât deny the symptoms, but it doesnât dwell on them.
So Jesus didnât commend Thomasâ natural faith but declared that such faith doesnât attract Godâs blessings. âJesus said to him, âThomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.ââ ââ(John⏠â20âŹ:â29âŹ). Did you notice how He differentiated between the natural faith and the Bible faith in this statement? The CEV makes it simpler. ââŠThe people who have faith in me without seeing me are the ones who are really blessed!” Hallelujah!
Friends, though itâs easier to believe what you see than what you donât see, but it is believing before seeing that provokes Godâs blessings. What promise has God given you in His word? Do you know that the wall of Jericho was still standing tall and strong when the children of Israel shouted? Donât wait to see before you believe, but begin to praise God that the promise is yours already.
Prayer points
1. Father, thank You that, according to Your word, I have what I asked from You already.
2. Father, help me to build my faith in Your word and not in what I see, in Jesusâ name.
Todayâs declarations
1. The Israelites didnât wait until the wall fell down before they shouted, so I wonât wait until I see before I praise.
2. I am blessed because I believe before seeing my answers.
Contact: pastor@thf.org.ng