hanks

5. Few people have had the gumption and nerve to push their way to Jesus the way this woman did. Why is this so? Why do many fail to receive answers to their prayers? When we live by faith, we persevere and don’t give up so easily, we pray constantly, continually keeping our requests before God as we live for Him day by day, believing He will answer. We know that He may delay answering our prayers, knowing that His delays always have a good reason, and are always in our best interest. To persist in prayer does not mean endless repetition of lengthy prayers. As we persist in prayer, we grow in character, faith, and hope. In Matt 7:7-8 we are told to ask, and we will receive. Search, and we will find. Knock, and the door will be opened for us. Everyone who asks will receive. Everyone who searches will find. And the door will be opened for everyone who knocks. We ask in humility, expecting an answer for we pray with faith in God the Father who can, does, and will answer. To seek implies earnest petitioning and becoming active in trying to fulfil our need. Have we examined the Scriptures, is our request in harmony with God’s will? To knock means to knock again and again until the door is opened. An answer to the kind of prayer that is accompanied by seeking and knocking is promised to every sincere follower of the Lord. God does answer every prayer, and the answer may be a “no”, a “wait”, or a “yes” if it is according to His will – that is anything that honours or glorifies Him.

4. Why do you think Jesus caused her the embarrassment of having to tell her story openly? Jesus asked the question “Who touched Me?”, before she could steal away quietly. Certainly, Jesus knew who had touched Him, but He wanted the woman to step forward and identify herself. He did this not to embarrass her, but to teach her and the crowd a lesson, that His cloak did not have any magical properties, it was her faith in Him alone that had healed her. He also wanted the people to know that she is now no longer to be regarded as “unclean” and not to be excluded from mixing socially. In obedience to the Lord, the woman came trembling and knelt down in front of Him. She told everyone why she had touched Him and that she had been healed immediately. Here we notice that no one ever touches Jesus by faith without Him knowing it, and without receiving a blessing.

3. Why did Jesus stop? Do you think there was an actual transfer or flow of power? Jesus stopped because He knew that someone had indeed touched Him, touched Him in faith, with a purpose to be healed. At that moment it happened, healing power had gone out of Him and people were immediately cured of their diseases. There was an actual transfer or flow of power. This was not without cost to our Lord, when touched, there was an outflow of divine power, “by His wounds we are healed” (Isa 53:5); "He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases" (Mat 8:17); “at once Jesus realized that power had gone out from Him” (Mark 5:30); “and the people all tried to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and healing them all” (Luk 6:19). This shows us again that Jesus has authority over all evil powers and all earthly diseases. He also has power and authority to conquer sin. Sickness and evil are consequences of living in a fallen world. But in the future, when God removes all sin, there will be no more sickness and death. Jesus' healing miracles were a taste of what the whole world will one day experience in God's Kingdom.

2. Do you think she was superstitious about touching Jesus clothes? How would you assess the quality of her faith? Being desperate she fought her way through the crowd in order to touch the hem of Jesus’ garment. The news of Jesus’ healing power had spread among the people, so much so that He was besieged with sick people. Wherever He went, people carried the sick on mats to marketplaces hoping that He would pass by and that they could get close enough to touch the hem of His garment. Believing that all who touched Him would be instantly healed (Mar 6:56). She must have heard/seen about the power of Jesus and was among those who placed all her faith in His healing power, convinced that if she would be permitted to touch the hem of His garment she would be immediately healed. Which is what happened. This wasn’t all superstition or illogical thinking, there was a measure of faith also. She had heard about Jesus’s power or even perhaps witnessed it. This was some superstition mixed with a persevering faith, on her part, in our Saviour. What was for all to see was Jesus’s power that enabled Him to heal all, and whose heart, filled with sympathy, was impelling Him to do just that. Imagine her joy as she reached out and touched His garment and experienced the healing for which she had prayed and hoped for twelve years!

1. What things did the lady in our story have going against her? Women were viewed by Jewish law as ceremonially unclean during menstruation, but this women had a chronic discharge outside her normal period. This had been going on for about 12 years, which meant she had been ceremonially unclean all this time. She was desperate and broke, having spent all her savings on medicines and doctor’s bills. To some degree she was a social outcast, unable to worship at the temple, and people who knew of her condition would have avoided her.

6. How does Jesus react to the rejection of the townspeople of the Garasenes? I feel Jesus shows great kindness to these townspeople after they had rejected Him. Having asked Him to leave, Jesus in His great love for them, still makes sure they would be able to hear the great things He had done for the healed man – from the man himself. It could also be that He was in Gentile territory and at the time Jesus’ main mission was to be with the Jewish people. After having seen evidence of His great power He also would not force Himself upon those whose hearts had been hardened against Him. In the same way, He comes to us when we call upon Him in faith, but may depart from us when we turn our backs upon Him. “So, He got into the boat and left” (8:30).

5. Where did they find clothes to clothe the healed man, do you think? Why does the story mention the man's nakedness? I agree with Dr Ralph, Jesus Himself must have provided some clothes for the healed man. Jesus Himself said He came to serve, and all who proclaim to be His followers must imitate Him in this. The world's system of leadership is very different from leadership in God's Kingdom. In this world our leaders are often selfish and arrogant, clawing their way to the top with no concern for the people they have hurt along the way. The story mentions the man’s nakedness to symbolise shamelessness. He had lost all sense of being human and had become virtually a wild animal; no longer having any concern for hygiene or safety or even common decency. People would have looked upon him with absolute disgust. After he is healed he is seen clothed and sitting at Jesus’ feet, which is a mark of wellness; he is no longer shameless. Before it was the blatant flaunting of all morals and absolutes, and now under Jesus’ lordship there is a new sense of what is decent and proper.

