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No Fear Issue 03
Table of Contents
3.1 No Fear Information
3.2 God's Love -- God's Voice
3.3 The Eye of the Needle
3.4 Theophilus Three
3.5 Basics: Faith
3.6 The Gospel of Prayer
3.7 Parable of the Oranges
3.8 Final Comments
3.9 No Fear Member List
Please share this with your friend and any local BBS' you may know of.
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3.1
NO FEAR INFORMATION - MAY 1ST, 1995
No Fear has just undertaken a massiv overhaul. In response to God's
direction for the zine, we replanned our strategies and rethought many
of our motivations. Thanks to God's guidance and grace, No Fear is
back on its feet again, better than ever. We have some big plans for
the future and we ask for your earnest prayers on our behalf. We have
gone through some difficult times in our short life-span and only
through prayer have we made it through.
The vision is getting clearer. The call grows louder. God is seeking
for those who will commit their lives to Him completely, without
reservation. The time is 1995 and our goal at No Fear is to show
people exactly what discipleship means. So many ideologies in today's
Church and society are self centered and self motivated. However,
serving Christ is about Christ centered lifestyles. When everyone is
trying to get as far from the Rock without falling into the abyss of
eternal damnation, the TRUE call is to get as close to the Rock and as
far from the world and its lies as possible.
Please, as you read No Fear, ask God to show you what He would have
you to see. Ask the Holy Spirit to light up the words for you to see.
Ask God to show you how you can better serve Him. Take notes. Share
the notes with your friends. Tell your friends about No Fear. God's
word needs to be shared, not for our benefit, but for God's benefit.
We thank you for you efforts and prayers. God bless you.
Sincerely,
B. Christian Haller
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3.2
GOD'S LOVE - GOD'S VOICE
How do we know God loves us? How can we trust His love? We pray for
healing; we often find pain. We pray for peace; we find struggle. We pray
for a job; we find unemployment. The question so many people ask today
begins with the words, "If God REALLY loved me..."
We have become a nation of independent people. We assume we know what
is best for us, so we pray. We ask for what WE want, and then we are
disappointed when our prayers appear to be unanswered. The TRUTH is, God
DOES love us! He provides for us at ALL times. He gives us what HE KNOWS
we need most. Yet, the deaf ears of His people cannot hear His voice.
Their eyes do not see GOD'S answers to their prayers. They find it too
difficult to accept His love.
Love is TRUST. _T_ rust BEGINS with the cross of our Lord. We may THINK
we know what's good for us, but our Heavenly Father knows what is BEST
for us! We know God loves us because He gave his ONLY Son as proof of that
love. The gift He gave is everlasting! Unfortunately, we have hardened our
hearts to His voice--and His love. God is reaching out to His people.
Once again, the words of Isaiah ring true:
Pay Attention, Israel, for you are my servant;
I made you and I will not forget to help you.
I've blotted out your sins;
they are gone like the morning mist at noon.
Oh return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free.
Isaiah 44:21-22 (The Living Bible)
Our Lord will not forsake us. THAT is His promise! Why then do we question
the answers to our prayers? Why do we assume He has not heard our cry for
help when He gives us what we need? Our Lord heals in ways that no human
mind can truly understand.
The most important part of our relationship with God is just that--
THE RELATIONSHIP! He WANTS us to pray. He WANTS to meet our needs. He
WANTS to have a conversation with us. Prayer is not just TALKING to God.
Prayer is also listening to HIS VOICE! We must come before Him, asking
forgiveness for our sins. We must ask that our hearts and minds be opened
to HIS will, not ours. We must be willing to be quiet and wait upon His
Word. Amazing things happen when we pray in this way!
God does answer our prayers; we just need to be in the right relationship
with Him in order to hear and see his answers! Pain and suffering can
provide a gift more blessed than we could EVER have asked for. It is a gift
our Lord gave to the world--compassion. When we struggle, we turn to God
in frustration. We ask for His help and He provides. We must have faith,
trusting that God will see us through our trials. We must give thanks for
the gift He is giving us, the gift He gave to the world--patience. We also
find peace beyond all understanding when we can trust in Him through our
struggles.
The Bible teaches that we must be willing to listen and obey. God
recently told me I needed to leave my teaching job. I trembled in fear when
I thought about letting go and risking financial insecurity, but I have
learned to hear my Master's voice. He said, "FEAR NOT, FOR I AM WITH YOU. I
WILL LEAD YOU." I asked God to show me what to do. He said, "I DON'T WANT
YOU TO DO ANYTHING; I WANT YOU TO LOVE ME." I started to protest and say,
"Of course I love you!" He knew my heart and in the silence of my prayer, I
heard His voice: "IF YOU LOVED ME, YOU WOULD TRUST ME." Tears began to
flow. I learned as a child in an abusive family that love meant betrayal.
Pain and suffering were all I ever saw, so THAT is what I expected from love.
Today, God has taught me the real meaning of love. TRUE LOVE can bring
me gifts that I never dreamed could be mine! TRUE LOVE is having a Father
who protects me, looks out for my needs, holds me through my trials and
shares HIS life with me. Love is TRUST--and it BEGINS with the cross of
Christ Jesus!
May you have blessed communion with our Lord. May you hear His voice
when you pray. May you follow His will and know that He loves you more
than words could ever tell!
Cindy Burger
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3.3
The Eye of the Needle
I looked to the Lord and I said, "Lord, for I am unhappy. What
can Thou beholdest unto me so that I might receive joy? I will
do mighty exploits for Thou, my Lord!"
The Lord looked upon me in my suffering and said unto me, "What
is it, son of man, that thou wouldst have?"
I searched deep in my mind and then looked up the Lord and said,
"Lord, if Thou wilt bestow upon me many Christian friends so
that I might be strengthened in my walk with You O Lord, I know
that I will receive the happiness which I've been searching
for." The Lord granted unto me the thing which I asked of Him.
