Sermon Title: Believing – What is it?
Scripture Text: 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 (NLT)
1 Kings 12 - Tell the story:
-Solomon had died
-Son, Rehoboam, inherited the Kingdom
-The people came and ask him to ease up on all the taxes and forced labor.
-Rehoboam called the older advisor that were with his father.
-They told him to ease up
-Rehoboam called the younger advisors that he had picked. They had grown up rich, educated and wanting nothing.
-They advised to tell them that he would become harder if they didn't continue to work and pay taxes.
-There was an uprising against Rehoboam and he fled to Jerusalem for safety. They got a new ruler.
==Where does wisdom come from? For me I seek out Christians that believe in Jesus Christ. Those that are proven leaders, mature in their Christian walk and those that have accomplished good things in their life. Those that are lead by God though His Holy Spirit.
Let me ask you this:
Can wise people do foolish deeds? Do the foolish ever have wise thoughts? Is our wisdom affected by our level of spirituality?
Waits
Here are some items from our Bible to mull over in our minds:
The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice (Proverbs 12:15).
* Advice doesn't have to be taken but I respect the advise of a good Christian. I can get insights into things I would never have through of on my own.
The five who were foolish didn’t take enough olive oil for their lamps, but the other five were wise enough to take along extra oil. (Matthew 25: 3, 4).
* Be prepared.
A wise person thinks a lot about death, while a fool thinks only about having a good time (Ecclesiastes 7:4).
* Why think about death? It comes to us all and then ? We meet our maker!
The wise have wealth and luxury, but fools spend whatever they get (Proverbs 21:20)
* Wealth and luxury isn’t always “things”. Most likely wealth and luxury is more of a personal thing and the way they live their lives.
**There's a song called “Hurt”. In it the singer sings about an empire of dirt. When the end comes its not what we own or did. It’s about us and our God.
Wise words bring approval, but fools are destroyed by their own words. (Ecclesiastes 10:12).
*Wise words can be short and reach deep. Many words that brings confusion(s) and conclusion(s) that proves a person is ignorant of what its all about.
**Twisting Scriptures to make it say something it doesn't say shows ignorant’s.
Now here the reading of God’s Word:
1 Corinthians 1:18-25 NLT
18 The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. 19 As the Scriptures say,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise
and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.”
20 So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. 21 Since God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. 22 It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. 23 So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense.
24 But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.
The Word of God – for the people of God.
Romans 10:
9that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. 11for the scripture says, “whoever believes in him will not be disappointed.” 12for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same lord is lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on him; 13for “whoever will call on the name of the lord will be saved.”
Like they say on TV ? Listen to me now:
1. To believe in your heart means to believe apart from your mind and your body. Thinking is of the mind; believing is of the heart. Believing in your heart means believing independent of what your five physical senses may indicate.
2. To believe in your heart means “to live in accordance with your heart.” If you really believe that God raised Jesus from the dead, then you will live in accordance with who you are in Christ. You will live in accordance with who you are, what you are, and what you can do because Jesus is alive today, and because God has identified you with Him.
3. To believe in your heart means to act on God’s Word. The word “believe” is an action verb. Believing is the equivalent to taking action. The purpose of believing and speaking is so that you can put God’s Word into practice. Believing refers to practicing the Word of God. Believing refers to taking action on the words that you have been speaking. The real evidence of your belief is the way you act.
Romans 10: 24 But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength.
How do I know this is true? Because He touched my Heart and I confessed Him with my mouth. Because of that I feel Him deep within my soul. DO YOU?
