Why Did Jesus Weep?

Jesus was heading to the tomb of Lazarus, and he wept.  It's one of the most famous verses in the Bible, mostly because of an accident of publishing-- it's the only verse that has two words.  Easiest verse to memorize, "Jesus wept."

But why did he weep?  Well, it made sense to the people around him that he wept.  After all, his good friend had just died.  Of course he wept.  He had just lost a loved one.

But he knew that he was going to raise Lazarus from the dead.  He hadn't lost him at all, and he knew it.

Some say that Jesus was sympathizing with those who were mourning.  He understood their grief.

But if that was the case, Jesus was just faking it.  He wasn't really grieving at all.  And didn't he rebuke people for faking grief, telling them they had no reason to mourn because the girl was only sleeping, not dead at all?  Why should he weep here?

The key here is that Jesus had just been told the same thing by both of Lazarus' sisters: "Lord, if you had been here, he wouldn't have died."  What did they imply?  That Lazarus was dead now.  They had lost him.  He wasn't coming back.  Jesus had come too late.

Jesus wept because Mary and Martha-- both strong followers of Jesus-- didn't understand the truth.  That it wasn't too late.  That it was NEVER too late.  They assumed that once Death got his grimy paws on Lazarus, that no one could make him give their brother back up.  Jesus wept because they assumed that Death was stronger than Jesus.  That there was a limit on Jesus' ability to command spirits.

Jesus wept because they had faith, but not the full faith he wanted them to have.  That the kingdom is here, now.  That we can ask and Jesus will do greater things than we had ever thought possible.  That God's power goes beyond the power of possibility.

And we often act the same way.  Somehow, we think that the norm applies to Jesus.  That Jesus can't overcome what is always the case.  That Jesus can't do miracles.  I've heard many teach that miracles can't happen today.  Others say that miracles do happen, but we can't expect them to happen.  Others say that God doesn't operate that way anymore, now we have God's word (as if they didn't have God's word in Jesus' day).  Many don't bother to pray for their sick, or for pained communities, because there's nothing they can do.

And Jesus weeps.

Taking the Supernatural Out of Jesus

Many say that we can follow the morality of Jesus, but avoid the supernatural overlay that has been placed “over top of the pure gospel” of that moral message.  I appreciate these concerns and the heart that is behind such a belief.  They recognize that Jesus’ extreme teaching of love is a high and noble standard, even for those who cannot abide a “foolish” belief in resurrection or supernatural healing.

However, Jesus cannot be divided in such a way.  With almost all of his moral positions, Jesus also gives reason for such extreme good actions and they are all based on supernaturalism.

• Jesus says that surrender one’s own possessions to the poor is based on the idea that such a one would receive greater goods in God’s future kingdom. (Luke 12:33-34)
• Jesus says that loving one’s enemy is a good act because imitating the God who gives food even to the ungrateful is a proper goal of life. (Luke 6:35)
• Jesus says that we forgive others because otherwise God would not forgive us of our sins. (Matthew 18: 21ff).
• Jesus says that we should not look at the opposite sex with lust, for to do so would send us into hell, and likewise insulting another, and so displaying hate toward them. (Matthew 5:21-32)

Thus, Jesus bases his morality on the final judgement and the resurrection. 

Frankly, to have such an extreme morality makes no sense in a strictly material world.  Loving all, even those who do us harm, makes no sense if this world is all there is.  After all, those who do us harm should learn that harm-doing is unacceptable, and the best way to do that is to harm them for their harm-doing.  That is basic human morality.  That is what makes sense in a limited universe.  But Jesus’ high level of morality only makes sense if there is a second chance on life for those who live that high morality.  Only if this life is not all there is could there be enough time for all to be made right. 

On the other hand, Jesus recognizes that such a high level of morality is necessary for this world to be made right.  Only if some live to never punish another, but to help all those in need—even those who do not deserve it— can the world be a place of justice.  Only if we forgive the unforgiveable can we be forgiven for our unforgiveable actions.   Only if we give to those who have nothing to give back will our needs be met when we have nothing to give.   For us all to survive, at least some must live the outlandish morality of Jesus.  But none of us will do it unless we believe in an outlandish justice, beyond life’s limitations.