I saw the hearts of men being changed through the gift that the
Lord had given unto me. A time later I came unto Him again and
said, "O, Mighty God, You have so graciously given unto me the
thing which I have asked. However, I have not found ultimate
joy in that thing which you gave unto me. Lord, what can I do
to receive the joy that my spirit yearneth for?"
The Lord looked upon me in my time of need and said unto me,
"What is it that though wouldst have, son of man?"
I searched once again and I turned to my God and said to Him,
"Lord, I have seen the burden of man bowed low in pain. Lord,
if Thou wilt bestow upon me the power of the spoken word! Lord,
if Thou wilt bestow upon me a place of ministry where I might
preach Thy Word with diligence, where I might war against the
principalities and powers of the darkness that pervadeth against
Thy Kingdom, O Lord, I know that I will be happy." The Lord
granted unto me such a place of ministry and I still was not
happy. I bowed my face low to the ground in the secret hour and
I looked to the Lord and said, "Lord, O God Whom I love, whatever
shall I do? The thing which Thou hast bestowed upon me is not
yet unto mine satisfaction. My spirit searcheth for more, O
God. What more is there?"
The Lord looked upon me once again and said to me, "Once again,
ask of me what thou wouldst ask for."
I came back to the Lord a while later and spoke unto Him, "Lord,
I have decided what wilt make me happy. I would like, O
sovereign Lord, a ministry of healing and great power. I would
like to see the blind man healed and the leper restored to his
healthful condition of birth. I would like to see the tongues
of fire and I would like to see the world in my travels of
spreading the Gospel. Oh, Lord, if I may have this I'm sure to
have joy!" The Lord fulfilled my wishes and I was used of the
Lord to heal and to minister. I saw the Spirit poured out upon
many nations and I saw people come to the Lord in droves, yet I
was still unhappy. I looked once more to the Lord. I fell upon
my knees and cried out, "Oh Most High! Whatever can I do to
fulfill the yearning within my soul? My heart aches for
something of which I know nothing about! Please, O God, come
and show me what it is! My methods have failed even though they
were to Your best interest, O Lord. What can I do to please
You, My God?"
The Lord turned to me and said unto me, "My child, come this
way." The Lord took me to a far away place that was dark and
bleak. No one was around and there were no sounds. I thought I
had received the gift from the Lord and I searched around for my
happiness but found only a small gate. The gate was of the size
whereupon I might crawl through. I looked up to the Lord and
asked Him for His instructions. He looked down upon me and
said, "Go through the gate."
I looked upon my hands and then I sought the Lord once again.
"O Most High God! Surely I cannot fit through that small hole!
I would most surely get stuck, O Lord!"
The Lord looked down at me and said, "Before you enter you must
drop the things which thou art carrying."
I said unto the Lord, "Surely Thy would not ask me to drop my
Sword of the Spirit, Lord! I am a warrior, O God! What would I
do without my Sword? What would I do, O Lord, without the armor
with Thou hath bestowed upon me? Surely I would be naked and
open to attack! O Sovereign Lord, surely you asketh me not to
lay down the ministry which Thou hath bestowed upon me! Surely
You ask not of me to give unto the earth the friends which Thou
hast given unto me. For, O Lord, these all were gifts from You!
Can You still ask me to crawl through and carry all that Thou
hath given unto me?"
The Lord looked upon me in my confusion and said unto me, "You
must drop the things and enter the gate if you wish to receive
that which you have asked for."
I looked to the Lord and then to my things. The gnaw in mine
soul urged me onward, and I laid down my Sword. I laid down my
armor. I laid down my friends, my hopes, my dreams, my
ministries, my clothes, and everything else that I had. I laid
down everything within me - my joy, my family, my material
items, my prayers, my church, my education, my knowledge, and
everything else within my soul." I looked to the Lord and said,
"Lord, now do I enter?"
The Lord looked to me and said, "Bow low and then enter the
gate." I fell to my knees and then began to crawl through the
gate. The Lord stopped me and said, "Bow only lower and then
thou may enter." I fell to my face and then began to creep
towards the gate. The Lord stopped me yet another time and said
unto me, "Only lower, my child, and then thou may enter the
gate." I looked to the Lord and finally, I stripped myself of
my pride, my self-dignity, my egotistical mannerisms, my fears,
and I pushed my face deep into the dirt below me.
I pressed every inch of my body into the ground and said unto
the Lord, "I can go no further, Lord."
He looked upon me and merely said, "Enter." I, at last, crawled
through the gate. After what seemed like hours I emerged on the
other side. I arrived, naked, cold, yet completely secure. I
looked back at the gate which was so small and it was so
wide that I could not fill it. I said unto the Lord, "What is
it that Thou hast given unto me for now my soul is satisfied?"
The Lord looked at me and said, "My child, you have entered
through the eye of the needle, the Gate of Worship. You have
forsaken all on My behalf, and now thou hath received joy in thy
soul."
I praised the Lord in all sincerity. "O Lord, at last I TRULY
love Thee!" I stayed upon my face and worshipped with all of my
heart. I then asked of the Lord, "What shall become of my
friends, O Lord?"
The Lord instantly transported me high above the earth to the
heavenly realms. I looked down and saw the friends the Lord had
granted unto me as they stood before the small gate - the eye of
the needle. They argued with the Lord just as I had and then
finally they entered through the gate. I watched as they
emerged and began to rejoice in the Lord - for they had finally
found the true joy which they had searched for for so long.
I looked to the Lord and said unto Him, "O sovereign Lord, Thou
hast truly given me everything under the sun and more. Thou
hast given unto me Thine only Son and now Thou hast taught me
the greatest lesson of all."
The word of the Lord then came unto me and said, "Go now and
tell this people this thing: I have given unto this people
extreme talent and ability. But I tell you that unless you come
through this small gate and lay before me all the things which I
have given unto you, you will always minister to man and only to
man. But there is a gate in the Church which is called the Gate
of Worship and they not only minister unto man but they also
minister unto Me. You have the choice. You may stay where you
are and minister unto man, or you may enter the small gate and
minister unto the King."
