Unbelief

Zacharias is Unable to Speak

When told he would have a son, Zacharias doubted the angel’s word. From his human perspective, his doubts were understandable, but with God anything is possible. Zacharias had doubts that he and Elisabeth could have a child since both of them were old (v. 18). This good man, th …

Devastation of Jerusalem

God would deliver Jerusalem from the Assyrians, but He would not deliver them from Babylon. The sin of unbelief would cause Judah to decline and to be brought into captivity in Babylon. The expression “Valley of Vision” likely refers to Jerusalem (v. 1). In Isaiah’s day, Jerusalem was a …

Failure of The Wilderness Wanders

The Israelites failed to enter the Promised Land because they did not believe in God’s protection, and they did not believe that God would help them conquer the giants in the land. The writer in this passage is warning the people of the danger of unbelief: This danger demands im …

Jesus Appears on the Road to Emmaus

As this scene opens we find two men walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus, which was about eight miles northwest of Jerusalem (vv. 13-17). These men were disciples (not apostles), and one of them was named Cleopas (v. 18). As they walked they were discussing the events of the pa …

A Reluctance to Believe

It has become hard for some to put faith in anything or anyone. Institutions have promised so much, and they have let us down. We have had faith in government and government has let us down. We have trusted people and people have let us down. It is easy to lose confidence in peo …

IllustrationFarm Boy Asks Who Furnishes the Clouds?

The smart new science professor at the college scarcely bothered to conceal the fact that he was an agnostic, if not an atheist. “Unless you shake off old-fashioned views and act for yourself,” he kept telling his classes, “the world will leave you behind. Pu …

IllustrationMeyer – Unbelief Separates us From God

“Unbelief puts our circumstance between us and God, but faith puts God between us and our circumstances.” (F.B. Meyer). …

IllustrationDon’t Limit God With Unbelief

“Beware in your prayers, above everything else, of limiting God, not only by unbelief, but by fancying that you know what He can do. Expect unexpected things, ‘above all that we ask or think’. Each time, before you Intercede, be quiet first, and worship God in Hi …

IllustrationMoody – The Mistake of Not Giving an Invitation

D.L. Moody, the great evangelist, was preaching in Chicago on October 8, 1871. Before him was the largest congregation he had ever addressed in the city. He concluded his sermon with a blunder that he called the biggest mistake in his life, one he vowed he would give his right ha …

IllustrationLord Hailifax Kissed the Back of his Hand

Lord Halifax, a former foreign secretary of Great Britain, once shared a railway compartment with two prim-looking spinsters. A few moments before reaching his destination the train passed through a tunnel. In the utter darkness Halifax kissed the back of his hand noisily sev …