If We Believe, We Act! If We Don’t…

01 Oct If We Believe, We Act! If We Don’t…

There is a book titled Up to No Good: The Rascally Things Boys Do (As told by perfectly decent grown men). It is a compilation of short stories recalling the childhood years of men that grew up to be “perfectly decent.”  One story went this way:

 “Lou was playing with some friends and decided to try flying.  So, they climbed up onto the roof of the barn, and Lou strapped some heavy wooden boards onto his brother’s arms.  Then they counted down, and he jumped.  He was lying on the ground, groaning in pain with several broken bones, and Lou yelled, “Hey Shorty!  You forgot to flap your wings!”

You see, Lou’s brother, Shorty, – momentarily persuaded by Lou – believed he could fly! Based on that belief, he jumped off the roof of the barn. But what he believed was wrong, and Shorty paid the price.

This story is similar to the one we began with last week, and the remarkable thing is… they are both true! 

What we believe controls everything about us. If we believe we can fly, we jump off the barn. If we don’t believe we can fly, we don’t jump off the barn.

This principle applies to many areas of life.  Because Christians are

• fallen individuals
• living in a fallen world
• controlled by a fallen mastermind,

we often believe things that are not true, and do not believe things that are true, and struggle to be changed by truth even when we believe it.

So, clearly, what we believe is important… very important. Big things happen in life based on what we believe.  In fact, the course of our very lives is shaped, and can even be determined by what we believe.  So, we must choose carefully what we believe!

Jesus said, “You shall know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  (John 8:32)

To the degree that we do not know the truth, or to the degree that we do not believe it… to that degree, we are vulnerable to ignorance and deception. 

We must carefully evaluate what we believe

We may be tempted to think that something outside the will of God will make us happy.  There may or may not be anything inherently wrong with a given thing, but if it is outside the will of God, it will not make us happy… not in the long run. 

• We think that more money will make us happy, so we jump.
• We think another person will make us happy, so we jump.
• We think that the recognition of others will make us happy, so we jump.

But if those things are outside the will of God, they will not make us happy.  Not in the long run. 

Life is continually offering us choices:

1. to choose temporal options, which are typically an immediate short-term pleasure at the cost of eventual long-term pain… or
2. to choose eternal options, which are typically eventual long-term gain at the cost of immediate short-term pain.

The quality of our Christian life rests on our readiness to make the higher choice. 

This depends on our readiness to trust (1) God’s character and (2) His deeds on our behalf.  As Scripture says, we must “walk by faith and not by sight.”  (2 Corinthians 5:7)

We must choose to believe God’s truth

Scripture calls on us to…

1. Find our life by losing it (Matthew 10:39)
2. Give in order to receive (2 Corinthians 9:6-8)
3. Sacrifice temporal pleasure to gain eternal rewards (Matthew 19:21)
4. Love our neighbor as our self (Matthew 22:37-40)
5. Store up treasure in heaven rather than treasure on earth (Matthew 6:20)

All these are counter-intuitive to an earthly mindset, but central to an eternal mindset.  Which is why the apostle Paul wrote:

If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.  (Colossians 3:1-2)

But if we believe these things, we jump.  If we don’t believe, we don’t jump.  Our obedience is always the result of our faith. 

We must repeat truth over and over until it changes us

But hearing something once, or even knowing something does not necessarily change us.  Scripture tells us:

• We must continuously dwell on positive truth (Philippians 4:8)
• We must guard our heart, because it determines the course of our lives (Proverbs 4:23)
• We must send the truth of Scripture through our minds over and over (Psalm 1:2)
• We must think about Scriptural truth continuously so that we will be careful to be obedient to it (Joshua 1:8)
• We must renew our minds (Romans 12:2)

As we do, we learn that:

• The God of peace will be with you (Philippians 4:9)
• The course of our lives will go well (implied – Proverbs 4:23)
• We will be spiritually prosperous in all we do (Psalm 1:3)
• We will make our way prosperous and have success (Joshua 1:8)
• Our lives will be transformed (Romans 12:2)

Conclusion

Corrie ten Boom, author of The Hiding Place, suffered terribly in a Nazi concentration camp for hiding Jews who were trying to flee Germany. Her father died in the camp.  Her sister also died in the camp after suffering terribly.  She, herself, suffered terribly.

But through it all, she carefully managed what she believed.  She chose to focus on the truth of Scripture, on the character of God, on the sacrifice that Jesus made for her. 

By carefully managing what she believed, by choosing to believe the truth, by sending that truth through her mind over and over, she was a more joyful Christian after her release from the concentration camp than she was before. 

While most of us will never experience the suffering Corrie experienced, the same is still true with us.  If we carefully manage what we believe, if we choose to believe truth, if we send that truth through our minds over and over and over, we will reap the benefits of God’s blessing. 

Get four simple tips for “managing what you believe” – download my free 15 minute video Master the Bible So Well That the Bible Masters You.

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