Prophetic Utterance - Charlotte Baker - 1986
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The Eye of the Needle
By B. Christian Haller
"Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees
got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with
this question: 'Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in
the Law?"
"Jesus replied, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with
all your soul and with all your mind.'" Matthew 22:34-37 (NIV)
When this article topic came into my mind, I checked the Lord to
make sure this was what He would have me write on. It's
somewhat similar to my previous article (January) but yet vastly
different. The Lord has illuminated my perspective a bit more
and I continue to see deeper and deeper into the wound of our
Church.
Our goal was once to love God with all of our hearts. Now the
main goal is church attendance for offering purposes. When the
main goal was once to serve God in all ways possible, now the
goal is to serve man so that he will not leave your church
assembly. At one time the apathetic were expelled from the
body, now the apathetic receive warm welcomes Sunday after
Sunday.
Our Church is sick. There is a cry for revival but the plain
truth is that it's far off. They say that a "refreshing" is
sweeping over the nation but until we see repentance nothing
will happen. The Church can laugh its head off for all the world to
see and it won't phase God in the slightest. God wants to see
bent knees and broken hearts. Everyone wants God to bless them
but God wants people to bless Him. Where did we go wrong? The
Church, for the most part, is backwards! Who is the voice to
cry out and say, "TURN, REPENT AND BE SAVED!" Preachers
sacrifice their integrity for popularity and the Church turns
manifestations of the Spirit into methods and manipulation. How
sick God must be with our world!
What do we do? Surely there is a quick fix! The truth is that
there IS NO QUICK FIX! Sin is in our Church! Sin has invaded
our camp and it's our job to expel it! We need repentance! We
don't need giddy highs and spiritual drunkenness, we need tears
and anguish. Yes, there is a time for joy and happiness, but
the times are horrible. Sin is all around and our world is
slipping into darkness. Who could take a walk down in any
inner-city and not feel grief grip their soul? What heartless
person could not see the pain in the eyes of the common
passer-by?
We need to rid ourselves and our Church of its bad habits and
PATTERNS. Sure, order is great, but this Sunday after Sunday
sin-tolerance must end. Preachers need to get behind the pulpit
and gather up their guts and tell the people to repent and be
saved. True, not all preachers have their head in the cloud of
popularity but so many of them do.
What does it come down to? We've gotten off the BASIC and MOST
IMPORTANT law. Our goal isn't to love God. Our goals have
switched. We know what Jesus did for us and we know His grace
over our lives, but we still tend to search for things that are
beneficial to us and us only.
"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness..." (Matt 6:33)
No, not church attendance. No, not evangelism, no matter how
noble. We aren't to seek the Spirit's manifestation in each
service (even though it's definitely needed). We aren't to seek
our own righteousness or how God can help us in our Christian
walk. We are to seek His KINGDOM! It's plain and simple to see
that we are FAILING this task miserably! We aren't attempting to
love God with all of our hearts and we aren't seeking His kingdom!
We aren't seeking HIS will either. We seek our own! Oh, Church,
turn, repent and be saved!
"The he said to them all: 'If anyone would come after me, he
must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.'"
(Luke 6:23)
Who is taking up their cross? Who is CRUCIFYING their flesh
daily? I think of the walk where Jesus had the cross upon His
back and the vision isn't so pleasant. Jesus didn't enjoy that
walk. We can enjoy life, but our sin should be crucified. We
should come under Christ's control and seek His will for our
lives. Our dreams, hopes, aspirations, loves, etc., should be
crucified as we take up our cross.
If anyone would come after me... if anyone would seek the
kingdom of God... he must deny himself... It's not easy to deny
ourselves. It's not easy to give up our will. However, we need
to bend our knee before God and repent and be saved. Even if we
are believers in Jesus Christ we need to repent for our apathy
of lost souls and the things of God. We need to repent for
our lack of caring about God and loving Him and our
over-zealousness for numbers in the pews! This nation needs to
start at square one. Let us repent. Let us pray. Let us look
for God, for He will show us His face. Let us bend our knees,
throwing off all things, and we too, shall enter the
eye of the needle... the gate of worship.
Some may call me over-zealous. Some may call me "super
spiritual." Some may just laugh at this article and say that I
know nothing. Some may say that I'm "preaching" down at people.
Perhaps they are all correct, but this is the Word of the Lord:
"Repent, Church, and be saved by My grace." People have
forgotten what being a Christian is all about. Being saved in
your mind does nothing for you. People worship God in their
head and not in their heart and in their deeds. What can we do?
1. We can stop looking for what God can give us and see what
we can give to God. We don't have to buy our salvation, but we
need to deny ourselves. I know so many people that simply go to
church to see how God can bless them and make them feel good.
It's not about that at all. It's about what we can do to submit
our lives to Christ.
2. We can quit tolerating the sin that we see. People always
seem to sluff off the sin they see and just seem to not notice
it. Whether we see sin in the church or in our daily lives,
we've seen it for a reason. The Lord has shown it to us. What
are we to do about it? Let us pray for the sin that we see,
whether it be in our own lives or in the lives of others. Let
us no longer condemn those we see who are sinful and let us lift
them up in prayer and ask God to change their lives.
3. Pray for humility. It almost seems as if everyone thinks
they know everything. Whether you've read the Bible once or a
million times, you still don't know very much as far as I'm
concerned. There is uncertainty. We need to look to the Lord.
We need to quit being so stubborn in our creeds and lists of
do's and don'ts and we need to look to Jesus and say, "Lord,
what is right with You?" This is called dependence. It's
saying, "Lord, I'm not trusting denominational foundations, I'm
trusting You and Your Word."
Being a spiritual adult is all about leaning on God. Unlike
other growth processes, Christian growth is seeing how dependent
you can become and not how independent you can become. It's not
easy to lay down our wills and our lives and let God change
them. Let's lay down our music, our friends, family, topics of
conversation, church attendance, motives, education, and
everything else and ask the Lord, "What would You have me be?"
