BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

One thing I’ve learned over the years about living by faith in God’s Word: If you’re going to stick with it, you can’t be moved by what other people think. You can’t get offended every time someone who doesn’t understand the Bible accuses you of being foolish, or mockingly refers to you as “one of those faith people.” No, if you’re going to believe God and see the impossible come to pass in your life, you have to shrug off that kind of criticism. You have to take the attitude that, even when people mean it as an insult, being called a “faith person” is a compliment. After all, it actually is. God Himself says so! He tells us in the Bible that: • 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. (Hebrews 11:6) • For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. (Ephesians 2:8) • If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. (Matthew 17:20) • For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. (Romans 1:17) You ought to be happy when someone calls you a faith person! It’s certainly better than being called an unbelief person. It’s better than having people point to you and say, “Wow, look at that guy. He’s a real doubter.” You don’t want that. You want to be like Abraham, the man the Bible refers to as the father of our faith. He was famous for believing and acting on God’s Word, even when, in the eyes of the world, it made him look foolish. Abraham was so bold in his faith that when, at 99 years old, he heard from God that he and his 90-year-old, barren wife were going to have a son, he immediately began talking like it had already come to pass. He called “those things which be not as though they were” (Romans 4:17) and went around introducing himself by the new name God had given him. * * * * * article continues on p. 28 * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Points to Get You There: Be like Abraham and Noah, who kept believing what God said even when others scoffed. They saw God do the impossible in their lives, and if you stay in faith you will too. 1) The world may make fun of faith, but God is pleased by it. Hebrews 11:6 2) Faith makes the impossible possible. Matthew 17:20 3) Contrary people and circumstances can’t rock your faith when you stay focused on God’s Word. Romans 4:18, 20 4) Believing and acting on God’s Word always pay off in the end. Genesis 6:22-7:1 5) The world can laugh but it cannot defeat the person who stands in faith on God’s Word. 1 John 5:4 BVOV : 27

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