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in today's episode:
Lorke: why is it so hard for you to believe?!
Jack: why it is so easy for you?
Lorke: it's never been easy!!
belief aka. faith is never easy...
we human beings, left on our own, like to take the path of least resistance... like water dat finds the path of least resistance n goes down into the ocean... we go down... we degenerate instead of grow.
taking faith steps is likened to "taking the plunge" cos it's never easy.
no one likes the idea of free fall (without the bungee attached, dat is!). people usually ends up in a gross "splat!" (trust me i noe!)
Christian life is a life of faith. "for without faith it is impossible to please God.." Heb 11:6
grab every situation that presents an opportunity to act in faith. faith is like a muscle, u dun use it, u ll get muscle atrophy. every opportunity to shrink away from acting in faith weakens you. dat's y it seems easy for some people to exercise faith and others struggle. it takes practice!
from my colleague's newsletter who is serving in Japan now:
"When you have to decided between 2 paths- always choose the one that requires FAITH, that requires you to CARRY THE CROSS. Then you know you are on the right path. Becos that path is one where you know you can ONLY DEPEND ON HIM. You CANNOT NOT DEPEND on Him."
5 comments:
"When you have to decided between 2 paths - always choose the one that requires FAITH, that requires you to CARRY THE CROSS."
To some extent, this is true - the harder way often builds faith (see my situation now!) but to make such a blanket statement, that whenever two choices present themselves we always choose the harder path: is that not like saying: you could walk to your destination, or you could take a bus. You should choose walking, because walking will benefit you more?
I disagree with the logic behind the two paths. This seems to suggest that God's path is ALWAYS harder, since the path that requires faith requires carrying of the cross.
"Then you know you are on the right path."
Another dangerous statement to make. This is very scary reasoning, because it suggests that we puny ant-like humans can actually know the path that has been laid before us. Faulty reasoning again - see poor Job. Read Ecclesiastes. Romans 9:14 - "What then shall we say? Is God unjust?" Who on earth (really) are we to purport to "know we are on the right path"?
So many people are prosperous without knowing God, so many people are suffering without knowing God, so many people are in pain who know God - so this whole thing called Life is quite puzzling actually. To say definitively that we should always choose the path that requires faith AND requires us to carry the cross (your quoted colleague did not separate the two concepts) suggests that we should always choose the harder thing to do, because then we know that when it's hard, it's the right path. I'll say this: most of the time, this is true, but the rhetoric behind it must be watched very carefully. People who have it easy are not always small in faith. People who have it tough may not necessarily respond in faith/by faith.
/rant
Sorry, the argument line bugged me a bit. :|
"When you have to decided between 2 paths- always choose the one that requires FAITH, that requires you to CARRY THE CROSS. Then you know you are on the right path. Becos that path is one where you know you can ONLY DEPEND ON HIM. You CANNOT NOT DEPEND on Him."
Well,just to help answer the question..His word says that without faith it is impossible to please God so we all got to live by faith.
As for the carrying of the cross,i dun think it means a literal carrying of the cross.Some points of it means 1)the crucification of our sinful desires 2)the constant battle against Satan and his cohorts.So it requires faith in Him to lead a victorious Christian life.It is also written in His Word that narrow is the path that leads to life and wide is the path that leads to destruction.
As for the prosperous that do not know God..well take heart that if these rich pre believers do not know God before they die,they will head to hell
"When you have to decided between 2 paths- always choose the one that requires FAITH, that requires you to CARRY THE CROSS. Then you know you are on the right path. Becos that path is one where you know you can ONLY DEPEND ON HIM. You CANNOT NOT DEPEND on Him."
Well,just to help answer the question..His word says that without faith it is impossible to please God so we all got to live by faith.
As for the carrying of the cross,i dun think it means a literal carrying of the cross.Some points of it means 1)the crucification of our sinful desires 2)the constant battle against Satan and his cohorts.So it requires faith in Him to lead a victorious Christian life.It is also written in His Word that narrow is the path that leads to life and wide is the path that leads to destruction.
As for the prosperous that do not know God..well take heart that if these rich pre believers do not know God before they die,they will head to hell
yo eilonwy,
2 things in response to what you wrote:
1. choose the way "that requires FAITH, that requires you to CARRY THE CROSS." it kinda equates faith n carrying that the way of the faith requires carrying ur cross. the colleague (who's your friend) is not saying choose the harder path.she was talking together with the notion of faith, carrying cross, and dependence on God. they are all interlinked. choosing the WRONG way is not walking in faith, which we know definitely doesn't please God. it also means a reliance on self instead of God.
enuf said on 'without faith it is impossible to please God..." what i wanna talk about is re carrying the cross. "Then 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 9:23. what do you make of the word "DAILY"? it's not a one hour task and chill out the rest of the day... rather, it's a constant thing. i dunno about you... but that sure sounds like hard work. kinda hints that it IS the harder way.
the choices you presented eg taking bus or walking does not hold cos, you can choose to walk or take bus (or cab for that matter) to your destination, but in choosing the way of faith or NOT choosing the way of faith you'll end up in totally opposite directions no matter how ignorant or deceived you are that both'll lead u to Rome.
2. re your question. "Who on earth (really) are we to purport to "know we are on the right path"?
yes, "we puny ant-like humans can actually know the path that has been laid before us."
How else do you think the psalmist would have been able to say: "You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand."Psalm 16:11
scriptures is filled with verses that shows how much God desires to show us his ways...
And now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul... - Deut 10:12
that your ways may be known on earth, - Ps 67:2
'Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.' - Jer 33:3
heb 11;1 says: "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
how uncertain we Christians will be if we are what you said that we cant know God's will? what a bag of nerves we would be!
i dunno about you, but i don't think i can live a day especially in full time min not being sure that God has called me to it. i'd be totally defeated by doubt if not by the troubles and hardships. i can really say and believe it is true for my colleagues along with our mentors, church leaders, crusade leadership who interviewed us in 2 interviews, who have discerned along with us and believe we are on the right path applying for full time.
i can really say that it is possible to know God's good, pleasing and perfect will cos He wants us to attest to it - "...you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Rom 12:2.
n after pentacost, discerning that we are on the right path has been made easier with the Wonderful Counsellor, the Spirit of truth who leads us into all truths and by taking what is Jesus' - His will, His plans, His grace, blessings, and making it known to us. (john 16)
sometimes faith could be seen as easy... isn't it so much easier to just believe in a fairy tale? to believe that things are actually better than they seem? why's it so hard to believe something good? unless u're talking about the existence of hell that is.
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