Good evening. Tonight, we are going to continue our look at scenes from the movie Facing The Giants. We are following the life of Coach Grant Taylor and those around him. Last week we took a look at giving it our all, and doing things wholeheartedly. Tonight, we come to our next scene.
As we get started, when it comes to your prayer life, what is it that hold you back the most?
Do you ever have a tendency to pray for something, but not really expect God to answer that prayer?
Well, in tonight’s clip, we check in on the Coach after what seems like years upon years of unanswered prayers. At this point, Coach Taylor is getting to the point of giving up. He’s been praying for things to happen. Things like him having a baby, the team to do good, and more importantly, the school to have a revival of some kind. In tonight’s short clip, we see Mr. Bridges tell him a story, and then give him a challenge.
Right now, take a look at this short clip with me. (PLAY CLIP 2 – Prepare For Rain)
Well, what was your reaction to Mr. Bridges’ story about the farmers?
Which farmer to you think you would be?
What did that story reveal to Grant Taylor about Faith?
Mr. Bridges visits Coach Grant Taylor and challenges him to “prepare for rain” by putting feet to his faith and prayers. You see, he had been praying for all of those things, but deep down, he was not living like he trusted God to answer those prayers.
So, the big question for tonight is this, what does it mean to prepare for rain in our own lives? Answer that for me?
Well, in our time together this evening, we are going to be looking at how God works in our lives, with our primary focus on the concept of faith. And in doing so, we will set out to answer 3 key questions that are at the heart of the matter. And the first question is this:
1. Do we act with purpose?
In the beginning, I asked a question that went something like this, do you ever pray for God to help and then act like He won’t answer? And I think that if we are honest with ourselves, there are times that we do just that. It may not be on purpose, but we sometimes pray for things, but fail to act as if God is going to answer them.
It is almost as if we do it simply to be praying. We do it as if to say, “I’ve tried everything else, I might as well pray about it?” But then we don’t expect that to work either.
Well, God has told us, and He has promised us that He would be there for us, but we have to be ready to receive what it is that He promises. And that requires action on our part, and that action is what we call faith!
But what kind of faith is it that we are talking about? Well, we are talking about an active faith. That is, a faith with something behind it to back it up. Because if there is no substance to it, is our faith really faith at all?
Let’s look for a moment at the writings of one person who has a lot to say about faith. If you have your Bibles with you, go ahead and turn with me to James 2:14-18. James has a lot to share about our faith, and in this passage, he is talking about an active faith. James 2:14-18 says, “1”
What stand out to you from that passage?
Well, in that passage, the concept of having no works is referring to a faith that is dead. And notice that it is a past tense verb. It is not in the process of dying, it is dead.
In the situation in which James is writing, his readers, who initially had a living and active faith now have a dead, and inactive faith. Given this illustration, James now drives home the truth he has just illustrated! For emphasis he will state it 3 times. And later James says that just as a man without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
So, as we look at our own lives, which farmer are you? Are you the one that prays for rain, and does nothings, or are you the one that prays for rain, and then you act with purpose, expecting the rain to come?
Are you the one who prepares for rain, or do you just ask for it and stop there? Do you go out and till, and plant seeds, and fertilize the ground? You see, if we do nothing, and pray for rain, when it comes, what do we get? Well, you get a field of dirt that is now a field of mud! But if you prepare for that rain, not only will your faith shine brightly for others to see, but you will have a field that is ready to grow.
God will bring the rain, we need to be ready to receive it!
So, we have seen that we need to be ready for when God sends the rain, but there is another question that plays into real faith, and that is:
2. Does our life reflect our beliefs?
What do you think is meant by that, and why do you think it is important?
Well, does our life reflect what we say we believe? In other words, could someone look at your life and see that you were a person of real faith? Or could they tell it by watching you, or hearing someone else talk about you?
There are many people in scripture whose lives simply oozed with the fact that they were people of real faith. And what we need to realize, is that they were no super human Christians. In fact, they were people just like you and me. They had their flaws and their shortcomings, but their faith stood out as the main characteristic of their lives!
