How many unread messages are in your inbox? I try to keep up, but I’ve got just under 400 this morning. I know someone who has several thousand unread messages !! If there’s a particular email I REALLY need him to read, I’ve got to send him a text with the subject line of the email so he can find it. According to recordsetter.com there’s a person with over 4.2 billion unread emails. That’s insane.
Here’s a message I want you to hear – welcome to “Mornings with Bishop Robert.” My goal is to introduce people to the Jesus they never knew, and help them get to know Him and His word personally – and better ! If our time together today speaks to your heart, then let me invite you to like, subscribe and share it with a friend!
We all get slammed with more messages than we can handle. Our phones and computers deliver messages via email, SMS, SnapChat, TikTok, YouTube and a host of other platforms. Then there’s news sites (which all provide advertising messages alongside the articles). Social media is an endless stream of things we like with ads the HOPE we’ll also like. The average person is exposed to over 3,000 advertising messages a day, and targeting the message to the audience is a multi-billion dollar industry.
Here’s the problem – the sheer volume of messages we get makes it hard to sort out the vital messages from the mundane.
Today’s verse tells us that FAITH COMES FROM HEARING THE MESSAGE.
People talk about coming to faith. The bible talks about faith coming to you. It tells us that faith comes from hearing the message. Which message? The message about Jesus Christ – who He is, what He has done, and the offer He gives those who will listen.
The bible talks about faith coming to you because that is what Jesus did. He didn’t just send an email or leave a voice message on your phone. He delivered it in person.
If you think about it for a moment, aren’t all the most important messages in life delivered in person? Nobody with any sense would send an email to someone to propose marriage. Even the idea is laughable. Because the message is designed to touch your heart and change your life, the person delivering it wants to make sure they have your full attention. They come to you. They need to be certain you can see the love and commitment in their eyes as they ask, “Will you marry me?” That’s not a message for Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp.
Nor do you send for them to come to you. You don’t send a text asking them to pop by when they have a chance. When (or if) they show up, you don’t casually mention the idea of spending the rest of your lives together. No, the message is far too important. Moreover, the PERSON you’re delivering it to is precious. The method of delivering the message needs to communicate all that to the person hearing it.
FAITH COMES FROM HEARING THE MESSAGE
It was so important to Christ that you hear His message, He came to personally deliver it.
I’m not just speaking about some events 2000 years ago in Israel. I’m actually talking about today, right now. While it is absolutely true that FAITH comes from hearing the message of Christ, the best part is that CHRIST COMES TO YOU when you receive the message.
Faith – the assurance of the forgiveness you hope for, the certainty that Jesus has paid the price for your sin – THAT faith comes when you hear and receive Christ’s promise. He comes to deliver His message. He comes to offer the faith you need to believe. HE COMES. And when you accept Him and His message of grace, HE STAYS. He places His Spirit within you and marks you as His own.
Hearing with faith, accepting and believing. It opens a door no man can shut. Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it! Blessed are those who hold onto it by faith. Blessed are those who receive the word of God and accept it; not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God – and then let it work in them and convert them into believers.
There are SO MANY messages thrust at us every day. The most important ones are always delivered in person.
FAITH COMES FROM HEARING THE MESSAGE
