Help! My Faith Is Faltering — Shane Idleman

Faith Falters in the Church

What I'm seeing a lot in the church and just talking to couples and families is faith is faltering. Faith is wavering. A lot of the counseling appointments are because of Faith the shame. My faith is falling apart.

I can't seem to to where's God at in the midst of my dilemma my trouble where where is this? Where's he at. My faith is weak my faith is faltering. So I want to give a message tonight just to you and we began in Matthew chapter 9 verse 14 last week.

And it talks about we're talking about when the disciples of John came to him saying why do we in the Pharisees fast often? And I'm not going to go and read that all again because I gave a whole message on it last week, and it really was more topical on this area of fasting and Mourning and where the direction of our nation is what God's Word says what the direction of the nation is.

It's very scary. Very scary reality and there comes a time where I believe the church needs to speak out and say listen. Return to him people. Return to the fear of the Lord return to God you backslid come back to the the central focus come back.

Oh backsliding church, and that's what we need to talk about sometimes, and that's what I talked about last week. So if you didn't weren't here go listen to last week's message and a lot of this will make sense.

But I left off at verse 16 and it's an interesting text because I've heard about a Dozen or so different sermons preached in different directions on this and this is where Jesus is talking about fasting.

But don't fast because the bride grooms here. But when the bride grooms leaves we will fast and then he says no one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. For the patch pulls away from the garment and the tear is made worse.

Nor do they put new wine into old wine skins or else the wine skin would break and the wine is spilled and the wine Skins are ruined but they put new wine into new wine skins and both are preserved and I've heard a lot a lot of Pastors take down a lot of different directions about what Jesus is doing now in Grace versus the law or being filled the spirit all different kinds of things.

But what I want to do just talk about briefly because I'm trying to go through verse by verse is. It looks like in context. He's saying listen in the same way that you don't fast when the bride grooms here you fast when it's the time of morning.

You don't put an unshrunk piece of piece of cloth on an old wine skin because when that wine ferments the whole thing will break. So he's just giving I believe a practical application. Listen, here's what happens when this when the wine skin breaks and you use it.

The cloth and and this is the same way of fasting you don't fast when the bride grooms here. You don't fast in a time of rejoicing. You fast in a time of mourning. So and to me it doesn't you don't have to read all these little things into it and which are good Biblical but I think he's just showing a parallel there of what of what that fasting looks like and Basically what I can pull from this is the right thing done at the wrong time is the wrong thing.

Did you catch that remember that Christians the right thing done at the wrong time can be the wrong thing. And we just saw it saw this this week. We went to memorials as I just talked about and that this is not a time to quote Romans 8 28 to the parents.

You guys know what that says? All things work together for God are all things work together for good. For those who are called according to his purpose. You don't quote that to somebody who's bearing their child this week the right verse wrong time.

We also see this in instructing our kids. Sometimes we can do the right thing at the wrong time. Last week my son my wife. Remember he cut his little finger at the pocketknife. I gave him. And I said, oh.

He's all the sip. They said how why are you doing that? Why are you playing with that knife? I told you not to play the knife like that. See that's what's gonna happen. He's crying dad. No, that's why I told you don't play at the pocketknife in the house with another night.

See. That was not the right thing to say at that time. That's after the crimes done and you come, you know comfort in there. Listen son. This is what I told you. So the wrong thing or the right thing at the wrong time remember that in your marriages, too.

You can say the right thing at the wrong time and get in a lot of trouble. I'm actually convinced that many arguments in marriage are because we said the right thing at the wrong time. And all you do with that is you throw fuel on the fire.

If you have a little fire going try to throw some gasoline on it watch what happens. That's exactly because our life and death is in the power of the tongue what we speak. So be very careful the right thing in the wrong and that's what Jesus saying listen.

You don't do this and do that you do you do these in certain things? So I don't want to spend too much time on that because I want to talk about this whole issue of help. My faith is faltering and in doing so I want to pull in different passages from the Bible.

Faith Must Be Continually Built

Showing how we can build our faith because your faith right now even tonight is either building or it's being pulled down. It's either growing or it's withering. Do you realize that one or the other? Faith like sin doesn't stand still it either grows or withers depending on whether we feed or starve it and Faith is the same way.

