Deepening Your Faith
October 4, 2020 Speaker: Jeff Bedwell Series: That You May Believe
Series: That You May Believe
Message: Deepening Your Faith
Scripture: John 4:43-54
Too often there is a difference between our Confessional faith and our Functional faith
Jesus desires for our faith and trust in Him to grow and to deepen as we walk with Him
Progression Of A Father’s Faith
Setting The Scene (43-45):
- Crisis Faith (46-48)
- Royal official – not too proud to admit his need
- Told Christ how to handle the situation
- Presented His Need before presenting Himself
Vs. 48 – Reply seems harsh – Plural pronouns – Perhaps addressing the crowd
Note: Jesus will meet us here, but He does not want to Leave us here
- Confident Faith (49-50)
- Believing comes before Seeing
- As individuals Act on the commands of God, they open the way for God’s power to operate in their lives
- Royal official - Not too controlling to walk by faith – He trusted Jesus enough to allow Him to work in whatever way He chooses
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)
- Confirmed Faith (51-53)
- Obeying precedes the experience of The Blessing
- Jesus did not just want to heal a boy physically, but to heal the whole family Spiritually
Henry Blackaby: 7 Realities Of Experiencing God
- God is always at work around you
- God pursues a continuing love relationship with you that is real and personal
- God invites you to become involved with Him in His work
- God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His ways
- God’s invitation for you to work with Him always leads you to a crisis of belief that requires faith and action
- You must make major adjustments in your life to join God in what He is doing
- You come to know God by experience as you obey Him and He accomplishes His work through you
- Contagious Faith (53)
- Servants – Excited over the healing
- Father – Knew the rest of the story
- Father’s faith Spread to others
Some Closing Observations
- Sin always blocks our relationship with God, but suffering can Deepen It
- When you face a problem or suffering in your life, do what this man did, Go To Jesus
- Let Jesus answer you on His Own Terms
- Deepening faith comes to love Jesus for who He is in Himself, not merely for the Benefits He Gives
- Deepening faith is contagious – Show And Share the love and truth of Jesus
Making It Personal:
- Where are you on your faith journey today?
- Are you right now trusting in Jesus Christ alone as your only Savior and rightful leader and Lord?
- Where are you facing a “crisis of belief” that requires faith and action?
- What will it look like for you to show and share the love and truth of Jesus Christ with others?
- Who can you share these truths with?
More in That You May Believe
November 15, 2020
Developing a Faith That LastsNovember 8, 2020
Developing a Faith That WorksNovember 1, 2020
The Lesson of the Loaves