Remedying the evil heart of Unbelief
"Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God." -Hebrews 3:12
Why did the writer call the unbelieving heart evil? Because it was said to lead down a pathway that departs from where God is. That is very easily understood when put in perspective with Hebrews 11:6, because "...without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." God inhabits the realm of faith, not the realm of human reason, doubt, etc.
As long as faith prevails in your life, you will find it easy to stay close to God. But when faith fades, truly sins deceitfulness is at work (Heb 3:13). It is at this point, a hardening of the spiritual heart is taking place and this is a by-product of Rebellion.
Unbelief is like a spiritual cancer. Just as tissue and organ cells that spread, invading other areas that aren't needed in the body (outside of regular biological requirement) so does unbelief have the tendency to spread. If you start doubting, it will progress into further doubt.
We all are at different planes in the realm of faith. Similar to how our thought process changes as we age, so can faith. When we are younger our undeveloped thought process is very simplistic in reason. But as we age, there are many contributors to our thought process development. Experiences(good/bad),relationships,individual mental filters, and (I believe) whether we have a relationship with God are main factors.
No wonder Jesus said the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven were those who became as little children (Matthew 18:1-4). Children aren't naturally cynical or biased, they have to learn that. Humility comes first to them, pride and arrogance is something they have to develop. Faith is not a task for them, they just simply possess it.
Thankfully, there are remedies for the evil heart of unbelief. Here are 5 we can get started with:
1. Prayer and Fasting: In Matthew 17:14-21, the disciples were not capable of casting a demon out of a certain man's son. Jesus stepped in and set the young man free. When Jesus later explained why they couldn't do it themselves, He declared unbelief to be the reason. When Jesus said "...this kind..." He was speaking of this kind of unbelief. Sometimes there is a level of unbelief that has to be remedied by prayer and fasting.
2. God's Word: It was written to give us knowledge of God’s will, ability, love, & desire, etc. Romans 15:4 says "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.”
3. Exhortation: This is to call near, invite, invoke, beseech, call for; Encouraging to be of good comfort, cheer. Hebrews 3:13 “But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” The church is to do this one for another.
4. Faith: That may not seem like an obvious option to one who is struggling with unbelief, but faith is a CHOICE. You can choose to have faith or choose not to. “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;” 2 Corinthians 4:13
5. Personal Miracles: Your beliefs, interpretations of Scripture, & opinion can be questioned,but not your experiences. The power of personal testimony is to be reckoned with. When unbelief threatens your present faith, you can look back on what God did for you in the past. Thats something that just can't be argued with!
Why did the writer call the unbelieving heart evil? Because it was said to lead down a pathway that departs from where God is. That is very easily understood when put in perspective with Hebrews 11:6, because "...without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." God inhabits the realm of faith, not the realm of human reason, doubt, etc.
As long as faith prevails in your life, you will find it easy to stay close to God. But when faith fades, truly sins deceitfulness is at work (Heb 3:13). It is at this point, a hardening of the spiritual heart is taking place and this is a by-product of Rebellion.
Unbelief is like a spiritual cancer. Just as tissue and organ cells that spread, invading other areas that aren't needed in the body (outside of regular biological requirement) so does unbelief have the tendency to spread. If you start doubting, it will progress into further doubt.
We all are at different planes in the realm of faith. Similar to how our thought process changes as we age, so can faith. When we are younger our undeveloped thought process is very simplistic in reason. But as we age, there are many contributors to our thought process development. Experiences(good/bad),relationships,individual mental filters, and (I believe) whether we have a relationship with God are main factors.
No wonder Jesus said the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven were those who became as little children (Matthew 18:1-4). Children aren't naturally cynical or biased, they have to learn that. Humility comes first to them, pride and arrogance is something they have to develop. Faith is not a task for them, they just simply possess it.
Thankfully, there are remedies for the evil heart of unbelief. Here are 5 we can get started with:
1. Prayer and Fasting: In Matthew 17:14-21, the disciples were not capable of casting a demon out of a certain man's son. Jesus stepped in and set the young man free. When Jesus later explained why they couldn't do it themselves, He declared unbelief to be the reason. When Jesus said "...this kind..." He was speaking of this kind of unbelief. Sometimes there is a level of unbelief that has to be remedied by prayer and fasting.
2. God's Word: It was written to give us knowledge of God’s will, ability, love, & desire, etc. Romans 15:4 says "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.”
3. Exhortation: This is to call near, invite, invoke, beseech, call for; Encouraging to be of good comfort, cheer. Hebrews 3:13 “But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” The church is to do this one for another.
4. Faith: That may not seem like an obvious option to one who is struggling with unbelief, but faith is a CHOICE. You can choose to have faith or choose not to. “We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;” 2 Corinthians 4:13
5. Personal Miracles: Your beliefs, interpretations of Scripture, & opinion can be questioned,but not your experiences. The power of personal testimony is to be reckoned with. When unbelief threatens your present faith, you can look back on what God did for you in the past. Thats something that just can't be argued with!
posted by Pastor Cortes at 12:21 AM
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