Word based faith

Let me share with you briefly something that the Lord has been putting there in my heart since last Wednesday. Let's say that it is a continuation of the message that I shared with you last Wednesday. Do you remember last Wednesday we talked about what? how we walk As the text said, oh, well, they sort of fell asleep.

Ok, let me do a parenthesis, let's do a parenthesis. I want you to grab the person next to you and tickle him or something, get up, if he's asleep. Ok, they woke up. We were talking last Wednesday about this idea: we walk by faith and not by sight and this was a passage that was talking about how God has placed a treasure in us that is the treasure of his power in the midst of our lives, but that it is not power that can often be measured by physical things around us, but rather it is something that one has to believe and receive, as I was saying right now by faith.

This is something that only works and operates in our midst by faith. The element of faith in our Christian life, my brothers, is key. None of us can be called a Christian if he hasn't been. Even if you doubt but if you doubt and have faith you can call yourself a true and genuine Christian. But without the element of faith, I don't know, he is a philosopher or a philosopher who is only thinking about esoteric things or something like that.

But look, go with me to the book of Ephesians, chapter 3, from verse 14. Today I am going to talk about faith in what? Faith in what? faith in love You put your faith in love. There are some who put their faith in money. Money, Money, Money….. there are others who put their faith in another person, but faith in what? ok, let's go to the text, Ephesians, chapter 3, verse 14 says like this:

“…for this reason I bow my knees before the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name, so that he may give you, according to the riches of glory, again that idea that there is a treasure that is placed in clay vessels, which he gives according to the riches of his glory to be strengthened with dynamite…. Being fortified with rice and beans, being fortified with a good chop or rib, whatever you like…. I already made you hungry, right? Being strengthened….the most likely thing is that someone will say that this is their favorite passage and I completely demolished it. I have made a heresy here and now. No, …. May he give them strength with power in the inner man or woman by their spirit so that they inhabit, who?, why? where?. Ok, let's stop there.

So that Christ may dwell through faith in their hearts. There are 4 things that I want to mention to you today. What faith my brothers, what do you think our faith is based on? Our faith is based on the person of Christ Jesus but Paul in Romans 9 says that our faith is by hearing and hearing of what? of the word of God. Everything we believe is based on the word of God, is based on the things that have come out, the pronunciations that God has made of his own word, from his mouth, that come out of his heart. If the Bible says that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks, that also applies to God himself. That when God speaks, when God decrees a word is a word that is coming out of the depths of his heart and when it comes out of his heart, that comes out of his mouth, that word has an effect on the person who receives it.

Our faith is founded, it is grounded in that word of God. It is not just this written word but in the word that God declares over your life day after day and night after night, minute by minute, second by second. Are you going to say, Pastor Omar, do you think that God is speaking to you non-stop all the time? No, not necessarily, but I believe that the word of God is constant, it is eternal. It has no beginning or end. It may be that you have received a word from the Lord in your heart or in your life some 5, 10, 15, 20 years ago and you may think that this word was in that season, back then, but that does not cancel that word. word but that word continues to be alive and active and continues to be refreshed in the midst of his being.

What does the book of Hebrews tell us? That the word of God is what? let's read it. The word of God is alive and effective and sharper than any two-edged sword and penetrates to the point of dividing the soul, the spirit, the joints and the marrow. And the best part, and discern, what?, the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Hebrews 4:12 just in case they don't know.

I tell them, the word of God has pepa, as a good Puerto Rican would say, it has turkey. When God decides to say something nothing stops him. What's more, another of my favorite passages, I'm going to read them to you. I am sharing favorite passages with you today. Isaiah, look at this, Isaiah chapter 55, verse 10, beginning in verse 10, it says:

"... because as the rain and snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth and make it germinate and produce, and it gives seed and to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats, look how he says, so shall the word be that proceeds from the mouth of Jehovah. She will not return empty but will do what I want, this is God, and she will prosper in that for which God sends her..."

Faith in what? word, promise I don't know how many remember that verse that he says, because God is not a man to lie nor a son of man to repent. Where is that? Numbers, Numbers book, I know because I looked it up, I had to spend a little while looking for it. Numbers, chapter 23, verse 19:

"... God is not a man to lie nor a son of man to repent, he said and will not do, he spoke and will not execute..."

Look, I can continue listing books, passages, verses that precisely emphasize this truth of God, that once and God decrees a word about his sons, his daughters, that word creates what will happen in due time. That seed in due time is going to be given.