It's got to be built. It's got to be encouraged. So let's look at that. And I want to throw out this question before I get to that. How can say you know that the gentleman I prayed for and I ran if you don't know a story, it's unbelievable.

I think he's in solitary confinement now being in prison for his faith. Lord knows what's going on with him. How can he hold on to his faith? While others walk away at the slightest hint of trouble. Did you ever think about that?

I mean you think he's just say oh, hey all this all is the real God. Let me out of here. You why doesn't he denounce him? Where's that faith come from? I've seen people walk away over childish things over little traumas.

Also, how can martyrs who've been who've been killed in the past rejoice. But others fall away because they love this world more than the things of God so faith is interesting either somebody has solid faith that we look at say that's unbelievable or.

It's like a like a little fragile piece of. You know, what's a fragile thing? Oh Yeah, those things okay, let's say just a just a fragile piece of glass and faith is like We're just any minutes about rages fall and drop it and fall apart.

But your faith. We're just barely holding on like oh, there it goes. It's why does somebody have solid faith rock solid faith? No matter what comes the storms may come but their faith is like it's not gonna waver.

What about Joe though? He's slain me yet. Why trust him? God said listen devil go do a job what you want, but don't destroy his body and all hell break broke loose. We talked about that before but he held on to his faith.

How is that possible? Well, I want to share that with you tonight and where I'm at right now is in Matthew chapter 9 verse 18. And what's interesting about this is this is where Jesus goes through and let me just read actually verse 18.

Faith in Jesus Amid Sickness and Death

While he spoke these things to them behold the ruler came to Jesus and he worshiped him saying my daughter has just died. But come and lay your hand on her and she will live. So Jesus arose and followed him and so did his disciples and suddenly a woman who had a flow of blood for 12 years Came from behind him and touched the hem of his garment for she said if I just touched his garment I shall be made well.

But Jesus turned around and when he saw her he said to her be of good cheer daughter. Your faith has made you well and because of this man's faith Jesus went and rose that girl out of death and Now he's healing this lady and then it comes to verse 23 when Jesus came into the rulers house and saw the flute players and the Noisy crowd wailing.

He said to them make room for the girl is not dead but sleeping and they ridiculed him. But when the crowd was put outside he went and took her by the hand and the girl arose. In verse 27 when Jesus departed from their two blind men followed him crying out saying son of David have mercy on us.

And when he had come into the house of blind men came to him and Jesus said to them Do you believe that I am able to do this and they said yes Lord. And then he touched their eyes saying according to your faith.

Let it be done to you. So it's throughout scripture. You see according to your faith because of your faith drawing faith in all the time. But we know the dangerous side of that is then faith dictates everything.

I'm we become God because our faith dictates the sovereignty of God and that's part of what you'll hear sometimes the faith movement or positive confession these types of things where your faith is really almost like God's a genie in a bottle or He's a butler whatever you want.

My faith is so strong that I can get God to do whatever he wants. But the Bible doesn't really teach that it teaches that by faith. This is solid. We must have faith in the promises of God. We must have faith in his sovereignty, but at the end of the day on this side God is sovereign his sovereign will prevail.

But it is challenging to get to a scriptures like this because how do you apply these things? Practically. Because on one hand Jesus is our model that we're to follow right? But on the other hand, he's a model that we cannot follow.

We see the perfect model here here. Follow me do do as I did. But on the other hand we come short. We can't follow this perfect model. And so we get to these scriptures. How does this healing work and and how faith and healing and I'm not going to go over this again?

Because I already went over this a few months ago and it's in your bulletins. If you want to know more about a healing what the church's view on healing is there's a message there healing seeking to clear the confusion and in a nutshell Let me just say this the reason many prayers aren't answered is because we think in the present tense.

Like microwave Christianity when it comes to this issue of healing. We're not God. Jesus was God. He was walking on earth as God the incarnate Son of God. So he knew the perfect will of God. So everybody he came in contact to with was healed because he knew the work the will of God.

He was God. So in our feeble eyes, right we try we pray for things and it doesn't happen and we pray for this. It doesn't happen. This person's healed. This person is not it's like we walk around like oh gosh.

