Faith And Commitment

Text: Luke 7: 18-23

And the disciples of John shewed him of all these things.
And John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?
When the men were come unto him, they said, John Baptist hath sent us unto thee, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?
And in that same hour he cured many of their infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many that were blind he gave sight.
Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached.
And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

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The news of Christ‘s great works was brought to John the Baptist, but his response was to send his disciples to ask if Christ is the Messiah or another one should be expected. John's response is both surprising and unexpected for one that bore such great witness about Christ at the start of His ministry.

A lot of things have however changed in John's life since he made that powerful declaration about Jesus (Luke 3: 16-17) and baptized Him. He had been unjustly imprisoned after speaking out against Herod's evil; acts. Perhaps John‘ s situation in prison and not experiencing deliverance from his imprisonment made him question the authority of Christ.

Is any situation questioning your faith in the Lord? You might not seea way out yet in your present situation, but look around and recount the Lord's faithfulness. The Lord does not give up on us even in the face of our doubts but He is still at work in your life and people around you. Christ still saw great things in the life of John, in the same way He still cares for you and has authority over any situation in your life.

Philippians 3:15-16

Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.
Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.

Commitment and being focused are veritable instruments needed to succeed in life's endeavors. If you have any goal or pursuit in life, these are the watch words you need. Aside from the Christian journey, other goals in life are no less challenging. And it has been proven that the role of commitment in achieving great goals cannot be underestimated.

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We must never be discouraged by the events around us; if we set out to achieve a particular goal whether spiritual or secular. Many are known to have started businesses and quit mid-way just because of some initial challenges. But those who remain resilient are known to go far and achieve great feats. This is what commitment and being focused can do.

Our worship to God also needs these two vital ingredients commitment and focus. In the parable of the sower, the seed that fell among thorns is one that hears the word and the cares of this word and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word (Matthew 13:22)..The situation of God's word falling among thorns can also arise from lack of commitment to and focus on the things of God. You should do regular commitment checks to see where your commitment to the things of God and other good goals you have set is taking you.