ToEncourage April 20, 2013 Vol 1 Issue 8

Philippians 3:13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

On the heels of last weeks issue we  discussed suffering with predicaments and problems – simply put: ‘loss’.  We find in just a few verses later how Paul was able to moved past his loss and into the pages of eternal history as the greatest missionary to walk the earth.

With all that is around us, the distractions and disturbances of everyday life, the same formula Paul applied is offered to enable us to do the same.  What was the key to Paul’s life and loss? He says: “this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind…”.  Paul placed the past in the past; good, bad and indifferent he had to plant them in the field of forgetfulness so that he could ‘press toward’.

It was that one thing Paul performed to work through times of Discouragement (II Timothy 4.16).  Days where Paul felt as if he was alone, where no man would stand with him, to support his actions and call upon his soul.  Friends would forsake him and family would fail him.  Many times in our life we experience discouragement at the hands of others (whether intentional or inadvertent) and it seems as everyone forgets where you are.

I wonder in the early years of Paul’s Christianity if he was ever acquainted for a moment, even a minute with Depression.  I am not referring to the depression that is self-centered, but rather that which is moved as a result of a desire for others to be saved.  Paul stated in Romans 9:3 “For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh:”.  Those are strong words that stem from the heart of man that was moved to the point of willingness to depart from his own salvation so that Israel could be born again and spared from anguished of death and hell.

Finally it is that one thing Paul did that enabled him get through times of Despair (II Corinthians 1.8).  There are days and nights when many feel as if everything in life is falling apart.  In fact everyone will experience some form of despair in their days.  A point when they simply are tired with facing the struggles and events of the day and age we live…and rightly so.

It seems as if everyday there is some tragedy occurring.  Gone are the days where destruction occurs only in the streets of some estranged middle eastern town or a country with a 4000 year history of violence.  Today these events befall in our own backyard; increasingly, what we have seen for decades across the sea now is viewed across the streets.  If there are any reasons a person becomes Discouraged, Depressed and Despairs life they are found on the news daily.

Just remember, for Paul it was ‘one thing’ that enabled him to press on day after day, most days with smiles and joy of the Lord.  Not a lengthy and complex formula, but ONE THING.  When no man stood with Paul, he knew the Lord stood with him. When thoughts of his own countrymen perishing pounded his heart, he was comforted with the thought of how many have come to Christ.  When the days of shipwrecks and storms occurred Paul remember the Lord would never leave him nor forsake him.

The One person we can ALWAYS turn to, find comfort and consolation is the One that saved our souls, the Lord Jesus Christ.  The fact is, as a born again believer, we have already given unto to the Lord our eternal life.  The problems of these days are not seen in eternity to come, they are only of the life we live in now.  Therefore, the key to working through times of Discouragement, Depression and Despair lies in the same application of that ‘one thing’ (“forgetting those things which are behind…”) by surrendering our temporal life unto the eternal Godhead.

Think about it this way, we have given over a life that we have never seen, touched or know of to the Lord God Almighty by faith.  If we can do that with a life we know nothing of, let us therefore do the same with a life we know all too much about.  If we can trust God with our eternal life, surly we can trust Him with our temporal life.  He will never thee nor forsake thee… None of us can say that about any friend, family or foe on this side of glory, but there is a friend, that sticketh closer than a brother (Proverbs 18.24).  It is He that will stay the test of time and He that will be there is the dark days allowing the days of light to shine about our hearts to comfort each one of us in times of need.

“…but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

ToEncourage April 6, 2013 Vol 1 Issue 6

Matthew 17:20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, 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.21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

A father had brought his dearly beloved son, who was possessed of a devil (demon), to the disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, .  This young boy suffered many injuries as a result of the vile nature that dwelt within him.  The loving father only wanted a cure for his son, like any good father, he struggled inside himself watching the pain of his precious child on a regular basis.  To his surprise the disciples could not cure the young boy. They seemingly were unable to rid the child of the devil that haunted him.

The Lord expounds on this action by rebuking a faithless generation first in v.17 and in the next verse delivers the child from the stronghold of such satanic force.  Here is where we pick up, when the disciples came to our Lord seeking an answer to why they were unable to cure the man’s son. Jesus replies in two parts, found in versus 20 and 21.

The first is in relation to a ‘grain of mustard seed’, which historically is considered the smallest of all seeds.  Many preachers and teachers over the year have taught from this passage that only a small, tiny, little faith is needed to removed all and any obstacles that we come across in our lives.  Although this teaching contradicts Scripture and becomes counterproductive in a believer’s life.

Contradicts I say, because four separate times in the book of Matthew alone, Jesus Christ rebukes the hearers of having little faith (three times ‘O ye of little faith’ and once He states: ‘O thou of little faith’ when He was speaking in the singular unto Peter, the rest were in the plural tense speaking to a multitude and/or a generation). Therefore, to teach the that Christ uses the thought of small or little faith as something positive contradicts the Scripture, since Scripture NEVER contradicts itself the popularized teaching must be in error.

That brings us to the second point, the teaching of possessing a little faith removing obstacles in our life is counterproductive to the believer.  Every person alive today, face obstacles in way.  Some are daily others are weekly or even monthly.  Nevertheless, obstacles are not reserved for the saved or the lost (“… sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” Matthew 5.45).  When a believer in Christ never exercises his or her faith it will, by simple deduction, remain small.  Therefore when obstacles enter their life resulting in their ‘little grain of faith’ becoming incapable of victory, that person will become disheveled and discouraged in the Christian walk. This is mainly because of an incorrect interpretation or teaching of having ‘faith as a grain of mustard seed’.

Finally, the correct application I feel will encourage the reader in a number of ways.  The key word in v.20 is not ‘grain’ nor is it ‘seed’, but it is the word simple little word ‘as’.  This small word with a great meaning is an adverb, which answers questions such as ‘in what way?’, ‘when?’, ‘how?’, Etc.  The Lord is not using an adjective here, which is a word used to describe an item or event.  He is strictly using the term to give us an example.

What example is that?  A grain of mustard seed is planted in the ground, it is then nurtured by water on a regular basis.  Even though it is a small seed, it will produce growth ten times its size by being planted and nurtured.  With that said, our faith is to be ‘as’ a grain of mustard seed, it must be planted.  Our faith is to be planted in the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone.  It must be watered by the word of God. Daily care and nurture by reading the word enables us to posses the power of the promise that whatever obstacle enters our life, the Lord will see us through it.

Are there obstacles that are more difficult than others? Absolutely!  That is where V.21 is applied, because “this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.”  There are some obstacles that our faith is only garnished through prayer and fasting (denial of desires).

To conclude, we can be encouraged today by a proper application of these verses, by insuring that our faith is planted in the unmovable risen Savior the Lord Jesus Christ – by nurturing that faith daily through reading the word of God and having a dedicated prayer life with the One that makes all things possible!

…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.