Is this for today or is it not? And I don't think we need to live like that. We need we can boldly pray for people for healing Lord. I have the faith Lord. I pray for healing but you're sovereign. You're in control.

It's your will not mine and This side of the camp says the opposite. Sometimes they say Shane you can't say that you can't say if it's God's will. Because that means you know, you're praying kind of a half-hearted prayer and I don't believe that at all.

I think it takes a lot of faith to say Lord. I'm praying. I'm praying. I'm trusting you Lord. I know you can do this. I know you can't but even if you don't I will still serve you. I will still love you.

I will still follow you follow you. So that's what faith is. Remember the three the three boys caught in the fiery furnace right before they went in there. They said King we're not gonna bow to you. Our God can deliver us.

We're not gonna bow to you. Our God can deliver us. But even if he doesn't we will not bow to you. That's a very good view on healing too, and I'm praying and won't Lord. Why aren't you even if you don't I'm still gonna follow you.

Because this has been a lot of confusion churches split over this. I've seen arguments loud get loud and name-calling people not talk to each other again on this issue of healing. And I think we all just need to be honest and say I'm not real sure.

I know God can heal. I know it tells me to exercise my faith. But sometimes people aren't healed and that sometimes people are healed that don't have faith and they won't even pray and why what's going on here?

It's called sovereignty. God's sovereign control because a lot of times through healing we want it now microwave Christianity. But God's doing something in that person's life or maybe like Johnny Erickson Tata, right?

You've heard of her on the radio. She'll she'll say that God has kept me here to glorify him. This is my minister. He's not healing me and she'll say that and I knew a guy in town. I still know where he lives.

He says the reason she's not healed is because she doesn't have enough faith. It's pathetic. Really I Mean you this is unbelievable. Where do you guys come up with this information? Not from here, but they'll take this scripture according to your faith because of your faith.

So that means now I can use faith like a genie in a bottle, right? I Want this. I want this. But on the other hand, I don't want to dismiss faith because scripture says without faith. It's impossible to please God according to your faith.

It'll be done to you. So I think faith plays an active role in our prayers. We have to go to God. We have to pray as if he's gonna he's gonna do things and in the heal people. That's how we we approach him because there's something powerful about faith that I don't think we understand.

Defining Faith From Hebrews 11

Number one is because we don't have a correct definition of faith. Because sometimes we think right faith is Believing whatever I want to happen. Okay, I have faith that this is going to happen. Well, let's look at what the Bible says what faith is and how can we build our faith?

Is your faith faltering because all of us let's be honest our faith goes like this sometimes, right? You're not always on the mountaintop. If you are talk to me afterwards because I love to know how you do it.

Tell me your secret and be careful because Probably not being honest most people. There's a there's great faith and then there's Lord. I'm having some difficult times. There's the valleys and then there's mountaintop experiences and there's bottoms and there's ups as highs.

There's lows. That's the one Paul even said I despaired of life Paul Paul poor Paul. What's wrong with him? Didn't he have enough faith? He felt like dying sometimes he would say Oh wretched man that I am who will deliver me from this body of sin and death.

So we can relate to these guys. So with that said let's let's look at faith. What is the definition of faith? Hebrews is the best part to turn Hebrews Chapter 11, I believe I should have wrote that down.

I'm sorry. Look I believe it's chapter 11 verse 11. If not, let me know now faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen. So faith is the substance it consists of the things that are hoped for.

Are you hoping for some things that God has promised you or that line up according to his will? That's faith and it's the evidence of things not seen. So it's faith. I'll use Ronnie and Chelsea as example.

But they have faith because they better have faith. Could I have faith that this this is not going to be the end of their Ministry, they're gonna be leading a lot of people in worship someday. I see I have I have faith.

So I hope you guys do they probably have that promises in their heart that Lord I know you're wanting me to lead thousands into praise and worship. I know I can Lord. I know I have that faith, but help me with my unbelief.

I have this thing that's hoped for even though I don't see it. That's called faith. Because God's gonna grow that and same thing in our own lives in your life in your life, you know I have a praying for family members Lord.