None of us are perfect and we all have a reason to pray this
prayer. If you ever think you are perfect then most likely you
will be either dead or getting there quick! Only the Lord is
perfect and until we die we will always be struggling with sin.
Let us look unto the Lord. Let us throw off the old and take on
the new. Let us worship God and quit seeking for own end. Let
us break before the Lord and see what He would have us become.<p>
B. Christian Haller
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3.4
Theophilus Letters
My dear Theophilus,
When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God
cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each
one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away
and enticed. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth
to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
James 1:13-15
I don't know about you, Theophilus, but I don't generally try to blame God for
my sins. I'd rather blame them on Satan! That's the ticket. "The devil made
me do it!" "I couldn't help myself." "It's not my fault."
But really, it doesn't matter which direction I try to push the blame off;
the result is still the same. I can relax and feel good about myself, because
the sin isn't really my fault. I'm actually an all-right guy; I'm just a
victim.
And then someone like James comes along and points the finger right at me.
"Looking for someone to blame this on?" he asks; "Just look in your own
heart." How *dare* he suggest that I, the victim, bear any of the blame!
The Book of James is full of hard lessons; and this is one of them: That sin
originates, not "out there", but right here, in my own heart. In this
passage, he gives us a step-by-step picture of how sin happens. The process
is NOT pretty, and contains some bad news that we don't like to hear. But it
also contains some good news; news that can help us to avoid sin and practice
greater obedience to our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
So, Theophilus, let's look closely at this process. Sin begins with
temptation. And temptation begins with my own evil desire. Yup -- that's the
bad news; that the beginnings of the sins I commit are right there in my
heart. I can't blame it on God, on Satan, on other people, or even on
circumstances. The evil desires are right there because of my fallen nature
(what the Apostle Paul called "the old man" or the sinful nature.)
The bad news is that the evil desires are there. But the good news is that
they, by themselves are not sin! They are a fact of my humanity; a part of
what I am. No, they are not in themselves, sin. BUT, they don't just sit
there; they are active. Look at how James characterizes them: Temptation is
the result of my evil desires dragging me away and enticing me!
This is most easily pictured this way: I am the the wide-mouthed bass,
stealthily going about my business among the rocks of my stream. My evil
desires are sitting on the bank of the stream with a fishing pole and a whole
tackle box full of lures. They select a lure, bait it, toss it into the
water, then make it dance around. If all goes as planned, my curiosity draws
me away from the safty of the rocks, and eventually, I take the bait.
But that "if" is another bit of good news! The baiting and luring is the
temptation; but if I choose NOT to take the bait, then there is no sin! That
is, temptation, in itself is not sin; the sin lies in my yielding to the
temptation. James speaks of my desires conceiving and giving birth to sin.
Just as a man and a woman come together and conceive a child; so my evil
desires and my actions come together to conceive sin. If they remain
separate, no sin results.
The lure is in the water, and my attention has been drawn; but what will I do
about it? One possibility is that I won't even see it for the danger that it
is. This will happen more often if I am neglecting filling my heart and mind
with God's word. If this is the case, then I may not even know I'm being
tempted until I feel the hook pierce the roof of my mouth! By the time I see
the truth, I'm already deep in sin. My evil desires have conceived!
But, the more I dwell on His excellent goodness, the more I think on things
that are good, lovely, and of good report, the more I meditate on His Word,
the more likely it will be that I will recognize temptation. But that means I
am faced with a decision. To yield, or to flee! Of course, yielding to
temptation is always easier. It is just a matter of letting my evil desires
have free reign, and going with whatever feels good. THIS is sin. The point
at which I decide to yield to my evil desires is the point at which I trade my
status as an innocent victim of temptation for that of being "guilty as sin."
My other choice, when I recognize temptation, is to flee from that which is
evil, and cling to that which is good. But this is work; sometimes very hard
work. My evil desires don't just pull the line from the water and go home if
I refuse to strike at the lure. The taunting will continue, and often the
lure will be exchanged for another one which might prove to be more inviting.
To be successful in standing against temptation, I must run to the Lord's
waiting arms, hide myself in His care, and fill my mind and heart with His
word.
Theophilus, I know you have weaknesses, just as I do. There are some
temptations that are so enticing that I will always have trouble deciding
against them. These are the times when I need to have a strategy for avoiding
sin. I need to plan to stay out of tempting situations. I need to formulate
an escape plan for those temptations I regularly find myself in. And I need
to enlist the help of my fellow Christians.
For me, it is my wife who is my greatest ally. She is always willing to pray
for me, support me, and hold me accountable. But in order for her to do this,
I must confess my ugliest sins to her. She can not watch my actions and ask
me the hard questions if I am hiding things from her. This is a real test of
my trust in her, as well as her love for me. But I can say with great
assurance that I have seen victories that I could not have achieved on my own,
becuase of bearing my soul to her and allowing her to help me.
My dear Theophilus, I urge you to make your plans to avoid temptation.
Formulate your escape plans for whichever sins regularly overtake you. And
most importantly, build that kind of love and trust relationship with a fellow
Christian, so that you can help each other to stand against temptations and
avoid falling into sin.
But, Theophilus, there will be times when we fall; when sin will overtake us.
Then what? The temptation is to give up. "I'll never be able to win this
battle, so why bother trying?" This defeated attitude results in a life which
bears much less fruit for the Kingdom of God than it could (or should.)
No, although we will continue to be plagued by sin as long as we live in these
human bodies, we can -- we MUST always return to our Lord, repent, and allow
Him to remove the sin and its guilt from us. Jesus died on the cross
specifically for this reason; because we are unable to attone for our own
sins. He paid the entire penalty for all of our sins; and He calls on us only
to humbly accept His gift of abundant life. But the only way to do this is to
agree with Him that our sins are utterly sinful, and to allow Him to remove
them from us altogether.
