The Christian walk is this: a progressive journey out of one realm into another; one realm of faith into another realm of faith.  The big question is how can we move upward to the goals that God has for us?  Paul helps answer this question in Philippians 3:10. "(For my determined purpose is) that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding (the wonders of His Person) more strongly and more clearly.  And that I may in that same way come to know the power outflowing from His resurrection (which it exerts over believers)..."  We will never be able to grow in our faith in some one who we do not know well.  For many years I was somewhat confused by this scripture passage.  How could Paul, who was no doubt a Christian, a minister of the Gospel, and an apostle of the Lord say, "That I may know Him" (Phil. 3:10 KJV)?  It was because of a simple revelation which I lacked that caused my confusion.  What was that?  We must know Him more and more and more and more,  never stopping in our quest to draw nearer to Him so that our faith in Him can be absolute.  Amen!

Introduction

             After reading the foreword you may think that I am legalistic in speaking of "an absolute faith."  But, in fact, I am speaking of an absolute God in whom we should trust, rely and believe in absolutely.  There is, however, a new covenant law that we need to understand and appropriate.  "For the law of the Spirit of life (which is) in Christ Jesus (the law of our new being), has freed me from the law of sin and death" (Rom. 8:2).  This is also the perfect law and the law of liberty.  "But he who looks carefully into the faultless law, the (law) of liberty, and is faithful to it and perseveres in looking into it, being not a heedless listener who forgets, but an active doer (who obeys), he shall be blessed in his doing - in his life of obedience" (James l:25).  The KJV says, "But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty and continueth therein..."  Jesus said, "...If you abide in My word - hold fast to My teachings and live in accordance with them - you are truly My disciples.  And you shall know the truth and the truth will set you free" (John 8:31-32).

            Jesus is the Absolute Way, The Absolute Truth, and the Absolute Life.  See John 14:6.  Hallelujah!

            Look at what the word "Absolute" means as found in the dictionary.  ABSOLUTE:  complete, entire, not mixed with anything else, pure, free from imperfection, perfect, free from control or restrictions, not compared with anything else, real, actual, certain, and infallible.  In the following chapters I hope we can find that these are in fact the very characteristics of our Lord Jesus Christ in whom we can place absolute trust and confidence.

            "Let us all come forward and draw near with true (honest and sincere) hearts in unqualified assurance and absolute conviction engendered by faith, (that is, by that leaning of the entire human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness) having our hearts sprinkled and purified from a guilty (evil) conscience and with our bodies cleansed with pure water.  So let us seize and hold fast and retain without wavering the hope we cherish and confess, and our acknowledgement of it, for He who promised is reliable (sure) and faithful to His Word" (Heb.10:22-23).

            Take note of the statement in the scripture "..by that leaning of the entire human personality on God...".  "Entire" is one of the definitions of absolute that we found.  That is to say we must entirely (absolutely), with all that is within our personalities, lean upon God.  Amen!  What does it go on to say?  "...in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness..."  Praise Him!  Forever!  Glory be to His Name.

            NOTE:  THESE WRITINGS CONTAIN MANY PERSONAL TESTIMONIES THAT I HAVE BEEN A WITNESS TO.  THE PURPOSE OF THESE TESTIMONIES IS TO CONFIRM THE ABSOLUTE FAITHFULNESS OF GOD.

Our God is the Absolute Truth, the Whole Truth and Nothing but the Truth

            The Word of God tells us that God is not like men that sometimes lie.  He has never lied nor can He lie.  He is the Truth, Jesus is the Truth, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth, the Absolute truth.  Hallelujah!

            "What if some did not believe and were without faith?  Does their lack of faith and their faithfulness nullify and make ineffective and void the faithfulness of God and His fidelity (to His Word)?  By no means!  Let God be found true though every human being be false and a liar..." (Rom.3:3-4).  "God is not a man that He should tell or act a lie, neither the son of man, that He should feel repentance or compunction (for what He has promised).  Has He said and shall He not do it?  Or has He spoken and shall He not make it good?" (Num.23:19)

            You see our basic problem for not accepting that God is absolute in every way is our lack of faith, ignorance and double-mindedness.  God has given us His promises which do not change with the wind as we sometimes do.  At times we are blown from one idea or concept to another showing our unstable nature.  But, in spite of the weakness that we demonstrate at times, His promises remain the same.  "For as many as are the promises of God, they all find their Yes (answer) in Him (Christ).  For this reason we also utter the Amen (so be it) to God through Him - that is, in His person and by His agency - to the glory of God" (II Cor.1:20).

            We must also remember our God is real!  More real than anyone or anything that exists.  He exists for our benefit on every occasion, in every situation, and in every place on this earth. Remember the definitions of "absolute".  He is "real" and is "not to be compared with anything else."  We must learn to place our absolute faith in Him because "...without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him.  For whoever would come near to God must (necessarily) believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek (Him) out" (Heb.11:6).  His word cannot be "mixed with anything else" but faith if we expect to receive His solution and provision for the need of the moment in our lives.  "For in deed, we have had the glad tidings (of God) proclaimed to us just as truly as they (the Israelites of old did when the good news of deliverance from bondage came to them); but the message they heard did not benefit them; because it was not mixed with faith (that is with the leaning of the entire personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness) by those who heard it; neither were they united in faith with (Joshua and Caleb) the ones who heard (did believe).  For we who have believed - who have adhered to and trusted and relied on God - do enter into that rest..." (Heb.4:2-3).

            We know the story of Israel.  They were delivered miraculously from captivity, protected and provided for by God even during 40 years of wandering in the desert because of disobedience and unbelief.  God wanted them to trust in Him and to move forward to the promised land that he had given them. Unfortunately, they wouldn't believe God's Word and promise.  They mixed doubt with God's will for them instead of faith and did not enter into His rest.  His rest was not entering into Canaan, the promised land, but it was to believe in Him and cease from their carnal ideas and concepts.  See Hebrews 4:8-10.

            Joshua and Caleb, on the other hand, did believe and mixed only faith with God's Word to them.  They saw the same obstacles that the other ten spies saw in the promised land but they chose to believe in God and in God alone.  These two servants of God had to wait forty years and for another generation of people before they could enter in.  They had already entered into God's rest by absolutely trusting in Him, Hallelujah!  Someone took a walk from Egypt to the promised land on the supposed route of the Israelites and reported that it was only a sixteen day journey.  Why did it take forty years for the Israelites to finally arrive in the promised land?  They would not accept the fact that God would not allow anything else to be mixed with His absolute word and will for them.

            Paul declares that our God cannot deceive us and is "the ever truthful God."  "Paul, a bond servant of God and an apostle (a special messenger) of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, to stimulate and promote the faith of God's chosen ones and lead them on to accurate discernment and recognition of and acquaintance with the Truth which belongs to and harmonizes with and tends to godliness, (resting) in the hope of eternal life, (life) which the ever truthful God Who cannot deceive promised before the world or the ages of time began" (Titus 1:1-2).

            Our faith in the Lord Jesus comes from learning His Word. "So faith comes by hearing (what is told) and what is heard comes by the preaching (of the message that came from the lips) of Christ, the Messiah (Himself)" (Rom.10:17).

            A few years ago here in the mountains of Honduras, I saw a manifestation of the Truth.  We were in a village one morning sharing the Word with a group of about forty believers.  We had been seated for about three hours sharing the principles of our faith when suddenly a woman appeared in our midst crying out for help. It seemed that her daughter was in the last stages of death and she pleaded with us to come quickly to her house and pray for this young woman.  Seven of us felt led by the Holy Spirit to accompany this grieving mother to her house and upon entering I was shocked at what I saw. 

            This young woman, because of a lingering sickness, was no more than skin and bone.  I had never seen a human being in such a state.  I don't believe she could have weighed over forty pounds.  We were told on the way that she had not eaten or drank in many days and was not responding to anyone or anything.  Many thoughts were racing through my mind, but all of a sudden I heard the Lord say, "Command her to jump up and praise Me."  Everything in my natural senses said this is impractical, unreasonable and impossible and that I should not speak such an absurd thing to this poor, suffering soul.  Jesus raised the crippled and the dead by only speaking to them.  Peter and Paul did the same.  Here was the battle going on in me:  should we pray a nice, little comforting prayer over this dying woman and console her mother with words of hope that her daughter would soon be with Jesus, or obey the voice of the Spirit and say what He had spoken to me?  I asked her if she could hear me and she responded by a slow nodding of her head and, by the grace of God, I was able to say, "Jump up off the bed and Praise your God!"  Do you know what happened next?  She leaped up off of that bed of affliction and bounced up and down with her hands in the air praising the Lord.  Hallelujah!  He is real!  He is the same, yesterday, today and forever!  See Hebrews 13:8.

            We were rejoicing in the Lord when the Lord spoke something else to me that seemed just as strange.  He said, "Tell her she will be as big in her stomach as you are very soon."  I am a large person, being 6'3" tall and weighing approximately 240 pounds. Once again this sounded like an unreasonable, impractical and impossible statement, but by the grace of God, I spoke it.  About six months later as we passed through the same village I heard a woman calling out to me.  I did not recognize her as being this same woman because she not only looked like another person but was about five months pregnant and her stomach was a large as mine.  She and her husband were full of joy and thanksgiving for what God had done for them.  Not only did she almost die, but they had lost their only child also during the time of her sickness.  Blessed be the Name of Jesus for His restorative power!

            Help us, Lord, to grow in our faith to the place where we are absolutely convinced that You are true to Your Word and promises and so that we can go forth in Your Name to continue Your marvelous works here on the earth for Your glory.

            His "infallible" Truth.  His "certain" Truth.  How many times does He say "Verily, Verily, or Truly, Truly in His Word? "Now faith is the assurance (The confirmation, the title-deed) of the things (we) hope for, being the proof (we) do not see and the conviction of their reality - faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses" (He.11:1).  In the Spanish bible it says certeza which is certainty.  Remember in our definitions of "absolute" we found the words "real, certain", "infallible". "Infallible" further defined in the dictionary means:  absolute, free from error, something that cannot be mistaken, and absolutely reliable; sure.

