Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”
John 20:29
God has created us all in His image and likeness (Genesis 1:26). He is triune in that He is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, three in one. Likewise, we humans are triune in that we are made of body, soul, and spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23), again, three in one. Adam is the only recorded human being who enjoyed the symbiotic relationship of his body, soul, and spirit. Since his downfall, every human being has struggled with the inner disharmony caused by the sin nature. We have all experienced the daily struggle of keeping the faith and the war between our flesh and spirit that the apostle Paul mentions in Romans 7 and Galatians 5.
One of the areas of that daily conflict is our faith in Christ. Over and over again, the outside influence experienced by our flesh, wars against our spirit which is telling us that Jesus is the answer to all things. Unforeseen tragedy, the loss of a loved one, unfortunate circumstances, the loss of a job or relationship, all play havoc with our faith. The early church fathers struggled with keeping their faith as well as Jesus’ disciples. In fact, the Bible exposes two of the most famous disciples who struggled so much with their faith that at one time in their life they denied Jesus.
The first disciple is Peter, the “Rock” whom Jesus said He’d build His church upon (Matthew 16:18). Peter even exclaimed to Jesus that he’d die for Him (Matthew 26:21-35). Yet, when Peter faced an angry crowd and was accused of being a follower of Christ, he vehemently denied knowing Him not only once, but three times! After Jesus was resurrected and spent some time with the disciples we see a new Peter, with a renewed faith, exclaim boldly before the Sanhedrin (who had the power to take his life) that Jesus was Lord!
The second disciple is Thomas, unfortunately referred to as “doubting” Thomas. Before receiving the Holy Spirit, he boldly pronounced his faith in Jesus as the Son of God and was willing to lay down his life for Christ (John 11:16). Later, one simple incident labeled him for life. Somewhere between Jesus’ last day on earth and his resurrection, Thomas lost his faith. The object of his faith seemed to vanish into thin air. But then Jesus appeared and restored his faith with a single act of kindness.
Let’s admit that we all struggle with keeping the faith at times. We’re human and we struggle with life. The disciple’s examples reveal that to us. However, let us remind ourselves that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual darkness (Ephesians 6:12-20). Like Peter and Thomas, let us put on the full armor of God, immersing ourselves in His Holy Word and devoting ourselves to fervent prayer. Jesus is REAL, and He has promised to increase our faith if we will just seek Him daily.
Eyes on Christ,
Dave
For more articles on faith, read Defending the Faith, Walking in the Light, Behold, I am with You! and The Battle is the Lord’s.
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