Tag Archives: mountains

Do you believe Him? (Matthew 21:19-22) May 15, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – 2 Corinthians 9-10

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 21:19-22
Jesus: May you never bear fruit again!
Immediately the tree shriveled up. The disciples were amazed.
Disciples: How did that fig tree wither so quickly?
Jesus: I tell you this: if you have faith and do not doubt, then you will be able to wither a fig tree with one glance. You will be able to tell mountains to throw themselves into the ocean, and they will obey. If you believe, whatever you ask for in prayer will be granted.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

We hear the story of Jesus’ power over the fig tree and we stand in awe of Him. We hear the story of His power of the storms at sea and wonder at what He can do. The power He demonstrates, the command He has over nature, disease, demons, when we hear those stories, if we believe they are true there can be no doubt about His divinity. No one can have that kind of authority over creation except God.

But then the disciples ask Jesus a question that we sometimes forget when we recall this story of the withered fig tree. “How did that fig tree wither so quickly?” And Jesus answer, we totally ignore when we tell the story to our children. “If you have faith and do not doubt, then you will be able to wither a fig tree with one glance. You will be able to tell mountains to throw themselves into the ocean, and they will obey.”

Do you have that kind of faith?

I am pretty good at making plants wither. But I’ll have to admit, I’ve never looked at plant and have it wither at a glance. It takes me a little longer than that. I’m just terrible at keeping plants alive. When I plant things they die. But to wither a thriving tree in a single glance? I haven’t done that. Or even a bush or a blade of grass. Do I have enough faith?

But then again…maybe I do. What does it mean to have the kind of faith Jesus talks about. Could I do something or let God teach me something that could wither a fig tree? Over the years I’ve learned about different chemical, poisons, mechanical reactions, that God allowed me to learn over the course of my education and career that in a pretty short time could wither a fig tree. Does that count? Well, God put me through the right training and experiences to enable me to do it.

And how about moving mountains? Can I tell a mountain to throw itself into the sea and it happen? We certainly have the equipment, explosives, moving capability to do that today. Does that count? Some would say you can’t move a mountain. I know you can because of what I’ve seen happen in large construction projects. It might take some time, but I know we can move a mountain from where it sits today and put it into the ocean. Is that faith? It is. Is it faith in God’s ability? Yes.

God doesn’t tell us how He will get a task done when it’s in His plan. Sometimes He does things in God-like ways. Sometimes He will cause something to happen that makes that mountain move almost instantaneously. He could send one of those car-sized meteors to hit a mountain and blow it away letting the debris fall into the oceans around the world. He could split the crust under one of those mountains and let the molten core melt the rock until it flows out into the sea and cools there forming a new land mass. God could just pick it up and put it in a new location if He wanted to. He’s God.

He could also tell us to get our hands dirty and do the work to move it one shovel at a time. We can’t presume to tell God how to accomplish His plan, but we can have faith that God works His miracles. He answers our prayers. Sometimes instantaneously, sometimes through the knowledge, skill, and effort of His children. But God does answer our prayers.

The faith we exercise in our belief in God and His will for us is not different than the faith we exercise in our belief that our car will start when we turn the key. Faith is faith, the question is what and who do we put our faith in? Do we believe God will do what He says He will or help us get done the tasks He gives us to do? Sometimes He works His plans instantly. In my experience, more often He works His plans through the people who have given their lives to Him. He uses us to help those around us. He builds relationships between us to enhance our relationship with Him. He wants us to show His love by doing God-like things for others through the resurrection power available to us through His holy Spirit in us.

Jesus said, “If you have faith and do not doubt, then you will be able to wither a fig tree with one glance. You will be able to tell mountains to throw themselves into the ocean, and they will obey.” Do you believe Him? 

