THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN: BETTER THAN ALL YOUR DREAMS?

On February 24, 2015February 21, 2015 By Pastor TomIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

The kingdom of heaven is worth far more than anything else we have, or could have. It beats winning the Superbowl. It is better than the best sex, or the most delicious food, the most powerful drug. Having the kingdom of heaven is worth more than being fabulously wealthy in this life. It’s better than being stunningly good-looking, incredibly healthy or amazingly talented. All these are things many of us want or aspire to. But Jesus paints a picture that says these are nothing compared to being in the kingdom of heaven. This is a challenge for all followers of Jesus. Do we believe it, or not?

To listen to the sermon, click the play button:

To download, right click on the link (or do whatever you do on a Mac) and save it to your computer: Download Matthew Part 44

Matthew #44. Matthew 13:31-58

This time we’ll try to cover four more parables, and finish Matthew chapter 13.

Remember that last time we observed how Matthew recorded three “sets” of parables, each one made up of two different stories. We covered one of those sets, which was The Wheat and the Weeds and the Two Kinds of Fish. The theme of both of those was good and evil mixed in the real world, with a promise that at the end, it will be sorted out and made right.

Another set from Matthew 13 is this one: The Yeast and The Mustard Seed. Both of these illustrations carry the same theme, so let’s look at them right now.

He presented another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It’s the smallest of all the seeds, but when grown, it’s taller than the vegetables and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.” He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into 50 pounds of flour until it spread through all of it.” (Matt 13:31-33, HCSB)

A mustard seed is about as thick as an uncooked grain of rice, but only about 1/3 as long. The mustard plant, when full grown, is not a tree exactly, but it is bush that grows up to twelve feet high. The idea is that something very tiny can have a disproportionate result. The parable of the yeast is similar. Jesus talks about a small amount of yeast spread through “fifty pounds” of flour. Our modern bread is typically one to two pounds per loaf, so we are talking about 25 to 50 loaves of bread. Again, the idea is that a small amount of yeast has an impact that is surprising considering its size. Jesus is saying “the kingdom of heaven is like these things.” What does he mean?

I think there are several possibilities, and perhaps all of them are intended by Jesus.

First, the influence exerted by the seed and the yeast are way out of proportion to their size. A tiny seed results in a big bush; a handful of yeast makes fifty loaves of bread. Another way to put this is that they are powerful. So maybe one way to state Jesus’ message is: a little bit of “kingdom of heaven” goes a long way.

Historically speaking, Jesus’ point here has been proven magnificently true. Jesus started with twelve peasants in the “boondocks” of the world, a tiny, no-account backwater part of a tiny, no-account backwater province of the Roman empire. His life and simple message were captured by Matthew in about thirty pages. Yet, the kingdom of heaven through Jesus has profoundly affected the entire course of world history.

Within forty years, the message of the kingdom had caused a noticeable stir in the Roman empire, exerting enough influence to draw persecution from Roman emperors. Within four-hundred years, this message with such a tiny, humble beginning dominated the Roman Empire, and continued to dominate the history of Europe for sixteen more centuries. It went out from there to all parts of the globe.

Set aside for a moment the spiritual things which Jesus has accomplished for us. These of course, are the main and most important thing. But to help us understand how huge the impact of Jesus and his message have been, let us look at it from a purely secular point of view. The kingdom of heaven brought by Jesus is responsible for modern universities. In fact, it is responsible for the foundation upon which most of the world’s learning is based. Modern hospitals and standards of patient care exist because of the “mustard seed” planted by Jesus. The idea of religious tolerance comes from the same mustard seed, as do most of our notions of human rights, and many of our laws. The very concept of democratic government, which has blessed countless millions and led to the preservation of many lives, comes from the “yeast” introduced by Jesus.

The art of Michelangelo, the music of Bach and the Mathematics of Sir Isaac Newton were all done in the name of Jesus for the glory of God. Some of the most awe-inspiring architecture in the world, the most profoundly moving literature were produced by Jesus followers because they were moved by his mustard-seed message. It would be difficult to overstate the influence that Jesus has had. Yet, in his own time and place, as we see at the end of Matthew chapter 13, he was seldom appreciated.

I think there is something here for our immediate encouragement also. Often, when we are a part of small and insignificant-seeming things, we are prone to be discouraged. I recently read the story of Dr. William and Clara Leslie, missionaries to the Congo from Chicago about a hundred years ago. They spent seventeen years at a mission station called Vanga, on the Kwilu river. Eventually, Dr. Leslie’s relationship with the village elders near Vanga deteriorated, and he was asked not to return to Africa. He left in 1929, considering his mission work a failure.