James tells us that sin, when it is full-grown gives birth to death. Thank
God that He has provided a way for us to avoid that awful fate! For all of us
who are in Christ, our sins will never mature. Through His wonderful
conviction and our repentance, they are nipped in the bud. Our sins will not
bear their natural fruit of death, because Jesus has destroyed the power of
sin in His death on the cross. Halleluiah!
And so, my dear Theophilus, resolve with me to so fill our hearts and minds
with God's Word that we will always recognize temptation for what it is. And
let us pray for and support each other so that we are always ready and willing
to flee from temptation. And at those times when we fall, let us resolve to
confess our sins; first to God, then to each other, and repent of our actions,
and pray for each other that our love relationship with our Lord may be
cleared of any impediments.
I thank God for James. He tells us hard things, but in those lessons are the
keys to understanding why I sin and what I must do about it. Let us strive to
please our Lord and Saviour through obedience to Him in all things.
For God's Glory,
Theophilus
footnote: The name "Theophilus", to which Luke addressed both his
Gospel and the book of Acts is derived from the Greek words, "Theos"
meaning God, and "Philos" meaning friend. Therefore, I join Luke in
addressing what I write to all who are friends of God.
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3.5
The Basics: Faith in God
Introduction
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This is the second in a series of articles on the Basics of the Christian
Faith. This series is founded upon Hebrews 6:1-2, which contains a list of
fundamental teachings with which one should be familiar before going on to
maturity in the faith. Please refer to the Intorduction published in Issue
#2, last month, for a more complete introduction.
The writer of Hebrews lists "Faith in God" second among the basics of the
Christian faith.
What is faith?
- --------------
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain
of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were
commended for. By faith we understand that the universe
was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not
made out of what was visible. Hebrews 11:1-3
On an operational level, faith is a matter of complete assurance in what we
believe. It is being absolutely sure of what can not be verified empirically.
In this world of scientific discovery and mathematical proof, there is an
ever-present danger that we may be deluded into thinking that faith is of no
value. On the contrary, there is no "fact" in this world which is not based
upon some premise; some set of "givens", which are not, in themselves
provable, but must be taken on faith.
People will often smugly assert that faith has no place in their thought, when
in fact they have simply replaced faith in God with faith in the truth of the
given rules which they accept. For example, many reject creation of the
universe by God because is requires a leap of faith. They go on the accept
the idea that some pre-existent matter went "Bang" and brought life as we know
it through a maze of random chance. This can not be proven, and in my mind,
it requires at least as great a leap of faith as creation; probably greater!
Is faith the same as belief?
- ----------------------------
The wording of Hebrews 11:6 can lead you to the common error of thinking of
faith as being synonymous with belief. This can be dispelled by looking at
what James had to say about it:
... faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action,
is dead. But someone will say, "You have faith; I have
deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show
you my faith by what I do. You believe that there is one
God. Good! Even the demons believe that -- and shudder.
James 2:17-19
So we see that belief is a prerequisite to faith. Believing, by itself will
do you no more good than it does for the demons. (And they will ultimately be
condemned to the Lake of Fire.) But, when belief bears fruit in action, then
it proves to be more substantial -- what I am referring to as "faith."
Why is faith so important?
- --------------------------
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because
anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and
that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6
Just as belief is a prerequisite to faith, faith is a prerequisite to pleasing
God. Those who are not too sure about God, but think that they can hedge
their bets are sadly mistaken. As Jesus said, "He who is not with me is
against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters." (Luke 11:23)
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith ...
Ephesians 2:8
The most important point about faith is that it is the vehicle through which
we are saved by the grace of God. We are not saved by our faith, but by God's
grace, which is fully under His command. Faith is the means through which God
shows His grace.
Does it matter what I place my faith in?
- ----------------------------------------
I have often heard that, "It doesn't matter what you believe, as long as
you're sincere." That it doesn't matter whether you place you faith in Jesus,
or Mohammad, or human-kind, or science, or government, or only in yourself.
The Bible has much to say on this topic, and none of it supports such ideas.
The passage upon which we are focusing, Hebrews 6:1, does not simply refer to
faith, but to "Faith in God." To be more explicit, look at what Jesus told
Nicodemus:
Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but who ever does not
believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the
name of God's one and only Son. John 3:18
So, we see that it matters very much in whom or what we place our faith.
Salvation belongs only to those who's faith is in anchored in God's redemptive
plan through our Lord Jesus Christ. Faith placed anywhere else is worthless
- -- and even worse, it can result in a false sense of security.
And even we who believe in Jesus can be drawn into the trap of placing our
faith somewhere else! Look at Paul's comments to the church at Corinth:
My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there
are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, "I
follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas";
still another, "I follow Christ." Is Christ divided? Was Paul
crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?
1 Corinthians 1:11-13
Here was a group of believers! But instead of placing their faith solely in
Jesus Christ, many were aligning themselves with specific teachers. We see
this today in denominationalism, or in the great followings that certain
teachers gain. Friends, these things aught NOT to be! We must carefully and
consciously avoid placing our faith in any individual, any church, and
denomination, or anything at all, other than God through the Lord Jesus
Christ.
How do I get faith?
- -------------------
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith --
and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -- not
by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9
Faith is not something that comes from ourselves, but from God. Faith is not
something that you conjure up through practice or effort, it is a gift that is
bestowed by God upon those He loves. When Jesus told the man who's son was
possessed by a demon, "'Everything is possible for him who believes.'
Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, 'I do believe; help me overcome my
unbelief!'" (Mark 9:23-24) This man understood that the required faith was
beyond his ability, and he turned to the Lord to supply what he lacked. God
was faithful, and supplied all of the faith that he needed.
