Faith In Who HE IS and What HE SAYS . . . "whom say ye that I am?"

Does my life show a faith in who HE, Jesus Christ, is and what HE says?

 In Matthew 16:13-17 Christ asks his disciples who men say that He is and who they, His followers, say that He is. Some unbelievers were confused and others were angry and refused to believe the truth. When an unbeliever refuses Christ he is missing the transformational forgiveness of the Lord but sometimes believers say they believe in Christ but refuse to believe in what He says! Which seems strange but don't we do that all the time? We see this in Scriptures in Matt. 16:21-23 when Peter, a disciple of Christ, says "Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee." Yikes! If you read verse 21 Christ had just told them about His future suffering in Jerusalum and then of His death and resurrection. What does Peter say but "this shall not be unto thee." Another words, what you just said can't be true! 

 The Defender's Study Bible says "It is surprising that Peter could make such a remarkable (even Spirit-inspired) confession of Jesus as both Messiah and Son of God, then almost immediately deny Christ's word!"

 

But don't WE do that frequently?

"I can't make it!"   . . .

1. Isaiah 40:31
   but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

"That is impossible!" . . . 

1. Matthew 19:26
   But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
2. Mark 10:27
   And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.
3. Luke 18:27
   And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.

"I'm all alone!" . . . 

1. Hebrews 13:5b
     . . . for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

"No one cares!". . .

1. 1 Peter 5:7
   casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

We choose to believe and follow the lies of our heart instead of the deity of Christ.

So many people reject Christ, "the Prince of Life",  "the Just", "the Holy One" and if they would just accept Him into their lives He would give them what they need. He gives strength and PERFECT soundness when everything is out of kilter.  The following is a piece of Scripture I read recently from Acts 3 and it struck me. The impossible is possible with Christ.  Now can I as a Christian today make the lame to walk? No, I can't, but Christ can and the disciples were given that gift for the time. Sometimes the world marvels at what Christians are able to handle and achieve, but it is not the individual, it is Christ whom they have chosen to embrace and not deliver Him up for some thing unworthy of their affection.

We need to trust in the promises and words of Christ. When we do we will see amazing things. He will work in and through us in ways we never believed possible! I don't want Him to pass over me and not use me as He could have had I just believed what He said!

 Acts 3:12-16

Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV)

¹² And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk? ¹³ The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go. ¹⁴ But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; ¹⁵ and killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses. ¹⁶ And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.

 Another passage I have read recently is Mark 6:1-6.

Mark 6:1-6

Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV)

6 And he went out from thence, and came into his own country; and his disciples follow him. ² And when the sabbath day was come, he began to teach in the synagogue: and many hearing him were astonished, saying, From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands? ³ Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him. ⁴ But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house. ⁵ And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them. ⁶ And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.

Unbelief=Mighty Works Stifled

Another passage which is as above just a bit more is . . .

Luke 4:16-30

Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV)

¹⁶ And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. ¹⁷ And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, ¹⁸ The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, ¹⁹ to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. ²⁰ And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
²¹ And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. ²² And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph’s son? ²³ And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country. ²⁴ And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country. ²⁵ But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; ²⁶ but unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow. ²⁷ And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.
²⁸ And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, ²⁹ and rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong. ³⁰ But he passing through the midst of them went his way, 

Anger and refusal to accept truth=Mighty works stifled 

Hebrews 11:6
But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. 

I want to live a life that shows that I believe that He is who He says He is!
When trials come into my life how do my actions answer the question
"whom say ye that I am?"