Thus, faith is the basis of living.

Expecting God to Deliver

Jesus’ Life

Mark 1:21-28

Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet, and come out of him!" Throwing him into convulsions, the unclean spirit cried out with a loud voice and came out of him. They were all amazed, so that they debated among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him."

No one had spoken with such authority before. He didn’t ask God to help, he didn’t plead with the evil spirit to leave.  He didn’t pray for hours.  He just commanded the spirit to go, and the spirit did.  He set the situation up that his reputation was on the line.  Either God was going to listen to him, or he wasn’t.  If God wanted him to be supported, the spirit would go.  But if not, then the evil spirit would stay.  But Jesus set the situation up so that God could give his approval to his teaching immediately.  Jesus had no doubt.  And he gave no opportunity for compromise.

Mark 8:22-25

Taking the blind man by the hand, He brought him out of the village; and after spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, "Do you see anything?"  And he looked up and said, "I see men, for I see them like trees, walking around."  Then again He laid His hands on his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored, and began to see everything clearly.

At this point, Jesus wanted the blind man to be well, according to God’s promise.  But even after Jesus prayed, the man wasn’t totally well.  He still couldn’t see clearly.  So Jesus prayed again.  He wasn’t worried, he didn’t think that maybe God had forsaken him.  Rather, he was faithful and stuck with it, even though it wasn’t according to plan.  Jesus knew that the man would be delivered, and he would keep praying until it happened.

Mark 8:31

And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 

Jesus knew what was going to happen in his life.  He knew about his beatings and the rejection and the shame.  But he also knew that God would deliver him—in three days, no less.  Jesus never doubted this—he repeated it many times.  He may have wanted to know if there was a different way to deliver people than through his death, but he never doubted God’s deliverance.

Matthew 26:26-29

This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.

Jesus knew that his death would bring deliverance to many.  He didn’t want to die, but he knew that God would cause the deliverance to happen if he did die.  Jesus was committed to the plan, because he knew his Father so well.  Well enough that he was willing to lay down his life in trust of Him.

Our Lives

Matthew 17:19-20

 The disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not drive it out?" And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.

The disciples couldn’t cast out the spirit because they didn’t expect God to work through them.  They didn’t think God would really do it.  But Jesus had already given them authority (Matthew 10), so they had everything they needed.  Expect the faith that it would really happen.  We need to have confidence in God and to not give up so that God will accomplish what he promised.

Acts 3:1-13

"Men of Israel, why are you amazed at this, or why do you gaze at us, as if by our own power or piety we had made him walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus, the one whom you delivered and disowned in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release Him."

Peter and John were simple people, not having much education.  But they knew the lesson that Jesus had taught them about faith.  So they believed that under the authority of Jesus, the man would be delivered, according to the promise of God.  And so it happened—because they had faith and the power of the
Spirit.

Example

George Muller believed that God would do exactly as he said.  God said that those who sought God’s kingdom first and only would gain provision for themselves, so George Muller rejected the salary that was usually given to pastors.  Since that worked so well for him, he also took in orphans so he could care for them.  By the end of his life, he had given away more than a million dollars that he had never asked for, but just waited on God for. 

Living It Out

·         Expect that God will deliver you, according to his promise

·         Don’t give up, even if it takes a long time

·         Keep praying, even if you pray for years.

·         Don’t expect that God will help if he has not promised

·         Expect that God will deliver others

·         Encourage people to have faith in God

Take chances!  Don't test the Lord by putting Him in a situation that forces Him to act, but give God space to work.  God is much more powerful than we ever give Him credit for, and He will act more than we think to ask Him to.  Often He won't act unless we ask, so ask!

Seeking Faith In Others

Jesus’ Life
Matthew 8:5-13
"I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, 'Go!' and he goes, and to another, 'Come!' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this!' and he does it." Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, "Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel.
The Gentile soldier asks Jesus for a healing, and Jesus agrees. Then the soldier says that he is not worthy to have Jesus come to his house, but that he can speak there, and it would happen. Jesus was amazed at the man’s faith—at placing himself in the one-down position and in seeing the Father’s power through Jesus as unlimited by space. And so Jesus offers this man forgiveness and healing—salvation—because of his faith.