            Our God is real.  His faith is real, more real than anything that exists.  He is certainly and truly our only source.  He is our everything.  He and His Word are infallible, absolutely free from error, something or someone that cannot be mistaken.  He is absolutely reliable and sure.  Hallelujah!

            I know two medical doctors who are Christian friends of mine.  One has been in the medical profession for over thirty years. He is able to medically diagnose most diseases by their symptoms. About one month ago he began to have problems with his kidneys; pain, discomfort and the sort.  Afterwards he began to pass blood in his urine until it was almost pure blood.  He knew what the problem was medically speaking; but he was determined to find the best solution to the problem.  He chose the best.  He knew that the Word of God says, "By His wounds you have been healed."  See Isaiah 53:5.

            Two more days passed and he continued to pass blood through his kidneys.  He asked for agreement from some Christian brothers and sisters in whom we were included.  "Again I tell you, if two of you on earth agree (harmonize together, make a symphony together) about whatever (anything and everything) they may ask, it will come to pass and be done for them by My Father in heaven" (Matt.18:19).  He mixed faith with the Word of God and the promises of God.  He did not compare his medical knowledge with that of the Great Physician nor did he consult other physicians or take the medicines of men.  The next day he was totally healed and whole.  Glory to God!

             The other doctor friend was attending a gathering of some Christians here close to where we live.  We were talking about the incident in Mark 10:46-52 of the blind man, Bartimaeus, who heard that Jesus was passing by on the road and called out to the Lord for mercy and healing.  We can see here that Bartimaeus upon hearing Jesus call him to come over to where He was threw off his cloak.  It was a cloak that marked him as a blind person.  That is to say before Jesus spoke a word or prayed for this blind man, he had absolute faith that he would receive his sight.  Jesus' only reply to him was, "Go your way; your faith has healed you."  He received his sight and accompanied Jesus on His way.

            In this meeting where we were gathered together, all of sudden the Holy Spirit spoke, "Throw off your cloaks and receive your healing, now!"  This doctor friend had been suffering from some chronic problems in her reproductive organs.  She knew well what her problem was and had even consulted other physicians who had confirmed the diagnosis; but at that moment she knew it was time to throw off the cloak of medical knowledge and her identity with this disease and identify herself with Jesus Christ, her Healer.  She felt the healing virtue of God go through her body, but some of the symptoms persisted.  According to her they were:  a swollen abdomen with a lot of pain, and regular hemorrhaging accompanied by severe head aches.  This is where we have our biggest problems; that is in believing more in what we see and feel than in our Lord's faithfulness.  This is the importance of the absoluteness of our faith. "Put on God's whole armor (the armor of a heavy-armed soldier which God supplies), that you may be able successfully to stand up against (all) the strategies and the deceits of the devil...Therefore put on God's complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day (of danger), and, having done all (the crisis demands), to stand (firmly in your place)" (Eph.6:11,13). 

Over a period of a year by standing her ground this sister (a medical doctor who saw and felt all the symptoms and who knew their natural consequences) obtained her victory.  No more swollen abdomen, no more pain and hemorrhaging, no more headaches.  NO MORE DISEASE!  Amen!!

            Her medical treatment and surgery came once again from the Doctor of Doctors, Jesus Christ.  Although many times there are alternative measures offered to us, absolute faith is depending on Him and on Him alone.

            In the case of the dying woman in the mountains, she had passed all hope, medically speaking, and to my knowledge was not even under the care of an earthly physician.  You see, our absolute God had to do an absolute miracle and He did.  Bless His Name!  In the cases of my two doctor friends, they were certainly aware of all the alternatives that they had to choose from.  But because of their decision to trust in an absolute God with an absolute faith they also received absolute results.

            God wants us to be perfect like He is.  We found that one of the definitions of absolute is "perfect or free from imperfection." What does this mean?  If absolute is synonymous with perfection then it would be safe to say that God is absolute and He wants us to be absolute also.  Let's look at Matthew 5:48.  "You, therefore, must be perfect (growing into complete maturity of godliness in mind and character, having reached the proper height of virtue and integrity), as your heavenly Father is perfect."  "Finally, Brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things" (Phil.4:8 KJV).  Another way to say it is to say we need to change our minds and attitudes and what we think about what God's will is for us and not be concerned about what the world around us thinks.  "Do not be conformed to this world - this age, fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs.  But be transformed (changed) by the (entire) renewal of your mind - by its new ideals and its new attitude - so that you may prove (for yourselves) what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect (in His sight for you)" (Rom.12:2).  Note here the word entire" is "absolute renewal of your mind", and the word "perfect" is the "absolute will of God even the thing which is good and acceptable and absolute (in His sight for you)."

            I am reminded of three incidents which reflect these principles of the mind renewal process and that of making absolute decisions.  They all involved cancerous tumors.

            When we lived in the southern part of Honduras, we had some neighbors who were Nicaraguan refugees.  They were good Christian people who had fled Nicaragua along with some other Christians from their town and upon arriving in Honduras had continued to serve the Lord.  This brother was a very faithful preacher of the word and God was using him to convince many people of their need for Christ.  They had much faith in some areas, but in other areas their faith was weak.  One day they came to our house in the middle of the day and shared that they had just come from the hospital where the doctors had told them that the wife had an incurable tumor on the side of her abdomen and would not have long to live.  It was protruding out from under her blouse.  Although they lived close by and I saw them regularly, I had never noticed it before.  They said it had appeared suddenly and had grown rapidly. They were obviously upset and wanted me to pray with them for God to heal her.  I knew that they were not aware of some of their benefits in the Lord in the area of healing, so I asked them to take some scriptures home with them to meditate on and then to return later and we would pray.  The mind renewal process takes different amounts of time with different people.  At about 3:00 pm, the same afternoon, as she sat in her back yard seeking the Lord and meditating on these scriptures, the tumor suddenly disappeared.  They came immediately to my house and we rejoiced in the Lord together thanking God for His mercy and power.  That was nine years ago and she is still living and serving God today.  It is His good, acceptable and perfect (absolute) will to heal, Amen!

            One day in a mountain range in central Honduras as we were meeting with a rather large crowd that had gathered that day and during a time of the Holy Spirit's ministry to the people, an elderly man came forward who had a large protruding stomach.  He said he had been diagnosed as having stomach cancer and had been given up to die by the doctors he had visited.  He said he had walked six miles to come to the meeting believing God would heal him. While listening to him talk I immediately thought of the woman with the issue of blood as we find in the account in Mark 5:27-29. "She had heard the reports concerning Jesus, and she came up behind Him in the throng and touched His garment, for she kept saying, I shall be restored to health.  And immediately her flow of blood was dried up at the source, and (suddenly) she felt in her body that she was healed of her (distressing) ailment."  He told me, "I came today because I heard people are being healed here and I believe I will also be healed."  That was an absolute decision he had made.  There happened to be two medical doctors, brothers in the Lord, who were standing close to me so I asked them to quickly examine this man.  They both confirmed that he had a large tumor in his stomach.  After that, as we prayed, the Holy Spirit told me to poke his protruding stomach with my finger tips.  There immediately followed a gushing of what sounded like air coming out of his mouth and he fell backward onto the floor.  He laid there peacefully for about an hour as we continued to minister to other people.  I then asked one of the same two doctors to examine him again as he awoke from what seemed like a deep sleep.  The Lord had performed His surgery and there was not a sign of that tumor in his body.  Bless You, Jesus!  Absolute decisions bring absolute results.

            Some years ago a sister in the Lord came up for prayer during an assembly time of the saints.  It was obvious that a large tumor had appeared on her arm and was causing her great discomfort.  She had not consulted a physician as of yet, because she wanted to present her case before the Great Physician that day. As we prayed for her the Holy Spirit spoke a word to the effect that she should be confident that she was healed and that the tumor would disappear within 30 days.  This was a word of knowledge and although we don't always understand why we have to wait for manifestations of His promises, we should always trust in the Lord with all of our heart.  That is what it means when He says to trust in Him absolutely.  See Proverbs 3:5.  After a week had passed, the sister called me on the phone to tell me that the tumor was still there.  All I could say was that the 30 days was not up and for her to look unto Jesus, Who is the Author and Perfecter of our faith.  See Hebrews 12:2 ASV. Another week passed and the same thing occurred.  Finally on the 29th day from the day on which we prayed she called me again to tell me that the tumor was still there.  I gave her this scripture verse.  "Do not, therefore, fling away your fearless confidence, for it carries a great and glorious compensation of reward.  For you have need of steadfast patience and endurance, so that you may perform and fully accomplish the will of God, and thus receive and carry away (and enjoy to the full) what is promised" (Heb.10:35-36).  On the 30th day she called to say that the tumor had disappeared during the night before.  You see, God has a lot of mercy on us many times during our trials, but the end result is that He wants us to grow and develop into perfect and absolute people who make perfect and absolute decisions.  "Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and steadfastness and patience.  But let endurance and steadfastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work, so that you may be (people) perfectly and fully developed (with no defects) lacking in nothing" (James 1:3-4).

            We have been giving account of the benefits of an absolute faith and although we seemed to have concentrated on physical healing and restoration, this principal applies in all areas of our lives.

            Over five years ago as I sat on a log in the mountains where we live in Honduras praying and meditating before the Lord, I began to see a strange phenomenon.  From where I was sitting there appeared to be erupting sparks of fire in various locations of the mountains and valleys that I could see.  As I observed this event I heard the Holy Spirit speak to me and say, "Every where that you see sparks, the Gospel will be heard and people will come to know the Lord Jesus Christ."  I began to weep, but I did not know that people actually lived where the sparks were appearing.  I immediately began to share this vision with some intimate Christian workers that I knew.  From that day to this day I have been absolutely convinced that we would see this culminated.  Hallelujah!  I can say that in most of those places this vision has been fulfilled and I absolutely believe it will be completely fulfilled, Amen!  You see it takes absolute faith in God in every area of our life.

