Monday, July 5, 2010

Do You Now Believe?


Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone. And yet I am not alone, because the Father is with Me. These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16: 31-33)

Our Lord answered the question posed by His disciples (John 16: 29-30) about finally “Getting it”, that He indeed had come from God. And even today, we sometimes ask ourselves “Do I now believe?” We continue in the Christian life the same way we begin, by believing in Jesus. The more we learn of Christ, the more we have to believe. The more we place our trust in Jesus, the more we receive. The more we receive, the more we can accomplish for His glory.


As Christians, we should expect continuing tension with an unbelieving world that is “out of sync” with Christ, His gospel, and His people. At the same time, we can expect our relationship with Christ to produce peace and comfort because we are “in sync” with Him. Are you “in sync” with our Lord?


When Jesus told His disciples that they would scatter and desert Him in His time of need, how their hearts must have ached. No! We will never desert you Lord, we are all willing to die for You! The disciples did scatter and desert Jesus (Mark 14:50). How many times have we scattered and deserted our Lord? Isn’t it amazing to know that even though the disciples deserted Jesus, that our Lord still loved them. And, just as amazing is the fact that Jesus loves us today even though we sometimes scatter and desert Him. What an amazing example of unconditional love.


Our Lord tells His disciples that they will have tribulations while living in the world. And, we as believers today face the same type of tribulations. Tribulation is literally “pressure,” and figuratively means “affliction” or “distress.” Be of good cheer means “be confident and courageous.”


Jesus summed up all He had told His disciples by tying together themes from John 14: 27-29 and John 16: 9-11. With these words He told His disciples to take courage. In spite of the inevitable struggles they would face, they would not be alone. Jesus does not abandon us to our struggles either. If we remember that the ultimate victory has already been won, we can claim the peace of Christ in the most troublesome times. When we place our trust in God, He can give us peace in the midst of pressure (Phil. 1:27–30). Do you place your trust in God? Do you have the peace and comfort that only an intimate relationship with our Lord Jesus can bring?


Father God, it is my prayer today that I make a conscience effort to stay “in sync” with You. You promise Lord that You will always be with me and that You will never leave me nor forsaken me in my times of trouble. This alone, Lord gives me the peace and comfort I need to make it in this condemned and sinful world. Lord, I want to thank you again for all of the blessings that You have given me. I pray this all in Jesus’ name. Amen.


References: NKJV Holy Bible, Life Application Bible (NIV), and the Nelson Study Bible.

33 comments:

RHYTHM AND RHYME said...

A wonderful write which I enjoyed reading also thought provoking.

Yvonne,

sunny smiles said...

What a loving Father we have. We can have peace despite the craziness of our world...Great reminder to stay in sync...

Glory to God said...

Praise God that even when we're out of sync, He still loves us. By grace He helps us to get back in sync. I love that.

David C Brown said...

John's gospel is written, £that believing ye might has life in His name": believers need to keep being believers!

-blessed holy socks, the non-perishable-zealot said...

Amen, my brudda! Bravo!! And I'll see you in the Great Beyond someday. RSVP.

Nicole Watson said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog Lloyd. What a tremendous hope and promise we have in Jesus! It is in the times of tribulation that I found out just how great his love is for us. The peace of Christ is above all explanation, but must be believed and expereinced. I will enjoy reading more of your posts.

Bless your family
Nicole

MTJ said...

Hello Lloyd,

May each of us who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ make a conscious effort to stay in sync with Him.

MTJ

Karen said...

Amen! Great word...

Wanda said...

I can imagine the disciples were stunned to hear Jesus proclaim they would turn and leave him and even more surprised we it actually came true. Like the disciples, there are times that I think I'm further along in my walk with Christ only to encounter a situation that shows me where I truly am. But I'm grateful that He's faithful, loving, and continues to extend His grace to me as I grow in Him.

Monika @ Lovely Bookshelf said...

Thanks for your kind comments - I'll still be posting, I really want to get back into it. :)

Wonderful insight you have shared here, and beautifully written!

Titus 2 Thandi said...

Yes, He does love us all the time.Thank you for the reminder.

Anonymous said...

Praise His holy name. I thank Him for that promise and I thank you for reminding me of it today--He will never leave us or forsake us--AMEN!

