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And are we ready, uh, Jermaine, for streaming? Yes, sir. Good. Hebrews 11:1-3. Give us then the feet measure, which is Bible. Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained A good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. Father, you know us better than we know ourselves. Faith is a subject that we can't go too long without having to focus on it, because speaking it not only blesses us, but it pleases you. In Jesus' name, amen. Talking about the evidence of faith, and I defined on Sunday, and I want to do again, the word evidence. Number 1, the word evidence is that which tends to prove or disprove something. It is actually grounds for belief, or it means to provide proof. Number 2, the word evidence is something that makes plain or clear It is an indication or a sign. And number 3, the word evidence means to make evident, to show clearly, or to manifest. Now, looking back at Hebrews 11:1, the Bible says, now faith. And I know that we think we understand what the Bible refers to when it says now faith, but to help you I understand. You can actually put a comma or a period if you want to behind the word faith in this particular passage. And the reason being is because that's a complete statement, and that's worthy of the notation. In other words, it's necessary to stop Stop your reading and zoom in on those two words, because the understanding of what God is saying lies within those two words: now faith. Now faith or faith in the now. The word now is the word present or present tense. Which means faith has to dwell in the present tense in order for it to be faith. If it's not grown in the present, then it's not faith. Faith doesn't exist in the past. Faith doesn't exist in the future. Faith exists in the realm you exist in. Faith exists in the time zone you exist in. You are not in your past. You're not 15 anymore. You will never be 15 again. And you're not 100 years of age yet. So you don't need faith for when you were 15 in today's world. And you don't need faith for when you're going to be 100 years old because you don't exist in that particular time frame yet. You need faith for today. You need faith for your present. And God is simply spelling it out for us. The handwriting is on the wall. He's making it very plain and simple. Now faith. So my question to you is, do you have faith? And if you have faith, do you have faith in the present? Do you have present tense faith? And if you have present tense faith, Then you can simply look at your neighbor and say, got faith. And you know you have it when you're able to see manifestation. Okay, let's go a little further. So now faith is the substance of things hoped for. Like I've said before, faith and hope is not They do work hand in hand. The evidence of things not seen. So faith produces the evidence of things not seen. Not hope. Hope doesn't produce the evidence of things not seen. Faith produces the evidence of things not seen. But it is a certain kind of faith. It's not past faith. It is not futuristic faith. It is present faith. Now faith. So listen clearly. Now faith produces the evidence of things not seen. Amen. Okay, let me give it to you like this right here. Look at verse 2. For by it, it refers to what verse 1 was referring to, or what verse 1 is talking about. It refers to faith. The kind of faith is now faith, present tense faith, faith in the present. So now faith is what the elders use to obtain the good report, or present tense faith. So, for by now faith the elders obtained a good report. For by faith in their present situation, present faith for present problem, present faith for present sickness, present faith for present situation. When you're under attack, you're under attacking your present, right? If the devil is attacking you right now, then he's attacking Attacking your present. He's attacking your existence. You don't exist in the past. You don't exist in the future. You exist in the present. He's attacking your present. So when you have present attacks, you need present faith. When you have if you if you're dealing with a sickness, then you're dealing with a sickness in your present, in your presence, right? You are dealing with a sickness in the present. If you're dealing with one, if you're Right. If you're dealing with anything that you need faith to overcome, then you're dealing with a situation in your present. And if you're dealing with a situation in your present, then you need present faith. You need faith in your present. In order to combat the situation that you're up against right now, you need faith in your present. Faith right now. You need now faith. So, so now faith is the substance of the things hoped for. Now faith is how the elders obtain the good report. And it is through now faith that we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God. It's through present faith. Present faith. Say this with me: present faith. I'm teaching you, so I got to get you to be repetitious because This has to be embedded in your heart. Say it again: present faith. Say now faith means present faith, which means faith in my present. I said Sunday that it is possible that you had faith five years ago and not necessarily have that same faith today because faith is something that you practice. That you—it's like. It's like working out. You can't work out for 5 years in the past and think that the accomplishment that you made through working out 5 years ago is going to carry you the rest of your life. Hold on, I'm checking something. I'm trying to see. You and I know that if you start working out to build muscles, to get in shape, to enhance your health, to lose weight, whatever it is that you did, if you did that 5 years ago, that was for then. You don't have that benefit anymore. If you left off five years ago, if you were to lose twenty pounds five years ago, that was then. Those twenty pounds are long gone. I can guarantee you that. Right? Because because in that particular am I speaking a language you understand? So it it was through now faith that the elders. Receive a testimony, and it's just going to get real good real quick. So through now faith, we have an understanding that the worlds were framed by the Word of God. How is that so? Well, when you're operating in now faith or in present faith, and you're constantly building your faith day by day, the only reason you are building it day by day is because of an understanding that lies in your spirit that. lives in your spirit. And that is, you are building your faith because you understand that there is something beyond what you see that controls and dictates what you see. That's right. The only reason you're in faith today is because you realize that the power of God gives you authority over the