            A few years ago I was preaching and teaching in another mountain range.  On that particular day I was talking to a group of leaders and ministers about God's provision for His people.  At the time I was traveling in a pick-up truck that a brother in the Lord had offered me to use for eight months while he was out of the country. had given my vehicle to another brother who had a need the year before and I was confidently waiting for God to provide me with other transportation.  I knew that this borrowed pick-up was God's transportation for me at the moment and I was grateful for the use of it.  I was talking to the group about sowing and reaping and I stated (absolutely) that I knew God would always provide me with transportation suitable for the need of the moment. Suddenly I saw a vision outside the window of a black Ford pick-up sitting under a big tree that was adjacent to the building we were in.  It appeared for just about thirty seconds and I said to the people, "For instance I see right at this moment a black Ford pick-up with a camper on the back sitting under that tree."  Several jumped up to look out the window but of course they saw nothing.  The important thing was that God wanted me to see.  Seeing with the natural eye is not like seeing with the spiritual eye.  In the natural realm nothing was there, but in the spiritual realm it was there.  Amen!  What is faith as defined in Hebrews 11:1?  "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" (KJV).  This means that at the moment, in the natural, we do not always see the results of our faith in God, but because it is evidence" (the dictionary says "evidence is what makes clear the truth of something") it must be seen with our spiritual eyes of faith and that's how I saw the black Ford truck that day.  This scripture says, "faith is the substance of things hoped for."  The dictionary also says that "substance" is something actual and real.  That sounds like some of our definitions of "absolute": actual, real.....  Faith is then the absoluteness of something hoped for and the clear truth of something not seen.  This is faith - something that is evidence and substance (true, real, actual).  I am trying to convince you of the importance of developing an absolute faith in God.  Hallelujah!

            Let me finish the testimony.  In less than six months from the day of the vision and shortly after I had returned the borrowed pick-up, a brother who I had not heard from in over four years sent word to me that he wanted to see me.  We were working in opposite parts of the country at the time and so we did not have any contact with each other.  He finally made contact with me and told me he had been thinking about me and wanted to know if I could use a pick-up truck in the ministry.  I asked him what kind of a truck it was and he said it was a black Ford 4WD pick-up with a camper on the back.  I went a few weeks later to get the truck. It served me well for five years.  Last year I gave it to another brother to use.  The pick-up I am now driving God also provided in a similar manner. What kind of manner?  A supernatural one.  My friends, we must learn more to absolutely trust in our Lord.

            "Furthermore, brethren, we beg and admonish you in (virtue of our union with) the Lord Jesus, that (you follow the instructions which) you learned from us about how you ought to walk so as to please God, as indeed you are doing; that you do so even more and more abundantly - attaining yet greater perfection in living this life" (I Thess.4:1).

            How should we walk to please God?  It must be a faith walk because without faith it is impossible to please God.  It not only must be a faith walk, but it must be a greater and more perfected faith walk that will lead us to an absolute faith walk.

            May You receive glory from our lives of absolute faith, Lord Jesus.

Jesus, the Absolute Way  

            Most of us know well the scripture verse where Jesus says, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life."  See John 14:6.  He spoke these words as He was revealing more and more of Himself to His disciples.  We also are some of His disciples.  Amen!

            In the last chapter we dealt with many truths that will make us progressively freer and absolute in our faith if we believe in them.  In this chapter we will try to show the necessity of progressively knowing and walking more in His ways.  Remember, this does not come naturally or automatically.  It comes by an ever increasing supernatural faith relationship with Him.  We learn to walk in His ways understanding that "...My thoughts are not your thoughts; neither are your ways My ways, says the Lord, for as the heavens are higher than the earth so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:8-9).  Does this mean that we can never understand or know the ways of the Lord?  Certainly not.  But what it does mean is that we must learn to think differently and walk differently.  We must walk in His ways. Amen.  But how can we do this?  First of all, we have been given the Holy Spirit who freely reveals all things to us.  "...as the Scripture says, what eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and has not entered into the heart of man (all that) God has prepared - made and keeps ready - for those who love Him (that is, for those who hold Him in affectionate reverence, promptly obeying Him and gratefully recognizing the benefits He has bestowed).  Yet to us God has unveiled and revealed them by and through His Spirit for the (Holy) Spirit searches diligently, exploring and examining everything, even sounding the profound and bottomless things of God - the divine counsels and things hidden and beyond man's scrutiny).....But we have the mind of Christ, the Messiah, and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart" (I Cor.2:9-10,16). Hallelujah!

            The King James Version says in this same chapter, "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things freely given to us by God" (Vs  12).

            The potential to know God's thoughts and ways are therefore offered to us by the indwelling Holy Spirit.  Again let me say this does not come automatically.  We must seek God, search His Word for these revelations and allow our minds to be renewed.  Remember the scripture in Romans 12:2.  "And be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your minds, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God."  His perfect (absolute) will!  Amen!

            What does it mean that Jesus is the Way?  I believe it deals with how we think, talk, and walk.  That is to say, His ways of doing things must become our ways of doing things if we want to reflect His person to others around us.

            One time I was talking to the Lord in prayer and I said, "Lord, help me to think the way You thought while You were here on the earth; help me to speak the way You spoke while You were here on the earth; help me to walk the way You walked while You were here on the earth."  It was then that the Lord asked me, "And do you want to react the way I reacted while on the earth?"  That was a big question for me, because I knew that I was reacting poorly in some situations and circumstances around me at the time.  You see, Jesus' way of reacting was not the way that we Christians react sometimes.  People can abuse us, cheat us, lie about us, betray us, and on and on, but none of these things give us the right to react carnally.  We need to learn to receive the blessings spoken over us by Jesus in Matthew, Chapter 3.  "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely, for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad: for great is your reward in heaven..." (Vs 10-12).  This is the absolute way of the Lord; that is to receive all those things as blessings instead of cursings.

            One time I was seeking comfort from the Lord because I was becoming beaten down from false accusations that were coming against me and the Gospel work which I was involved in.  I said, "Lord, I am getting weary of all these false accusations."  The Lord quickly spoke to me and said, "If the accusations are false, be blessed, but if they are true you need to repent."  This went down deep into my heart.  Then He immediately gave me the way to escape from the effect of these accusations.  How was that?  I had to consider each accusation to see if it was true or false.  If it was true, because He is the truth and I must know the Truth to be free, I had to repent of that which I was accused.  If it was false, because the Bible says I am blessed in false accusations for His sake, I had to receive the blessings.  This is absolutely the only way to survive and walk in victory on this earth.  Jesus walked in the ways of His Heavenly Father without sinning or making any mistake.  He walked being constantly persecuted, reviled and falsely accused even all the way to the cross of Calvary.  We need to thank God for the fact that He (Jesus) was obedient even unto death on the cross. He is our example.  He is the Way, the absolute Way to life and life more abundant.

            We are talking about an absolute faith in an absolute God.  If we can learn to have faith in His Word, His counsels, His corrections and His directions, we will honor and glorify His Name throughout our lives here on earth.

            About 15 years ago, while I was pastoring in our local church, because of some pressures in my life I became frustrated one afternoon and struck a heavily reinforced wooden wall in my house with my fist.  I broke my hand on impact and the knuckle of my little finger was driven down about two inches.  My hand immediately began to swell and the pain was excruciating.  I called out for God's mercy and asked my wife and children to forgive me for this outburst of anger.  Thank God I received some immediate relief.  This happened on a Saturday afternoon.  The next morning my hand was swollen to about twice its normal size and I could not move any of my fingers at all.  That morning we had a time of gathering of the saints and upon arriving at our place of assembly all my brothers and sisters began to question me about my hand.  They all thought, of course, that I had fallen down or something of that nature, never thinking that what had actually happened was even remotely possible in my case.  We certainly need to think the best of one another and I appreciated the fact that my brothers and sisters thought that I had an accident; but the truth had to be told.

            I had decided during the night before to confess my sin before the entire congregation, so I told everyone who asked me about my hand to please wait as I would explain everything later. What was God's way to handle this situation?  As a Christian, and even more so as a pastor, I certainly couldn't lie about what had happened.  More importantly, as we would see, there was a spiritual lesson to be learned by following the Lord's way.  I waited for the appropriate time and then stood before the congregation and told them the whole story.  I then asked them to pray for me that God would heal my hand.  "Confess to one another  therefore your faults (your slips, your false steps, your offenses, your sins) and pray (also) for one another, that you may be healed and restored (to a spiritual tone of mind and heart).  The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available (dynamic in its working)" (James 5:16).  Afterwards several brethren came and chastised me for "degrading myself' before the congregation.  I told them that I was absolutely convinced that I had to follow God's instructions and walk in integrity. 

            I had not slept hardly at all the night before so later that afternoon I laid down to take a rest.  I immediately fell off into what seemed like a deep sleep and when I awoke several hours later the Lord had moved my knuckle up two inches back to its original position and all the other bones and joints of my hand were perfectly normal.  Hallelujah!  God's ways gets God's results.  That miracle was a confirmation of absolute faith and obedience in God on that occasion.  We should desire to obey and believe absolutely on every occasion.

            To further explain this principle let me give you another testimony that spanned over about 15 years.  Unlike the previous testimony that produced quick results this situation required much more faith, patience and perseverance on my part.  That is why being absolute does not have a time limit.  That is to say with an absolute confidence in God we will not put any limit or conditions on Him.  We know, in the case of Abraham who had been promised by God that He would be the father of many nations, that the fulfillment of this promise took twenty-five years.  "No unbelief or distrust made him waver or doubtingly question concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong and was empowered by faith as he gave praise and glory to God, fully satisfied and assured that God was able and mighty to keep His Word and to do what He had promised" (Romans 4:20-21).

            There are two scriptures that basically carried me through this trial of my faith.  I would like to share them with you now.

            "But be ever mindful of days gone by in which, you were first spiritually enlightened, you endured a great and powerful struggle, sometimes being yourselves a gazingstock, publicly exposed to insults and abuse and distress, and sometimes claiming fellowship and making common cause with others who were so treated.  For you did sympathize and suffer along with those who were imprisoned, and you bore cheerfully the plundering of your belongings and the confiscation of your property, in the knowledge and consciousness that you yourselves had a better and lasting possession.  Do not, therefore, fling away your fearless confidence, for it carries a great and glorious compensation of reward" (Heb.10:32-35).

