Everything Starts with Faith
Did you know that you can please God? We often talk about the various commands and regulations that God gives, and we talk a lot about the good things God gives us. But have you ever considered the ways you can please God?
The first thing Hebrews 11:6 tells us is that we need faith to please God. Those who do not believe in God cannot please Him.
There is a difference between having a true relationship with God and performing religious tasks without faith. We don’t have to earn a relationship with God because it is something He gives us freely. Those who have faith can please God, not because we have to, but because we get to. When we have faith in God, our hearts are changed, and we begin to desire to please God through our words and actions.
Hebrews 11:6 also tells us that God rewards those who seek Him. This doesn't mean God will give us whatever we want in life, but rather, it means that those who genuinely seek a relationship with God will find it.
And in this passage, God Himself is the gift we receive!
God is With You
Throughout the Bible, there are various moments when God tells someone to not be afraid. Each one comes at a time when the hearer has every reason to be very afraid.
In one instance, Joshua, the leader of Israel after the death of Moses, was taking the Israelites to their promised land (see: Exodus 3). He was leading over one million people to a place God had promised, and it meant going through some overwhelming and terrifying situations.
In the midst of this, God commanded Joshua to do two things:
Obey the Word of God and, be strong and courageous because the Lord was with them. (See: Joshua 1:7-9)
In Matthew 28, Jesus says something similar just after His resurrection. He is with His eleven disciples and He tells them:
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you, and behold, ...