I can feel I know you're gonna bring them to the Lord. It's to you to Lord. I know you're gonna bring them to you and I can feel it and you just keep that's it. It's the substance of things not seen basically of things that haven't happened yet.

I have faith. Because God you are the God of restoration. You're gonna restore my marriage. But what about if he doesn't is he still God? Because I know people I've prayed with people up here crying here crying back there when we first started the church and guess what?

It didn't get restored. And they would say Shane I'm prime I'm praying I'm petitioning I'm fasting God to restore my marriage. And the spouse is out found somebody else. What do you do with that is your faith?

That's why your faith always has to be linked to him. Not the circumstances if your faith is connected to your circumstances. You'll walk around like a double-minded man. The Bible says double-minded woman unstable in all their ways because my faith is tied to my circumstance.

We know your faith is tied to God. No matter what comes. It's tied to him. So faith that's the definition of it. It's not whatever we want. However, we want. It's it's it's the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen.

Faith as Alignment With God's Will

Now here's the key faith is not mind over matter. You know guys trying harder. I'm gonna try harder. It's mind over matter. Come on chair move, you know I've got the faith and you know this Star Wars stuff.

That's not faith faith. Based on what I put together looking all the scripture. It's aligning our life with the will of God. We recognize his promises and we have the same desires as he has and we look forward to the opportunities he's given us.

But on the flip side faith is also the anchor that holds us in the storms of life. In a nutshell faith is God at the center of your life holding it all together and I look to him. No matter what comes I will look to him no matter what may transpire I will look to him, but we like to we like to look at what's happening to us, right?

Do you know the word happiness comes from half a stance half a stance and it means what's happening to me right now? That's where that word happiness comes from. I have happiness because of what's happening to me right now and that tomorrow when I don't have happiness.

What's that called? Sorrow depression gloom. Because our life has lived off. Everything what's happening to us? So, how can these people and especially in the underground church experience tremendous joy and peace and persecution because their eyes are set on him.

And you have to constantly put your eyes on him because the world will pull you away. You often meet hear me say by default, right? I explained it to my kids the other day what that means. You don't have to do anything and you'll gravitate away from God.

You don't have to do anything. Just sit here go home. Just sit watch TV. You'll just gravitate away from God. The flesh just pulls you away. It's like my little kids now, they like to put little sticks in the curb and gutter, you know.

As long as the water is clean, right? It's running down the street and put a little make little boats. You never see those going the other way up the hill just drop it in there and there it goes. That's what happens to people you drop in the world.

There they go. You drop in the world. There they go. Just swimming downstream with the culture. So the Christian faith is this way it's against the current it's upstream so you can't look at your circumstances.

Because that will just pull you back down and spirit. That's why spiritual disciplines are so important. That's why the church doesn't talk about him a lot holiness and prayer and fasting and worship and reading the Word of God very good things because those keep me Against the flow of the culture and point me into the direction of Christ.

They're called spiritual disciplines for a reason. They're not spiritual recommendations. As soon as they become recommendations, we don't do them. Do we? Because we don't want to they hurt. So here's the main reason people falter that I've seen over the years.

Testing Produces Endurance

You can look in the Word of God. God's not doing this or that and we become sour we become bitter. Do you know there's a lot of bitter resentful Christians that are mad at God? There's a lot and I just want to tell you tonight.

I don't know if there's any here tonight, but it's not God. Don't be mad at him. It's once we turn our life over to him. I think it's okay to be emotional and get upset and go through things. But ultimately you don't want to hold on to that.

And you hold on to that bitterness upset about God. You don't want to live your life that way. James 1 3 the testing of your faith. Here we go. Get that word the testing of your faith produces patience.

So everybody who prays for praise for patience, you're not going to get up in the morning and have patience. Guess what's gonna happen. You can have difficult kids or difficult marriage or difficult co-worker co-workers to foster patience and Then the beginning of this verse count it all joy brethren when you fall into various trials.

No, I don't like that verse at all count it all joy. It's not joyful. It hurts, but he's saying listen, look at your look at your affliction. Look at your tribulation allow that Tribulation to To lead to patience and endurance and the attributes of God in your life, but it's through that suffering.