But the fruit of the Spirit is ... faith ... Galatians 5:22
Faith is also listed as the fruit of the Spirit; that is, it is an attribute
that is spontaneously born in the life of the believer as a result of the
sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. Again, it is not a result of any effort
on the believer's part, but is instead the result of God's action and
initiative. It is a natural outcome of being a disciple of Christ, just as
bearing oranges is a natural outcome of a maturing orange tree. Jesus made
this clear when he stated, "Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or
make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its
fruit." (Matthew 12:33)
Conclusion
- ----------
So, we see that Faith in God is more than simply believing in Him. Believing
in God is passive. Many, many people believe in God, but in most cases, that
belief has no effect upon them. Their lives are not distinguishable from
those of non-believers. Their belief is fruitless, and not pleasing to God.
Faith in God, on the other hand, is active. It grows out of belief which is
mixed with love for Him and the desire to please Him. It is complete
assurance concerning Him and all that He has said and promised, resulting in
action in your life. Faith is the vehicle through which we are saved; it is
bestowed by God upon those who are His children, and it grows and grows in
their lives as they mature in the Lord.
My prayer to God for each of you is that God would grant you, not only belief
in Him, but saving faith. And my prayer for each of you who believes is that
you might be challenged to understand the importance of Faith in God in your
life, and that your love for Him might lead you to pray for the faith you need
to make your life pleasing and acceptable to Him in all respects.
============================================================================
3.6
The Gospel Of Prayer
By Leonard Ravenhill
There's nothing more transfiguring than prayer. People often
ask, "Why do you insist on prayer so much?" The answer is very
simple - because Jesus did. You could change the title of the
Gospel according to St. Luke to the Gospel of Prayer. It's the
prayer life of Jesus. The other evangelists say that Jesus was in
the Jordan and the Spirit descended on Him as a dove - Luke
says it was *while He was praying* that the Spirit descended on
Him. The other evangelists say that Jesus chose 12 disciples -
Luke says it was after He spent *a night in prayer* that He chose
12 disciples. The other evangelists say that Jesus died on a
cross - Luke says that even when He was dying *Jesus was praying*
for those who persecuted Him. The other evangelists say Jesus
went on a mount and He was transfigured - Luke says it was *while
He was praying* that He was transfigured. There's nothing more
transfiguring than prayer.
The Scriptures say that the disciples went to bed, but Jesus
went *to pray* - as was His custom. It was His custom to pray.
Now Jesus was the Son of God - He was definitely anointed for
His ministry. If Jesus needed all that time in prayer, don't you
and I need time in prayer? If Jesus needed it in every crisis,
don't you and I need it in every crisis?
The story goes that a group of tourists visiting a picturesque
village saw an old man sitting by a fence. In a rather
patronizing way, one of the visitors asked, "Were any great men
born in this village?" Without looking up the old man replied,
"No, only babies." The greatest men were once babies. The
greatest saints were once toddlers in the things of the Spirit.
C. H. Spurgeon was converted at the age of 16 and began
preaching in London at the age of 19. When he was 27, they built
him a tabernacle seating 6,000 which he packed twice on Sundays -
that's 12,000 - and once on Thursday nights. How? He waited on
God. He got alone with God. He studied...and he prayed.
Desperate Prayer
God makes all His best people in loneliness. Do you know what
the secret of praying is? *Praying in secret.* "But you, when you
pray, go into your inner room, and when you have shut your
door..." (Matt. 6:6). You can't show off when the door's shut and
nobody's there. You can't display your gifts. You can impress
others, but you can't impress God.
I Samuel 1:1-15 gives an account of the yearly trip Elkanah and
his wife, Hannah, made to Shiloh to worship and sacrifice to the
Lord. During this time, Hannah had been distressed that she was
not able to bear a son for her husband. This passage of Scripture
gives quite a descriptive account of her time in prayer
concerning the barrenness of her womb. It says that Hannah wept.
More than this, she wept until she was sore. She poured out her
soul before the Lord. Her heart was grieving; she was bitter of
soul, provoked, and of a sorrowful spirit.
Now that's a pretty good list of afflictions - sorrow,
hardship, and everything else that came upon this woman. But the
key to the whole situation is that she was a praying woman. In
verse 20 it says that she reaped her reward. "And it came about
in due time, after Hannah had conceived, that she gave birth to a
son; and she named him Samuel, saying, 'Because I have asked him
of the Lord.'"
Now I say very often - and people don't like it - that God
doesn't answer prayer. He answers *desperate* prayer! Your prayer
life denotes how much you depend on your own ability, and how
much you really believe in your heart when you sing, "Nothing in
my hands I bring, simply to Thy cross I cling...." The more self-
confidence you have, the less you pray. The less self-confidence
you have, the more you *have* to pray.
What does the Scripture say? It says that God takes the lowly,
the things that are not. Paul says in I Corinthians 1:28 that God
takes the things that are not to bring to nothing the things that
are, so that no flesh should glory in His presence. We need a
bunch of "are nots" today.
The Language of the Poor
Prayer is the language of the poor. Over and over again David,
the King of Israel, says, "Incline Thine ear, O Lord, and answer
me; for I am afflicted and needy" (Psalm 86:1). And do you
remember that one of the greatest psalms he wrote says, "This
poor man cried and the Lord heard him..." (Psalm 34:6).
The apostle Paul overwhelms me with his spirituality, his
pedigree, his colossal intellect. Yet he says that he's very
conscious that when he's weak, he is strong. He was always trying
to prove to himself and to others that he was a nobody.
True prayer is a two-way communication. I speak to God and God
speaks to me. I don't know how the Spirit makes communication -
or why God needs me to pray - but that's how God works.
"Get Up And Pray!"
One day I was at a conference with Dr. V. Raymond Edman of
Wheaton College, one of the greatest Christian educators in this
country. He told us of an experience he had while he was in
Ecuador as a missionary. He hadn't been there long before he was
sick and dying. He was so near death that they had already dug
his grave. He had great beads of sweat on his brow and there was
a death rattle in his throat. But suddenly he sat straight up in
bed and said to his wife, "Bring me my clothes!" Nobody knew what
had happened.
Many years later he was retelling the story in Boston.