In 2010, some missionaries led by Eric Ramsey made an exploratory trip across the Kwilu river to the remote region past Vanga, to evangelize the Yansi people, who were believed to have no Christian churches. What they found, to their surprise was a network of vibrant, reproducing Christian churches, who traced their spiritual roots to Dr. William Leslie, a hundred years ago. Apparently, in addition to his ministry from Vanga, once each year Leslie traveled across the Kwilu river for about a month, trying to evangelize the people of that even more remote region. He died, not knowing that he had succeeded in starting something that would lead generations of people to Jesus. He planted a mustard seed. It didn’t look like much when he left, but it grew into a beautiful network of churches.

When I was going to primary school and high school, I noticed that most of the people who were world-famous and highly honored were also dead. It wasn’t until after their lives were over, sometimes long afterwards, that people could see the impact made by such individuals.

During my own lifetime, however, that has changed. The rise of 24-hour television and the internet have created a market for thousands of celebrities who are famous and hailed as great, long before their real contribution to society can be evaluated. President Obama was given a Nobel peace prize when his only accomplishment was to win a presidential election. History may view him a great president, or it may not. Regardless, the Nobel prize was given before he had actually done anything significant. This is merely a symptom of how our society views greatness. YouTube has created many overnight celebrities and successes. All this this has led to a situation where we are often discouraged when we don’t see immediate results and rewards from our efforts.

But God may use us to plant a mustard seed that we won’t see full-grown in our own lifetimes. Certainly Peter, John, Paul and the other apostles died long before the Christian faith became the incredible force in history that it is. They were neither widely famous nor well-respected before they died. They received no awards, prizes or great financial benefits. I think the mustard-seed idea should encourage us that God can use in ways beyond anything we might imagine.

What the mustard seed/yeast parables come down to is the long-term power of the word of God. Not everything with small and humble beginnings has power and influence and changes history. But what makes the yeast effective, what makes the seed grow, is God’s word.

For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return there without saturating the earth and making it germinate and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat, so My word that comes from My mouth will not return to Me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do.” (Isa 55:10-11, HCSB)

Let’s us stand firm in our faith that God’s word is a mustard seed, or a little bit of yeast, with the power to work in us and through us in ways that might one day be absolutely mind-blowing.

There is one more set of parables in Matthew 13 left to discuss. The two stories in question are the Treasure in the Field and the Pearl of Great Price.

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls. When he found one priceless pearl, he went and sold everything he had, and bought it. (Matt 13:44-46, HCSB)

The idea is pretty straightforward. You give up everything in order to get that which is greater than everything. A modern equivalent might be like a man who wants to buy a farm. He find out that one farm he is looking at is sitting on top of an oil well. Even if it is more money than he thought he could afford, he’ll find a way to buy it, because he knows it will pay him back many times more than what he invests. The treasure in the field was worth more than everything else the man had, put together. Likewise with the pearl.

I think Jesus is making two main points with these parables. The first is that the kingdom of heaven is worth far more than anything else we have, or could have. It beats Superbowl tickets. It beats winning the Superbowl. It is better than the best sex, or the most delicious food, the most powerful drug. Having the kingdom of heaven is worth more than being fabulously wealthy in this life. It’s better than being stunningly good-looking, incredibly healthy or amazingly talented. All these are things many of us want or aspire to. But Jesus paints a picture that says these are nothing compared to being in the kingdom of heaven. This is a challenge for all followers of Jesus. Do we believe it, or not?

That leads us to the second point Jesus is making. It is worth giving up anything to be in the kingdom. Paul knew this, and lived accordingly:

But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of Him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them filth, so that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own from the law, but one that is through faith in Christ — the righteousness from God based on faith. My goal is to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead. Not that I have already reached the goal or am already fully mature, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus. (Phil 3:7-14, HCSB)

Paul was not the only one. Just this past week twenty-one Egyptian Christians had a choice to renounce Jesus, or have their heads cut off by Islamic terrorists. They chose death. But what they really chose was Jesus, and therefore, abundant, eternally renewing LIFE. They knew that the kingdom of heaven was worth far more than anything that could be offered by this life. Christians throughout the ages have suffered and even died, holding fast to this truth. As missionary Jim Elliot wrote, a few years before he, too, was killed for his faith:

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.