Look at what it says the testing of your faith when faith is tested. It comes out tried and you show me a person who's ever been tested. They have the golden spoon right or silver spoon in their mouth.

Nothing. They have weak faith. They get they get shaky leg as soon as something bad comes up. But you show me who somebody who stood the test of time they've got some years under their belt. They've got strong faith.

They can look cancer in the eye. They can look whatever in the eye and say I have faith and I'm not wavering. Well another key verse. By faith we understand. Here we go again in Hebrews by faith. We understand that the world were framed by the Word of God so that the things which are seen were not made of the things which are visible.

So he's saying by faith we see that there's a God right by faith. So when it comes to faith, you don't have to apologize for your faith. You got that you don't have to apologize for your faith. I hear a lot people say oh, that's.

I know it's silly. I know it seemed outlandish either some God I know but it's my faith thing. No, they need to be apologizing. You walk outside. Look around his invisible attributes are clearly seen.

You know if we talk about the oxygen level and the nitrogen level and the planets and the earth just tilts just a certain way the Sun Comes right up in the moon. Everything's just right and it just all happened.

You don't have to apologize for your faith. We understand by faith. We understand why because his invisible attributes are clearly seen. Romans 1 God's invisible attributes are clearly seen. Somebody says there's no God just look around his invisible attributes are everywhere so that they are so powerful.

His invisible attributes are so powerful that the Bible says that you are without excuse. So when it comes to the Judgment Day, who's that? Well, I didn't know you're without excuse. Creation screams creator.

You walk in here. You think these chairs just put themselves in that right order over a million years. They would build themselves and put the screws on the legs. How much more the universe. How much more the world keeping everything together.

God says you're without excuse. It's everywhere everywhere. If people like that, you know, they debate. Oh, there's no God. Well who gave you that sense of morality in your heart? Everybody knows there's a conviction there if there's no God.

Why are you so mad at him? If there's no God, why do you want to get rid of him? What. Because it's that it's in there. Created in his image because of the fall of sin without Christ without turning to God.

We're caught in that sinful nature and we don't want to have anything to do with God. I Remember at the memorial today. There's people sit in front of me. I could tell as soon as the pastor got up there I didn't preach it that one.

But as soon as he got up there people. It's time to go time to go to the bathroom. Hi, we're talking to look on the phone. I don't want to talk don't don't bring up the Word of God. Don't talk about those things.

Why where does that come from? Where does that? Antagonistic spirit come from. So it says right here by faith. We understand that the world's were framed by the Word of God. God spoke it and it came into existence.

That is not some, you know something. Well, I just have faith and blind faith and we really don't know and the course is an element of faith involved but at the same time look at what you're putting faith into a creator that sustains everything.

Look at the look at the when I was studying. Like the makeup of the body of the skeletal system the muscular system the neural neuromuscular Neurotransmitters and all this stuff about how the body works and in fitness I was just how can somebody not think that somebody put all this together.

I just blew my mind. This isn't some silly kid that needs, you know, Christianity's a crutch and I better just look and look at how the body's made up. Scientists can't even design it a Telescope or anything as good as the eye the human eye how can bring in and bring out the light everything they can't even invent that.

Nothing compares out of the brain how it holds all this information how it can disseminate right wrong. Remember back to therefore to make a choice in the future and make a choice now, where does all that come from?

From pre-mortal ooze that came up out of it. And then one cell turned into two cells and then this and then there's a man there's a woman there. Here we go. That's silly. That's foolishness. I Mean, I don't mean a joke about but it's outright foolishness.

To think nothing. Something came from nothing. Order came from disorder. All this came from chaos. It makes no sense. So that's one step of faith. Do not apologize for it. God does not seem silly and outlandish.

It makes perfect sense if you look around. Just look outside walk outside the next time you're having difficulties. Look outside. Look at the universe. Look at the stars at night. Say Lord if you hold these in your hand clearly.

You hold my situation in your hand. Think about next time you think Oh God, I don't know if he heard heard my cries. I don't know if he got can handle this one. Just walk outside. Just look around look at what he's done already and Then I've got four or five points here.