            "Therefore humble yourselves (demote, lower yourselves in your own estimation) under the mighty hand of God, that in due time He may exalt you.  Casting the whole of your care - all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, (once and for all) on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully.  Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring (in fierce hunger), seeking someone to seize upon and devour.  Withstand him; be firm in faith (against his onset - rooted, established, strong, immovable, and determined), knowing that the same (identical) sufferings are appointed to your brotherhood (the whole body of Christians) throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace (Who imparts all blessing and favor), Who has called you to His (own) eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will Himself complete and make you what you ought to be, establish and ground you securely, and strengthen, and settle you" (I Peter 5:6-10)

            Many principles of absolute faith are contained within these two scriptures.  Remember:  Faith comes from hearing and hearing from the Word of God.  Amen!.

            When I responded to the call of service to the Lord, twenty-two years ago, I was involved in a number of business ventures which were proving very successful.  Of course, to avail myself to the Lord more and more, I had to begin to make many decisions about my business and personal affairs.  These decisions resulted in changes in our life style individually and as a family.  It began a transition that continues today.  That is why we must be absolute in our decisions, placing absolute faith in the Lord no matter what the circumstances appear to be at the moment.

            One of the major considerations that I had before me was that of liquidating my businesses and all corresponding obligations and indebtedness.  Many times we don't consider the cost before we act, but I knew to follow Jesus, as His disciple, I would have to give up more and more of the things that I had accumulated and that I was involved in, secularly speaking.  The Lord had taught me a lot up to this time about trusting in Him in all of my business ventures and He had greatly blessed my endeavors with His wisdom and favor.  But as I began to walk in this new way I found that my faith was being stretched even more.  I quickly found out that many of my associates, customers, and "fair weather friends" began to disappear while some even decided to take advantage of me.  This is what led me into one of the greatest trials of my faith that, as I have shared, lasted for about fifteen years.

            When I started out in these business ventures I began without any money of my own and without anyone to help me get started.  Within a matter of a few years, however, I was more established financially and was dealing in millions of dollars.  That is not to say that I was making millions of dollars, but only to say that millions were passing through my hands.  During this process I was also borrowing large amounts of money from banks and other lending institutions for the expanding business needs of the moment.  When I felt the Lord call me, I immediately began to liquidate these businesses; but because of some very complex financial situations I was not able to do so overnight. The Lord had also shown me that He wanted to use me to be His witness in the environment where I was working.  All of these things resulted in a slower liquidation process than I had originally thought would occur.  The Lord was blessing each segment of the liquidation that I was able to initiate but through my desire to accelerate the process I made a big mistake.

            I entered into a partnership agreement with a professing Christian who turned out to be a false brother.  This unequal yoke started a chain of events which led me deeper into this trial of my faith.  Our basic agreement was that my partner would gradually buy me out so that I would be free of any further involvement.  We had a legal contract agreement which was acknowledged and approved by the lending institution to whom I was indebted.  I was pastoring in our local church at the time while preparing to move to Honduras to serve the Lord here.  All final liquidations were resting on the fulfillment of this partnership agreement.  The Lord tells us not to be unequally yoked, but I was not discerning correctly because of an anxiety to be free of all these encumbrances.

             Two years had passed and it appeared that the partnership was progressing well.  Although he was late on one of his payments to me, we were confident that he would meet his obligation.  When the time came for us to leave the U.S. to move here to Honduras we departed feeling that all of our affairs were in order.  Let me say at this point that I believe as Christians we must concentrate on all aspects of our witness and testimony.  We did not feel we could leave the U.S. for a foreign country until all of our business and personal affairs, particularly our indebtedness, were resolved.

            Two weeks after arriving in Honduras, I received word that this so-called brother had announced that he was not going to honor our partnership agreement and at that point he basically took illegal possession of everything, leaving me holding the bag.  I wrote him a letter asking him not to follow through on this dishonest act, but he ignored my communication.  I contacted the lending institution to inform them of the breach of contract; but they seemed relatively unconcerned because of a good long time relationship that I had established with them.  They sent word for me not to be concerned; but I knew, as they did, that the business debt of this partnership was secured with all of the assets that this man had illegally taken from me.  I was very uncomfortable with the situation and felt a responsibility to return to the U.S. to try to resolve the matter.  Once again the lending institution assured me that it was not necessary at the moment and that I should wait until my next visit stateside.  I continued to try to call this man long distance and wrote him again but he never answered me.

            Eight months passed and time came for me to return to the U.S. for a short visit and I was looking forward to resolving the problem at that time.  Immediately upon my arrival, I tried to make contact with my former partner, but he would not see me or talk with me by phone.  I then went to the lending institution to consult with them on this matter.  They encouraged me to take legal action against my partner as I had a legal contract that had been broken.  As I prayed about the direction in which I should go, I felt the Lord say, "Do not bring legal action against him.  Forgive him of his indebtedness to you for he will be accountable to me.  Offer the lending institution all your earthly possessions to secure your indebtedness and I will restore all of them to you."

            Here I was in the valley of decision and was having an opportunity to trust absolutely in the Lord for His way and His solution.  I returned to the lending institution and told them of my decision not to enter into legal action and offered them all my possessions to absolve the debt.  They were shocked at my decision because it was not logical in the natural way of thinking.  We must understand that we do not deal with logical, worldly reasonings in the kingdom of God.  I began to see more clearly God's wisdom in the matter.  First, He had more important things for me to do than to enter into a legal battle in the U.S. when my place of labor was in Honduras.  Second, I believed that He would handle the final judgment of this man if he did not repent.  He told me to write him and tell him of my decision and of his final accountability to the Lord.  "Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave the way open for (God's) wrath; for it is written; vengeance is Mine, I will repay (requite) says the Lord" (Rom.12:19).  Third, by voluntarily placing on the alter, so to speak, and "cheerfully bearing the plundering of my possessions and the confiscation of my property knowing that I had a better and lasting possession and by ...steadfastness patience and endurance and by performing and fully accomplishing the will of God; I would thus receive and carry away (and enjoy to the full) what is promised."  See Hebrews 10:34,36.  We are still talking about an absolute faith in God.  You see, faith without corresponding obedient action is dead faith.  See James 2:26.

            I made the legal transfers of all my possessions to the lending institution which more than secured my indebtedness to them and returned to Honduras to serve the Lord.            Some months after returning I received information that the lending institution, although they were more than fully secured, had initiated legal action against my former partner to try to recover the assets and to prosecute him for taking illegal possession of them.  You see, they had not wanted me to voluntarily convey my possessions to them because they did not think it was fair to me.  I believe for this reason they took legal action, and this  was the first indication of the Lord's intervention and favor toward me.  Thank you, Jesus!. 

            I saw how quickly the Lord was undertaking the matter, but much to my surprise the legal actions that they undertook were very lengthy and spanned over the next six years and finally resulted in a federal grand jury indictment of my former partner.  He settled out of court with the lending institution and escaped a lengthy jail sentence and fine.  The settlement that his lawyer negotiated, however, did not recover the assets that he had illegally taken from me.  Thus the lending institution executed their right to take possession of all the securities that I had voluntary conveyed to them six years before.  From the natural point of view, I had lost everything; but God had promised otherwise.

            The following year I received notice from the lending institution that through further internal negotiations the properties that they had possession of would be offered back to me or to my family members.  I would like to point out here that in no way was this lending institution obligated to offer back to us these properties. In fact this is almost totally unheard of except in the case of legal suits between two parties.  I am sure what brought this about was that God's divine favor and His divine power was exerted over the circumstances.  I am convinced that because I forgave the sin of my former partner and did not fight against him in the flesh, and because I voluntarily offered my possessions to those who I was indebted as He had instructed me, God moved to return to me those things which the devil had stolen from me in the beginning. Hallelujah!

            Three years ago, after ten years that seemed like an eternity, the Lord restored to us and our children these properties.  This allowed me to finally finish the liquidation process and be completely debt free.  Glory be to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords Who sets us free!

            "Keep out of debt and owe no man anything, except to love one another;..." (Rom.13:8).  "But the just shall live by faith (that is my righteous servant shall live by his conviction respecting man's relationship to God and divine things, and holy fervor born of faith and conjoined with it); and if he draws back and shrinks in fear, My soul has no delight in him.  But our way is not that of those who draw back to eternal misery (perdition) and are utterly destroyed, but we are of those who believe - who cleave to and trust in and rely on God through Jesus Christ, the Messiah, and by faith preserve the soul" (Heb. 10:38-39).

            Help us, O Lord, to have an absolute faith in You and to never let fear or anxiety steal from us our confidence in Your promises to us as we follow in Your paths and Your Ways.  Amen!

What Can We Do When Our Faith is not Absolute?

            I want to deal with this question because I know that none of us are fully developed, fully mature, or even fully convinced in every area of our faith walk yet.  Absolute faith, nevertheless, should be our goal.  We all have weak moments and the devil takes advantage of us when we fail to absolutely believe and trust in God. His purpose is to try to persuade us that it is impossible to do so.

            "And Jesus said, (You say to Me), if you can do anything? (Why) all things can be - are possible - to him who believes!" (Mark 9:23).  Here is the account of a man who wanted to believe but was battling with doubt because of the circumstances he faced.  This is where we find ourselves many times.  We believe more in what we see, hear, touch, etc., than in the Word of God and His promises. This man cried out to the Lord for help.  "...and he said, Lord I believe!  (Constantly) help my weakness of faith!" (Mark 9:24).  You see, Jesus is the Author, Developer and Finisher of our faith and we need to look to Him constantly in moments of weakness. "Looking away (from all that will distract) to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the source of our faith (giving the first incentive for our belief) and is also its Finisher (bringing to  maturity and perfection)..." (Heb.12:2).  Remember one of the definitions of absolute was "to be free from imperfection" or "to be perfect".  Jesus, the Finisher of our faith, will bring our faith to perfection (absoluteness) if we will look away from the circumstances (that are nonetheless real) and look unto Jesus and His Word that are more real.  Something or someone that is real is another one of the definitions of absolute.  To be real is to be absolute, therefore, Jesus and His Word are absolute (real).  Hallelujah!