Matthew 15:21-28
He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." But she said, "Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters' table." Then Jesus said to her, "O woman, your faith is great..."
This woman was also a Gentile, and so not worthy to receive the power of the Spirit (Matthew 7:6). But she humiliated herself and persisted in asking, even though Jesus decided to dissuade her. Jesus declared that she had faith, which proved that she was not a “dog” at all, but a child of God. And so she was saved by her faith.

Mark 10:46-52
Many were sternly telling him to be quiet, but he kept crying out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"... And answering him, Jesus said, "What do you want Me to do for you?" And the blind man said to Him, "Rabboni, I want to regain my sight!" And Jesus said to him, "Go; your faith has made you well."
A blind man was desperate to see Jesus. Although many shushed him and told him to shut up, he persisted in pursuing Jesus. When Jesus asked him what he wanted, the man went to the heart of the matter, without thinking that the Father’s power through Jesus is limited. Jesus declared this person saved through faith.

Our Lives

Luke 18:1-8
"Will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them? I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?"
At all times, we are to be persistent in our prayer. We can’t give up, just because we haven’t seen justice happen yet. If we continue to have faith in God, continue to ask, continue to seek him daily, then we will gain what we ask. And Jesus calls this persistence “faith”. And yet he wonders if anyone will be around at the end to display such faith.

Mark 11:22-26
"Have faith in God. Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him."
God has promised us great things. He has promised us justice; he has promised us peace. He has promised us acceptance; he has promised us a new world in which to live in. Some of these promises he has granted us, some he has not. But if we continue in assurance of what he has promised, then we will gain them. We will face difficulties and sometimes it will look as if God has not granted us any of his promises. Nevertheless, we must remain and God will deliver us into his kingdom.

Romans 1:16-17/Mark 16:16
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."
"Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved."
It is the gospel of Jesus that faith is what saves—faith is what makes one acceptable to God. Not this ceremony or that, not this action or that. But faith alone. Therefore, anyone who lives in faith is accepted by God and will gain God’s kingdom. While those who do not have faith will not.

Example
George Mueller was an Austrian who decided to give the gospel to those in England. He found that he had to wait before God to gain any and all of his needs. If he needed something, he didn’t call his supporters or church members—he prayed to the Father and asked Him to grant it. And George was rarely disappointed. His faith made all things open to him.

To find out more about George Mueller, click here.

Living It Out

What is faith?
• Trusting in God through Jesus that he will keep his promises
• Not limiting God with human perceptions
• Placing oneself as lowly before Jesus
• Enduring in God through rejection, shame and suffering
• Persistence in asking, although you have not yet received
• Repenting from sin
• Accepting those whom God accepts
• Assisting and praying for those who reject you

Recognize that anyone who has this kind of faith is righteous—even if they have other things wrong. Like Jesus, we should seek out such souls, recognize them as God's children and help them in all things with all our resources.

Fear v. Faith

"Jesus came to us to help us overcome our fear of God. As long as we are afraid of God, we cannot love God. Love means intimacy, closeness, mutual vulnerability, and a deep sense of safety. But all those are impossible as long as there is fear. Fear creates suspicion, distance, defensiveness and insecurity."
-Henri Nouwen

Jesus lived a life without fear. He was able to live without fear because he had full trust in his Father's love and power. He knew of God's ultimate compassion for all in need. And he knew of God's great power to do all things. But Jesus also had one other act of faith-- He was completely confident in His relationship with God. That God would listen to him and accomplish that which he asked.

It is interesting that Jesus only got upset with the disciples when they surrendered to fear instead of faith. And when they lived in fear, Jesus said that the answer to their fear was faith in God's power, God's love and God's desire to intimately relate to us.

The Way of Salvation for Christians

Salvation in Jesus is not just an event, it is a life. Praise God that at a certain time in your life you presented yourself before Jesus and, in faith, accepted him. And you have assurance that he has accepted you as well, through the death of Jesus. But when Jesus, your Lord, spoke about salvation, he was not talking about a one time event. Rather, he spoke about a way, a path that somebody walks on, not just a stand that someone makes. He spoke about abiding in his word, not just believing in it. He spoke about enduring to the end, not just dedicating oneself. Even so, if you are to gain salvation on the last day, your faith must be something that is lived out every day.