Worship as the Foundation of Faith

The first one is by faith able offer to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. You know this story in the Bible, right? It's not fiction. It's truth. Able offered a more excellent sacrifice to God than Cain so Cain killed him jealousy but by faith it says by faith able offered to God a more excellent sacrifice, so Conversely faith falters when worship and righteousness falter.

This was about worshiping. Cain was bringing his offering of worship. So your faith will falter when worship falters. That's why I promote worship so much after the service before the service whenever you can't get into your car getting to worship.

Because that builds your faith. Why. Because it's it's a spirit in you crying. Ah the father drawing close to the father not get away from me father, right? We want we're no many people don't want worship, and I just can't understand it.

I just don't understand that because that builds your faith as your hearts crying out to God and worshiping say I don't know how I don't think any of us have mastered it, but you got to try. Put on music get your heart in the right frame of mind begin worshiping him and it might hurt a little bit.

That's why the Bible says draw near to God and he'll draw near to you. It's not easy. It's it's not it's simple. But it's not easy. So we see that faith by faith. He came and he worshiped God. So your faith will falter or falter if you're not a worshiper.

Your faith will not be as grounded as somebody who is a worshiper. Because they're they're connect. That's the time. Do you think we connect with God in a meaningful powerful way right now sitting here in some way, but really think about it.

Just listening. She only has good ideas. Here he goes again. No, I do this guy do that and then we get in our car go eat dinner and wake up good. Where's that meaningful relationship with God happening?

If you're not worshiping guess what it's not happening. That's one thing we want to teach our kids if we can teach them how to worship God. Don't follow my coattails go in your own room and cry out to God and worship him because that builds faith.

It's hard to knock a worshiper off the steps. The enemy can't come into a worshiping heart. What he does is he gets that heart out of worship? They might be in the word, but they're not in worship and That's how he draws us away.

So faith. Faith falters when we don't worship. I Like what Warren Wearsby said we don't live on explanations we live on promises. You cannot live your life on Asking God for an explanation. Why'd you do this?

Why'd you do this? And why is this happening? Why do you guys have some why's in your life? I should I have about a hundred Why why that? Why this why that? Why why why why why? But our our faith cannot be based on explanations.

It has to be based on the promises of God and How do you get your heart back on the promises of God? Through worship and The Word of God you see how important that is. Just as a side note. I Talked to mainly a lot of men counseling over the last few years from here other churches everywhere.

I don't have a lot of time to do as much as I want, but talking to these guys marital issues. Pornography addicted all kinds of things. I always I say tell me about your time of worship with God. You think anybody has ever said Oh Shane and Every morning Every morning.

I'm up worshiping God for an hour hour and a half. I'm crying out to him sometimes I end up on my floor prostrate or sit in my chair or take I'm just worshiping him. It's so powerful. You think I've ever heard that?

Never. Because it's hard for sin to grow in a worshiping heart because that's where it's crucified. See you can know the Word of God the demons know the Word of God and they tremble. And don't get me wrong.

I love the Word of God. I've committed my life to studying this and into grasping the deep truths that are in this Bible. I love it. We preach it. I proclaim it I use it and whatever but without worship.

Without worship. It becomes just well, I know it but it doesn't apply to my life that well I can I can follow the principles. I don't do this. I don't do this. I don't you know what the old saying? I don't drink and chew and hang out those that do and I'll okay.

Greg all these rules are revenge not rules. It's a relationship and worship happens in that relationship. Why do you think it's hard to worship? Why do you think you don't have time for worship? Why do you think you're too busy to worship?

Why. Because that's the warfare. That's the weapons of our warfare. You think a pornography addictions gonna gain a stronghold when you're sitting worshiping God for an hour every morning? That's impossible.

There's struggles, but I'm talking about a stronghold that grabs a man or a woman and takes them in in a worshiping heart. That's why he wants to get you out of worship. And that's why I worship seems so hard.

Oh, gee I don't know what to do. I don't I just sit there. I get bored my mind trips. Yeah, it takes a little effort. Actually a lot of effort. If you draw close to me, I will draw close to you. The Bible says that.

Drawing Near to God Requires Diligence