Building Faith Families with Steve Demme

"The heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart."  (J. John) The word heart, as used in scripture, does not represent the organ responsible for distributing blood throughout the body. Neither is it to be interpreted as a passion or emotion. Rather, it is the very essence of who you are. It is the inner man. A changed heart is the mark of a Christian. Unless God transforms us in the innermost man, we are still the same egg. All of our external behaviors are just window dressing if we have not been remade on the inside. It is for this reason that we must believe in our heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, and ask Jesus to live in our hearts by faith.

Proverbs 4:23, " Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life."  David, one of the central figures in the Old Testament is described as a man after God’s own heart. 1 Samuel 13:14. " The LORD has sought out a man after his own heart." Prayers of David:

Psalms 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: Try me, and know my thoughts; 24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.

Psalms 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; And renew a right spirit within me.

God is in the business of transforming our hearts.

Ezekiel 36:26 " A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep mine ordinances, and do them."

How does Jesus love us? In the same way that He loves us, we are to love one another. This is the new commandment. John 13:34, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, or by changing the order of the phrases; Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. ." It is my hope that this episode will encourage us to look at Jesus and observe how he has loved us. Jesus is love in the flesh. He is the ideal example for each of to discover how to love each other.

He denied himself and laid his life down for us.

He served and washed His disciples feet.

He built them up and taught them.

Jesus is gentle and humble of heart.

The Son of God is kind and forgiving.

He prayed for His followers.

Jesus promised to never leave or forsake His children.

He came to save us and not condemn us.

Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

He bears our burdens and weeps when we weep

May our gracious God help us to fulfill the new commandment and love one another as He has loved us.

We each want to parent our children well. Today we will look at how Jesus the Son of God, was parented by His heavenly Father.

As the father has loved me, John 15:9

Jesus had the blessed assurance and complete conviction that He was thoroughly loved and totally accepted by His Heavenly Dad. How did He learn this essential truth that every son needs to know? How was His Dad able to successfully convey His love to His Son?

When John was baptizing Jesus, and when God drew near on the Mount of Transfiguration, a voice from heaven affirmed Him audibly and publicly saying,

“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:17, 17:5

God the Father always heard His Son’s prayers.

“Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, John 11:41

The Father trusted His Son and showed Him all that He was doing.

The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. John 3:35

For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. John 5:20

Jesus was taught and empowered by His Dad.

I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. John 8:28

The Father and the Son are a team.

I and the Father are one. John 10:30

The Best part, the Good News, is that this same love shared between Jesus and His Dad, is now in us as well.

That the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them. John 17:26

It seems that is much easier to see other people as God sees them, that it is to see ourselves as God sees us. We know that God loves and values others, but it is difficult to believe that He loves and values us.

We need faith to believe the Good News. We also need faith to believe that the Good News applies to you and me. The writer of Hebrews was inspired to give us an excellent definition of faith as “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen”.

The first building block in a healthy relationship between two people, is for each of these unique creations, to be fully assured and completely convinced that that they have been created in God’s image, are valued, and liked by God Himself.

When we have embraced, by faith, these truths we are becoming healthy, and are on the right path to becoming what God designed us to be. This life changing transformation comes about through ongoing exposure to the truth.

In 2006 I attended my first Joni and Friends Family Retreat. This was the first time I was face to face with disabilities 24/7. I confess that for the first two days I was very aware of the disabilities all around me. But as the week progressed, I began to get to know people individually by sharing meals and hearing their story. By day 3 I was learning to see the real person on the inside.

These unique and special folks were created in the image of God and adopted members of the family of God. They each had value and gifts that contributed to the body of Christ.

I was learning to see these brothers and sisters in Christ, as God saw them.