audacious faith

Faith to Finish

January 8, 2016

What are your impossibilities? Would you dare to believe that God can do so much more in and through you? That kind of faith overcomes the world.

There is a kind of audacious faith that is not as celebrated as the faith that moves mountains. Faith is not just about winning and achieving, but also about lasting and enduring. There is a faith that changes water into wine, but there is also a faith that wrestles with God in the garden and eventually drinks the cup that comes from the Father. There is a faith that raises Lazarus to life, and there is also a faith that carries the cross to Golgotha.

There is a faith that enables you to step out, but there is also a faith that enables you to stay, endure, and wait. You need this kind of faith when life is mundane, difficult, or futile.

Hebrews 10:35-36 says, “Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.”

CONFIDENCE is like the big brother of faith, a faith that has been tested and has grown in strength. It carries with it the idea of patient continuance, steadfast waiting, and constancy. For the audience of the book of Hebrews, it’s about not throwing away their confidence of salvation in the midst of great persecution. In such times, you have need of ENDURANCE to continue, for in that there is great reward and promise.

To be confident of and endure towards what? GOD’S WILL, both His specific instruction for the moment and His general purpose for your life—which in essence is about honoring Him and making disciples.

So when life is MUNDANE, plod on in obedience, slowly and perseveringly through your dull tasks, as long as it moves you along in God’s purpose. When life is DIFFICULT, endure in the midst of it and find God’s presence and peace. When life seems FUTILE, know that obeying the last thing God told you to do means He will weave together something meaningful and eternally lasting through your life.

Finish your race, and go through the long and arduous process—for there are things that can only be birthed in you through time and patient endurance.

Would you be willing to grow in this kind of faith, a faith that has grown confident in God and will continue in God’s will despite the most dreary and difficult circumstances?

John 1:4-5 relates, “In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

Just like glow-in-the-dark toys, it’s interesting that the darkness doesn’t seem to bother them, but rather brings out the best in them. The life in you glows in the dark, too, and would not be overcome!

That Awkward Moment When Jesus Insulted an old Woman

January 6, 2016

Matthew 15:21-28 records one of the most puzzling stories in the Bible. One day a Gentile woman came to Jesus and begged him to heal her daughter who was oppressed by demons. Instead of helping, Jesus gave her the silent treatment.

But she wasn’t one who would give up easily. She badgered him to the point that she was already causing a scene. The disciples intervened and asked Jesus to kindly send her away. He flatly said no, this time telling them that she was not part of his mission. She was a Gentile and at that time Jesus specifically came for the lost tribes of Israel.

You have to admire this woman’s audacity because instead of going away, she knelt before Jesus and pleaded again. This is where the story becomes shocking. Jesus turned her down again the second time saying it was not right to give the children’s food to the dogs. He called her a dog.

Gasp!

Those skeptical to the Christian faith call this ‘the worst kind of chauvinism’ and criticized Jesus for being harsh. Some explain this away by saying maybe Jesus was referring to cute, cuddly pet dogs (which is unlikely since pet dogs were not really fashionable in ancient times). Others, however, believe that Jesus was simply voicing out the racial and religious animosity between Jews and Gentiles at that time to give the woman (and us) a context for what happens next.

The real shocker of the story is not that Jesus uttered what we consider a bad word to a woman in need but the fact that He actually answered the audacious prayer of someone who, by all counts, didn’t deserve it. When Jesus turned her down, she recognized her unworthiness and accepted it without protest. She knew she was an outsider to the covenants of God with Israel. She knew that on her own she had no merit, no claim, no priority-standing, and had nothing to commend her. Her only basis for praying was her belief that God is good and would never deprive her of a few crumbs of mercy. She didn’t trust her merits; she trusted God’s character.

What a rare combination of humility and audacity.

This woman’s story teaches us a lot today. We have all heard that audacious faith is daring to believe God for impossible things. But where do you draw the line between faith and presumption, between audacity and a sense of entitlement?

The answer, I believe, is a deep sense of humility and a recognition that before we encountered Christ, we were beggars for grace. There’s nothing about us that is worth boasting when we come to God in prayer, not even our so-called achievements in life and in the ministry. D.L. Moody once said that Jesus never sent anyone away except those who are full of themselves.

As we start the New Year in prayer and fasting, let us believe God for big and impossible things but let

us do so with humble awareness that every crumb of blessing we receive is mainly because God is gracious, not because we deserve them.

This, I believe, is the bedrock of all our audacious prayers.

Audacious Faith

January 5, 2016

In this #ENfast2016 vlog, Pastor Joey Bonifacio of Victory Fort Bonifacio gleans from Ephesians 2:10, talking about how each of us are God’s masterpieces, created for good works.

Both Willing and Able

January 5, 2016

As a father, I get various kinds of requests from my children from buying a toy to riding our bikes. My heart is to do give what would be best for them at any given moment. Fulfilling a promise is something I will move heaven and earth for so that they won’t end up disappointed and let down.

There are times that I am willing but for some reason unable because of current circumstance. I may be willing to ride our bikes with my 7 year old son, but if it’s raining hard, our current situation will hinder us from doing so. On the other hand, the weather might be perfect but if I am not willing because of laziness or exhaustion, then my son will still end up disappointed.

The Bible shows us that God has both the ability and the willingness to follow through on His promises to us. In Jeremiah 32:17, the prophet declares, “Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.”

Jeremiah was overwhelmed by this truth. He makes a declaration about the greatness, majesty and magnificence of the Almighty God. He then follows it up with two amazing realities.

1. GOD IS ABLE.

How does he know this? He declares His ability by expressing not only His Lordship over creation, but His power to create the heavens and the earth.

If you are facing an extremely difficult situation that may seem insurmountable, know that the God of the universe, the Maker of heaven and earth, is more than able.

Do you ever wonder why the planets in our solar system stays in orbit? The Bible says that “in Him, all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:17)

Now if God is able to run the solar system which is a million times more complex that the lives we live today, don’t you think He has the ability to run our lives? The answer is a resounding “YES!”

2. GOD IS WILLING.

Jeremiah proclaims that God created the heavens not only by His power but also by His outstretched arms—a picture of God extending His desire to meet His people’s needs.

Jesus declares in Matthew 7:11, “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”

Because God is mighty, He is able to do all that He said He would.
Because God is our Father, He is willing to follow through on His promises.

God is both able and willing. Because of that, I can live life with a smile on my face.