Do You Believe? 

Maybe today is grocery day, and your list has grown over the past week.  When you go online to view your bank account and see enough money there, you act on that information.  Most of the time, you believe this report because, let’s face it, you trust your bank, or else you wouldn’t trust your money with them.  If you saw that your account was overdrawn, then you’d probably believe that.  You might even notice a little knot in your stomach and feel your blood pressure elevate, but ultimately, you’d act on the news accordingly.  Because you believe it. 

There are inflection points in life.  Usually, they occur on the eve of a major crisis like war, a pandemic, or a personal tragedy.  Pam and I have dear friends who lost their precious little girl in a car accident.  It was an inflection point for their faith, as they faced unimaginable pain and so many difficult questions.  Trials and afflictions can hit with such force that you’re left wondering, What do I believe? Who do I believe?  Whether it's a global disaster or a personal tragedy, there are always well-meaning family members, officials, and experts ready to opine on your distress.  The real challenge is, who do you believe?  We act on what we believe.

When people are afraid, there’s a panic to find a voice they can trust.  A credible expert to believe.  Understand this: God blesses us with doctors, scientists, civil servants, corporate leaders, pastors, and prophetic voices.  Plumbers solve plumbing problems.  Pilots and their crews solve a need for air travel.  God provides a diversity of disciplines as a blessing to our peace and wellbeing, but none of them are meant to be the center of our belief.  Even with regard to spiritual ministry, 1 John 4:1 says, “Do not put faith in every spirit, but test the spirits to discover whether they proceed from God; for many false prophets have gone forth into the world.”  How much more should we prove the validity of a secular directive, no matter how well intentioned?  To believe in God is to trust in Him with all of your heart.  Diversification, in this matter, is deadly. 

We act on what we truly believe.  If we really believe the bridge is out ahead, we stop and pull over.  No matter how smooth the road feels under us, if we believe the bridge is out, we act on our belief.  Now, let’s be honest.  Many of us say we believe certain things, but we never act on them.  You may say you believe those burgers at your favorite food chain aren’t good for you, but indulging two or three times a week tells us that you don’t really believe that.  You act on what you believe.  A blood test with your cardiologist shaking her head might be more the information you act on.  When she says to choose between the burgers and living more years on earth, that’s something you may believe.  If so, I’m almost certain you’ll be saving money on burgers from now on.  That’s because you act on what you believe.

Jesus was talking to a faithful woman named Martha.  Her brother Lazarus had just died, and she was filled with grief.  In her pain, she blamed Jesus for not showing up in time to save her brother.  Jesus replied in John 11:25–26. “I am the resurrection and the life.  Whoever believes in Me, although he may die, yet he shall live;  And whoever continues to live and believes in Me shall never [actually] die at all.  Do you believe this?” What a question to ask this grieving sister! “Do you believe this?” 

To believe is to trust, to rely upon.  Martha was in a hot moment, and she was pulling on her belief that if only Jesus had been here, things would be different.  Jesus redirected her faith to a much higher level.  Instead of believing in the “if-only’s” of life, she placed her trust back in Jesus.  Here was her response to “Do you believe?”  Martha answered, “Yes, Lord, I do believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God.” 

You might be facing a wall of adversity.  You might be the one who got that terrible doctor’s report.  Maybe you made decisions in the heat of the pandemic that you regret or wish you could rewrite.  God makes all things new.  He is the Redeemer.  God is the Restorer.  By Jesus stripes, you were healed.  You may struggle to believe as you wrestle with the bad news, but greater is He who is in you than He who is in the world.  Let Jesus help you act by shifting your attention off of the if-only’s.  Be redirected to trusting in God’s plans.  Your part is to meditate and act on His report, His words, and His good news.  Do you believe?  Yes, you do, so act by waiting on the Lord.  Look into the eyes of Jesus for as long as it takes, and you will believe until you receive every promise of resurrection life. 

Pray the Word: 

Dear Lord Jesus, we respond to you like Martha did and say, Yes, Lord, I do believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God.  Now help us, Lord!  May Your Holy Spirit abide with us and in us every hour of every day.  We place all of our trust in You.  We refuse to lean on our own strength or understanding any longer.  Lord, we recommit to You all of our hearts.  We believe—yes, we believe—that You are the resurrection and the life.  Now impart the boldness we need to act on it.  All in Jesus name, amen!