And look, let me tell you something, just for the comfort of your lives and your hearts, not all seeds grow at the same time, mind you. Let me say it again because I don't know if you got it. Not all seeds grow at the same time. How many of you once did an experiment in your bean school, right? How many did that experiment once, right? In how many days does that shoot start to come out? At 3 days, at 3 days that rapid shoot begins to emerge. How many have planted a mango seed? How to say mango, mango, is that I put the accent on the o. the mango seed, how long does it take to sprout? That takes longer, there we are already talking about…. How is? You even forget that you planted it and when you come to see, you say, where did that tree come from? 3 months later one has a mango tree in the patio of the house.

Look, my brothers and sisters, right now it is very interesting, for me this is very revealing, because right now it is the seed of the word of God in the midst of our hearts. It could be that you received that seed when you were 5 years old, but that seed was there, and perhaps it wasn't until your... until now, we're going to leave it that way so as not to reveal the years that have passed, it wasn't until now that that seed it began to germinate, it began to emerge and a shoot began to emerge. Each seed grows at the time that God has determined.

Paul in First Corinthians he is talking about this dilemma that people have that some have favoritism, that some say that oh, I prefer to follow the teachings of Paul, I prefer to follow the teachings of Apollo, and what does Paul tell him respond to these people? Look, my brothers, what is Pablo and what is Apollo? Only servants through whom you have believed and that according to what each one conceived the Lord. I planted Apollo watered, but who gives the growth? God. God is the one who gives growth.

Faith in what? faith in the promises and in the words of God about our lives. That faith, my brothers, that faith, as we were saying last week, brings into our lives a power that no other person can experience. That faith in our lives causes something, as I was saying, there is a treasure and that treasure is that power of God, that anointing of God that is in vessels that can break at any moment, but that is where God has deposited it and that faith He is in our midst for a purpose, not just the purpose of keeping us aligned with the will and purpose of the Father, of being able to live in a reconciled way with him, of turning away from sin and living for God, by God and in God. Those are the purposes it has but at the same time that faith directs us to fulfill what God has for our lives. That faith gives us a sense of reason for being, it gives us a purpose, it gives us a direction in which we can proceed. That if distractions come around us or if those distractions try to separate us, as they say, from what God has for us, that faith is the one that returns and guides us once again in the plans and intentions that God has for us. our lives.

Let me read you this other verse in Ephesians chapter 2, I'm sort of reading Paul's train of thought here. Ephesians chapter 2, verse 8, look what it says.

"... because by grace you are saved through faith, once again, and this is not from us since this is a gift from God, not by works so that no one can boast, look here is where the emphasis is that I I want to do, because we are God's workmanship…”

In other words, we are a piece of art in the hands of God, we are made by him. Look how he says:

“…created in Christ Jesus for good works….”

Look, let me share my dilemma, here I am going to open my heart. I don't know how many times we try to use this psalm that says, “…delight yourself in Jehovah and he will give you the desires of your heart…? TRUE? Psalm 37. And we can take our faith and tie it, we tie our faith many times to that text and say, I have faith that everything I ask of the Lord, well, the Lord will give it to me. And there are times when we get stuck in it and it's like nobody gets me out of there. God has to grant my request because it is his promise, it is his word and he has to grant it to me.

But look, this is where my dilemma lies because there are times when those things that we ask for are not aligned with the works for which God created us in Christ Jesus. Do you follow my line of thought where am I going? That idea of I also delight myself in Jehovah, what that phrase entails is this sense: that I delight myself in Jehovah means, Lord, I delight myself in whatever you want for me. My delight is in doing your will. My delight is not only in wanting to achieve the things that I personally want and it is clear, full stop. It does not mean that one is not going to, as they say, be proactive and enterprising in the things that one wants in life. I believe that there are plans, that there are purposes that the Lord blesses, that are obviously in one, goals that one wants to achieve and that I am sure that the Lord will say, hey, let's go for it. Come on, reach her, I'm with you. I miss you. Go ahead.

I am sure that our faith can also be applied to that context where if something comes out in us, well, look, what does God say, what does a grandfather do with his grandchildren? Consent, that God for consenting to you well look, he says, do you want that? Let's go, go for it. But there are other things, my brothers, where our personal desires will conflict with the desires of God's heart. Not necessarily because they are bad but because perhaps, for that time, for that season, for that moment in your life they are not aligned with the desires of God's heart for you or me.

And this is difficult to assimilate, my brothers, it is difficult to assimilate this. But I am saying it with a purpose because when I read that text, created in Christ Jesus for good works, look what it says next, I have not reached the other part, “…. Which God prepared beforehand for us to walk in..."