This real and active faith is wonderfully illustrated for us. In Hebrews 11, the phrase “…by faith…” is used 18 times in 31 verses. It could be considered the Hall Of Fame of faithful Christians. It repeatedly demonstrates the faith of those in the Old Testament. They listened to what God had commanded or promised, and then they went into action. For example:
“By Faith” Able offered a better sacrifice, not because of the value, but because of faith.
“By Faith” Enoch passed into the intermediate state without facing death.
“By Faith” Noah, after being warned by God, prepared an ark for the salvation of his family.
“By Faith” Abraham left his family and went to a land he knew nothing of. Now, he was not sinless and perfect. But his life was characterized by a determination to remain faithful.
“By Faith” Abraham offered his son Isaac, believing that God would take care of things.
“By Faith” Israel walked through the Red Sea on dry ground.
“By Faith” Rahab, the prostitute, welcomed the spies, and it saved her family. Because of that, she was blessed and became the great-grandmother of David.
“By Faith” Sarah in her old age received the ability to conceive, all because she remained faithful to God.
Then we have Gideon, Samson, Jeptha, David, Samuel and the Prophets, and the list goes on and on. All of these people lived lives that could be characterized as having real faith.
As you listen to that list of names, and their actions of faith, what does that mean to you in your life?
Well, scripture reveals that God desires for us to trust Him. Here is a summary verse for the entire chapter of Hebrews chapter 11. Hebrews 11:6 says, “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”
So, according to Hebrews, if you really believe in God’s word, you will obey it. If you fear God, you will respect Him and stop doing things that displease Him. If you love Him, you will seek Him and try to please Him. And if you trust God, your life and actions will show that you truly depend upon Him and know that He will reward you.
So, how will your life demonstrate that you prepared for rain? Whether the rain comes when you want it or not, will your live reflect your belief that God will bring the rain. If we trust God, our life actions will show that we truly depend upon Him for all things.
How do our lives demonstrate that we are prepared for rain? Do we have an active faith that gets ready for God to work in our lives? Or do we just sit back and expect nothing. We can’t come in, sit down, and expect God to do it all, to bring the growth, we have a part to play, each one of us.
So the question is, are we playing our part? Because when we do, God brings growth. In I Corinthians 3:6 it says, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow!”
Now, the last question that we will look at this evening is the foundation for all the others. And that last question is this:
3. Do we really believe God?
Do we truly believe that He will answer our prayers and supply our needs?
How does that play out in your life?
If we live a life that oozes with real faith, then the answer to this question would be a resounding “YES!” And if the answer is yes, then it will change the way we look at and interact with the world around us.
Let’s look for a moment beyond the occurrences of faith to the power that faith can have. In Mark 11:20-24 it says, “2”
What is Jesus saying in those verses?
As with other New Testament writers, Mark speaks of the importance and the power of real faith. This passage is perhaps the most striking example of it in all of scripture.
Jesus says that one who has faith without doubt could even command a mountain to jump into the sea. This real faith is not only our active belief in God, but it is a belief in the ability to ask for the proper thing.
God will give us what we need, and many times what we want, but it has to be in align with what His will is. Many times, we as Christians don’t receive what we ask for in prayer because we doubt God’s ability to bring it about, or because it is not what God wants for us.
So, do we really believe that God will answer our prayers?
Now, before we close this evening, does anyone have anything that they would like to add?
Well, if there is nothing else, scripture clearly shows us that we should act on our faith instead of simply saying we have faith. Because God is pleased when we trust in Him. He calls us to show faith by how we live. Having faith does not exclude action it requires it! Real faith causes people to trust God’s promises, believe in His power, and obey His words. Jesus said we should ask, seek, and knock. Faith doesn’t stop activity, it inspires it! And when we show God we trust Him, we are preparing ourselves, and our environment to see Him at work. So, are we allowing Him to work in our lives? He wants to more than anything, but we have to be prepared.
You have prayed about it, but have you had enough faith to prepare for it as well?
Hebrews 11:6 says, “… without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”
Let’s Pray!
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