Afterward, a little old lady with a small, dog-eared, beaten-up
book, approached him and asked, "What day did you say you were
dying? What time was it in Ecuador? What time would it be in
Boston?" When he answered her, her wrinkled face lit up.
Pointing to her book, she said. "There it is, you see? At 2 a.m.
God said to get up and pray - the devil's trying to kill Raymond
Edman in Ecuador." And she'd gotten up and prayed.
Duncan Campbell told the story of hearing a farmer in his field
who was praying. He was praying about Greece. Afterward, he
asked him why he was praying. The man said, "I don't know. I had
a burden in the spirit and God said, 'You pray; there's someone
in Greece that is in a bad situation.' I prayed until I got a
release." Two or three years later the farmer was in a meeting
listening to a missionary. The man described a time when he was
working in Greece. He had been in serious trouble. The time? Two
or three years ago. The men compared notes and discovered that it
was the very same day that God had burdened a farmer, on a little
island off the coast of Scotland, to pray for a man in Greece
whose name he didn't even know.
It may seem the Lord gives you strange things. I don't care. If
the Lord tells you something, carry on with what the Lord tells
you.
Who Shall Ascend to the Hill of the Lord?"
There's another experience Duncan Campbell told about when he
was working in Scotland.
"I couldn't preach," he said. "I couldn't get through to God.
The heavens were solid. It was as though there was a 10 ft.
ceiling of steel." So he quit trying to preach. He asked a young
man named John Cameron to pray. The boy stood up and said,
"What's the use of praying if we're not right with God?" He
quoted the 24th Psalm, "Who may ascend into the hill of the
Lord?"
You can't approach God unless your hands are clean, which means
your relationships with others are clean *and* your heart is
clean. "Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? He who has
clean hands and a pure heart..." (Psalm 24.3-4).
After the boy recited Psalm 24 he began to pray. He prayed 10,
15, 20 minutes. Then he suddenly said, "Excuse me, Lord, while I
resist the devil." He turned around and began to tell the devil
where to go and how to get there. He fought for all he was worth.
You talk about having on the armor of God and resisting the
devil! When he finished resisting the devil, he finished his
prayer. He prayed for 45 minutes! When he finished praying it was
just as though God had pulled a little switch in heaven. The
Spirit of God came down on that church, that community, on the
dance hall at the other end of town, and the tavern on this end
of town. Revival was born in that prayer!
At the end of Malachi it says, "And the Lord, whom you seek,
will *suddenly* (that's the word I like, *suddenly*) come to his
temple" (Malachi 3:1). Remember what it says about the shepherds?
They were watching their flocks by night when *suddenly* there
was the sound of the heavenly host. Do you remember a bunch of
men that had been waiting in the upper room? *Suddenly* the Holy
Spirit came on them in that room.
There's a date in history that I love very much. It was
Wednesday, August 13, 1737. A little group of people in Moravia
were waiting in a prayer meeting. At 11:00 *suddenly* the Holy
Spirit came. Do you know what happened? The prayer meeting that
began at 11:00 lasted 100 years! That's right. That prayer room
was not empty for a century! It's the longest prayer among men
and women that I know of. Even children six and seven years old
travailed in prayer for countries the names of which they
couldn't even spell.
Why We Don't Have Revival
In an old town in Ireland they'll show you with reverence a
place where four young men met night after night after night
praying for revival. In Wales, there's a place in the hills where
three or four young men only 18 or 19 years old met and prayed
night after night. They wouldn't let God go; they would not take
no for an answer. As far as humanly possible they prayed a
revival into birth. If you're thinking of revival at your church
without any inconvenience, forget it. Revival costs a lot.
I can give you one simple reason why we don't have revival in
America. Because we're content to live without it. We're not
seeking God - we're seeking miracles, we're seeking big crusades,
we're seeking blessings. In Numbers 11, Moses said to God,
"You're asking me to carry a burden I can't handle. Do something
or kill me!" Do you love America enough to say, "God, send
revival or kill me"? Do you think it's time we changed Patrick
Henry's prayer from, "Give me liberty or give me death," to "Give
me revival or let me die"?
In the 30th chapter of Genesis, Rachael goes to Jacob and
throws herself down in despair. She says, "Give me children or
else I die." Are you willing to throw yourself down before God to
seek the spiritual birth of spiritual children in our country?
People say, "I'm filled with the Holy Spirit." If the coming of
the Spirit didn't revolutionize your prayer life, you'd better
check on it. I'm not so sure you got what God wanted you to get.
We've said that prayer changes things. No! Prayer doesn't
change things. Prayer changes *people* and *they* change things.
We all want Gabriel to do the job. God says do it yourself - with
My sufficiency and My strength.
We need to get like this woman, Hannah. What did she do? She
wept, she was grieved, she said she had a complaint, she fasted -
and she prayed.
Jesus, the anointed of God, made prayer His custom. Paul, with
his background and intellect, depended on prayer because he said
he was weak. David, the king, called himself a poor man and cried
to the Lord. Hannah prayed for a son and gave birth to a prophet.
The prayers of a handful of young men sparked revival.
There's nothing more transfiguring than prayer.
-----------
COPYRIGHT/REPRODUCTION LIMITATIONS:
This data file is the sole property of Leonard Ravenhill. It may
not be altered or edited in any way. It may be reproduced only
in its entirety for circulation as "freeware," without charge.
All reproductions of this data file must contain the copyright
notice (i.e., "Copyright (C)1994 by Leonard Ravenhill, Lindale,
Texas"). This data file may not be used without the permission
of Leonard Ravenhill for resale or the enhancement of any other
product sold. This includes all of its content with the
exception of a few brief quotations. Please give the following
source credit: Copyright (C)1994 by Leonard Ravenhill, Lindale,
Texas.
============================================================================
3.7
"Parable of the Orange Tree"
From John White's book EVANGELISM, THE UNFINISHED TASK
I dreamed I drove on a lonely road, straight and empty. On
either side were groves of oranges trees; row after row
stretching back from the road with boughs heavy with the round,
yellow fruit. It was harvest time.
