Certainty
Today’s Passage – Luke 1 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)
(Second Milers also read – Psalm 119; Proverbs 25)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – 1 John 3:1
Read the “1025 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
“That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.” (Luke 1:4)
I have always been fascinated by these first few verses in Luke’s gospel. He is writing to an individual by the name of Theophilus who we know very little about; and he is explaining to him, under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, in detail, all that he knows about the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is interesting when you think about it that Luke appears to be writing this entire book to one man. Now we know that God had other plans for the book, but on a human level it seems to be the most comprehensive gospel tract ever written. All for one man, Theophilus. The first thought that hits me is the concern that Luke must of had for this one man in order to go through this arduous task just so that Theophilus could be certain about what he already had heard about the Lord. Luke is possibly the most diligent soul winner there ever was.
The second thought I have from this Scripture comes from the word “certainty.” Luke penned the Word of God so that the hearer could be certain about the Lord Jesus Christ. That reminds me of another verse that tells us that “…faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). Practical application of this principle tells us that the more time we spend in the Word of God, the more we will be certain about the things of God; and the more certain we are in our faith, the greater our life and ministries will be also. We will be able to boldly plow forward through this dark and cold world with the gospel simply because we are sure of what we believe about God.
If you look at the faithless condition of America today, and consider how that Satan has been effective at both distorting the Word of God in many of our churches, and removing the Word of God from schools and many of the other public venues of our society, it is no wonder that the country is rapidly moving away from God. The answer is the Word. We in the church need to get strengthened ourselves through the certainty that comes through time spent in the Book; and then flood our churches, communities, families, neighborhoods, and workplaces with the Word of God. The more they hear the Word, the more they can be certain about the Lord.
Certainty is very important. Being certain about what you believe will get you through the trials of life with your faith intact. Be certain about your calling will keep you at your post until the Lord makes it clear that He wants you to do something else. Certainty comes from the Word of God, and it is strengthened as we continue to walk by faith. I want to demonstrate this certainty in my life as I minister to the people here in Galloway Township and the surrounding communities. I want them to be able to see that I really believe what I claim to know about the Lord, and I want them to see a consistency in my life and ministry in the years to come that will be the fruit of the certainty that I have received from the Lord.
How about you? Are you certain about what you claim to believe? Being sure about what you believe will dramatically change the way you live. I believe the reason why most of us struggle so much with our testimony is because we really don’t believe deep down what we say that we believe. Our faith needs to be increased. Ask God to bring you in closer, and give you a greater assurance about His Word and His will. As you meditate upon and study the Word of God, He will increase your certainty about the things of God.
Posted in Thoughts from Luke by Phil Erickson with 4 comments.
Amen Pastor.Thank you for the encouragement and your words of wisdom. Like the post.
A Great, great message. Thank you for sharing this & Thank you Lord that you will give us that “certainty “ of knowing You, beyond a shadow of doubt, with the acceptance of You as our Lord & Savior.
Amen Pastor. What you put into the word is what you receive from the word.like the post
Amen Pastor.(DOK) are the initials for the words,Depth – of – knowledge it designates how much a student must know to achieve through discipline in learning and applying oneself to the highest level of effort or degree
of achievement, another words simply putting it is what you put into something is what you’re going to get from quality of time spent in climbing the ladder of knowledge.like the post.