January 18, 2012

DO I REALLY BELIEVE GOD?

Key Verse
"Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness." (Genesis 15:6)
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Central Truth

Believing God and taking Him at His word is the foundation of what it means to be a believer.

Reflections

Believing God's promises is the very foundation of what it means to be a Christian. All the Lord wants us to do is believe Him and take Him at His word. This is one of the central themes of the entire Bible. Starting in Genesis 3:15, God promises to send a Redeemer, and from then on, He fulfills every promise He makes.

God told Abram that He would give him a son, then showed him the stars outside, and said, "Look up at the sky and count the stars...so shall your offspring be" (v. 5). And then comes the verse of all verses, "Abram believed the Lord, and He credited to him as righteousness" (v. 6). God tells Abram something and Abram believes it. That seems pretty straightforward, right? As I'm reading, I don't get to that verse and say, "Hmmm... I wonder if he'll believe Him?" I assume Abram will because God told him so! And then, it gets even better! Abram gets credited as being righteous... just for believing! That sounds almost too good to be true! And that's why believing is called GOOD NEWS!!!

God has promised that He will forgive our sins if we only believe in His Son, Jesus Christ, as paying the penalty for our sins. All we do is take God at His word and believe Him! Just like Abram. God says "whosoever believeth in Him shall have eternal life." If I take God at His word, I am forgiven. However, the ease of being counted as righteous by believing is also what makes the gospel difficult. We feel like we have to contribute something. God tells us one thing, and we basically say, "I don't believe you God, I need to do something else," which is an attack on His character. Underneath sin lies unbelief.

I want to be like Abram and take God at His word. When God says things like ,"I am so much greater than money," I should believe Him. Believing will change the way I think and act, and God is truly glorified in that.

Discussion Questions

1. Why is it important to believe God and take Him at His word?

2. What does believing look like?

3. What promises does God give to help us through our day to day life?

4. What promises do you find hard to believe? Why?

Comments

The views expressed under “Comments” are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Hill Country Bible Church NW.

  1. John Sullivan

    January 18, 2012 06:44 AM

    Nicely done, Jake.

  2. Eric stratton

    January 18, 2012 06:48 AM

    Abram believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness...Yet not 2 verses later Abram is questioning the same God about whether or not the land can truly be his! But does this not describe us on our journey as believers as well? We are promised salvation, life eternal, yet then question God along the road as we go. This is also known as sanctification, and praise God for how He so lovingly dealt with Abram and us as well!

  3. Tom Johnson

    January 18, 2012 10:12 AM

    Great job, Jake! Beleiving is backed up by obedience-fleshed out. One of my favorite sayings is" Actions demonstrate priorities" That pretty well says it all for me. Thanks for your work and the message it sends!

  4. Stacy Rose

    January 18, 2012 01:36 PM

    Thank you so much for your willingness to be a servant for our heavenly Father and allowing Him to use you to write this devotion. This is such a timely reminder, one that I desperately needed right now, and I know God is using it to minister to others, too.

  5. Luke

    January 18, 2012 04:08 PM

    I agree Tom. I'll quote spider-man saying "with great power comes great responsibility," and we have a great responsibility as Christians to live our lives for God. We need to not lose sight of the gifts He has given us and always strive to use them with love for God and each other. For if we simply do not offer our forgiveness to our brothers and sisters, Jesus reminds us that "if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."

  6. Sabrina Stolle

    January 20, 2012 07:29 PM

    Well said Jake! The fact that we receive eternal life by simply believing is mind boggling and amazing. Thanks for sharing!

  7. Beth Weeks

    February 4, 2012 09:41 AM

    Jake nice job on this devotional. We done in convey is is all about Believing in him and his promises. War Eagle! Glad to have you at HCBC. Our daughter is freshman at Auburn this year. She loves it. We moved to Austin in 1998 from Huntsville AL

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Jake Ridley

Jake Ridley

Hi, my name is Jake Ridley and I am married to my beautiful wife, Lauren, whom I met on Spring Break! Yes, yes, I know what you're thinking...

I grew up in South Georgia and graduated from Auburn University in 2008...WAR EAGLE! I moved to Austin in 2009, and Lauren and I have been attending Hill Country Bible Church since then. I work for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and it is a privilege to serve some of the most influential people (coaches and athletes) in our culture.