I don't know about you, but that smells like God is telling us, that's for me to know and for you to find out. That's for me to know and for you to find out what it is. It's like God obviously knows, God knows the plan, God knows the way, God sees far beyond what we see and in that way we are going to have our stumbling blocks and our decisions and what do I know, and obviously God is going to having to do a lot of troubleshooting with us, to get back on track with what he intended for us, but be that as it may, that faith that is placed in us comes to even greater life when we use that power to truly discover those works that God wants us to do and be able to live in light of them.

When we are aligned with that feeling, look, our life of faith takes on a totally different meaning, it takes on a totally different meaning because there is a very big difference: living life with the desire to want to do something or achieve something versus living life with a sense of vocation and with a sense of calling.

When we live our lives that way, believe me, no matter how many times you stray from the path, that sense of calling and vocation will bring you back into alignment once again.

I was talking last week with my brother Roberto, Roberto if you don't mind I'm going to mention our conversation, by the way, I heard great things from that message, God bless you and may that word continue to bear fruit, so glory to God that's why. But I was talking with Roberto, we were talking and we were talking about precisely that, many times that we have experienced in our lives that we thought we were on the right path but as we went around, we realized that it was like, that's not the way. And the only thing that we could understand and experience that straightened our steps once again was the faith that we both had in that sense of call that God had placed in the midst of our lives, that although it was a call that we received long ago, but Whether it was 15 or 17 years ago that we received that, that word that God decreed, that God sowed, that God cooked it and sealed it with his spirit in our lives, that was the word that in those moments returned and directed us.

They were moments where maybe God spoke to us through a direct impression on our hearts and let us know, like, there's something weird here, I have to come back again. As we both experienced men and women of God that prophetically God used them to remind us precisely of that call that God had in our lives, and those words the Lord used to refresh that in our minds and in our hearts and return once again to the path.

But the interesting ones, you know what? it was when God used stones to remind us of that call. You know what I mean, right? The people you least expected, ladies and gentlemen not yet Christians, Juan Pedro came out of the house and I don't know where the hell from, the house, exactly, and suddenly he comes and says something to someone that makes you feel like Which, wow, this is literally God speaking through the stones.

God is going to find a way for that seed that was sown in you to grow in its time, to grow in its season. And not only the growth but also its fruit. Growth and fruit go together. And this my brothers, we believe everything by faith.

Faith in what? it is not faith in our own strength, it is not faith in our own wisdom or intelligence. Look, our own strength can go away like this, just as we pray to be able to sleep well, likewise the anxieties of life can come and spoil your sleep again, but in the name of Jesus that will not happen. Amen.

But when our faith is grounded in those words, in those promises of the Lord that when I remember what the Scripture says, heaven and earth will pass away, but his word will not pass away, the word of God is eternal. The word of God has neither beginning nor end. It will have a beginning and an end in our lives but in God it does not. God dwells in eternity and from eternity God comes and floods our space, God floods our environment and begins to give us a new facet to everything we are, everything we do, everything I say, everything we I think, everything I do. That I can have the faith that if I see someone who I know is struggling, who is down, that faith in me will not allow that person's anxieties to tell me like, ah, you don't have hope , jump off a bridge.

But that faith that God has placed in me is going to force me, it is going to force me, yes, it is a duty, it is going to force me to tell that person, look, no, God has not finished with you. God has his purposes with you. Don't give up, don't pass out, get up, look up at him. Your boyfriend or girlfriend dumped you, you've had a divorce or you were fired from a job, whatever it is, or you got kicked out of your country, whatever it is, look, don't lose heart, keep your faith in the Lord, keep your faith affirmed in the purposes, in the promises that God has declared about you.

What's more, I am going to underline something now and I say it trusting in the Lord with complete certainty. It could be that at some point in your life someone said a word about you that maybe even confused you, that you said like, wow, it's out of order, what happened there? It may be that someone wanted to say a word to you with their good intentions but that word kind of misrepresented something in you. Look, I tell you, in the name of Jesus that even the words that were said incorrectly the Lord can take them and make something good out of them. The Lord can take that seed that perhaps fell on the wrong ground that God can take it once more and put it on the ground that it has to go. Or a word that perhaps was communicated with equivocal intentions, the Lord can take those words and throughout your life can give a new shape and a new direction to those words and those promises.

What if maybe someone told you, ah, you are going to marry a pastor and you are going to have 4 children, and 2 of them are going to be twins and maybe not even in your life have you married a pastor and had a girl and it came out with faucet hair…. Part of God's beauty, my hair represents that too. But the issue is my brothers, let's say that the essence of that word was that you could have a fruitful life, that perhaps the fruit at that time was measured by having a husband, a wife of such caliber and so many children. But the blessing that God had, the measure that God had for you has been reflected in other ways. But it is still the same blessing from God that was declared upon you.