Lou said...

Great post, Lloyd. Praying to stay in sync this week.

Lou

Franca said...

Thank you Lloyd for visiting my blog. I really enjoyed yours very much. Thank you for your message from God today.
Will be visiting you often, your new friend
Franca

Grace on the Narrow Path said...

Lloyd,
Thank you for this wonderful post. Please stop by my new blog, Grace on the Narrow Path. I have deleted my old blog Seeking Grace, due to blogger problems. Please follow along with me as I follow along with you on our journey for HIM.
Bren

TO BECOME said...

I enjoyed reading your post and am looking forward to coming again to read more. Thank you for visiting my blog and for inviting me to yours. I have been blessed.God bless. connie

Dhemz said...

Praise the LORD! AMEN...thanks for sharing Lloyd...very inspiring post!

thanks for dropping by and for following my blog...will follow yours as well.

Solid Rock or Sinking Sand said...

I want to personally thank each of you for your comments. I pray that our Lord will bless each of you with all His mercies and love. God bless, Lloyd

Nicole said...

Thank you for this wonderful prayer!

Lib said...

Thank you for visiting my blog.I enjoyed my visit here!
I read your profile, We are going through the same with a newphew he took his life 2-14-10. We are helping raise his 4 yr. old .Please rememeber us in your prayers!
Thanks &God Bless You and Yours!
Lib

Solid Rock or Sinking Sand said...

Lib -- Thank you so much for your visit and comment. I am so sorry to hear about your nephew. Suicide brings a lot of heartbreak because it leaves behind so many unanswered questions to "why".

I will be lifting you up to the Lord in prayer for the courage to carry on each day and for the comfort and peace that only Jesus can give. God's blessings too you and your family. Lloyd

Robert said...

thank you for the post, and glad we be if in spiritual sync - it is a trinity: not in doctrine - words of men - but in Spirit - from beginning to end.

Amen, and God bless the readers @ "Solid Rock or Sinking Sand" - founded, as we are on the Rock of Christ Jesus - by mercy and grace;

Robert @jesusbranch

Scripture for Today Blogspot, by Anne-Laurel Gardere said...

Thanks, Lloyd, for your comment on my blog! You have a great point of view as a retired policeman. You've seen people act their best and worst and your light is important!

Thanks!Scripture for Today Blogspot

Scripture for Today Blogspot, by Anne-Laurel Gardere said...

Thank you for your kind comment on my blog. You are very inspiring as a retired policeman, to have seen the best & worst in people, to proclaim hope in Jesus Christ.

-Scripture for Today Blogspot

Unknown said...

I enjoyed my visit here and wanted to thank you for visiting my blog. It is great to read that we are not alone in our struggles.

techranger said...

Thanks Lloyd for all your inspiring posts and thanks for stopping by SonRays and As I Grow In Faith...

http://www.sonrays.org
http://www.asigrowinfaith.com

God bless!

Larry

Angela said...

Wanted to come here also to let you know I will continue praying for you and your family during this time of sorrow and loss over your mother. ((hugs))

Solid Rock or Sinking Sand said...

Thank you Angela for the prayers. God bless you. Lloyd

Denise said...

Thanks for the beautiful reminder.

Anonymous said...

Every child of God should be making a daily conscience effort to stay in sync with Him. But more often than not we get it reversed, we want God to stay in sync with our plans.

Maria Mcclain said...

You have a very good blog that the main thing a lot of interesting and beautiful! hope u go for this website to increase visitor.

Solid Rock or Sinking Sand said...

The Old Geezer: Unfortunately you are right…. Most of the times we want God to keep in sync with us. Thank you for your comments.

Maria: Thank you for such a nice comment regarding this blog. However, it is always my goal to give all honor and glory to our Almighty and Awesome God. Blessings too you.

Solid Rock or Sinking Sand said...

aec: As a police officer for over 30 years, I have seen the “Good, Bad & Ugly” in our society and at times in my career my heart became very hardened regarding God. It wasn’t until God sent me too my knees, that I realized that I needed Him.

All of my posts that you see on this blog are from my heart and soul. The purpose of this blog is to give God the glory that He so richly deserves by reaching out for Jesus and spreading the truth of the Gospel. God’s blessings too you.