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Have a little faith (Matthew 17:20-21) April 20, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Psalms 45-47

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 17:20-21
Jesus: Because you have so little faith. I tell you this: if you had even a faint spark of faith, even faith as tiny as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and because of your faith, the mountain would move. If you had just a sliver of faith, you would find nothing impossible. But this kind is not realized except through much prayer and fasting.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

When I was a kid, on rainy Saturdays when it was too wet to go outside and play, I remember watching cartoons on television. Those were great cartoons. Mickey Mouse, Rocky and Bulwinkle, Atom Ant, Deputy Dawg, Felix the Cat. If you’re old enough to remember some of those old black and white cartoons, you’ll probably remember the public service announcement that came on with them every once in a while.

This big giant bear would show up in the middle of the forest wearing overalls and a park ranger hat. Of course, it was a cartoon forest and a cartoon bear, but Smokey Bear fit the bill. He’d come on and show us a news clip of a campfire that was left smoldering in the forest or a cigarette that was carelessly flicked out a car window onto the dry brush on the side of the road.

The next scene was that of acres of forest aflame and the forest animals running for their lives to flee the onslaught of the flames. The scene would shift to the devastation left because of the carelessness of one person with that campfire or that cigarette and Smokey Bear would come back into the picture. You probably remember his famous words. “Remember. Only you can prevent forest fires.” Of course, I learned as I grew older that most forest fires are actually caused by lightning strikes. But there are enough caused by man’s carelessness that the public service announcement was worth the cost with the cities encroaching on the forests around them. The safety of those living on the borders of those forests and the lives of the park rangers and firefighters were at stake.

Jesus’ words today reminded me of that commercial. Just one little spark, one smoldering ember can create acres and acres of forests to catch flame and destroy hundreds of years of forest growth. I don’t know if Jesus saw many forest fires in Judea. When I was in the middle east, I don’t remember seeing much that would create a wildfire. But we understand wildfires in this country and the devastation they can cause. Just a little spark and it seems like the whole world is on fire if you live in one of those wildfire prone areas.

Jesus tells us we only need that much faith, just a spark we could tell a mountain to move and it would move from one place to another. You might wonder how that is done. God could do it any number of ways you know. He could generate an earthquake that shifts the crust of the earth and makes on mountain disappear as the crust of the earth pushes above it and causes the crust to push up in another place. It has happened in the past and can happen again.

He might use a volcano to do the work for Him. Volcanologists talk a lot about how the geography of the west and midwest would change if the supervolcano under the Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park were to erupt. They tell us it’s past time and if it errupts with the explosive power they say it will, the terrain of the region will be forever changed. Mountains will move.

God could use water to crash through some natural barrier and forge new rivers through what was a mountain and reduce it to nothing. Think of what would happen to the terrain downstream if the Hoover Dam were to suddenly let loose its tons of water all at once. It’s not the only dam holding back a reserve of such mass that nothing, including a mountain, could hold it. What if God decided to shift an ocean? You think mountains might change?

Or God could decide to tell a thousand people to pick up a pick and shovel and get to work. With faith, the mountain could move from one place to another. All you need to do to see that truth is follow our highways across this country. How many hills and mountains have shifted by the hands of men and machines to make way for steel rails and asphalt roads so we could get commercial goods from one side of the country to another. Yep, a little faith can move mountains.

So why is it so hard for us to believe in God. We believe we can do incredible things, like make holes in mountains to drive through. Impossible feats. Yet we don’t believe in the Creator who put that rock there in the first place. We don’t believe it took a Master Designer to make these biological miracles we call life to actually take form and breath and move and live and die. Somehow we get the idea all this just happened. Hmmm.

If I didn’t think about the complexity of the world we lived in, you might convince me there is no God. But the more I think about the complexity of life. The more I see how intricate the support of each substance and each species of life on another. The more I examine the vastness of the universe we live in and the extreme improbability that life could even exist in this vast almost limitless space. The more convinced I become there is a God in heaven. And to think He knows each one of us personally and loves each one of us individually. What a God we serve. Have a little faith.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.