The Potential of Your Faith

Jesus used shock treatments to jolt people out of thinking like humans so we would start thinking like God. He stunned everyone when He said, “Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him” (Mark 11:23). His statement seemed so impossible that He reinforced it by saying, "Truly I say to you." In other words, “What I’m telling you really is true!”

Jesus chose this mind-boggling example to show the potential of faith. Imagine speaking to a huge mountain and then see it rise out of the ground, hover in mid-air and then zoom miles away into an ocean. His statement was so astonishing that if Christ Himself had not spoken these words, it certainly would not have been recorded in God’s Word. But it is.

We usually think inside the box so He chose an example that we would never consider—something that’s totally out of the realm of human possibility. Grasping this truth about God’s ability to do the impossible (Mark 10:27) is the key to growing in our faith. (If God Knows What I Need, Why Should I Pray? pp. 22-23)

The same supernatural God that can move a mountain is more than able to solve any human problem. What is the difficulty that you’re facing today? Take it to the Lord in prayer and trust Him. And remember that nothing is impossible with God. www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com www.makinglifecount.net

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Making Life Count Ministries

P.O. Box 680174

Prattville, Alabama 36068-0174

www.makinglifecount.net  Twitter: @KentCrockett

The Object of Your Faith

All faith, whether it’s real or counterfeit, focuses on an object. Jesus told His disciples, “Have faith in God” (Mark 11:22). The “object” of our faith is the all-powerful, all-knowing God. If we place our trust in wrong objects, when those things fail, our faith will also fail. Jesus told Peter, “I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:32).

It's not whether your faith is strong or weak, but whether the object of our faith is strong or weak. Suppose you have strong faith that a frozen lake will hold you up if you walk on it. To prove your faith, you run and jump on the ice. Immediately you crash into the icy waters. Your faith failed because the object of your faith failed. You had faith in a weak object because the ice was a half-inch thick.

Now assume you have weak faith. You aren’t sure the ice will hold you up, so you slowly edge out onto it. You’re pleased to discover the ice supports your weight because it’s 10 inches thick. Your faith didn’t fail because you placed it in a strong object. (If God Knows What I Need, Why Should I Pray? pp.57-58)

It’s better to have weak faith on thick ice than strong faith on thin ice. Are you placing your faith in God, or in something else? Psalm 20:7 says, “Some trust in chariots, others in horses (wrong objects), but we trust the Lord our God (right object).”

Faith that won’t fail is established on the historical fact that Jesus died for our sins, rose from the dead and is alive today. Paul wrote, “For I delivered to you of first importance …that Christ died for our sins…and that He was raised” (1 Cor. 15:3-4). He is the one who can forgive your sins, and His kingdom will endure forever. That’s why I put my trust in Him.  www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com www.makinglifecount.net

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Making Life Count Ministries

P.O. Box 680174

Prattville, Alabama 36068-0174

www.makinglifecount.net  Twitter: @KentCrockett

What Does "Washing Feet" Mean Today?

In Jesus’ day people wore sandals and walked on dusty roads which made their feet filthy. This made it necessary for their feet to be washed every day. At the last supper, Jesus washed the disciples’ feet and said, “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash on another’s feet. For I have given you an example that you should do as I have done to you” (John 13:14-15).

Jesus did this to leave us “an example.” Does this mean we should be washing people’s feet today? In those days they walked on dirty roads. Today we ride in cars on paved roads, so there’s no need to wash feet. I know of a church that washes people feet every Sunday because Jesus said this. They miss the point. It’s an example that goes beyond changes in culture.

First, it’s an example of humility. In those days washing other people’s feet was a slave’s job. Jesus said, “A slave is not greater than his master” (13:16) and washed their feet. If no job was too humiliating for Jesus, no job should be beneath us.

Second, it’s an example of serving others. Jesus did not say, “If I wash your feet, you can serve Me by washing My feet.” He said wash other people's feet. In other words, the way we serve God is to serve others. So what does “washing feet” mean today? 

It could mean mowing someone’s yard, cleaning a bathroom, fixing someone’s flat tire, shoveling snow off your neighbor’s driveway, or taking a meal to a sick person. Ask God what He wants you to do. So have you washed any feet lately?  www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com www.makinglifecount.net

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Making Life Count Ministries

P.O. Box 680174

Prattville, Alabama 36068-0174

www.makinglifecount.net  Twitter: @KentCrockett

Every Knee Will Bow

December 17, 2017 marked the 6th anniversary of the death of Kim Jong-il, the former leader of the North Korea and father of current dictator Kim Jong-un. In freezing weather, thousands of North Koreans carrying flowers bowed down to two enormous bronze statues of Kim Jong-un’s father and grandfather (see photo).

It reminds me of when Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar built a gigantic statue and commanded everyone to bow down to it (Dan. 3:1-27). Three Jewish captives, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to bow to it and were thrown into a fiery furnace. God protected and rescued them from the fire.

One day every knee will bow to Jesus. “At the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father" (Phil.2:10-11).

Think about it. Everyone in history will bow their knees to Him. When will this happen? His followers will joyfully do this—perhaps at the moment we enter heaven or possibly at the Judgment Seat of Christ when we are rewarded (2 Cor. 5:10). Satan and every demon will also bow and confess Jesus is Lord. Everyone who rejected Him will defiantly admit He is Lord at the Great White Throne Judgment (Rev. 20:11-15). This doesn’t mean they will be saved at this time but it will be a confession they were wrong and that He is Lord.

No one has to bow grudgingly. If we’ll willingly “bow now” and receive Him as Lord we’ll joyfully worship Him when we see Him face to face. www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com www.makinglifecount.net

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Receive these devotionals (free) by email: You can subscribe in the box on the right at www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com (Your email will not be given out. You’ll receive an email when the new devotional is posted)

Making Life Count Ministries

P.O. Box 680174

Prattville, Alabama 36068-0174

www.makinglifecount.net  Twitter: @KentCrockett