Stepping Forward in Faith

Based on 2 Corinthians 1-3

"But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us;" 2 Corinthians 1:9‭-‬10.

We're back again-back to the New Testament writings of Paul! We left off with having a "Moses Mentality," which is a mentality of contentment. Now we re-visit Paul, who helps God's people to realize the steps we must take to move forward in our faith...even farther beyond what was revealed in the Old Testament-because we know Jesus! As the above Scripture states, God is able to deliver us from eternal death, "so great a death," so He will most certainly be able to deliver us from our current earthly situation!

We just need to take steps forward in faith!

"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God." 2 Corinthians 1:3‭-‬4.

Jesus is God, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort! His Spirit is the true Comforter, because we can always have Him living within us...in ALL TRIBULATION! So that includes this virus! We are also meant to share this comfort & "pay it forward in faith." Although we are under strict guidelines for our physical barriers between one another, that doesn't mean we can take steps forward in faith to progress the spreading of God's Word! God is not limited to 4 walls! God is the ONLY hope of today...so people must hear The Word!

"Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand." 2 Corinthians 1:24

We don't want control of faith-we want to have faith in giving GOD control! Faith helps us to stand, and we can help and encourage others to be joyful in the process of taking such a great stand! So stand, step forward & go spread The Word!

"To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ; Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices."
2 Corinthians 2:10‭-‬11

The greatest downfall of society will come from its inability to see God for who He truly is...for people to stay unsaved. If we allow the sin of unforgiveness to block us from sharing God's saving Acts 2:38 plan of salvation, than we are just holding more tightly to one of Satan's familiar devices, rather than heeding to God's voice in our lives! God' Word should be more familiar to us than the devil's lies! Release. Forgive. Move forward in FAITH!

"Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart." 2 Corinthians 3:3

We are moving beyond the 10 Commandments of Moses! We are not forgetting these things, for we still must apply them...so what are we doing? We are taking steps forward in our faith! We are not only applying The Word, we are becoming The Word! Jesus Christ is the Word made flesh, and so we must take on that same identity & be Christ-like!

"Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty."
2 Corinthians 3:17

Jesus is God. He is the Holy Ghost. Where His Spirit dwells, there is LIBERTY! What a foreign word today...but it's true! We can experience freedom even in the confinement of our homes if we have the Spirit of God in us! That's why Paul was eventually able to praise in the prisons. That's why we can not only be content now, but move forward in faith, even if we can't move far physically!

Know God...Share Him. Live Him. Love Him!