Jesus describes the daily living of faith in this way: “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” What does it mean to follow Jesus? What does it mean to take up the cross? Jesus spoke of seven things:

1. Be wholly, single-mindedly devoted to God alone.

No one can do slave-service to two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. No one can serve both God and wealth. Matthew 6:24

If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched. Mark 9:47-48

Be rid of anything that distracts you away from God. This could be a pursuit of wealth, an abundance of possessions in your home, a certain standard of living, social obligations, friends or family that are trying to convince you to not fully commit yourself to God. It could be a drug habit, a sexual relationship, your CD collection, your television or your own pride or shame. Whatever it is, put it away from you and focus on following Jesus alone.

Actions of devotion:
Sell your possessions and give to the poor (Luke 12:33)
Separate yourself from family or friends that tempt you to fall away from the way of Jesus. (Luke 14:26-27)
Make a plan on how you can devote your whole life to God’s kingdom and righteousness with no distraction, take counsel with other believers, and DO IT! (Matthew 6:33)

2. Be obedient to God by doing what Jesus says.

Why do you call me, Lord, Lord and do not do what I say? Luke 6:46 Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord" will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Matthew 7:21

It is not enough to give lip service to Jesus, we must also obey him. We cannot call him “Lord” if we do not do what he says. We must study the teachings of Jesus and obey him in all our ways.

Actions of obedience:
Study the teachings and life of Jesus. (Luke 10:38-42)
Recognize that insulting another, looking lustfully at another, divorce, breaking your promise, not submitting to authorities (even evil ones), and only doing good to those who do good to you are sins that will condemn you. (Matthew 5:20-48)
Watch what we say, for out of our heart comes all sin. (Matthew 12:33-36)

3. Confidently take action to rely on God’s promises.

All things are possible to him who has faith. Mark 9:23

If we want to gain the blessings of God, then we must actively believe what God said he would grant those who have faith in him. It is not enough to intellectually “believe” in God’s promise—we must act on them! If Jesus is Lord—we must obey him! If the meek shall inherit the earth—we must be meek! If those who trust in God will have their needs met—we must trust in God for everything! It is not enough to talk about what we believe, we need to show that God’s promises will happen if we confidently step out to rely on them.

Actions of faith:
Pray for people to be healed and cast demons out. (Luke 10)
Be poor, mourn, be meek, cry out for justice, be a peacemaker, do mercy, be pure in heart, allow yourself to be persecuted for the sake of Jesus. (Matthew 3:3-12)
Pray for justice, for the Holy Spirit and for God’s kingdom to come. And don’t stop until they come! (Luke 18:1-8; Luke 11:1-11)
Rather than taking on vengeance yourself, wait for God to do it, for he will vindicate the innocent.

4. Boldly assert the word of Jesus in your life and proclaim it to others.

What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops. Matthew 10:27

Jesus commands us to take his word and to give it to those who do not know it. This is an act of love, but it is also an act of sacrifice for we will often be rejected and even persecuted for announcing what Jesus says.

Actions of boldness:
Gently assert the words of Jesus to those who are acting in disobedience—whether non-Christian or Christian.
Radically re-shape your life into the image of the words of Jesus.

5. Sacrificially love everyone in need without exclusion.

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Luke 6:35-36

Jesus commands us to love everyone, without exclusion, even those people who hate us, or whom we find to be unlovely. Love means to love practically—not just with our heart. If we see someone in need, then we need to do all we can to meet that need—no matter who we are.

Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Luke 12:33

Our love is not just to be inclusive, but also sacrificial. Jesus gave of his whole self for our sakes and we are to do the same for those in need around us, especially for our brothers and sisters in Jesus

Actions of love:
Listen to people and find out their needs
Gently tell others when they are sinning before God.
Forgive everyone who repents of their sin.
Make available and give all that you have to those who are in greater need than you.
Do good to those who do evil to you—ask God to bless them, help them in times of need.
Feed the hungry, give clothes to those who don’t have enough, offer assistance to the needy—in what they need.

