E6 - Hope’s Harbor Gritty Bible Devotions - Heart and Mind of Jesus - Lesson 5 Beyond Belief

Title: Heart and Mind of Jesus – Lesson 5

Beyond Belief

Date: 5/10/2021

Contact: info@hopesharbor.net

·         Key verse(s): Mat 19:26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.

·         Possible: Dunatos doo-nat-os' From G1410; powerful or capable (literally or figuratively); neuter possible: - able, could, (that is) mighty (man), possible, power, strong.

·         Intro: Last week we saw how unbelief costs the people of Jesus’ hometown: He did not do many mighty works there. (Mark 6:5 - And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.)

·         This week I want to look at the blessings and benefits of belief, and then look at what is beyond having belief. When GOD first lay this term on my heart I wondered what could possibly be beyond belief.

·         Not “That’s beyond belief,” said in exasperation, but what lies beyond as a goal to reach, a benefit to obtain.

Let me give you a heads up: it’s within reach for each one of us.

Devotion focus: (Lesson point)

Lesson point: Obtaining a conviction

·         By conviction, I mean a deep-seated persuasion, a deeply held principle, solid faith.

Listen to what Pastor Rick Warren wrote about convictions:

·         “The people who’ve made the greatest change in this world—for good or bad—were not the smartest or the wealthiest. They were those with the deepest convictions.

·         A conviction is a belief that shapes your behavior. It’s something you believe so strongly that it determines the way you act. While an opinion is something you’ll discuss or even argue about, a conviction is something you’ll die for.”

https://pastorrick.com/to-develop-strong-convictions-get-to-know-the-bible/

·         It takes a while to develop a conviction like this to the point you will die upholding your belief, die defending what you hold dear.

·         Peter didn’t have a conviction like this concerning Jesus and it’s understandable. Going beyond belief requires the Holy Spirit’s power to enable us.

·         At this point in Peter’s life with Jesus, the Holy Spirit had not been given, had not enabled Peter or anyone else to live faithful to GOD and His word and stay faithful unto death.

·         Peter had belief in Jesus and who wouldn’t after spending 3 years with Jesus watching Him perform innumerable miracles.

I’m going to read from Mat 26:33, 34, 35, and let’s look at Peter’s declaration of his faith: 

Mat 26:33 - Peter answered and said to Him, "Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble."

Mat 26:34 - Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.

Mat 26:35 - Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.

·         So I can just hear Peter: “No way I’ll desert you, even if those guys do, I will never leave you. I will not stumble in my faith.”

·         I know Peter meant this, I would have likely said the same kind of thing to Jesus.

·         But Jesus knew neither Peter nor any of the other disciples had developed their beliefs beyond a mere idea and into a firm state of mind that withstands the test.

Now look down to Mat 26:56 the last sentence:

Mat 26:56 – ‘…Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled.’

·         So how do we develop our beliefs into deeply held convictions?

Once again, listen to Rick Warren’s teaching:

“You get a heart for God by developing convictions. And you develop convictions by getting to know God’s Word.”

·         Okay, now this is where we have to examine the process carefully.

·         I can know GOD’s Word and it not change me. Of course, as Warren stated earlier a conviction ‘shapes our behavior.’

·         Then how do we go about the process, how do we get started?

·         First, let me ask how do you develop a habit; call it a skill, like playing the guitar? I’m teaching myself to play and though it’s a slow go, RJ, our music pastor, told me early on to learn a few basic chords.

·         I am still working on those few basic chords after 3 ½ years and while I’ve gotten better, I’m not there yet. Why so long? Because I don’t practice every day and when I do it’s only for a few minutes

·         How does this relate to developing strong convictions? By understanding, yes it takes time, but also intentionality.

·         Then you must look at which Biblical principles require deep faith to practice without fail.

Let’s start with the primary principle in the Bible. Jesus called it the Great Commandment.

Turn to Matthew 22:36 - 39

Mat 22:36 - Master, which is the great commandment in the law?

Mat 22:37 - Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with your entire mind.

Mat 22:38 - This is the first and great commandment.

Mat 22:39 - And the second is like, unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.

·         Now comes your part in this lesson. Don’t think of it as homework. I never liked homework. But rather, think of it as life-changing application work that eventually results in joy.

·         And I mean joy despite your circumstances.

·         I want you to think about what Jesus meant when He said to love GOD with all your heart, and your soul, and your entire mind. Write down what comes to mind.

·         Next, read Jesus’ answer when asked about the 2nd commandment like unto the 1st, namely to love others as yourself.

This account is in Luke 10:29 - 37 

Luke 10:29 - But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbor?

Luke 10:30 - And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

Luke 10:31 - And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

Luke 10:32 - And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.

Luke 10:33 - But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,

Luke 10:34 - And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

Luke 10:35 - And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.

Luke 10:36 - Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves?

Luke 10:37 - And he said, He that showed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

Look at that last statement Jesus uttered:

·         Go and do thou likewise. Right there Jesus is telling us, He’s telling me and He’s telling you to go and do….

·         Here’s where we decide… (Continental Divide) Our country has two divides determining which bodies of water all rivers run into.

·         The Eastern Divide runs down through the Appalachian Mountains and the Western Divide is the Rockies. When water falls as rain it runs down one side of the divide or the other. There isn’t any sitting on the fence here. Depending on the pull of gravity water flows down a side and onward to the sea or gulf.

·         When Scripture reveals the truth to apply we come to a divide of sorts. Which side of the equation will we choose? One way leads to GOD and the other away.

Summary:

·         If you want to change, begin today to develop your convictions by studying a passage of Scripture relevant to your needs – then go out of your way to apply the Scriptural requirement. For example, it could be to forgive someone or to ask forgiveness where you know you were wrong.

Action to consider: Forgiving

·         Forgiving others is primarily for us. It clears the toxic effects of anger and hatred. At times when we forgive it blesses the other person and can lead to restoring a damaged relationship.

·         However, when it comes to forgiving abusers let me tell you what it’s not:

·         It does not mean having to continue in or return to an abuser’s control.

·         It does not mean they are or were justified in the abuse. It does not mean to forgo prosecution of a criminal act of violence.

·         To forgive evil people is for us to release the debt they owe us and release it back to GOD. He will require payment from them at His chosen time.

·         This is a tough example of developing a conviction that will try your faith.

·         And what conviction comes out of this? Knowing that forgiveness brings freedom to our spirits to the point when we are wronged, given time we’ll work to forgive others, even when offering it isn’t possible or wise.

·         Conviction is forgiving others when we don’t feel like it. It took me years to forgive a man who wronged a loved one. In the beginning, I planned retribution. Without going into the painful details, GOD eventually led me to a point of decision to forgive that man. The conviction was me believing forgiving that man was GOD’s way. Think of Jesus on the Cross when He said, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” Jesus said this as He was being mocked and dared to come down off the cross to prove He was Messiah.

·         The book and movie The Shack address this dilemma of forgiving. Now, before all you theologians put me on the rack, I know the story isn’t Scripturally sound. But I know also it is but a novel, a work of fiction. Let me encourage you to read about the author’s experiences as a child. His book came out of trying to understand what he went through in childhood and reconcile it to GOD’s will.

Next week’s episode: Restoring the Mind