Matthew closes chapter thirteen with a reiteration of the truth of these parables in real life. Jesus asks his disciples:

“Have you understood all these things? ” “Yes,” they told Him. “Therefore,” He said to them, “every student of Scripture instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who brings out of his storeroom what is new and what is old.” (Matt 13:51-52, HCSB)

I have mentioned this before. This is reiteration of the power of God’s word, the scriptures. Jesus is encouraging them to see that both the Old Testament, and his own teachings, have that mustard seed/yeast power.

After this,

He went to His hometown and began to teach them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “How did this wisdom and these miracles come to Him? Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother called Mary, and His brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? And His sisters, aren’t they all with us? So where does He get all these things? ” And they were offended by Him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his household.” And He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief. (Matt 13:54-58, HCSB)

Jesus’ own people did not recognize him at the time. He was like the hidden power of the yeast, the insignificant seed. They didn’t see what God was doing. In addition, they were offended at the idea of giving up their preconception and receiving the kingdom of heaven through Jesus. They were the opposite of the pearl merchant. They looked at the priceless pearl and said, “Nah. I like my own pearls better.”

So, what do we do with these messages? How do we let them become real in our own lives? Perhaps you need to be encouraged. What the Lord is doing in your life right now is only the size of a mustard seed – one third the size of a grain of rice. If you my age or older, you can’t even see it without reading glasses. So, let the scripture be your reading glasses. See that God uses tiny, insignificant things to great result.

Brothers, consider your calling: Not many are wise from a human perspective, not many powerful, not many of noble birth. Instead, God has chosen what is foolish in the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen what is weak in the world to shame the strong. God has chosen what is insignificant and despised in the world — what is viewed as nothing — to bring to nothing what is viewed as something, so that no one can boast in His presence. (1Cor 1:26-29, HCSB)

Perhaps you need to be reminded that kingdom of heaven is worth more than anything else you might be seeking. You might even need the reminder to be willing to give something up in order to take hold of that kingdom. I know that giving things up for God may be difficult sometimes, but I say again, with Jim Elliot, that it is clearly a good bargain to trade what you cannot keep (anything or anyone on this earth, including your own life) for something that can never be taken from you (the love of God in Jesus Christ, and the abundant, vibrant eternal life that comes with Him).

Let the Holy Spirit speak to you today!

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DO YOU SEE WHAT IS DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF YOUR FACE?

On February 3, 2015January 30, 2015 By Pastor TomIn Bible, Bible Teaching, Christianity, Jesus, Matthew, Podcast, Religion, SermonLeave a comment

I think a lot of people have the question: “Why didn’t more people recognize Jesus for who he was when we walked on earth?” We human beings are prone to see what we want to see, and to be blind to things we don’t want to acknowledge. Jesus wasn’t the kind of Messiah that many of the Jews wanted, so they did not “see” him for who he was. Not only that, but the bible is clear that mainly, this is a spiritual condition. We can ignore it, and let it get worse, or we can do some things to alleviate it.

To listen to the sermon, click the play button:

To download, right click on the link (or do whatever you do on a Mac) and save it to your computer: Download Matthew Part 41

Matthew #41 . Matthew 13:1-17

The first nine verse of Matthew 13 are taken up with the parable of the sower, which Jesus explains later in the chapter. We will consider that parable next time, along with Jesus’ explanation of it. This time, I’d like to consider something that Matthew introduces in chapter 13: Jesus’ tendency to teach in parables. Matthew writes:

Then the disciples came up and asked Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables? ”

He answered them, “Because the secrets of the kingdom of heaven have been given for you to know, but it has not been given to them. For whoever has, more will be given to him, and he will have more than enough. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. For this reason I speak to them in parables, because looking they do not see, and hearing they do not listen or understand. Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: You will listen and listen, yet never understand; and you will look and look, yet never perceive. For this people’s heart has grown callous; their ears are hard of hearing, and they have shut their eyes; otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn back — and I would cure them.

“But your eyes are blessed because they do see, and your ears because they do hear! For I assure you: Many prophets and righteous people longed to see the things you see yet didn’t see them; to hear the things you hear yet didn’t hear them.” (Matt 13:10-17, HCSB)

It’s true that parables can often be used to make a point. People have said that Jesus’ use of parables show what a great communicator he was. But Matthew records that at the time the parables confused many people, and especially, he records that one reason Jesus used them was to remain obscure to certain people.

Now, if you think that sounds strange, you aren’t alone. However, this is connected to a significant recurring theme of the bible. Over and over again throughout both the Old and New Testaments, we have the concept of people who do not perceive or understand God or His work; and it is implied that their lack of perception has to do with the fact that they have become spiritually calloused.

