There
was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world
did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not
receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to
become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were
born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man,
but of God. (John 1:9-13 NASB)
Jesus came with the intent:
- That you would receive him
- That you would believe who he is
- That you would believe why he came
- Beware of Phony Faith
- Have elements of genuine faith
- Superficial Faith
Now
when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many
believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing. But Jesus,
on His part, was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men,
and because He did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for He
Himself knew what was in man.
(John 2:23-25 NASB)
- Emotional response
- Only for selfish motives
- Help for this life, not hope for eternity
And
He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, "Behold, the sower
went out to sow; and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and
the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on the rocky places, where
they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because
they had no depth of soil. But when the sun had risen, they were
scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. Others fell
among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. And others
fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some
sixty, and some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear."
"Hear
then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the
kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away
what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown
beside the road. The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this
is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet
he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when
affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he
falls away. And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is
the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the
deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. And
the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who
hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings
forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty." (Matthew 13:3-9, 18-23 NASB)
You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. (James 2:19 NASB)
- Self Sufficient Faith
Jesus
answered them and said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not
because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were
filled. Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which
endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on
Him the Father, God, has set His seal." Therefore they said to Him,
"What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?" Jesus answered
and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him
whom He has sent."
(John 6:26-29 NASB)
"We can do it ourselves, cause we are "good people""
The average is not the standard. God is the standard, and he is perfect.
I
am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of
this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give
for the life of the world is My flesh."
(John 6:51 NASB)
And
someone came to Him and said, "Teacher, what good thing shall I do that
I may obtain eternal life?" And He said to him, "Why are you asking Me
about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to
enter into life, keep the commandments." (Matthew 19:16-17 NASB)
And
a lawyer stood up and put Him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall
I do to inherit eternal life?" And He said to him, "What is written in
the Law? How does it read to you?" (Luke 10:25-26 NASB)
- Self Righteous Faith
As
He spoke these things, many came to believe in Him. So Jesus was saying
to those Jews who had believed Him, "If you continue in My word, then
you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the
truth will make you free." They answered Him, "We are Abraham's
descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that
You say, 'You will become free'?" (John 8:30-33 NASB)
Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.
(John 8:34 NASB)
- Be Sure You Have Real Faith
Then
the Pharisees also were asking him again how he received his sight. And
he said to them, "He applied clay to my eyes, and I washed, and I see."
Therefore some of the Pharisees were saying, "This man is not from God,
because He does not keep the Sabbath." But others were saying, "How can
a man who is a sinner perform such signs?" And there was a division
among them. So they said to the blind man again, "What do you say about
Him, since He opened your eyes?" And he said, "He is a prophet." The
Jews then did not believe it of him, that he had been blind and had
received sight, until they called the parents of the very one who had
received his sight, and questioned them, saying, "Is this your son, who
you say was born blind? Then how does he now see?" His parents answered
them and said, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born
blind; but how he now sees, we do not know; or who opened his eyes, we
do not know. Ask him; he is of age, he will speak for himself." His
parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had
already agreed that if anyone confessed Him to be Christ, he was to be
put out of the synagogue. For this reason his parents said, "He is of
age; ask him." So a second time they called the man who had been blind,
and said to him, "Give glory to God; we know that this man is a sinner."
He then answered, "Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I
do know, that though I was blind, now I see." So they said to him, "What
did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?" He answered them, "I told
you already and you did not listen; why do you want to hear it again?
You do not want to become His disciples too, do you?" They reviled him
and said, "You are His disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. We know
that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where
He is from." The man answered and said to them, "Well, here is an
amazing thing, that you do not know where He is from, and yet He opened
my eyes. We know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is
God-fearing and does His will, He hears him. Since the beginning of time
it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born
blind. If this man were not from God, He could do nothing." They
answered him, "You were born entirely in sins, and are you teaching us?"
So they put him out. Jesus heard that they had put him out, and finding
him, He said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" He answered, "Who is
He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" Jesus said to him, "You have both
seen Him, and He is the one who is talking with you." And he said,
"Lord, I believe." And he worshiped Him.
(John 9:15-38 NASB)
- Lordship
But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus,
was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples were saying
to him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see in
His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of
the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe." After
eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus
came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said,
"Peace be with you." Then He said to Thomas, "Reach here with your
finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My
side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing." Thomas answered and
said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Because you have
seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet
believed." (John 20:24-29 NASB)
But
an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship
the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be
His worshipers. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in
spirit and truth."
(John 4:23-24 NASB)
- Worship
How do you go from phony faith to real faith?
There is no point in celebrating the birth of Christ, if you aren't believing him.
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