6. Humbly lower yourself under others.

Whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant; and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many. Mark 10:43-45

Jesus lowered himself before everyone and did the task that no one wanted to do—to face the shame and agony of dying for the world. We are to do the same kinds of actions. Jesus tells us to lower ourselves and be servants of everyone in order to gain his kingdom.

For everyone who exalts themselves will be humbled, and those who humbles themselves will be exalted. Luke 14:11

The principle is the same for everyone. If you lower yourself—be downwardly mobile—then God will raise you up in due time. But if you try to lift yourself up, then God will crush you and send you to hell.

Actions of humility:
Do acts of service that others find distasteful.
Actively associate yourself with those who are socially unacceptable.
Put yourself in a lower position than is fit for your station in life.

7. Remain with the words of Jesus although you suffer for it.

Everyone who endures to the end will be saved. Mark 13:13

Again, it is not enough to commit ourselves to the way of Jesus. We have to live it. It is not enough to begin the life of Jesus, we have to endure with it and with him even though we suffer for it. Let us trust him enough that when we lose everything and everyone for his sake, we will keep with him through it all so we may have him eternally.

Actions of endurance:
Assert God’s promises although no one believes you.
Speak the words of Jesus although you are reviled for it.
Obey Jesus although people disdain you for it.

What Do You Really Believe?

Who Am I, Really?
It is often quoted, “You are what you eat.” But I am not a tuna sandwich or a quesadilla. Perhaps what we eat gives us the energy to be who we are, but it is not who we are. Rather, it is our thoughts and beliefs that make us who we are. We do not name ourselves according to our culinary preference, but we proudly tell others the names that display what we believe. Our church group (what we believe about God), our political leanings (what we believe about how to help our country), our sports team (what we believe about that team—namely, they are great)—these are the things we talk about to indicate who we are (as well as other things, like occupation)

However, our beliefs are as complex as our thinking, and at times we say we believe something that contradicts what we believe about something else. And we also will say that we believe one thing and do another. I can say that I believe that people should be nice to one another, but if I found out my neighbor took my television without my permission then I might not be so nice to him. My wife would then point out the contradiction between what I say and what I did, and I will explain it to her: “You see, I think that we should generally be nice to each other, but if someone takes something from me, then I don’t have to be nice.” The reasoning may or may not be valid, but I only came up with the reason to excuse what I did. The reality is, what I said I believed originally—“People should be nice to each other,”— is different from what I really believed— “I will be nice to others as long as they are nice to me.”

Given that what we say we believe is so often contradicted by what we do, how do we know what we really believe. I say I believe in Jesus—but do I really? And how do I know? I think that if I make statements of belief—“I believe that Jesus is Lord”, that will be enough. If I know something, “Jesus rose from the dead” or “Airplanes are safe,” does that mean I believe in it?

Evaluating What We Really Believe In
Jesus recognized that often what we say and what we believe are two different things. This is why he gave us a test to find the true character of a person—what they really believe in, whether they are really good and bad. Jesus said, “We know a tree by its fruit. We know that a tree is an apple tree because it bears apples. And we know that a fig tree can’t produce pears. Even so, we know what a person is really like by their actions and careless speech.” (Matthew 7:16-20 and 12:33-36). Thus, we know what people really believe by how they behave in certain areas in life.

Below are six areas that, according to Jesus, indicate what we really believe. If we follow God in these areas, then we can say we believe in God. But if we do not, then we must believe in something else—for our actions are a mirror of our hearts.

Actions
As shown above, what we do with our lives—our work, our response to stressful situations—that’s what really shows who we are. We can say that we love God, but the question is, how do we show it? Sometimes the best way to determine our character is to imagine that a stranger who has never seen us before is presented with a videotape of our whole lives, with the sound off, so they can’t hear our own explanations of our lives. How would that stranger evaluate us? What would characterize us? If we stole, we would certainly be characterized as a thief. But we more often than not excuse ourselves, not wanting our actions to determine who we are—“Sure, I get drunk occasionally, but that doesn’t make me an alcoholic.” “Yes, I have hit my child in anger, but that doesn’t make me a child abuser.” Yet Jesus said that a person shows truly whether they believe in him as to whether they do what he says (Luke 6:46-49)