            Faith is a matter of the heart and so is doubt.  Many have thought that faith is a positive mental attitude or some type of a mind control game; so, therefore, when they don't receive what they thought would happen we can hear comments such as:  "That faith stuff doesn't work for me"; "I tried faith and it didn't work"; "I know so and so and they had a lot of faith but it didn't work for them." Brothers and sisters, faith rises up from the heart and then affects the mind and the body; but it always works in that order.  Faith works from the inside out and so does doubt.  Jesus said, "Have faith in God (constantly).  Truly, I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea! and does not doubt at all in his heart, but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for him.  For this reason I am telling you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe (trust and be confident) that it is granted to you, and you will (get it)" (Mark 11:22-24).

            We mentioned earlier in these writings that Abraham had a twenty-five year faith test.  Sometimes in our faith tests after twenty-five seconds, twenty-five minutes, twenty-five hours, twenty-five days, or even twenty-five months we are starting to doubt.  Lord, help us in our unbelief!  The scripture says of Abraham, "No unbelief or distrust made him waver (doubtingly question) concerning the promise of God...." (Rom 4:20).  If you investigate the trial of Abraham's faith in the book of Genesis  you will find that he also had his weak moments.  "And Abraham (continued), Look, You have given me no child, and (a servant) born in my house is my heir and behold the word of the Lord came to him saying.  This man shall not be your heir; but he who shall come from your own body shall be your heir.  And He brought him outside (his tent into the starlight) and said, Look now toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to number them.  Then He said to him, So shall your descendants be.  And (Abram) believed (trusted in, relied on, remained steadfast to the Lord); and he counted it to him as righteousness (right standing with God)" (Gen.15:3-6).  This was the first test of Abraham's faith.  Shortly thereafter came the second test when his wife, Sarah, who was barren, convinced Abraham to have relations with her servant girl.  That relation produced a son to Abraham; but he was not God's promised one.  This is what we do many times by not having absolute faith.  We accept substitutes for what God actually intends for us.  The third test of Abraham's faith came during a visit from the Lord when Sarah laughed at the Lord's promise to give them a child.  "And the Lord asked Abraham, Why did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I really bear a child when I am so old?  Is anything too hard or too wonderful for the Lord?  At the appointed time, when the season (for her delivery) comes around, I will return to you and Sarah shall have borne a son.  Then Sarah denied it, saying, I did not laugh; for she was afraid.  And He said, No, but you did laugh" (Gen.18:13-15).

            We may have laughed within ourselves at the promises of God at times, or more so we may have been laughed at because we were standing on the promises of God believing in what seemed impossible.

            The fourth test of Abraham's faith came when God instructed him to offer up his promised son, Isaac, as a burnt offering.  Abraham once again had to reestablish his faith and be absolutely convinced that he would be the father of many nations through his seed, Isaac, as God had promised.  "And Abraham said to his servants, Settle down and stay here with the donkey, and I and the young man will go yonder and worship and come to you" (Gen.22:5).  In Hebrews, Chapter 11, it further shows us how Abraham thought.  "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he."  See Proverbs 23:7.  We must see that faith and doubt are issues of the heart.  "By faith Abraham, when he was put to the test (while the testing of his faith was still in progress), had already brought Isaac for an offering; he who had gladly received and welcomed (God's) promises was ready to sacrifice his only son, of whom it was said, Through Isaac shall your descendants be reckoned.  For he reasoned that God was able to raise (him) up even from among the dead.  Indeed in the sense that Isaac was figuratively dead (potentially sacrificed), he did (actually) receive him back from the dead" (Heb.11:17-19).  We know that God did not require that Abraham complete the sacrifice of his son, but at the last minute as he raised the knife above him, God provided the ram in the bush.  We can see by this that the test of Abraham's faith went down to the wire and required his absolute confidence in the Lord.  I would like to say at this point that this is exactly what happens, in principle, to our faith when it is put to such a test.  Many times after initially receiving the promise of God we lose our victory because of an additional test. This easily displays a lack of absolute faith on our part.  We are told in His Word that we must stand firm against the devil who comes against our faith.  "Withstand him; be firm in faith (against his onset) - rooted, established, strong, immovable, and determined)..." See I Peter 5:9.  "Therefore put on God's complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day (of danger) and having done all (the crisis demands), to stand (firmly in your place).  Stand therefore - (hold your ground)...Lift up over all the (covering) shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked (one).  And take the helmet of salvation and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God."  See Ephesians 6:13-16.

            Many of us lose out on receiving God's promise because we just will not stand firm holding our ground using God's complete armor.  As defined, absolute means "complete".  We must use all the weapons of our warfare which is God's absolute (complete) armor and part of that absolute armor is our absolute faith in His Word.  Glory to His Name!  "For whatever is born of God is victorious over the world; and this is the victory that conquers the world, even our faith" (I John 5:4). 

            Sometimes when we hear the word "trial" or "test"  we react in a cowardly manner to the thought of such, but the word teaches us how we should actually react.  "But God does has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind" (II Tim.1:7 KJV).  "Do not fret or have anxiety about anything but by every circumstance and in everything by prayer and petition (definite requests) with thanksgiving continue to make your wants known to God.  And God's peace (be yours, that tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and content with its earthly lot of whatever sort it is, that peace) which transcends all understanding, shall garrison and mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus" (Phil.4:6-7).  This scripture does not mean that we should be passive and accept anything and everything that comes our way, but it simply means through specific and definite prayer petitions and through thanksgiving to God because of His faithfulness to answer us, His peace will come to give us an absolute assurance in our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus who is our total salvation.  Amen!

            So many times we just do not understand why things are not turning our like we thought they would, but God's words tell us, "Lean on, trust and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind, and do not rely on your own understanding" (Prov.3:5).  We should not be distressed by trials and tests of our faith.  These trials only prove that we do actually have faith and that it is our faith that destroys Satan's strategies and gives us the victory.  For that reason he attacks our faith in God more than any other area of our Christian life.  As we are able to pass faith tests and trials, we are more able to be praised and honored by the Lord and we will bring more glory to His Name.  We are those "who are being guarded (garrisoned) by God's power through (your) faith (till you fully inherit that final) salvation that is ready to be revealed (for you) in the last time.  (You should) be exceedingly glad on this account, though now for a little while you may be distressed by trails and suffer temptations, so that (the genuineness) of your faith may be tested, (your faith) which is infinitely more precious than the perishable gold which is tested and purified by fire.  (This proving of your faith is intended) to redound to (your) praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the anointed One) is revealed" (I Peter 1:5-7).

            We are trying to see how we can develop an absolute faith in God.  For every weakness or failure that we may experience in learning to trust more in the Lord, He has the solution if we are only willing to seek Him for it.  In this search we must be honest and humble before Him.  "Examine and test and evaluate your own selves, to see whether you are holding to your own faith and showing the proper fruits of it.  Test and prove yourselves, (not Christ).  Do you not yourselves realize and know (thoroughly by an ever-increasing experience) that Jesus Christ is in you - unless you are (counterfeits) disapproved on trial and rejected?  But I hope you will recognize and know that we are not disapproved on trial and rejected" (II Cor.13:5-6).  What does this scripture say to us?  It says to test ourselves, examine ourselves, evaluate ourselves, and prove ourselves before God.  Never should we fall into the trap of trying to test God or examine God.  He has always proven to be faithful.  The lack of faith or the lack of faithfulness resides in us.  "If we endure, we shall also reign with Him.  If we deny and disown and reject Him, He will also deny and disown and reject us.  If we are faithless (do not believe and are untrue to Him), He remains true (faithful to His Word and His righteous character), for He cannot deny Himself" (II Tim.2:12-13).

            On a certain occasion about nine years ago while living in southern Honduras, I was visited by a young lady and asked to travel to a nearby town to pray for her father who was critically sick.  I asked her if she had a local church congregation in the town where we lived and she said she did.  I told her that I believed it would be better for her to ask her pastor to go and that if he consented I would certainly accompany them.  She returned several hours later and told me that she and her pastor would be able to go the next day to visit her sick father.  I made my arrangements to accompany them and en route spent most of my time praying ardently in the Spirit, as I felt some strange attitudes would await us when we arrived.  This was quickly confirmed when we got there.  We discovered that her father had been placed in a shed behind the house next to the hog pen and had been left there to die.  It was a grievous situation as even the pastor and the man's wife were resigned to this man's death.  The air was filled with doubt and unbelief and no one wanted to actually place themselves in agreement for this man's healing.  I was finally able to persuade them to accompany me into this shed where the man lay in his own excrement.  Although they consented to do this, there was not one bit of faith in anyone else that was present.  I felt led of the Spirit to read the account in Mark, Chapter 6, where Jesus could not do even one work of power there in Nazareth because of their unbelief and lack of faith in Him.  See vs. 5-6.  At this moment we certainly needed a work of power by the hand of Jesus.  He has told us to lay our hands on the sick and they shall recover.  After I read this scripture the wife turned her back on us and the pastor made a faithless comment along the line that there was nothing more we could do for him.  I was righteously angry and began to weep at the lack of compassion I felt among them all. Nevertheless, I decided to kneel down and lay my hands on this man.  I was told that he had not gotten up off of the mat he was laying on for weeks and was not eating or drinking anything.  I asked him if he could hear me and he moved his head slightly.  I then told him to get up off the mat in the Name of Jesus and he immediately sat up.  He stayed in that position for about ten minutes and then laid back down.  I got up and left the shed and told the family to get him something to eat and to encourage him with the Word, as they claimed to be Christians.

            In less than three days the pastor brought word to me that the man had died.  What happened?  I felt I had done all I knew to do at the time.  Did I make a mistake by praying for him?  Did I not discern correctly the situation?  Was the environment so filled with doubt that the Lord couldn't work a miracle?  All these questions went through my mind. It was then that I began to lean to my own understanding and I became discouraged.  I had seen God raise many people up from beds of affliction and do many miracles.  The big question in my mind was what happened this time.  You see, the dangerous thing to do is to question why God did this or didn't do that.  What is necessary for us to do is to question what we did or didn't do; to examine ourselves to see if we were truly in the faith.  It is always easy to blame someone else or even to blame God for failures that we experience but that does not produce growth in our faith in the Lord.  I struggled with this case for about three weeks and was somewhat reluctant to talk about it with anyone but my wife.