circumstances in this life. The only reason you're building your faith is because you realize that God has the The only reason you're building your faith is because you realize that you are tapped into a power source that God provides that allows for you to have victory over every force in this world, including the powers of darkness. Yes. So it is through this understanding that you continue to build your faith. It is with this understanding. I'm building my faith because I know without understanding, I'm building my faith day by day to keep my faith fresh, living in the present, and fresh, living in the now, because I know there's a benefit to it. Amen. So you know what that means? That means that the, the, the reading that we do in the Bible is purpose-driven. Like, we're not reading just for knowledge, just to know the stories or the occurrences and the events of the Bible. We're not reading just to be able to quote scriptures. We're not reading just to be able to know what God said and what God did and what God does. We're reading In addition to all of those things, we're reading because we understand reading is food for my faith. Yes. The word is faith food, and I build my faith by reading the Bible. But when I read it, I'm not reading it as if it's just another book. I'm reading it with an understanding that this is the word of God, and I know that the Bible, the word of God, is full of promises that God made to his people So therefore, it is my intent to read it on purpose that I might build my faith as a result. Right. Amen. It is my desire, it is my commitment to read it because I know it feeds my faith and it helps me to have present faith or now faith. Am I speaking your language? Amen. Okay, so the rest of verse 3 says, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. I understand that building my faith gives me an understanding. Building your faith gives you an understanding that what you see does not control what you see. Yes. Building your faith gives you this understanding that what you see is controlled by the Word of God. It's controlled by the power of God and it's controlled by the will of God. Okay, now if you can write this down, your faith is the evidence of the existence Of the God you cannot see. All right, let me, let me, let me give you this. Your faith produces evidence of the unseen that it does exist. Faith produces evidence of the unseen, comma, that it does in fact exist. Read it again, Pastor. Faith produces evidence of the unseen that it does in fact exist. How many of you believe that the unseen realm or the unseen world does have a place of existence? You believe that, right? Amen. There's a whole lot of stuff out there that you've never seen before. How many of you believe in the solar system, that there is one? How many of you believe that there is a planet out there besides the planet Earth that we live on? How many of you believe that there is a heaven up above the sky? How many of you believe that there is a place that we are going to spend eternity called heaven with God forever? Amen. Okay, so your faith is— or the fact that you have faith in the unseen is the proof that the unseen does exist. So your faith is the evidence of the existence of the things unseen. The fact that you believe is living proof that the unseen world does exist. If there was no existence or meritness to its existence, then you wouldn't have enough information to compile a belief, because you don't believe on anything less than information and persuasion. You believe because there's some information that you've gathered that was enough to persuade you into a belief. Yes. And see, your belief in the unseen comes from the information that the world— that the word provides, and therefore you are persuaded by the word that what you don't see does exist. See, that's what faith is. Faith comes by hearing and hearing the word. Faith uses the word to build up a persuasion in your life, and the moment that persuasion is established, then from that point on, you are able to operate in the realm of faith or in the realm of the unseen. Amen. So let me say this again. Your faith in God is the evidence of the existence of the God you cannot see. Well, how do I know that God exists? Well, the Word tells me that he exists, and the fact that my heart believes it is enough for me to state he exists. Amen. Because my heart only believes it because the heart has enough of evidence Yeah. The heart has enough of persuasion. The heart has this thing called the conviction. You know, a conviction is, is not something that you experience just because. You only experience a conviction when there is enough evidence to prove something to be true or right. So your faith is the evidence of the existence of God. You've never seen him with your eyes. Right. You've never touched him with your hand. Right. You've never smelled his presence with your nose. Right. And many people never heard his voice with their ears. Right. So, but yet you say God is real. You say God exists. How do you know that? By faith. It's the only other way you can know. You know it by faith. And because you know it by faith, you are convinced, you are convicted, and you are persuaded. That's right. And nobody who you do see smell with your nose, see with your eyes, hear with your ears, and touch with your hands can make you not believe that God's existence is real. In other words, nobody can reverse your conviction. Am I right? Right. Come on, tell me now if I'm wrong. If I'm wrong, then I may not be talking to all of you. Can somebody persuade you that God doesn't exist? Huh? No. You'll look at them like they're crazy, right? But listen to this. But you've never seen God before. You, you've never touched him before, right? But the people who would— may try to persuade you, you've seen them before. You've probably touched them before. Right? You've heard their voice before, right? But yet you are convinced that someone who you've not seen, not heard, not touched, not smelled does exist. Where does that belief system come from? It comes from you having a conviction, you having information, and you having a persuasion in your heart. That's right. So what I'm trying to do is I'm trying to help you to understand that this is the same way faith operates. Yeah. You believe, you have information, you are convinced, you are persuaded, you are convicted. And you believe because the word says so. You're convicted because you have proof in your spirit man that lets you know that it's real and it's factual. You are persuaded because you have the signs in the word or the testimonies of others who have given you a report that what God has done for them. Yes. So when it's time to receive from God, you use that same application of faith that you use to believe that