Wealth
Jesus says that what we do with our money and possessions indicates where our heart is, thus who we are (Luke 12:34). A person can say, “I believe that God will heal me,” but then why does he spend so much money on medicine? A person can say, “My comfort will be in heaven,” but then why does she surround herself with comforts on earth? If we want to see what a person really believes in, we can look at how they spend their money—that will indicate what they think to be most important in life. Jesus said that if we want to show that we believe we will get to heaven, then we need to take a substantial amount of our wealth and give it to the poor—not necessarily the church, unless they are serving the poor (Luke 12:33; Acts 4:34-35)

Words
As we said above, a person can say one thing and do another. But Jesus said that we should pay attention to people’s careless words—the statements they make when they didn’t have time to plan it out. Often that’s when people’s pride and anger and selfishness flare up. If we are planning a statement, that can be one thing we say, but the statements we use when we are being thoughtless and carefree—those are the words by which we will be judged, for those are the words that show what we really believe and so who we really are. (Matthew 12:35-36)

Security
At times we all feel insecure. We are often struck by anxiety and we don’t know where to turn. Where we do turn in those moments of crisis indicates what we trust in or who we think will pull us out of our fear. Perhaps we will turn to a family member—especially if they are wealthy—or a friend. Perhaps we have a habit or addiction that we think will make us feel better. Perhaps we have nothing we can rely on but our anxiety, but we say, “How I wish I had this or that”. That is what we really rely on, the person or object we truly believe in. But Jesus tells us that in our time of crisis, the one we can always count on, the dependable one who we can trust in is God. (John 14:1; Luke 12:30-32). To “believe in” God doesn’t mean to have the correct doctrine, it means that you will count on him in a time of crisis. So whatever we turn to in crisis, that is our real god.

Attitude
God makes it clear that he wants us to treat everyone according to their well-being. He wants us to do what is good for everyone we meet—whether that person is an evil person or a good one (Luke 6:27-36; Galatians 6:10). We can make a list of who we actually show care for and who we do not. “Yes, I try to help this person whenever I can. This person, though, is a dolt and so I avoid then when possible. I like to assist this kind of person, but this kind I detest and wouldn’t even give them the time of day.” By this test, then, we can often see what limits we place on our belief in God. We believe in God and in his ways when we are around certain people or situations, but in other ones we do not. If people respect us, that’s fine, we can believe in God in that situation. But if someone cusses us out, then we find it difficult to believe in God. For we know that we will be rewarded according to our love, not our doctrinal beliefs.

Promises
We often make promises and commitments, from appointments to projects we agreed to work on. Sometimes we do not even have a promise to do something, but we have a “social contract” with our family, in which our behavior is determined. And there are many things that we “believe in” that we commit to do, whether it be prayer or a favor for someone at church or visiting a sick person in the hospital. But what we believe in is not found in the promises we make, but in the promises we actually keep. We may “believe in” prayer and make a schedule for us to wake up a bit early to do it. But, when the time comes, we find that we actually believe in sleep more than prayer because the snooze button is hit until the prayer time has vanished. We may “believe in” visiting the sick, and so promise to do it, but when the time comes we find the television too alluring, showing that we believe in our comfort and rest more. Jesus said that we must fulfill our promises and so display our faithfulness, for what we do shows what we believe. This doesn’t mean that we are able to keep all our promises. Sometimes emergencies come up. But we must remember this, whatever we chose to do, that is what we really believe in. (Matthew 21:28-31)

Repentance
One last thing to note—Jesus is a firm believer in changing one’s ways. We know he believes in change because he forgives people their sin. He displays his belief of changed behavior by accepting those who have repented. Even so, if you evaluate your true beliefs and determine that you haven’t really believed in Jesus, it is not too late to change! Jesus said he will give you his Spirit and he will help you repent from your old life and begin to believe in Him anew! Pray for God’s grace and you will begin to truly believe in Jesus, not just in words, but in your whole life. In that way you will be a new creation, created by God to do actions in light of Jesus!

Evaluate your actions, and determine
what you really believe!