            One day at the end of this three week period, there was another knock on my door.  This time it was a sister in the Lord who had been faithful to attend some teachings that I had offered on the subject of our faith in God.  She was one of the last people that I wanted to see at the moment, as she was a reminder to me of all of the exhortations I had given about the need for steadfast, persevering faith to those who had attended these teachings.   She informed me that less than three blocks away a man lay dying in a hammock.  He had not eaten or drank for weeks and his wife had asked this sister to come get me to pray for him.  I did not want to go, but I knew that it was my responsibility to do so.  The Lord's great commission to visit and pray for the sick had not changed just because I was still somewhat discouraged about the last case.  I asked the Lord to forgive me for my attitude and went with the sister to the house of the dying man.  When we arrived the wife of the man and a young man were inside where the man lay.  She seemed very grateful for our coming and was ready to believe that God was going to undertake her husbands condition.  The young man, however, was full of rebellion and displayed an ugly mocking spirit so I had to ask him to leave the house.  I proceeded to try to talk to the man who was lying in the hammock.  I asked him if he believed that Jesus would raise him up and heal him and he nodded his head in an affirmative manner.  After this we laid our hands on him and I told him to get up out of the hammock in the Name of Jesus.  I then turned to his wife and told her that he would get up and when he did to give him something to eat and drink.  I left immediately and returned to my home.  In less than thirty minutes the sister that had taken me there came running and shouting at the door saying that the man had gotten up and was eating and drinking.  Glory to God!

            In less than three weeks, he was working again at his trade as a shoe cobbler.  He was an older man and was horribly emaciated, but God performed this miracle and completely restored him.

            What was the difference in the two cases?  Hardly any in the natural; but with opposite results.  That is to say, one man died and one man lived.  What could it have been?  The man's faith, or his wife's faith or all of our faith combined?  I don't know, but the lesson I once again learned was not to try to understand with my own understanding, but to trust in the Lord with all my heart.  Again see Proverbs 3:5.

            Paul tells us in Philippians, Chapter 3, that we should forget that which lies behind us and press on forward to the high mark of our calling.  The Lord showed me many years ago that if we do not forget what lies behind us we will constantly live in the past and not be able to concentrate on what lies ahead of us.  This applies to our past failures and to our past successes.  "Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended; but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward to the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Phil.3:13-14 KJV).  What is this scripture saying to us.  DON'T EVER QUIT!  Don't quit seeking God!  Don't quit praying!  Don't quit meditating on His Word!  Don't quit ministering to those in need!  Amen!  PRESS ON FORWARD!  This is to say to have absolute faith we must fix our gaze on the high mark of calling.  The high mark of calling in Christ Jesus is to be absolutely conformed unto His image and likeness and to be doing the works that He did.  I believe with all my heart that it is God's absolute will to heal the sick every time because on the same cross where He bore our transgressions, iniquities, the chastisement of our peace, He also bore our sicknesses and diseases and we were healed and made whole.  Please read Isaiah 53:4-5, Matthew 8:16-17, Psalms 103:2-4, and I Peter 2:24. 

            The Bible tells us in Acts 10:38, "How God anointed and consecrated Jesus of Nazareth with the (Holy) Spirit and with strength and ability and power; how He went about doing good and in particular curing all that were harassed and oppressed by (the power of) the devil for God was with Him."   Jesus told us in John, Chapter 4, "I assure you most solemnly tell you if anyone steadfastly believes in Me, he will himself be able to do the things that I do; and he will do even greater things than these, because I go to the Father ...Yes I will grant - will do for you whatever you shall ask in My Name (presenting all that I am) (Vs 12,14). 

            Let's look more at what the absolute will of God is concerning people in general.  "The Lord does not delay and be tardy or slow about what He promises, according to some peoples conception of slowness, but He is long-suffering (extraordinarily patient) toward you, not desiring that any should perish, but that all should turn to repentance" ( II Peter 2:9).

            "First of all, then, I admonish and urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings be offered in behalf of all men...for such (praying) is good and right, and (it is) pleasing and acceptable to God our Savior, Who wishes all men to be saved and increasingly to perceive and recognize and discern and know precisely and correctly the (divine) truth" ( I Tim.2:1-4).

            Taking these absolute desires of our Lord into consideration we can never quit believing for the repentance, deliverance, salvation, and the growth and maturity in all men.  If someone who we witness to does not repent and even rejects the Gospel at the moment, do we no longer witness and preach Jesus Christ to others because of what we thought was a failure on our part to help? Absolutely not!  You see, we must be absolutely convinced of God's will and pursue it with an absolute faith. 

            God wants us to grow "Till we all come to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: that we henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine...But speaking the Truth in love, may grow up unto him in all things, which is the head, even Christ."  See Ephesians 4:13-15.  Amen!  This should be our absolute goal.

            We should be trying by the power of the Holy Spirit and the Truth of His Word to eliminate any and all things that could keep us from having an absolute faith.

            I mentioned earlier that we should not be guilty of blaming God for our lack of faith or of being double-minded towards Him. The Lord is our total source of faith and being double-minded disqualifies us from receiving from Him.  In James, Chapter 1, we see that once again the Holy Spirit is dealing with the trying of our faith.  See verses 2-4.  He tells us that when we communicate with God we should always ask in faith.  "Only it must be in faith that he asks, with no wavering - no hesitating, no doubting.  For the one who wavers, (hesitates, doubts) is like the billowing surge out at sea, that is blown hither and thither and tossed by the wind.  For truly, let not such a person imagine that he will receive anything (he asks for) from the Lord, (for being as he is) a man of two minds - hesitating, dubious, irresolute - (he is) unstable and unreliable and uncertain about everything (he thinks, feels, decides)" (James l:6-8).  Let me put it this way to make it clearer.  When we don't recognize that Satan is our enemy and what he is out to accomplish and we don't recognize that Jesus is our absolute friend then we cannot exercise absolute faith in Him.  Jesus told us clearly in John 10:10, "The thief comes only in order that he may steal and may kill and may destroy.  I came that they may have and enjoy life; and have it in abundance - to the full, till it overflows."  It is pure ignorance and pride (self-justification) on our part to believe otherwise.  "But He gives us more and more grace (power of the Holy Spirit, to meet this evil tendency and all others fully)  That is why He says, God sets Himself against the proud and haughty, but gives grace (continually) to the lowly - those who are humble-minded (enough to receive it). So be subject to God - stand firm against the devil; resist him and he will flee from you" (James 4:6-7).  I am sorry to say I have heard many Christians make unwise comments in the midst of their trials of life.  They said these things because either they didn't want to exercise their faith, stand firm and resist the devil, or they didn't recognize that the devil was their enemy.  We certainly cannot resist the devil if we won't see him as the source of attacks against us.

            I have heard those who say God brought this trial or that trial and they are suffering just like in the case of Job.  First of all, there are very few who have suffered trials like Job suffered.  Secondly although as Christians, we are made righteous in Jesus alone, there are few that are blameless, upright; reverently fearing God and shunning evil such as Job did.  Thirdly, there are very few like Job who through their trials do not sin or blame God.  "In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly" (Job l:22).  Fourthly, in spite of what Job said, "The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away" there are few that want to recognize that Satan was the one who attacked Job instead of God.  It is very obvious if you study the book of Job that Job never realized or knew that Satan even existed.  It is for that reason that he was trying to relate everything that happened to him with God.  Job did not understand many things, as is the case with us many times; but nevertheless, he did not blame God. Hallelujah!

            His wife and friends blamed God and encouraged him to curse God and die.  This is exactly what Satan wants us to do:  curse God, blame God, sin against God by doubting, murmuring, complaining, or even resenting Him, and perish.  That is not the way to establish an absolute faith.  We must always recognize, "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him" (Heb.11:6 KJV).  Job was more than completely restored by God when he realized his misunderstanding and repented.  The only way to be restored by the Lord from the failures in our lives is not to lean to our understanding, repent of our religious or human ideas and concepts, and trust in Him with all our heart.  Amen!  Again see Proverbs 3:5. 

            "Then Job said to the Lord, I know that You can do all things and that no thought or purpose of Yours can be restrained or thwarted.  (You said to me) Who is this that darkens and obscures counsel (by words) without knowledge?  Therefore (I now see) I have (rashly) uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.  (I had virtually said to You what You have said to me:) Hear, I beseech You and I will speak; I will demand of You, and You declare to me.  I had heard of You (only) by the hearing of the ear; but now my (spiritual) eye sees You.  Therefore I loath (my words) and abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes" (Job 42:1-6).  I would encourage you to read the rest of Job, Chapter 42, to see all the rewards that Job received by diligently seeking God.

            There are many doctrines of men and of demons that are circulating to destroy our faith and confidence in the Lord.  If we stay true to God's word in these last days we will suffer persecution even from brothers and sisters in Christ who choose not to seek and pursue all God has promised us.  You see, our testimony for the Lord is undeniable: that is to say, people can argue doctrine, theology and the sort, but they can't argue against a life that is changed by the love, grace, and power of the Lord.  It is for this reason that we can always witness for Jesus by our life of victory and our daily walk.  If we believe we are in the last days then we must heed the warnings of the Holy Spirit pertaining to the dangerous times in which we live.  "But the (Holy) Spirit distinctly and expressly declares that in latter times some will turn away from the faith, giving attention to deluding and seducing spirits and doctrines that demons teach" (I Tim.4:1).  Jesus also warns us of the same happenings.  "And then many will be offended and repelled and begin to distrust and desert (Him Whom they ought to trust and obey) and will stumble and fall away, and betray one another and pursue one another with hatred" (Matt.14:10). Apostasy which is falling away from the faith, is increasing day after day.  I am alarmed at how many Christians I know who have backed away from the basic convictions of their faith and have allowed their heart to be hardened against the Lord.

