Illiteracy is an awful thing. It prevents people from healthy development. But in a way, they can’t be blamed for their failure to understand, since this weakness imprisons them. Sometimes their environment prevents them from learning and sometimes they’ve simply made that choice. 

            What about the spiritually illiterate—that is, those who don’t have a clue about God and His ways? When talking with people we need to realize that they may not be able to grasp what we’re sharing. So we need to be compassionate and patient as God reveals that first glimmer of hope through us. We must realize that while some have chosen spiritual illiteracy, others may not even have been exposed to the truth. 

            Our job is to speak God’s truth. And realizing that people may lack the ability to understand will help us to share His truth in love, rather than standing in judgment over them.

Illiteracy is an awful thing. It prevents people from healthy development. But in a way, they can’t be blamed for their failure to understand, since this weakness imprisons them. Sometimes their environment prevents them from learning and sometimes they’ve simply made that choice. 

            What about the spiritually illiterate—that is, those who don’t have a clue about God and His ways? When talking with people we need to realize that they may not be able to grasp what we’re sharing. So we need to be compassionate and patient as God reveals that first glimmer of hope through us. We must realize that while some have chosen spiritual illiteracy, others may not even have been exposed to the truth. 

            Our job is to speak God’s truth. And realizing that people may lack the ability to understand will help us to share His truth in love, rather than standing in judgment over them.

Illiteracy is an awful thing. It prevents people from healthy development. But in a way, they can’t be blamed for their failure to understand, since this weakness imprisons them. Sometimes their environment prevents them from learning and sometimes they’ve simply made that choice. 

            What about the spiritually illiterate—that is, those who don’t have a clue about God and His ways? When talking with people we need to realize that they may not be able to grasp what we’re sharing. So we need to be compassionate and patient as God reveals that first glimmer of hope through us. We must realize that while some have chosen spiritual illiteracy, others may not even have been exposed to the truth. 

            Our job is to speak God’s truth. And realizing that people may lack the ability to understand will help us to share His truth in love, rather than standing in judgment over them. 

Belief in God is so much more than a mental acceptance of His truth. Real faith results in transformation. And this is impossible to accomplish on our own. The Apostle Paul described it this way: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” 1 Cor. 5:17. Our encounter with God is governed by an entirely new framework. Jesus explained that one must be “born again.” Our spiritual nature must come alive to Him.

Meeting Jesus personally can’t help but transform a person. It all begins with a first step. As we take that step toward believing Jesus for His promise of eternal life, we find Him stepping toward us as well. God will make it absolutely clear where you stand with Him. His stamp of approval is found on those who have become His children, His chosen ones. It’s God’s gift to us.

We all exercise faith as we go about our routine of life. And we always behave as we believe. What we have set our heart on is what we naturally pursue. Today’s perception of believing something rarely lines up with the Bible’s meaning, because superficial belief requires almost no effort. 
        When the Bible uses the word believe it means trusting in what God has promised. Faith and trust are one and the same. Believe is merely the verb form of the nouns belief, faith and trust. Scripture tells us: “Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is the rewarder of those who seek Him.” Belief in God, then, should always result in pursuing relationship with Him. Action is what’s needed! It offers proof that we truly believe. Without it our so-called faith amounts to nothing. 

We all exercise faith as we go about our routine of life. And we always behave as we believe. What we have set our heart on is what we naturally pursue. Today’s perception of believing something rarely lines up with the Bible’s meaning, because superficial belief requires almost no effort. 
        When the Bible uses the word believe it means trusting in what God has promised. Faith and trust are one and the same. Believe is merely the verb form of the nouns belief, faith and trust. Scripture tells us: “Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is the rewarder of those who seek Him.” Belief in God, then, should always result in pursuing relationship with Him. Action is what’s needed! It offers proof that we truly believe. Without it our so-called faith amounts to nothing. 

The Bible is jam packed with the promises of God, and they all hinge on one key promise: ”Whoever believes in Him will have eternal life.” What does it mean to believe? You may say, “Of course I believe in God,” or, “Yes, I believe in Jesus.” But what is the outcome of that belief? Has it changed your life in any meaningful way? Is your life any different from those who hold no such belief at all? 
            The term believe has become seriously watered down in our culture. It doesn’t come close to what the Bible says it is. It’s not uncommon for us to believe what is offered in life, yet more often than not these beliefs are merely superficial. So, what’s the point? It’s simply this: acting on God’s promises proves that we believe, unquestionably showing that we trust, that is, have faith, in what God offers. Our pursuit of God offers that proof.

“All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.” This incredible prophecy found in Isaiah 53 resounds throughout all generations. And it does not stand alone; the entire chapter teems with the purpose of God—the suffering Jesus had to endure, bearing in His body that which would ultimately release us from the guilt of sin and restore us to relationship with our Father.

            Read it again, and contemplate this prophecy written 700 years before Christ’s death. Think not only about the precision with which His crucifixion fulfilled it, but also the content of the message—the magnitude of the offering He willingly endured because of His immeasurable love for us. Yes, we have gone our selfish way. Isaiah 53 is a sobering reminder for us all.

As the Apostle Paul sat chained in a Macedonian dungeon singing praises to God, a massive earthquake occurred. His shackles miraculously fell off and the prison gates flew wide open. Witnessing this, the terrified jailer cried, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Paul’s reply was simple, yet very explicit: “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved…” Acts 16:25-31.

Could it really be that simple? What about all the ritual and penance one must perform to become acceptable in God’s eyes? Not necessary, Jesus says. It’s as easy as believing God’s promise. But what does believing really mean? The Bible is always the starting place when exploring the meaning of belief. Yet few bother to investigate it, much less understand it. The Bible is true! Proof of this is the hundreds of millions of people worldwide who share the same experience of life-changing transformation—just as attested to in its pages.

Because knowledge of the physical world is increasing exponentially, some think that man’s evolution has somehow sped up.  Who could have predicted that we would daily be using such technological marvels, or that millions would routinely be jetting from one end of the globe to the other? Yet 2,500 years ago the prophet Daniel, speaking of events to occur near the end of time, predicted these very things: “…many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.”

The fact that our knowledge is increasing doesn’t mean that human nature itself has changed in any meaningful way. Just look at the people in the Bible. There’s not a shred of difference between them and us, except for the trappings of modern culture. They experienced all the strengths and weaknesses that we recognize as being normal to our nature. And the Bible offered the same solutions for them as it does for us today.