Richard Adair's - Bible Study Lessons

Faith matters and it matters to you. Without faith it's impossible to please God. Think about a friend or parent or a spouse. Does my faith matter with them? Yes is the only answer. How would people treat us if we had NO FAITH in anyone around us? Easy answer here as well. No one would want to be around us and no one would want to do anything for us! Wow! See how your faith in God is critical? James chapter one tells us "let him ask in faith without wavering (doubting)". This passage here tells us to not expect anything from the Lord is we doubt He'll do it. We have to do our part and believe even when it looks totally impossible! Mark 9 Jesus tells a man who has a demon possessed son that he needed to believe. See we have a part to play. We can't just be waiting to see what will happen to us next. No. We need to believe what we ask for in prayer we will get! Mark 11:24 "what things you desire when you pray, believe you recieve them and ye shall have them"

This should be our first area of personal confidence and happiness but many times we just can't believe the Jesus of the Bible is this way, but He is. The Bible is the key to understanding your own forgiveness not how you feel or how others treat you. The trouble is many times we self condemn ourselves because we have made mistakes after we have been saved. Not realizing the Devil is called the Accuser of the Brethren in Revelation 12 and that he has been cast down we become our own worst enemy. We let our feelings or other decide whether or not Jesus likes us anymore. When this happens our closest friends begin to see our own personal loss of trust in Jesus to forgive us and they lose hope that He really might forgive them one day. This is by design of the Devil. He will make you feel so bad if you self condemn yourself. Face the music! We've all made mistakes and trying to be on a Perfect Streak is only going to make you feel worse when you fall! Here's a tip! Keep reading God's Word as often as you can. The Bible will always tell you God's mercy endures forever. Jesus will always forgive you and He will always be your sacrifice for sins. Rejoice and be glad!

The Bible is a very important book for you. If there was ever anything magical in this world then its the Bible. People have all kinds of reasons to ignore it and never read it. From people who don't believe it even to those who claim they believe every word yet they don't take time to read it. God has promised if we'll but just read it then FANTASTIC things would begin to happen for us. Consider this... Jesus said in Matthew 4:4 "Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word of God". I'm sure you don't exactly feel hungry but we all really are! We need God's Word. It couldn't be easier today to have it near us to read. Find out what happened to the people in the Bible who began to read God's Word! Mark the calendar for yourself and begin to read God's Word. Read it outloud. You college students... you know how to study. Treat the Bible the same way and watch what happens in your life. You'll never stop reading again for after all Psalms 1:3 declares those that do "whatsoever they do shall prosper"! Stop condemning yourself as though God doesn't like you enough to give you His Word and His promises. He most surely has. ALL GOD'S BLESSINGS in that book belong to you no matter what you have ever done wrong! As you read God's Word you'll find out it really is a book about YOU and FOR YOU!!!!!

Jesus is always going to care for you no matter what. He is always there to immediately help you if you will but only believe. John 3:16 is based solely on your trust in Jesus alone to take you to heaven. You can't ever be good enough on your own to go there. No, you have to have help. That help is Jesus. The further you get away from the Bible the harder you will make things for yourself but it you will but trust the scriptures believing they mean what they say and they were said for YOU then you'll find help always and FAST and no one will be able to stop you. That how God designed the system. He is all we ever need! If something is broke then ask God to fix it in Jesus Name. If you need something then ask God for it in Jesus Name. This is the THEME of the entire Bible you will notice as YOU read it. Other people might tell you differently, but you go by what YOU READ in the Bible. God Made This Easy!!! He really did!

YES THEY DO! We have been trained by years of bad teaching that God just makes everything happen when and if He wants to and there's nothing we can do about it! That couldn't be further from scriptural reality. You will continue to believe all your prayer will not be answered if you continue to believe this way. Take Mark 11:24 for instance. How on earth can you "believe your recieve" if you have no idea whether or not God will get it for you because you feel He might not want you to have something or not. Check the Bible out for yourself. Don't quote what other books say or what people have taught you. Look to the Bible for the answer to your prayers. You'll find that you should be asking and recieving WHATEVER you ask for. How else could Jesus say THAT YOUR JOY MAY BE FULL? Stop doubting and start believing and receiving what you ask for EVERY TIME in JESUS Name!!!

