“Joy And Peace In Believing”

Romans 15:7-13

7) Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.

8) Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers:

9) And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name.

10) And again he saith, Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people.

11) And again, Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles; and laud him, all ye people.

12) And again, Esaias saith, There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust.

13) Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.

J

oy and peace are two of the most important things for which Man looks. Sadly, most never find either because most never find, or learn to believe God.

Today, people easily say that “I believe Jesus,” but generally, this means that “I believe that He existed.” Obviously, if one actually believed in Him, he would do nothing contrary to His word but would do something about his life. Even unsaved people believe that there may not be a year 2000, yet they do not believe enough to get saved. Regardless of when Jesus returns, we must be prepared to accompany Him, which means that we must be ready today, for we “…know not the day nor the hour…”

When one is established in Jesus and standing on His promises, he will have joy and peace because he believes the word of God. This is a prerequisite to receiving anything from God. “Believing” of, is the key word. Too often, we deal with what we understanding, as opposed to our simply accepting what God says.

The point of salvation is to relieve us of our earthly concerns that we might be turned to our heavenly Father’s business. That we might accomplish this, He has promised in His word to take care of us. Not only are we blessed through this, but this is His way of confirming to the rest of the world what He has already said.

“Believing” not only affords us joy and peace, but also, our salvation. One needs peace to be able to stand firm with family and friends who will attempt to dissuade us from any and all positive changes. One needs peace to exist in a world whose very operation is contrary to decency and “right.”

Salvation is not a concept to be taught, but rather a life to be lived. It is something that others must see. The saved individual is obligated to live a holy life before God, for someone else’s life depends upon it. All the more tragic is that people are in terrible situations, today, and in many cases, God has done everything He could to deliver them. Some have refused to stop leaning on their own understanding. Others have been allowed their excuses until God pays His “trump card”—us and our lives. Seeing someone actually do this gives inspiration, hope, encouragement, conviction, and sometimes condemnation.

How can we not believe the same God Who told the sun to rule by day and the moon to rule by night? How can we not believe the God Who said, “Let there be…” and there was? We are to have joy because we know Who Jesus is! We can have peace because we know that all things are committed to Him! How much does it really take to praise Him Who did not leave us in the condition in which He found us, but delivered us to eternal life?

There is a certain amount of joy that we need to have, for without something to “soften the blows” of this World, we would not make it. Since scripture tells us to ask for wisdom if we lack it, we need to reach down into our reserve of joy and get from the Holy Ghost!

Those who have been living without the “fringe benefits” of the Holy Ghost need to understand that God expects a change. Particularly after one professes a change; professes understanding and a willingness to accept His mandates, the Lord is looking for and expecting a change.

We must face the fact that people are “falling through the cracks” nowadays. Why? Most likely because of a lack of self-motivation. Is it not reasonable to expect that if one is motivated enough to come and get saved, that same motivation should keep one moving forward in the Lord?

The saints of God have been concerned about themselves for too long. We must start helping people. We do others a great disservice when we prove to be unstable. When we show that we have no stand, people go away without the answers they need, but with excuses.

Be it known today that everyone baptized and filled with the Holy Ghost should be standing firm in the Lord. Unfortunately, it seems as if more of us are standing firm in ourselves and what we want. You see, people get “off track” when they begin dealing with only those things which benefit themselves. Since our individual situations and circumstances change, it will be impossible to be “rooted and grounded” when one’s foundation is oneself.

Do you really think that one who focus on what he can and cannot do; what he does and does not like can really accomplish anything for a God Who specializes in the positive aspect of all situations? Part of our problem is not being able to “see” (with the natural eye) how something we need or something the Lord has said, will be accomplished. Because He knew everything would not always be clear, he left us the forceful “I can do all things…”

The lack of sound teaching in the apostolic church is to be taken very seriously. Largely because of it, we see many without motivation to “do” for the Lord. You see, it is the Word which motivates and so, if you are not taught the Word… And we must remember that included in the Word is correction s well as encouragement. It is through it that we are made aware of God’s expectations and it is through knowing His expectations that we are given the opportunity to be saved. Obviously, one has to want to be saved to be saved and most often, this is accomplished through a change of attitude. One has to care about pleasing someone other than himself and you have to look for reasons to do what He has said.

This people that God has promised He will have, will be composed of people who are willing to change. No one will “accidentally” be saved, but must be willing to put himself aside through to serving Another. This is the essence of salvation. Undoubtedly, there will be those who will not change, but these will be “remnant” of which one does not want to be a part.