But to this day the LORD has not given you a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear. (Deut 29:4)

“Son of man, you dwell in the midst of a rebellious house, who have eyes to see, but see not, who have ears to hear, but hear not, for they are a rebellious house. (Ezekiel 12:2)

As it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear, down to this very day.” (Romans 11:8)

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but it is God’s power to us who are being saved. For it is written: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will set aside the understanding of the experts. Where is the philosopher? Where is the scholar? Where is the debater of this age? Hasn’t God made the world’s wisdom foolish? (1Cor 1:18-20, HCSB)

I think a lot of people have the question: “Why didn’t more people recognize Jesus for who he was when we walked on earth?” This is something of an answer to that. We human beings are prone to see what we want to see, and to be blind to things we don’t want to acknowledge. Jesus wasn’t the kind of Messiah that many of the Jews wanted, so they did not “see” him for who he was. Not only that, but the bible is clear that mainly, this is a spiritual condition. It isn’t just an ordinary human tendency – it is a sign that some people have chosen to be oriented away from God. In the last chapter, Jesus suggested that a miracle would not convince the Pharisees. This theme is continued here. They have already made up their minds, and turned their hearts from God. So they see the miracles, or at the least hear about them from many witnesses, and yet they do not “see it.” Though seeing, they don’t perceive, though hearing, they don’t understand.

Paul explains the spiritual workings of this to the Corinthians:

Now God has revealed these things to us by the Spirit, for the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man that is in him? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who comes from God, so that we may understand what has been freely given to us by God. We also speak these things, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual things to spiritual people. But the unbeliever does not welcome what comes from God’s Spirit, because it is foolishness to him; he is not able to understand it since it is evaluated spiritually. (1Cor 2:10-14, HCSB

I don’t think Jesus used parables to confuse people, so much as to reveal the fact that it is the Holy Spirit who leads people into truth. I don’t mean (and I don’t think Jesus meant) that no truth at all can be grasped without the Spirit. Certainly, we can learn many true things without the Spirit, like 2+2=4, and that it’s a bad idea to start a land war in Asia. But the saving truth of who Jesus is, and of what the Bible says: these things come from the Holy Spirit.

When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak whatever He hears. He will also declare to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, because He will take from what is Mine and declare it to you. Everything the Father has is Mine. This is why I told you that He takes from what is Mine and will declare it to you. (John 16:13-15, HCSB)

By the way, when we get to the parable of the sower, we will see this theme reiterated. The whole premise of that parable is the idea that some people are spiritually receptive and others are not. However, we will consider that particular parable in greater depth next week.

For now, I’d like to see what all this means for us today. There are many rational and positive reasons to consider Christianity an reasonable and intellectual world view. I sometimes get caught up in trying to explain how rational and reasonable it is to trust Jesus. But the truth is, there are aspects of our faith that go entirely against worldly common sense. And this Scripture, along with the others I have quoted, show us that the key factor in saving faith is our spiritual response, not our intellectual conviction.

For many people, this can be good news. You do not have to be a Bible scholar to help other people spiritually. You do not have to have all of the logical and intellectual answers. The most important thing is not intellectual understanding, but spiritual receptivity. And the Scriptures show us how to increase our own spiritual receptivity, and how to help others do the same.

First, we encounter the Holy Spirit through the words of the Bible.

One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. Now the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on Him will not be put to shame, for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, since the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. But how can they call on Him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about Him? And how can they hear without a preacher? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who announce the gospel of good things! (Rom 10:10-15, HCSB)

It is clear that saving faith begins with hearing the word of God.

For the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the ideas and thoughts of the heart. (Heb 4:12, HCSB)

If we would like be people who hear and understand; people who are not spiritually blind, we should spend time reading the Scripture and listening to those who preach it. We would like to influence the world for God, one of the best places to start is to share the words of the Bible with others, and to support preachers who preach the word of God.

There is another thing that we can do to make ourselves more open to the Holy Spirit, and also to help others to be more open. Paul wanted exactly these things for the Ephesians. So he spoke the word of God to them, and he prayed, as shown below. Prayer is a powerful mechanism for opening our own hearts to the Holy Spirit and opening the hearts of others.