Its incredible how much unbelief we have over this issue. We give every excuse like "its too difficult" or "God wants to punish me" or "I've sinned too much" or "I sinned one big time" or "God doesn't heal anymore" or "God doesn't heal everyone" and on and on we could go with excuses. None of them are right in comparison to the way the multitudes were healed by Jesus and how He instructed His disciples to heal from city to city. So where's the problem? Well, you tell me! Why is it that you don't know healing is for you? Why is it that you don't know healing is for everyone as stated by Jesus in Mark chapter 16 under the signs that follow EVERY BELIEVER that "THEY SHALL LAY HANDS ON THE SICK AND THEY SHALL RECOVER"? See we are basically pessimistic at heart! Don't feel alone. The disciples felt the same way even watching Jesus day after day. Peter walked on the water, but then began to sink as well til he cried out to Jesus. Jesus told him "why did you doubt"? The Bible is such a miracle book and we at times have struggles believing the Mercy of God is so good all the time. However, if you truly search the scriptures about your own health you'll find God wants you well and He will heal you every time. Psalms 103:1-3 Your sins have nothing to do with except if you self condemn your self and decide God won't heal you. Why in the world did He even heal Naaman a Syrian General that attacked Israel and even took home an Israelite slave girl who told him God would heal him? No matter how you look at it we have to use our trust in God for healing. The first thing we need to learn to trust is that HE WILL HEAL US AND THAT OF COURSE RIGHT NOW NOT SOME DAY WHEN HE FEELS LIKE IT OR WHEN WE GET TO HEAVEN. See that's a hard thing to trusts isn't it? Not so hard when you read the Bible for yourself. Your faith will leap into action and you'll ask God to heal you today!

Easier said than done we hear, but truly it is easy, but will we do it? Well, the chips are down and yes we need to or its silly for the Bible to tell us to "NOT WORRY"! Worry is actually the part of us that says God's Promises (The Bible) WILL NOT HELP ME SO THEREFORE I'M SO SCARED! This is totally understandable, but we have to learn to TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT instead of just enduring our problems til they go away! Actually prove to yourself there's HOPE in the Bible for your own situation! Remember things like "All things are possible to him that believes" (Mark 9:23) Look that up! It was a dire situation for somebody and they actually complained to Jesus that even Jesus might not be able to help them but Jesus fired right back at the person saying "OK, Forget it if YOU WON'T BELIEVE"! The person then screamed "LORD, I BELIEVE, HELP MY UNBELIEF"!!! Wow what a story! This is us many times! We feel its hopeless and we just quit! Never quit! Ask God for a miracle in Jesus Name and don't take NO for an answer and watch your MIRACLE HAPPEN! I don't care about what you've heard and if you "tried this before"! The important thing is DO IT NOW! The Bible never said this method doesn't work! Its called trusting in the Lord. So what are you worried about. Your circumstances are not the WILL OF GOD. The Bible is the WILL OF GOD. Stop worrying and CHANGE your circumstances by simply saying "LORD HELP ME IN JESUS NAME"! Quit worrying that Jesus doesn't love you enough to help you! He's called your HIGH PRIEST who is easily touched with the feelings of our infirmities! Its ridiculous how little we trust Jesus to help us. No wonder we worry so much! Hang on to him for HELP! He's not called a Savior for NOTHING! Lay out what you need Him to do and don't withdraw ever again in unbelief! STAND FIRM til you see the answer! You'll see how easy it is to REJOICE in the Lord always when you do and your worst worries will no longer bother you!

We are so bugged in our minds sometimes about what other people think of us. We certainly don't think everyone approves of us so when it comes to thinking of God we gravitate toward thinking He doesn't approve of us either. This could NOT be further from the truth. We can't save ourselves. It takes Jesus and Him only to accomplish this great task. Why is it we must now feel that to have God's help in our daily lives we must be some sort of "Super Saint" that is so perfect God just has to help us! None of that thinking is the truth. Last I checked we still are required to pray in the Name of Jesus instead of in our own names. None of us are going to get our prayers answered based on our own merits anyway so we need to stop acting this way in front of God no matter what you've every done wrong. Sin is not the problem. Unbelief is the problem. Ask yourself did the Prodigal Son wind up worse off after he came back home. No! He got a ring for his finger, shoes for his feet, a new robe and a party for his father loved him. If you continue to see yourself any different than this when you think of your Heavenly Father then you will always struggle needlessly. People will tell you that God will not answer your prayers for this reason or that. Do NOT listen to them! Listen to the Bible and you'll find God promises to LISTEN to you and Grant you your little ole requests. Quit thinking it will bankrupt heaven or some other ridiculous thought like "careful what you ask for". All of these things are just meant to keep you from praying and discovering that God will quickly answer your OWN prayers!!!! The book of Psalms is all about individuals who wouldn't take NO for an answer in prayer. Take the challenge. Pick out a Psalms to match your current dilemma and watch God get you our of trouble instantly. Start with the 23rd Psalm if you like. What part of any of those 6 small verses says you're gonna fail? Remember you've got to believe. You can't just keep blaming God for all your problems and not pray to get out of any of them. God didn't bless you with problems as some foolishly go around teaching. God blessed you with daily deliverance! You'll not believe your own eyes when you see what God does for you. It will be no accident. It will be no coincident. It will be you taking time to act like the Bible is true and acting like its for you today. After a few days of your own prayers no one will be able to stop you from getting so excited about your own Bible and your own Faith!