Your Object of Faith

Now Faith is...
concerning things expected...reality,
concerning things not seen...confidence.
(Personal rewording of Hebrews 11:1)

We look to the future. Yet even scientific discoveries, statistical analysis, and historical research leave many questions unanswered. There are problems needing resolution. There are deep needs that yearn for fulfillment. We often feel a void of uncertainty.

What is it that offers hope? What is it that offers the possibility, or better yet, a true expectation of filling the void or solving the problem? What is it that provides the confidence that tomorrow’s uncertainties will be manageable?

What is that unseen force, power, or being that gives you strength of confidence and a real expectation that with it, you can face tomorrow; you can overcome life’s uncertainties, your needs will be met?

Do you expect financial success to provide?
A higher paying job, a more lucrative investment, a bigger or better deal?

Do you expect career to provide?
A step up on the career ladder, more authority at work, your own business, career success?

Do you expect physical strength or beauty to provide?
A quest for health and a longer life, pursuit of strength that cannot be overcome, pursuit of beauty to charm and sway the hearts of men?

Do you expect knowledge to provide?
A greater knowledge and a deeper wisdom to outthink and outwit and outlast life’s competitors?

Do you expect the relationship of family, friends, or associates to provide?
The acceptance and tolerance of friends and family; a relationship with someone of importance, someone of wealth, someone of power?

Men have pursued these and other things to provide confidence and hope to meet the challenges of life’s uncertainties.
And yet...
If financial success is that which provides hope and confidence...wealth is your god.
If position or fame is that which provides hope and confidence...success or power is your god.
If physical strength or beauty is that which provides hope and confidence...your body is your god.
If knowledge and wisdom are that which provide hope and confidence...intellect is your god.

To what or to whom do you turn when conflicts arise in your life? When uncertainties and needs arise, who or what first comes to your mind? Who or what stands foremost in your mind as the reality that can bring about needed changes to solve your problems and fill your needs?

Or, do you, perhaps, simply trust in yourself??

The object in which you place your faith, that which, though perhaps unseen, stands as the reality in your life on which you depend for answers… that is your god/God!

I am the Lord your God...

You shall have no other gods before Me.

--Exodus 20:2-3

Mark Stinnett

July 21, 2024

God's Will and Your Health

Does God want you to be healthy?

I have heard countless prayers for the sick. At times people have asked for very specific procedures or very specific outcomes. They focused their prayer based on a prognosis by a doctor.

Very often I have heard requests worded, “If it is Your will…,” do this or that. At times it sounded as if God was working for us and we were micro-managing His divine involvement. And occasionally, but not often, I have heard people add to the end of a health-related prayer request, “Your will be done.”

I am not criticizing anyone for praying to God. I am not criticizing anyone for praying for health issues. Rather, I am wondering about the will of God as it relates to your health.

Do your remember any Scripture that teaches us that God’s will revolves around our good health? I’ll answer for you, “No!” That is not to say that God doesn’t care about your health. That is not to say that God will do nothing for you. That is not to say that you should not pray. It is merely to say, God’s will is not about your health. Rather, your health is about your will.

God’s will is bigger than your health. He desires people to be saved from sin. He desires His word to be preached. He desires the advancement of the kingdom of heaven. So, we must understand that saving souls, spreading the gospel, and advancing the kingdom is not about our physical well-being. God’s will for you involves heaven, not health.

There is a compelling example that leads me to this conclusion. Do you remember Stephen?

For some who are reading this, the mention of Stephen’s name is enough. Nevertheless, it may be worth noting a few things about the first Christian martyr. Stephen was among the men selected by the church in Jerusalem to assist with an issue concerning the distribution of food. He was a man who was “full of faith and of the Holy Spirit.” He was “full of grace and power” and was “performing great wonders and signs among the people.” Stephen was a powerful speaker for the kingdom of God and known as an evangelist. Because of his preaching of the gospel He was brought before the Jewish council and they all “saw his face like the face of an angel.” (Acts 6:15)

By all human measures, Stephen was a valuable part of the early church. God was using him to spread the gospel, save souls, and advance the kingdom of heaven. But God allowed the members of the Jewish council to stone Stephen to death after they had rejected his testimony.

It just doesn’t seem right to say that it was God’s will for Stephen to die. Yet, if physical health is God’s will, then God did a lousy job with Stephen, not to mention all the persecuted Christians mentioned in Hebrews 11.

How do we make sense of this?

Your good health is not the focus of God’s will. It is a blessing for which you should be thankful.

“Is anyone among you suffering? Then he should pray.” 

--James 5:13 

That includes your health.

“Cast all your anxiety on Him [God], because He cares for you.” 

--1 Peter 5:7

That includes your health.

Realize that when you are praying for your health, it is ‘your will.’ You are asking God for grace, and He may help you. However, realize that God’s will is far more important than yours.

Mark Stinnett

June 16, 2024