You Have to Believe it For Yourself!

Sooner or later your beliefs must be based upon your personal convictions – not just what someone else said or told you to believe.

For example, consider these words from Jesus –

Matthew 7:7-11 KJV
(7)  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
(8)  For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
(9)  Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?
(10)  Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
(11)  If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

You can be taught through books, sermons or articles the words in these scriptures apply to you directly. In other words, this isn’t any different from God speaking to you personally (as far as it being the truth goes). It wasn’t just spoken for the sake of the individuals standing there listening to Jesus at the time.

This goes right along with Romans 15:4.

There are a few conditions to God’s promises such as the ones we see in Mark 11:25 and also in the Epistle or Book of James.

James 1:6-8 KJV
(6)  But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
(7)  For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
(8)  A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

The condition here is not wavering or doubting. Once you set a course to believe, you stay the course all the way to the end of the line. You don’t just believe for a month and if things don’t change, you decide God’s not going to be much help so you consider what other options remain. No, you’ll never get anything with that kind of approach.

Jesus is our example.

Jesus got results.

There’s no way around that. His teachings also emphasized getting results. They covered everything – spirit, soul, body, temporary & eternal. Nothing was left out. Even if you look at His actions with the sound turned off, you’ll see everything He taught in action.

Religion as we know it today is not results oriented. It exists more in the realm of concepts, ideas and traditions. It’s often used to explain away failures or assign blame.

Mark 7:13 KJV
(13)  Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.

Verse 13 means no effect or non-effective.

I think it’s important to talk about these things because everything I see Jesus do in the New Testament tells me that God deals with each of us personally – one on one. God is results and action oriented.

He desires to work things out in such a way that each of us discovers what we need to know – personally. True, He can use other people, but He doesn’t want anyone standing between you and Him apart from Jesus. Once you start looking at teachers and preachers as your “link” to a better life, you’ll learn a lot of different theories but you’ll be lacking in the results department.

Preachers and teachers may lay the groundwork, but it’s between you and God what gets built upon that foundation.

Jesus set everything up so you don’t have to rely on any one individual to teach you.

1 John 2:27 ESV
(27)  But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie–just as it has taught you, abide in him.

Jesus is your teacher through the Holy Spirit. That’s what it says in a nutshell. Can you see that? Again, it’s important that you see the truth for yourself. Unless you can see it, you can’t believe it in your heart – it’s just a fact in your head. Just mentally agreeing with something and saying, “Yes, that’s right,” won’t change your life.

In my own life, I look at books and Bible teachings in the light of what I’ve seen for myself in the Bible. I don’t want my beliefs based on someone’s opinion just because it sounds good to me. That’s why the Bible warns against leaning on and trusting in your own understanding of things.

The Bible encourages you to trust in God instead of in what you can see or feel.

What you see or feel can seem to be very permanent at the time, but the truth is – anything can change in a instant.

The Bible says the scriptures were written that we might have hope. Without hope, we have nothing but despair.

Romans 15:4 KJV
(4)  For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

It’s much easier to persevere when you know for sure God loves you and doesn’t want you to be anxious or worried about anything.

Faith is knowing in your heart, not just in your head. To get it from your head into your heart, you need help. Help in the form of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us get the truth past our intellect and down into our spirits where it can truly benefit us. That’s about the simplest way I can put it.

Perseverance is often the key when it comes to overcoming many things in your life. If you’re always wondering whether or not it’s God’s Will to give you what you’ve asked for, you’ll struggle when it comes to persevering for a significant length of time.

Luke 18:1-8 KJV
(1)  And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;
(2)  Saying, There was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man:
(3)  And there was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary.
(4)  And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man;
(5)  Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.
(6)  And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge saith.
(7)  And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
(8)  I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

Notice the 8^th verse. It’s a question.

God bears long with our doubts and unbelief at times. The asking or praying part is the easy part. It’s the ongoing believing part that can trip people up. People are easily discouraged if they don’t see results right away. Jesus said we shouldn’t “faint” or give up when it comes to praying and what appears to outwardly be a delayed result.

Jesus faced the same thing with His disciples.

Mark 9:17-19 AKJV
(17)  And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought to you my son, which has a dumb spirit;
(18)  And wherever he takes him, he tears him: and he foams, and gnashes with his teeth, and pines away: and I spoke to your disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.
(19)  He answers him, and said, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him to me.

You can second guess God. You can second guess His desire to heal or deliver from oppression of every kind. People do it all the time. God isn’t limited to the natural, man-made approach to solving problems. He’s not limited to science, doctors, medicine, human intellect or anything else.

Matthew 9:28-29 AKJV
(28)  And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus said to them, Believe you that I am able to do this? They said to him, Yes, Lord.
(29)  Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it to you.

Again, God deals with us as individuals. Salvation is a one-on-one connection between God and an individual. So is everything else. And it all comes down to your heart. Knowing “stuff” is good. But faith, hope and love all reside in the heart. That’s what God ultimately weighs (Proverbs 21:2). That’s why I focus on it so much. That’s why you must believe the Bible for yourself.

Sure, other people can and do help… but you can’t see them as your source.

I hope this helps you!