For this reason I kneel before the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. I pray that He may grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power in the inner man through His Spirit, and that the Messiah may dwell in your hearts through faith. I pray that you, being rooted and firmly established in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the length and width, height and depth of God’s love, and to know the Messiah’s love that surpasses knowledge, so you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Eph 3:14-19, HCSB)

By the way you can take this prayer that Paul prayed here and pray it for yourself and for others. There’s nothing wrong with using Paul’s words, after all, they were inspired by the Holy Spirit. When I pray this scripture, I do it something like this:

Father, I come before you trusting in the riches of your glory and mercy and ask you to strengthen me and my friends in our inner beings so that through your Holy Spirit Jesus can dwell more fully in our hearts and our faith is increased. Make us rooted and firmly established in your love and help us to understand the incredible greatness and depth and height of your love and to be filled with all of your fullness. In Jesus name, amen.

A very important third way to help ourselves and others be open to the Holy Spirit, is to meet regularly with other believers for worship, prayer and encouragement.

Therefore, brothers, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way He has opened for us through the curtain (that is, His flesh), and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water. Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us be concerned about one another in order to promote love and good works, not staying away from our worship meetings, as some habitually do, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day drawing near. (Heb 10:19-25, HCSB)

I meet people all the time who say, “but I don’t get much out of church.”

What I want to say in response is: “So church is all about you? You feel no need to encourage others? You have nothing to offer anyone else?” I understand that you won’t make good connections in every possible church, and you should certainly try to be in a place where the bible teaching actually comes from the bible, glorifies Jesus, and calls people to trust and obey Him. But it is vitally important to be connected to other Christians, and you need to be there for them, as well as for yourself. Quit “going when you feel like it” and take some responsibility not only for your own spiritual condition, but that of your Christian brothers and sisters. You will struggle spiritually if you are erratic about connecting with other believers for worship, prayer and encouragement. And also, you will cause some other believers to struggle as well, if they can’t count on you to be there for them. We are family, and God is our Father. He wants us to be here for each other.

When we step back and consider this whole topic, there is a downside. Jesus is clearly saying that some people don’t “get it.” It may seem discouraging to realize that some people have a spiritual condition and keeps their hearts closed to the Lord. But if we know anything from Scripture, it is that that spiritual condition does not have to be permanent; it can be changed. Saul of Tarsus was blinded to the truth of who Jesus was; he was not receptive to the Holy Spirit. And yet, he did not stay that way. The Lord broke through into his life, and he became known as “Paul,” a great apostle.

I was recently reminded of how powerfully the Holy Spirit can work, even in someone who seems opposed to it. About six months ago, someone came to this sermon blog. This person, whom I will call “Jane,” for anonymity, did not like what I had written or said in a particular sermon. She posted a long and vehemently negative comment on the blog. It looked to me as if she’d missed the entire point of the sermon, and I tried to encourage her to make sure she understood what I was saying. She replied with an even longer, more angry comment. At that point, I assumed she was just a “troll,” someone who is simply out looking for an argument. It bothered me however, and I shared the situation with one of our elders. He suggested that I should respond at least one more time, and then we said a brief prayer for Jane.

Just this past week, Jane contacted me again. She described how the Lord had been working on her heart, and she asked forgiveness for the negative things she had said in her comments on the blog. If you had asked me six months ago to evaluate Jane’s spiritual condition based on her comments, I probably would have been fairly negative in my assessment. Praise the Lord, it isn’t my job to evaluate anyone else’s spiritual condition! I think it is important for all of us remember that we can’t really see everything that God may be doing in a person’s life.

Maybe it isn’t someone else that you’re frustrated with, but yourself. The same truth applies: God is not done with you yet. The battle isn’t over, you are not doomed to be hardhearted toward the Holy Spirit. As we continue to read the Bible and pray and remain connected to other believers, the Holy Spirit continues to work on us.

It is somewhat like the business of the sin against the Holy Spirit: I think if you have any concern that you might be calloused toward the Lord, that you might be in danger of “seeing but not perceiving, hearing but not understanding,” then your concern should be a cause for hope. The people who are truly calloused toward the Lord are not concerned about it. If you are worried about it, then he still probably has room to work in your heart.

Let’s hear the good news that Jesus shared with his disciples: “the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven have been given to you to know.” Paul says: “Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who comes from God, so that we may understand what has been freely given to us by God.” We can be among Jesus’ disciples. We can be among those who have received the Holy Spirit so that we may understand what has been freely given us by God. All we need to do is continue to trust him, continue to obey him, and continue on in reading the Bible, prayer, and being connected with other believers.

Pause for a moment and let the Holy Spirit speak to you about this Scripture.