            What must we do to prevent these conditions from being found in our lives?  What must we do to constantly grow in our faith in the Lord?  Let's quickly review:

            We must believe all things are possible with God.  This will eliminate basic doubts and unbelief in Him.

            We must fix our eyes upon Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, especially during our weaker moments.

            We must be steadfast and persevering in our faith by concentrating on His Word and promises more than the circumstances of life.

We must be determined to receive his completed promise and not accept any substitutes.

            We must maintain our victory by standing firm against the devil's counter attacks that bring pressure against our faith.

            We must maintain our joy and peace in the midst of trials and not allow fear and anxiety to destroy our faith.

            We must always be humble and honest enough to examine ourselves and see if we are actually in the faith.

            We must trust in the Lord with all our heart and guard against leaning to our own reasoning and understanding.

            We must be willing to forget our past failures and mistakes and be willing to press on to the next level of growth and maturity of our faith.

            We must NEVER QUIT or stop seeking and pursuing God's best for us.

            We must always be humble before Him and submit ourselves to Him, not allowing pride to cause us to blame others or God for our lack of faith.

            We must always be humble before Him and submit ourselves to Him, not allowing pride to cause us to blame others or God for our lack of faith.

            We must have reverential fear of God and not allow our hearts to become hard or to be double-minded and unstable.

            We must be diligent to study and to meditate His Word so that we will not be victims of doctrines of demons or fall away from our faith.

            We must be diligent to study and to meditate His Word so that we will not be victims of doctrines of demons or fall away from our faith.

            We must guard our faith unto the end so we can receive His promises.

            "But we do (strongly and earnestly) desire for each of you to show the same diligence and sincerity (all the way through) in realizing and enjoying the full assurance and development of (your) hope until the end, in order that you may not grow disinterested and become (spiritual) sluggards but imitators, behaving as do those who through faith (by their leaning of the entire personality on God in Christ in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness), and by practice of patient endurance and waiting are (now) inheriting the promises" (Heb.6:11-12).

            Thank You, Lord Jesus, for we know You have never failed nor can ever fail.  Lift us up higher to Your absolute virtues and we thank You for giving us the supernatural ability through Your Holy Spirit to attain to that perfection in our faith that You attained.  All things are possible, Lord, if we can only believe!  Amen!

            Jesus said, "The thief comes only in order that he may steal and may kill and may destroy.  I come that they may have and enjoy life; and have it in abundance - to the full, till it overflows" (John 10:10).

            When we speak of living, many times we think only of physical life.  We think of breathing fresh air, seeing with our eyes, hearing with our ears, touching things with our hands, walking around and such.  These are definitely the outward manifestations of physical life.  But as Christians we should know that our lives consist of much more.  "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a dedicated nation, (God's) own purchased people, that you may set forth the wonderful deeds and display the virtues and perfection of Him Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.  Once you were not a people (at all), but now you are God's people; once you were unpitied, but now you are pitied and have received mercy" (I Peter 2:9-10).  You see, this scripture says that without God we are not even a people.  We are only human beings existing on the earth without life.  I want us to consider this in a progressive way also. That is to say, as Christians, God purchased us with the precious blood of Jesus.  We have placed faith in Him and God wants this faith to grow and grow so that we can show forth His deeds, virtues and perfection.  Only the just live by faith and only by faith can we show to the world around us the Lord Jesus and His kingdom life.  You see, our life style sets us apart as a special, God chosen, dedicated people.  Hallelujah! Therefore the quality of our life depends directly on our faith relationship with Him. 

            Please consider this, my brothers and sisters.  Since the Lord has so chosen to manifest His life through us, we should be ever conscious of the fact that the devil wants to destroy us and our living testimony.  As Jesus said in the scripture I just shared, The thief (Satan) is here to steal, kill and destroy, but more important to us who believe, the Lord has made it possible that we have life eternal and life abundant.  Glory to His Name!

            Let us consider a critical point at this time.  Since we have eternal life as part of our inheritance, we should never fear physical death. That is to say, our spirit man lives forever although our mortal body may die.  As the Bible tells us, "And just as it is appointed for (all) men once to die and after that the (certain) judgment" (Heb.9:27).  The only exception to that is for those who are living on the earth at the coming of the Lord.  "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud cry of summons, with the shout of an archangel and with the blast of the trumpet of God. And those who have departed this life in Christ will rise first. Then we, the still living who remain (on the earth) shall simultaneously be caught up along with (the resurrected dead) in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so always (through the eternity of the eternities) we shall be with the Lord!" (I Thess.4:16-17).  Paul goes on to say that these words should comfort and encourage us and they certainly do.  See verse 18.  This is confirmed further in this letter.  "...but (that we might ) obtain (His) salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah, Who died for us so that whether we are still alive or are dead (at Christ's appearing) we might live together with Him and share His life" (I Thess.5:9-10).

            I hope that the issue of eternal life is settled in our hearts because Jesus said, "I am the Way and the Truth and the Life..."  See John 14:6.  There is, however, another consideration that I wish to place before you.  That is the issue of the abundant life that Jesus also promised us.  The way in which we live our life here on the earth depends on our conviction and determination for the purpose of God to be accomplished in and through us.  "I call heaven and earth to witness this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live; to love the Lord you God, to obey His voice, and to cling to Him, for He is your life, and the length of your days..." (Deut.30:19-20).

            You see, we must continually make choices to live in His life and glorify Him with our lives and it is only with an absolute faith that we can bless and glorify God!  Amen!

            If we attempt to live our lives here on the earth with a passive, double-minded attitude we will be victims of the tactics of our enemy, Satan, and our lives will be less productive or even shortened.  Absolute faith in God in not just a doctrine that I dreamed up; but in fact absolute faith is a virtue, a supernatural force, and more importantly a way of life.  An absolute way of life!

            As the Word states each one has an appointed time to die; but that time is not revealed to us.  For this reason we should believe and trust in the Lord to live victoriously the maximum amount of time allotted so we can be His witnesses as long as possible.  I have personally experienced satanic attacks against me, my family and my resources that were perpetuated to negate my witness for Jesus. 

            One afternoon about fourteen years ago as I walked through my bedroom to the bathroom, I was struck down.  It appeared in the natural that I suffered a stroke as I could not see, hear, talk or move my body.  At the moment when I was struck down I fell across the bed and that is where my wife found me.  That day was a day in which our local church had set aside to intercede together, so in a matter of an hour or so there were quite a few people gathered in my home praying over me.  We must always understand that all Christians are not at the same level of faith.  That was the case that day and so after a time of vigilant prayer some of the brethren who could not bear my apparent condition left our house to go pray for me elsewhere.  All that I can remember is that inside of me, my spirit man was speaking repeatedly the Name of Jesus.  According to what I was told afterwards, no audible sounds were coming from my mouth.  No movement was in my body except for slow breathing.  I only remember that I felt as if I was in a dark chamber all alone.  There remained only a will in my spirit to live and that is what I want us to understand.  I am sure I could have gone to be with the Lord as I sensed that my physical life was in the balances. But I felt, in the only way I could feel deep in my spirit, that the Lord had more for me to accomplish for Him on this earth. 

            After several hours, as prayer over me was continued by those who remained present and as my spirit continued to speak the Name of Jesus, suddenly out of my lips came forth the first sound. It was His Mighty Name.  When my lips spoke His Name, apparently that was the restoration of my deaf-mute condition.  Almost immediately my sight was restored and in a matter of minutes, I was moving my fingers and hands.  Then from my waist up I could move my body, but from my waist down I was still paralyzed.  Those who were there began to rejoice with me in the Lord as I decided to press on to the complete restoration of my body.

            My son and several other brothers began to help me to try to stand up; but each time when they released their support of my body I crumpled to the floor.  I can remember my son saying, "You can walk, Dad, I know you can in Jesus' Name."  Where two or more agree as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them.  See Matthew 18:19.  After what seemed like an hour of attempts to stand up suddenly the power of God went through my body and I began to stand, walk and jump around the room.  Glory be to His Holy Name!  I felt a peace come over me and I went back to lay down on the bed and fell asleep.  I slept until the next morning and awoke feeling as if nothing at all had occurred.  Thanks be to the Lord, I remain strong and healthy until this day.

             I have known people who willed not to live and who wanted to go to be with the Lord.  This is each person's choice.  We do not exercise our will over the will of others. That is control or manipulation and does not produce good fruit; so we must always use discernment and wisdom in each situation.  We do, however, have authority and should use it to exercise dominion over the works of the devil.  "...For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil" (I John 3:8 KJV).  He has also given us authority in His name to destroy the works of the devil.

            One time a close loved one of mine was attacked with a painful physical condition that was prolonged and caused the person to begin to cry out to die.  When I arrived at the house and entered into the bedroom, this person was laying on the bed and upon seeing me, she began to say, "Leave me alone, I just want to die."  But by the Holy Spirit I discerned and knew that it was not God's will nor her will to die so I rebuked the lying spirit and prayed over her for the pain to leave in Jesus' Name. Within a few minutes she was calm and peaceful and dropped off to sleep.  She woke up later completely restored and free.  Hallelujah!  As I said before there are times when the person himself feels that his purpose on earth is finished and desires to go to be with the Lord.  This is always accompanied by a peaceful state of being.  When Stephen was martyred for His faith we see in him the presence of peace and confidence.  "And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.  And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.  And when he had said this, he fell asleep" (Acts 7:59-60 KJV).  He voluntarily gave up his spirit to the Lord just as Jesus Himself did on the cross.  See Luke 23:46.

            Jesus raised many people from the dead.  That is to say He restored them to life.  Let's look at the conversation between Jesus and Martha in respect to her dead brother, Lazarus.  "Martha then said to Jesus, Master, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.  And even now I know that whatever You ask from God, He will grant it to You.  Jesus said to her, Your brother shall rise again.  Martha replied, I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.  Jesus said to her, I am (Myself) the Resurrection and the Life.  Whoever believes in (adheres to, trusts in, and relies on) Me, although he may die, yet he shall live; And whoever continues to live and believes in (has faith in, cleaves to, and relies on) Me shall never (actually) die at all.  Do you believe this?" (John 11:21-26).  Take note that Jesus leaves us with this question also.  Do we believe this?  You see at this moment when Jesus was preparing to raise Lazarus from the dead, He said He was the Resurrection and the Life.  He is the absolute Resurrection and the absolute Life.  We need to believe that not only will we experience the resurrection in the day of the Lord, but that we can experience His resurrection every day.  We need to believe that we not only have this eternal life, but we have His abundant life everyday.  Hallelujah!  Jesus is saying to us to believe in Him for spiritual life and for physical life.