he does exist. Because the only proof you have of God's existence is your faith. There are, there are people who see everything you see, hear everything you hear, but still don't believe. Amen. And we call them atheists and agnostics, unbelievers. But you believe. And so what God is saying is that that same faith, that same process that you use to believe in his existence It's the same thing that you use to believe that you receive a manifestation of the things you desire. Amen. It is faith in the present. It is now faith. It is present tense faith. It is not faith for the future. It is not faith in the past. It is today's faith. If you have a today's need, you need today's faith. If you have a need for today, you need faith for today. When you get in your future, You'll have needs then, and you'll need faith then, but you need faith now. And that's what God is calling it. He's calling it now faith, not tomorrow's faith, not yesterday's faith. Now faith. Amen. So the fact that you believe means that God has ministered to your heart in some manner or fashion. Some form, some kind of way, God has convinced you of his existence. So your faith is the evidence of existence of the things that you cannot see. Yes. Your faith is the evidence of the things that you cannot see. The evidence that you are in faith Is in your manifestation. Yeah. Pastor, how do I know if I'm in faith? Manifestation. If you are in faith, then there's a manifestation. And the evidence that you are not in faith is that there is no manifestation. But there are some things Or some reasons, I should say, why things doesn't manifest. And I want to break it down for you. But let me say this: no faith, no manifestation. No faith, no evidence. And no evidence or no manifestation means that you're not in faith. Let me give you 5 reasons why there are no manifestations when we claim to be in faith. First reason, either you are not in faith And that's the, the plain basic reason. Sometimes we think we're in faith and we're not in faith. But either you're not in faith— Hebrews 4:2 says, for unto— and I want you to look at that. Hebrews 4:2. Look at Hebrews 4:2. For unto him that believeth it is given to him that he may have life everlasting. Hebrews 4:2 says, for unto us was the gospel preached as well as unto them, but the word preached did did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. So here now God is saying you have some people who came to church, they heard the word, they were glad, but they left without mixing their faith with the word. And if you hear the word and you don't believe what you hear, you don't believe the word, Then you miss out on the application of faith. But there is no manifestation if you're not in faith. So either you're not in faith because you didn't mix your faith with the word, or you didn't mix the word with your faith. Again, the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. Number two, the second reason why there are no manifestations is because time has not matured. Genesis 8:22. While the earth remaineth, seed, prayer of faith, time. And harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. So in other words, the second reason why there are no manifestations is because seedtime and harvest had not fully played out, hadn't taken its course. Third reason why there are no manifestations. You have not matured. You have not matured. Simple as that. Um, that would be in Hebrews chapter 10, verse 11. Hebrews 10 and 11. Let me just double-check that, make sure I got that— I recorded that correctly. I'm sorry, Hebrews 6:11. Hebrews 6:11, that's what it is. Hebrews 6:11. Yep, Hebrews 6:11. And we desire that every one of you do show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end, which is faith, and that you be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promise. So here the writer is telling us that patience is necessary when you're believing and expecting to receive something from God through faith. For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he swore by himself, saying, surely bless, and I will bless thee, and multiply, and I will multiply thee. And so after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. So he had to have patience with his faith. Number 4. 1 John 5:14-15. 1 John 5:14-15. And this is the confidence that we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us. And if we know that he heareth us whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him. So this is praying according to his will. Knowing what his will is. Sometimes we don't receive because we're not praying according to the will of God. And number five, James four and three. And I'll add one more and make it number six. But number five, James four and three. Asking for selfish gain. He says you ask and receive not because you ask amiss that you may consume it upon your lust. That's another reason why there are no manifestations. And then number 6, which is in James 2, and that's not adding works to our faith. And let me turn there, let me find that for you just a minute. Okay. Uh, look down at verse 17. So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. Someone will say, you have faith and I have works. Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You believe that God is one. Well and good. Even the demons believe that and tremble with fear. Verse 20. But would you like evidence? And I'm reading out the New International Translation. You empty fellow. But would you like evidence, you empty fellow, that faith without works is useless, or faith without works is dead. Very plain and simple. So those are 6 reasons why we don't receive manifestation. Now I'm going to say this and then I'm going to be done. Faith is not something that you possess just because you believe. You can believe something and that as far as— that could be as far as you go, just believing it. Right. Just because you believe it doesn't mean that you're in faith. Right. You could believe something and do nothing about what you believe. You could believe something and never act on what you believe because belief happens in the— in your brain. It happens in your brain. It's just— it simply means that you're convinced. That's all it means. Belief is what you gotta have, but your belief is in what you read. Faith is when you do something about what you believe. Faith is when you act on what you believe. So if you believe but you don't act Then you're not in faith. If you believe and then you act, you're in faith. And what makes things to become manifested is when you believe and you act on it and you follow through the process that God's word provides. And there you see manifestation or the evidence. Amen. Amen. Amen. Okay, that's it. I'm done. That's all I got for you. Father, as we receive your word today,