Building A Lasting Faith 10-26-25 AM

I.            How?

a.      Examine the evidence for yourself.

            i.      We are told that, when it comes to the existence of God, that God did not leave Himself without witness (Ac. 14:17).

           ii.      Witness means testimony and it carries the idea of evidence.

           iii.      There is a multitude of evidence for God.

           iv.      Once you believe in God, you next have to move to believe in God’s word, for which there is also a great deal of evidence (2 Tim. 3:16-17).

           v.      This word will produce faith when taken in (Rom. 10:17).

           vi.      Notice what made the Bereans of more noble character than the Thessalonians (Ac. 17:11).

           vii.      They examined the evidence for themselves about what Paul was teaching.

           viii.      Luke 1:1-4 – Theophilus could know with certainty.

           ix.      We talk bad about Thomas, calling him doubting Thomas, but the other apostles didn’t believe until they saw Jesus themselves.

           x.      We all know about Jesus appearing to Him, but notice John 20:29.

           xi.      There are many great tools to help us do this:

1.      The Bible itself must be taken in and studied.

2.      Evidence That Demands A Verdict by Josh McDowell.

3.      The Book God Breathed by Keith A. Mosher.

4.      Out With Doubt by Kyle Butt.

5.      Apologeticspress.com.

6.      Christiancourier.com.

7.      Just to name a few.

b.      Become a student of God’s word.

           i.      2 Tim. 2:15.

           ii.      Psa. 1:2.

           iii.      1 Pe. 2:2.

           iv.      2 Pe. 3:18.

c.       Pray often.

           i.      1 Th. 5:17.

           ii.      Jam. 4:8.

d.      Worship God faithfully.

           i.      Acts 2:41-42 – the first Christians continued steadfastly.

           ii.      Heb. 10:24-25.

           iii.      1 Cor. 14:26 – all things are to be done for edifying.

e.      These steps are proven ways to build a faith that will last.

II.            Why?

a.      Why is it important to build a lasting faith?

b.      We can’t be pleasing to God without it (Heb. 11:6).

c.       We can’t be saved without belief (John 8:24).

d.      We lack ability to overcome temptation without it (1 Pe. 5:8-9; Eph. 6:16).

e.      We won’t be able to endure persecution (Matt. 13:20-21; 1 Pe. 1:6-7).

f.        We will be spiritually weak and prone to temptation and apostasy (Eph. 4:13-15; Heb. 5:12-14; 2 Pe. 3:16-17).

g.      We must all have our own convictions (Ga. 2:20; 2 Tim. 2:12)

h.      So we can spend eternity in heaven (1 Pe. 1:9; Rev. 2:10).

III.            When?

a. Today – 2 Cor. 6:2.

(From a sermon by a preacher from Texas whose name I do not know)