That is also produced by faith. Faith produces that, my brothers. This is material for another post. But faith produces this, that any word that has been declared over your life, any promise that has been declared over your life, look, faith allows one to say, Lord, let it be your will and not mine. If that word that has been given to me in the way that it was decorated and presented to me, if there is something in that package that you want to change throughout my life, that faith that is in me, that power that is in me It will allow me to say, Lord, give me the discernment so that I know how this package is going to unfold throughout my life. And so that I can know how to discern how you shape it to know how to respond to that call of yours.

Faith in what? Finally, as we said at the beginning, faith in the Lord Jesus himself, which is a word that comes from there.

My brothers and sisters, I invite you, let's pray. I believe that God is encouraging us so that our faith can be strengthened, that our faith can be grounded more and more in the Lord, and you know what? I tell you, life is not easy, the Lord Jesus himself warned us that in the world we are going to have afflictions, there are going to be people who are going to give us headaches, there are going to be situations that are going to be contrary to what we one expected or what one wanted to live, but that does not imply that these situations are absent from the power of God.

It is your faith, that faith that is in you, that power that has been poured into you, that power that has been deposited on that vessel that is corruptible, it is that faith that is going to allow God to permeate all things. It is that faith that when one is in the boat that is being beaten from side to side by the winds and the waves, it is that faith that allows me to be confident knowing that the Lord has control of my boat. That although the boat can catch water for a while, but the Lord is going to take care of keeping me afloat.

And look, I dare say, if the boat sinks, the Lord is going to bring you a life preserver to keep your head above water. And if you end up underwater, he'll bring you an oxygen tank with a mask and tube so you can breathe. Receive that word, my brothers, because that is faith. That is faith.

God meets you in the air here on earth and under the earth and in the water too, God meets you. Now, don't go diving under the water on purpose, for the record. We don't have gills like fish to breathe underwater.

Let's pray, my brothers, let's pray. Lord Jesus, how beautiful and admirable are your works, above all how beautiful is the word that you speak to our lives. Lord, your word that has no limits, your word that transcends traditions, transcends religions, transcends ethnic, cultural backgrounds, my God, of experiences, your word that reaches children, that reaches young people, that reaches adults, that reaches elders, your word that reaches those who speak English as well as those who speak Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Swahili, whatever Portuguese, you know, your word has no limits. What's more, your word has a language that is from heaven, which does not compare to the languages that are on this earth.

But nevertheless, your word arrives and invades our spaces, invades our time, invades our agendas, invades our lives, but invades it with a purpose and with a divine purpose, with eternal purposes because you know the thoughts you have for us, Lord , thoughts of good and not of evil, to give us the end that we hope is an end full of you, Lord, an end my God, which is defined by your glory, Lord, an end that is full of height, depth , the length of your love, Lord.

And we do not have to wait until the end to experience that, but by faith we can live it today, at this very moment, Lord, each one in his chair and in the community with our brothers and sisters we can experience that blessing of what which is to live in you, for you, for you, Lord.

Father, I beg you that through these words that have come out of my mouth, Lord, I ask that the faith of each one of my brothers and sisters tonight may be further affirmed, that despite the doubts, Lord, their faith may be strengthened in your word, Lord, in your promises over their lives.

Oh my God, it doesn't matter what stage of growth that seed is at. Father that the ground of those hearts can be constantly nourished by you, Lord. You have brought people who have planted a seed, you have brought people who water that seed, Lord, with fresh water, some may try to water it with dirty, contaminated water, but whatever the case, Lord, you are in charge of giving the growth in that seed, Lord. There is a seed in our hearts, there are some hearts that already have a complete plant, there are some that have a complete bush, there are some that are giving and experiencing their fruits, Lord, there are different stages that are represented here. More, however, what defines and what unites each of them is you. You are the element that unifies each of these experiences, the nutrient, Lord, that feeds our lives.

So, Lord, today our faith receives those nutrients that only come from you, Lord. I declare faith over the life of each one of my brothers, Lord, faith that if they cannot see that light at the end of the tunnel, my God, that today they can leave here seeing not only the light but also the exit , Mister. Father, I declare faith to receive supernatural wisdom, faith to know how to manage the resources that you put in our hands, both at the family level, at the personal level, and at the work level, Lord, faith to know how to deal with interpersonal relationships, faith, Lord, to know how to get closer to you, grow, in the purposes that you have for our lives. We give glory only to you, Lord. Receive, my God, from us, from your church the honor and honor, my God, it is all for you, Lord. We adore you Jesus. Thank you, thank you, Lord, thank you for your word, for your promises. We say yes and amen to each one of them in the name of Jesus. Amen, Lord. Thanks God.