. . . And He marveled because of their unbelief."
Mark 6:5-6
The pastor's sermon that Sunday morning was The Sin of Unbelief. After the service, a church member said, "I've never heard a sermon on that subject, but there it was in my Bible. It made me wonder how much more God would have done in my life, but He didn't because of my areas of unbelief." The pastor said, "If our hearts are open to God, He will always provide the faith."
Unbelief is defined in the Bible as sin (Romans 14:23). Faith is defined as a gift of God's Spirit, but it's always a gift to receive and exercise (Romans 12:3). My favorite illustration of faith is to see it like a muscle in the body. We are born with a muscular system. That's a gift from God, but we must choose to exercise those muscles, that they may become stronger. So it is with faith. We are born again with faith (1 John 5:4). It is the gift of God, but we must exercise it. We forfeit many of the promises of God in the Bible, when we refuse to exercise our faith.
Jesus taught in a synagogue in his own country. He had power to do mighty things among the people, but they refused to exercise faith in Him. So it is with people everywhere who refuse to exercise faith in the living Lord Jesus Christ. He can do great and mighty things that we know not, but only faith can receive. The promises of God must be mixed with faith to work in our lives (Hebrews 4:2). Take God at His Word. Don't let the power of unbelief rob you of the blessings of God.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, forgive our areas of unbelief. We believe all the promises of God are fulfilled in You for our lives.