            Just a few months ago, here in Honduras where we live, a brother in the Lord who is our neighbor had an opportunity to believe in the Lord for the physical life of one of his children.  He arrived at his house one evening only to encounter his wife and children crying out to the Lord.  It so happened that about thirty minutes before his arrival his son of eighteen months had an attack of some kind and quit breathing.  He lay limp and without life. After calming his family he began to present his child to the Lord, speaking God's life back into his body.  The child showed no sign of life for about an hour as they continued to cry out to God in faith. Then the father felt that the Lord said to hold him close to his chest and command life back into him once again.  At this moment the child took a gasp and came back to life.  His other son six years of age said at that moment he saw a man dressed in white place his hands upon the child.  This father was determined to see his son live.  This is the type of absolute faith that is necessary for absolute life.  Amen!

            I want you to please listen closely to what I am about to say.  It is not a sin to die or to go to be with Jesus.  Stephen didn't sin by calling out to the Lord to receive his spirit.  John the Baptist didn't sin when he lost his head in the prison of Herod;  Nor did Jesus raise him from the dead.  The Lord simply mourned his death.  Apparently these two servants had accomplished their earthly purpose.  Lazarus on the other hand, along with others, had other purposes to live and God was glorified by their lives.  Paul was also stoned and left for dead; but after prayer from his companions he got up and kept on preaching the Gospel.  See Acts 14:19-21.

            Remember, the devil is a thief and a liar and he intends to rob us and deceive us if he can.  Some years back I had a horse that I used almost daily in my work.  I was buying and selling many cattle in those days and I was always moving cattle from one corral or pen to another for loading and shipping.  One night there was a bad storm and the next morning I found my horse laying on the ground under a tree.  He had apparently been struck by lightning which also had struck the tree.  He could not stand so I felt led to lay my hands on him and pray for the Lord to raise him up.  After about an hour my son and I returned to the spot where he was laying and found him standing up.  I called a good friend who was a veterinarian with about twenty-five years experience with horses and mules and asked him to come look at the horse.  When he arrived, he told me that unfortunately there was not any hope for my horse because his limbs and muscles were damaged and he would never walk again.  After my friend left I told my son that we were going to pray again and ask the Lord to restore this horse completely.

            During the next couple of months my faith was tried greatly in this case because although the horse was eating and drinking the food and water we brought to him, he could not move from the spot where he was.  In addition to this the outer layer of his hooves came off leaving him in a pitiful state from a natural point of view.  It was a question of being absolutely convinced of the life restoring power of God.  Some may think that is foolish to pray for animals and the such but we must always remember that God created everything. Hallelujah!

            We continued to thank the Lord for the complete restoration and we began to notice new growth coming to his hooves.  After another month or so he had new hooves and began to walk around. After another month I was riding him and using him regularly.  The amazing thing about God's restorative power is that He not only brings the situation back to normal, but makes it better than before. That was exactly the case of my horse.  He was a better horse than ever before and lived working and serving me until I left the states to live in Honduras. He was in good health and condition when I sold him two months before my departure . Thank You, Lord!

            You may be familiar with the scripture in Malachi, Chapter 3, that says that if we are faithful to the Lord especially in our giving of tithes and offerings that we will experience the provision and protection of the Lord.  This provision and protection comes from an absolute conviction that our God is the Giver and Sustainer of life.

            One time my neighbors and I planted  some winter grazing for the livestock at about the same time.  As the plants began to emerge from the soil a plague of army worms invaded our community and began to devour all the plants.  I remembered the promise in Malachi.  "And I will rebuke the devourer (insects and plagues) for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine drop its fruit before the time of the field, says the Lord of Hosts" (Vs 11).

            Some of my neighbors who planted this grazing were also Christians and I believe were faithful givers.  But they did not believe in this scripture nor did they take authority over the attack of the devil.  The worms began to devour all the fields around ours, but when they came to the fence row something stopped them.  I am convinced it was the protecting power of God because we had stood in that field and put ourselves in agreement with the Lord that He would rebuke the devourer and continue to give life to those plants. The result was that my field was the only field in the community that was not consumed by the worms.  Praise Him Forever!

            We are still talking about an absolute faith in God that makes the difference between life or death.  I am thankful that I have learned some valuable lessons in my faith walk.  I am sure that without these understandings of the necessity to grow constantly in my faith I would have been robbed of a lot more of God's blessings in my life.  I would even venture to say that I may have even died before my time.  I want us to be conscious, once again, of the importance of completing our individual purpose for God while we are living here on the earth.

            About eight months ago I took a trip to the states traveling overland through Honduras, Guatemala, and Mexico with a brother in Christ.   One night in Guatemala as we stopped to rest, I was severely bitten by a large German Shepherd dog.  Before I could get free from the dog, he had bitten, punctured and crushed my right hand.  To get free, I had to choke him with my left hand while two men restrained him.  I was bleeding badly and the people at the hotel were greatly concerned for the seriousness of the injury and wanted to take me to the hospital.  I felt led only to go into the room with the brother and pray.  We put ourselves in agreement and the bleeding stopped.  Then the greatest battle began.  How was I going to handle the rest of the trip?  Traveling overland in these countries is always a great challenge.  My wife had flown to Houston, Texas, with this brother's family and was waiting for me there.  Just a few weeks before our trip one of our granddaughters (five years old) had a dream in which she saw only her grandmother arriving at our home base in Mississippi.  She didn't understand any more than that, but it was enough to cause us to pray more about the trip.

            Many thoughts began to bombard my mind.  The enemy, Satan, takes great pleasure in painting dismal pictures of our future.  The Bible tells us clearly, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh; (for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) casting down imaginations; and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;" (II Cor.10:3-5 KJV).

            The owners of the dog assured me that he had been vaccinated for rabies but they urged me to get a tetanus shot immediately.  I told them that I had been inoculated by my Lord Jesus.  The next morning my hand was swollen and I could hardly move it.  It appeared that two bones were broken and the flesh had been torn away to the bone and ligaments of my index finger.  There was a deep puncture wound on the back of my hand about one inch wide.  The brother and I placed ourselves in agreement for continued restoration and continued our journey.  On every occasion as we stopped along the way, someone would comment about my hand.  The question was always, "Have you had a tetanus shot?'  The devil began to try to convince me that I would get tetanus lock-jaw and die.  He said that this was the meaning of the dream that my granddaughter had several weeks before.  One night we stopped in a small town in Mexico to rest and I entered a store to buy some personal items.  I was confronted once again with a trial of my faith.  The owner of the general store was a medical doctor and when she saw my hand she was greatly alarmed and told me that it was infected and that I could get gangrene and then asked me the common question.  "Have you had a tetanus shot?'  I thanked her for her concern and assured her that I would not get gangrene or tetanus lock-jaw because I had consulted with the Great Physician. 

            We finally arrived in Houston at my sister-in-law's house and when she saw my hand she asked, "Have you had a tetanus shot?"  I do not know the incubation period of tetanus, but I can gratefully testify that we arrived in Mississippi, returned to Honduras and I never had tetanus or gangrene or anything else.  My hand was completely restored - all bones mended, and looks as though it has been perfectly stitched.  May the Lord be glorified!  I had total use of my hand in less than one month from the day of the injury.  Thank You, Jesus!

            Paul encourages us in Colossians, Chapter l, about this very same thing.  "Him we preach and proclaim, warning and admonishing everyone and instructing every one in all wisdom, (in comprehensive insight into the ways and purposes of God) that we may present every person mature - fully grown, fully initiated, complete and perfect - in Christ, the Anointed One.  For this I labor (unto weariness) striving with all the superhuman energy which He so mightily enkindles and works within me" (Vs.28-29).  I absolutely agree with Paul that we need to present ourselves to the Lord fully grown; perfect and complete (absolute) in Him. Hallelujah!

            Lord, give us a new desire to grow up in all aspects, seeing You as our example.  Help us to understand that an absolute faith in an absolute God is necessary to complete our mission here among the people of the earth.  Thank You for the strength You give us to live out our days to the fullness that we also may present ourselves and others to You with a godly life style for Your honor and glory. Amen!

Summary

            Each one of us as Christians have a race to run and a course to finish.  If we are to accomplish this we must understand the principles of living a life of faith.  We must start with the measure of faith that the Lord gives to all of us and pass through the many stages of faith development that He also gives us.  Remember He, Jesus, is the Author and Perfecter of our faith, so we must always realize that He is our Absolute source of faith.

            I believe there will come a time in each of our lives when we will sense that our physical life is coming to a close.  That sensing can only come from the Holy Spirit as we commune with Him daily.  We must have that divine hope for the future but we also must have that divine absolute faith for each day to be able to have peace with God when our time is up here.  God spoke a clear word to me several years ago.  He said, "The faith that you had yesterday is not sufficient for the challenges of today nor will the faith of today be sufficient for the challenges of tomorrow.  You must have a new, fresh faith in Me every day."  This impacted me and gave me a divine determination to be more absolute in my faith.  Paul communicates these principles with us in II Timothy Chapter 4.  "For I am about to be sacrificed - my life is about to be poured out (as a drink offering); the time of my (spirit's) release (from the body) is at hand and I will soon go free.  I have fought the good(worthyhonorable,and noble) fight; I have finished the race; I have kept (firmly held) the faith.  (As to what remains,) henceforth there is laid up for me the (victor's) crown of righteousness for being right with God and doing right - which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me and recompense me on that (great) day; and not to me only but also to all those who have loved and yearned for and welcomed His appearing (His return)" (Vs 6-8).

            Let us press onward and upward to an absolute faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

With Love,
Buddy Axley
Valle de Angeles
Honduras, C.Am.
January 28, 1996