Who’s Afraid of The Big Bad Wolf ….
Exhort, lift up God and get in one mind.
But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace, be unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.
(John 20:24-29)
[Title & Prayer & Be seated]
I was praying about a situation not too long ago, and the Lord reminded me of a few old stories we learn as children, the story of the three little pigs and a big bad wolf, and little red riding hood.
For those that might not remember these stories let me give you a quick over view. In The Three Little pigs, three brother pigs wanted to leave mamas house. They built themselves houses, two were torn down by BB Wolfe Wrecking crew and the wolf had him to meals. But the Pig that wasn’t afraid and had faith in the rock in which he had built on, that pig was safe and defeated the wolf.
The original version of little red riding hood had a young woman heading to her grandmothers house. She met a wolf that gave her bad directions, he lied to her and misguided her purposely; then he took the shortcut and got to granny first, then he ate granny and waited for Red. Red got there found out it wasn’t granny and screamed and ran off. The wolf started gnawing on red but luckily a woodsman had heard the scream and came and hacked up the Wolf. Red learned the lesson of misplacing faith in dark strangers.
DEFINE:
A) Merriam-Webster
firm belief in something for which there is no proof
B) Hebrews 11:1-3 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
C) My Definition of True faith can be defined as this, Believing God AND His Word, despite reason and the naysayers. Now true religion can be defined as acting on the previously mentioned belief.
Faithless Prayers Don’t Move God, the Bible says it’s the effectual fervent prayer that gets attention.
From our text, faith is the key to everything because if you need God to move at all, you must have faith to believe he is going to do it. According to the book of Romans, Faith is something we all have regardless of your education level, social status, race or national origin, and its something me must increase on!
In every aspect of life we are challenged & asked to believe. From Doctors reports, x-rays and MRIs, to parents and children and even the law of gravity. It as this point, we are asked to believe and that’s fine, we don’t doubt a single aspect of it……….. But when God steps on the scene and says trust in me, I can fix it. All of a sudden we got a problem.
This is when the wolf mindset sets in.
This is when the big bad wolf steps in, You know how it is.
You get fearful because of the wolf.
Explain the wolf: Money; Health; Relationships; Stress; Time.
1 Peter says to be sober and vigilant because the adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. You know this verse say as or like or simulating a lions characteristics. You know wolves, like lions, can either hunt in packs or alone. They also have big teeth, and big appetites. They are big creatures and must rely on sneak attacks and overpowering numbers. Stop being afraid of the big bad wolf, because he ain’t nothing but a coward.
It was the wolf that snuck around and devoured the fearful two pigs that didn’t build upon the rock. It was the same wolf that that got grandma and would have got little red riding hood if it wasn’t for the brave woodsman….. he is always seeking someone to destroy. And it is this same wolf hat is after us today. First he will try to destroy your faith, but then he will try to destroy what you have built and then you.
So its the wolf that tells you to say, “You know God that doctor has a degree and has been in the practice for a good number of years.” This is when you need to tell that wolf, hey where was that doctor when God said let there be light, I think he has been in the practice a lot longer then him. But then again, you can’t call what God does a practice because God knows what he is doing! Amen.
We need to get in mind who is really in control; its not George Bush, its not the United States Government, its not the Russian or Chinese Governments……it’s the government that is set upon HIS shoulders, its God that is in control.
The Lord Reigneth Let The Earth Rejoice.
If you need something from God, you have to believe that he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him. You’ve got to believe that God reigns; not just in heaven, but in our ever day lives.
Belief is a requirement of God for anything to work. You know back in the Garden they didn’t believe that God would kill them for not sticking to the diet, they believed the lie of the wolf in a serpent’s form, let’s not listen to the wolf tonight, and let’s listen to God.
Tonight the wolf is in some of our ears, telling us that we aren’t important.
He is telling us that when we are try doing anything that would benefit the kingdom of God, we get rejected or fail so why even try again.
He tells the Sunday School Teachers, that the kids don’t care and aren’t learning so why bother studying the lesson with any care.
He tells the Outreachers that they labor is in vain because no one else will help on out reach or try to help disciple those that we reach, so why try?
He tells the Backslider, that the church doesn’t love them anymore, that they will still hold there sins against them and hold all their past against them, so why try?
He tells the Ministry to focus on job and family more then the ministry and their relationship with God or else they will loose everything, and that it’s ok to consecutively house of God.
He tells the Saint called to do a work for the Lord in one of the many ministries available, that they couldn’t be called because the only so-called ministry that gets attention or is true ministry is from behind a pulpit.
He tells the Saint with the Servants Heart, that is doing many of the behind the scenes things at the church that because they don’t get recognized often that they are unappreciated.
He tells the Worshiper that they look like a fool that they don’t need to be acting like that, because God wants us to be calm and mundane.
He Tells Pastor that he will never do enough to effect this world for God’s Kingdom, that he has to be so heavily involved with every ministry started within the church that he gets little rest and that its ok to ignore any health problems that arise and just keep starting new works in the slight chance that he MIGHT make a difference.
He told Thomas that a man couldn’t rise up from the dead even though he had seen it happen before……
And he is in the ears of The Rest of Us, telling some that the preacher forgot to mention what you do so you mustn’t be that important; and for others he is telling you that because of your past and present condition, all of the sin will hold you down forever and there is no need to try and reach God. There is no hope for salvation with the way you have sinned, and what his favorite saying is you don’t really want salvation to begin with.
Let Me Tell You About The Wolf One More Time
Liar & the father of it. He couldn’t tell the truth if he had to.
Don’t let him tell you that because you have committed sins that you have no chance of salvation. Adultery, fornication, strip clubs, drugs and alcohol abuse, it doesn’t matter, because God is still in the saving business.
Defeated Foe He lost the battle 2 millennia ago at Calvary and we were given the power to tread upon Him n the day of Pentecost.
Tonight you Can Get Want You Want From God Tonight. Because NOW Faith is the substance of things hope for and the evidence of things not seen.
Prayer line for those that the Lord has impressed on the heart.
