A Substance

“A Substance”

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped

for, the evidence of things not seen.”

                                             Hebrews 11:1

If, as the writer of the Book of Hebrews asserts, faith is a substance, something tangible and real, then we should be able to visibly identify it in the lives of those who live by it. Here is an attempt, taken from various works, to give an admittedly incomplete description of what faith looks like in the life of a believer:

·         Faith inspires action.
·         Faith endures trials.
·         Faith obeys the Word.
·         Faith stifles complaining.
·         Faith waits patiently.
·         Faith controls the tongue.
·         Faith produces fruit.
·         Faith responds to the promises of God.
·         Faith produces separation from the world.
·         Faith is undeterred by circumstances.
·         Faith is willing to sacrifice.
·         Faith boldly asks.
·         Faith perseveres.
·         Faith believes.
·         Faith gives.
·         Faith works.
·         Faith never gives up.
·         Faith secures the victory.

James uses the natural example of someone looking in a mirror to explain the introspection that studying God’s Word is to cause in our lives. In much the same way, we can look at the characteristics of true faith found in the scriptures and use them to evaluate the quality of faith that we are experiencing in our own lives. To the degree that such self-examination produces real and lasting changes in our conduct and character, we will truly be blessed.

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

Sustained Passion

Sustained Passion

“Then his disciples remembered this prophecy from the

Scriptures: ‘Passion for God’s house will consume me’.”

                                             John 2:17

Shortly after the miracle at the wedding feast at Cana in which He turned the water into wine, Jesus traveled to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover feast. What happened when He entered the temple almost seemed out of character for a God who displayed such incredible love, mercy and acceptance throughout His ministry. John records that in a display of passion, Jesus made a whip out of cords, driving out those selling animals and exchanging money, going so far as to turn over their tables sending the money they were exchanging flying everywhere.

Fast forward three years in Jesus life from the events described in the second chapter of John at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry to Palm Sunday, just a few short days before Jesus was to be crucified. Jesus again entered the temple, again saw things going on that weren’t right in God’s house, again “drove out all who were buying and selling there”, and again overturned the tables of the money changers. It was at that point that Jesus quoted the prophecy of Isaiah, “My house shall be called a house of prayer.”

Sustained passion! Three years of ministry, three years of meeting the needs of hurting people wherever He went had not dampened Jesus’ passion for the honor of His Father’s house. With the cross looming large on the horizon, His vision remained clear and His passion was undiminished – “My Father’s house will be a house of prayer.” Three years later, passion for the honor of His Father continued to be a driving force in the life of Jesus.

Sadly, the kind of sustained passion that Jesus demonstrated is not always seen in the lives of those He died to save. We start out strong and with good intentions but our vision becomes clouded; our priorities slowly change over time with God being relegated to a place of convenience, and our passion for the things of God is lost. But God, in His unfailing love and mercy, is calling His people back to a life of passion and devotion, and most importantly, to a consistency in that passion that honors the Lord over time. Let Jesus’ example of sustained passion move each of us to search our hearts, to look back over the years and, if need be, seek to recover any lost love or passion that filled our hearts at the beginning.

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church

Furnished and Ready

Furnished and Ready

“He will show you a large upper room, furnished

 and ready. Make preparations for us there.”

                                                 Mark 14:15

As we celebrate Easter this year, the completeness of what Jesus accomplished on the cross for you and I has stood out to me like never before. Isaiah tells us that He “bore our iniquities” and that “the Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” But Isaiah also tells us about so much more that was accomplished in the sufferings of Christ. An example is the peace that Christ purchased for us at Calvary. In Isaiah 53:5, we are told that “the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him.”We can walk in peace during the most ferocious storms of life because of what Jesus endured as He went to the cross. To the one who feels like they can’t handle one more thing, there is a peace available to you today, a peace that Jesus paid for in full as He was punished for our sins.

We can look to the same verse in Isaiah and read “by His stripes we are healed.” Healing in its many aspects was provided for in Christ as He received those thirty-nine lashes to purchase our healing. And that includes inner healing from emotional pain and suffering as well as physical healing from disease and sickness; by His stripes we are healed! We need to look closely at the work of the cross, with eyes and hearts open, to fully see all that Christ has done for us. And with that discovery, we can approach the throne of God’s grace with a renewed boldness and confidence.

Jesus was “a man of sorrows” who bore our sorrows and pain as He walked from the Garden of Gethsemane where He was arrested to Calvary, the place of His crucifixion. There is no sorrow you will endure, no pain you will experience, no suffering you will face that the Lord did not go through and win the victory over. You will not face a trial that He is unprepared to comfort you in and help you through. Are you lonely? The Bible records that all men forsook Jesus in the hour of His greatest need. Do you feel no one understands? Jesus was despised, a pretty strong word, by the very people He came to save. Are you at the end of your rope? Jesus was crushed, cut off, rejected by men and stricken by God, oppressed and afflicted yet He opened not His mouth in complaint, choosing to trust the plan of His Father. And at the end of the day, that will of the Father prospered in the life of Jesus as it will in your life by God’s grace.

It is as if a table is furnished and ready for you and I, the table of the Lord, filled with the fruits of the cross for all those with eyes open to see and hearts open to receive this Easter.

God Bless,
Pastor Joe
Gateway Church