My wonderment grew as the miles slipped by. How would the
harvest be gathered? During all the hours I had driven, I had
seldom seen another person. The groves were empty of people,
with only an occasional orange picker far from the highway. It
seemed an impossible task for the very few scattered pickers.
It seemed as though the earth were shaking with silent laughter
at the hopelessness of the task.
Shadows were lengthening when, without warning, the road turned
and there was a sign: "Leaving Neglected Country...Entering Home
Country." The contrast was truly startling. People were
everywhere and traffic was heavy. The orange groves were still
there with orange trees in abundance, and the orange groves were
filled with multitude of people who were happy and singing.
I parked my car and mingled with the crowd. There were smart
gown, expensive suits -- everyone seemed so bright and fresh.
It was a contrast to my old work clothing.
"Is it a holiday?" I asked a well-dressed woman with whom I
fell in step. She looked startled, then her face relaxed in
condescension, "You're a stranger, aren't you?" Before I could
reply, she went on, "This is Orange Day!"
She must have seen my look and continued, "It's so good to turn
aside from one's labors and pick oranges one day of the week."
"But you don't pick oranges EVERY day?" I asked.
"Oh yes, one must be ready to pick oranges always, but Orange
Day is the day set aside to do it," she answered.
Most of the people were carrying a book beautifully bound in
leather, edged in gold, and entitled ORANGE PICKERS MANUAL.
Around one of the orange trees, seats had been arranged in
tiers and they were almost full. A well-dressed man conducted
me to a seat.
There were numbers of people. One man up front was talking to
the people and they began to sing. The songbook was called
SONGS OF THE ORANGE GROVES. The man in front admonished us to
sing louder.
I was puzzled. "When do we start to pick oranges?" I asked
the man who shared the songbook with me.
"It's not long now," he told me. "We like to get everyone
warmed up first...besides, we want to make the oranges feel
right at home."
I thought he was joking. After a while, a rather big man read
two sentences from his well-worn copy of the ORANGE PICKER'S
MANUAL and began to make a speech. I wasn't sure if he was
talking to the people or to the oranges.
I looked around and saw a number of similar groups gathered
around other trees here and there, being addressed by other big
men. Some trees had NO ONE around them.
"Which trees do we pick from?" I asked the man beside me. He
didn't seem to understand, so I pointed to the trees around
about.
"THIS is our tree," he said.
"But there are too many of us to pick from just ONE tree, " I
protested. "There are more people than oranges!"
"We don't pick oranges," the man patiently explained, "we
haven't been called. That's the Pastor Orange Picker's job.
We're here to support him. Besides, we haven't been to MANUAL
SCHOOL. You need to know how an orange thinks before you can
pick it successfully."
"What's MANUAL SCHOOL?" I whispered.
"It's where they go to study the ORANGE PICKER'S MANUAL, " my
informant went on, "it takes years to understand it."
The big man in front was still making his speech. His face was
red and he seemed indignant about some of the rival groups. But
then a glow cam on his face, "We are not forsaken," he said.
"We have much to be thankful for. Why, just last week we saw
three oranges brought into the baskets and we are now debt free,
having paid off al the new cushions you now sit on!"
The man in front was reaching a climax; the atmosphere seemed
tense. Then with a dramatic gesture he reached for two of the
oranges, plucked them from the branch, and placed them in a
basket at his feet. The applause was deafening!
"Do we start picking now?" I asked my informant.
"What do you think we're doing?" he hissed. "What do you think
this tremendous effort has been made for? There's more
orange-picking talent in this group than in the rest of Home
Country combined!"
I apologized quickly, "I don't want to be critical. The man in
front must be an excellent orange picker. But surely the rest
of us could try! There are so many oranges that need picking.
We've got hands; we can read the MANUAL!"
"When you've done business as long as I have, you'll realize
it's not that simple," he replied. "There isn't time. We have
work to do and families to care for. We..."
But I wasn't listening. It began to dawn on me. Whatever
these people were, they were NOT orange pickers. Orange picking
was a form of weekend entertainment. I tried one or two more of
the groups. Not all had such high academic standards; some held
classes on orange picking. I tried to tell them of the trees I
had seen in Neglected Country, but no one had any interest.
The sun was setting in my dream as I drove back along the road
I had come. All around me were the vast, empty orange groves.
But there has been some changes...everywhere the ground was
littered with fallen fruit; it seemed as though the trees had
rained oranges to the ground, where they lay there rotting.
I thought of all the people in Home Country. Then, booming
through the trees, there came a voice which said, "THE HARVEST
TRULY IS PLENTEOUS, BUT THE LABORERS ARE FEW; PRAY YE THEREFORE
THE LORD OF THE HARVEST, THAT HE WILL SEND FORTH LABORERS..."
And I awakened, for it was only a dream......or WAS IT???
============================================================================
3.8
FINAL COMMENTS - MAY 1ST, 1995
This issue has been quite a rough issue to produce. I personally would
like to thank you for taking the time to read No Fear. Please let us
know what you think of the articles and how you feel we could better
serve the internet community.
If you would like to know more about Jesus Christ's amazing sacrifice
and His incredible grace over our liv s, please wr te to
pdh@tenet.edu. Christ is worthy of being shared, and that's what we'd
like to do. Please do the same!
God be with you.
Sincerely,
B. Christian Haller
Note: No Fear is moving to a format where we publish every
two months. Please expect our next issue on July 1st.
============================================================================
3.9
NO FEAR MEMBER LIST
Alan Koch - Editor / Publisher - ask@sei.cmu.edu
B. Christian Haller - Executive Director - pdh@tenet.edu
Cindy Burger - Staff Author - Not Availible
Chuck Pearson - Staff Author - dopearson@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu
If you are interested in writing for No Fear or would like extensive
organizational information, please email ask@sei.cmu.edu for information.
============================================================================