4. Why did the healed man want to go with Jesus? Why didn't Jesus let him? It was natural for the healed man to want to go to be with the Saviour. I can only imagine how he must have felt. He had been healed. He had found a wonderful Saviour and he wanted to be with Him always. But Jesus said, "Return home and tell how much God has done for you” (8:39). Sometimes Jesus told those whom He had healed, not to tell anyone about the healing. There was a danger in Jewish areas, as His popularity increased, that the Jewish leaders would not only try to prevent Him teaching, but that they also planned to kill Him. Jesus knew the man would be an effective witness to those who knew his previous condition and could attest to the miraculous healing. So, He urged this man to return to his family and tell them what God had done for him. The reason being that here in Gentile territory, there was little danger that people would try to stop the Lord’s work. They knew and cared nothing for the Messiah. Yet the same Jesus who commanded the winds and waves to be still (8:24), and the evil spirits to come out of the man (8:29), still commands that sinners turn to Him and be saved. The healed man had not lived at home for a long time, but now he could return home, and this is what he did.

3. What do we learn from the account about the pigs that we wouldn't have known if they hadn't been mentioned? Jesus was in the region of the Gerasenes which is southeast of the Sea of Galilee, location of the Decapolis. These were Greek cities that belonged to no country and were self-governing. The account of the pigs tells us that this must have been a Gentile region, since Jews would not have raised pigs because of the Jewish religion’s labelling them unclean. The Gentiles had no such aversion.

2. Why do we feel we need to apologize helping just one person like Jesus did on this occasion? One gets the feeling that there is more concern here for the loss of the 2000 or so pigs than for the salvation of one human being. Also, if our outreach program had only helped one person, we tend to think that it wasn’t very effective, and wonder if it was worth it at all. Yet Jesus said, “There will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent” (15:7). To our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, each and every soul that is saved is most precious.

1. If we take this account seriously, what does it seem to teach us about demons? (Realize that our view of demons may be more influenced by sermons we have heard or movies we have seen than by the text of Scripture. Let's stick to the text here in Luke 8.) From this passage of Scripture in Luke 8 we notice that demons are supernatural beings, Satan’s messengers and are powerful and destructive. They are still active today as they attempt to prevent our relationship with God. They recognized Jesus and His authority immediately, and believed that He is the Son of God with great power to command them; they believed in a future judgment and in the existence of a place of torment (the abyss) to which Jesus could send them; they believed in prayer, for the demons begged Jesus not to send them to the abyss. They had indwelt this man, controlled his thoughts, speech, and behavior – even causing the man to be extremely violent.

4. How much of the substance of our faith is self-talk and convincing ourselves that something is true? How do we gain the kind of solid faith that doesn't consist in self-convincing? If we simply believe, the truth, that God always keeps His word; what He says, He will do; and not one of His promises to us will be broken. That to me is solid faith enough, and we don’t need any self-talk or self-convincing to believe that this is true. God is good. There is no evil in Him. He is truth and deals in truth. If we come to Him, He will never turn us away (John 6:37). But when we come, we must abandon ourselves to Him, trust Him, let go of our doubts. Do not use our attempts at being good as a sort of plan B. Rather trust God fully to be true to His Word. Today we find people putting their trust in intangible things like positive-thinking or different philosophies. Instead, faith is a simple act of trust in a Person who is infinitely good, who cannot lie, who will keep all His promise. When we put our trust in the promises of God, we can be fully confident about the outcome. These promises for the future, this hope is said to be the “anchor of the soul” (Heb 6:19). The promises of God for tomorrow are the anchor for believers today. Though faith is a simple trust in Jesus, it will be attacked again and again by the devil. He will sow seeds of doubt, but true spiritual faith will always win. Remember, faith is a divine gift from God; our ability to trust the Lord Jesus Christ is given to us by God, in His great love and grace. Our justification or acceptance by God is trusting His Word that all who come to Jesus will be saved.

3. What does it take to banish the fear that we sometimes feel? What does it take to banish fear – faith! Faith is the opposite of fear. Where you find fear, faith is absent, and where you find faith, fear is absent. At the same time, we find that fear maximises the problem, and minimises God’s loving presence. The kind of frantic, panic, fear that the disciples displayed in the storm was due to their lack of faith. Fear can make us do interesting things; it can drive us to fight; it can urge us to flee; it can cause us freeze; or even throw us into panic. “When I am afraid, I will trust in you” (Psalm 56:3). Scripture teaches us that when we put our trust in God we will be kept safe (Prov 29:25); His unfailing love surrounds (Psalm 32:10); cannot be shaken but endures forever (Psalm 125:1). Even greater than fear is worry. Fear is based upon reality but worry is based upon the hypothetical possibility of trouble. “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). Worry is unnecessary; there is no need for us to bear the burdens when He is willing and able to bear them for us. Worry is futile; it hasn't solved a problem yet. Worry is sin – it denies the wisdom of God; it denies the love of God; it denies the power of God.

2. What is the second most important lesson that they were to learn? In our passage (8:25a) Jesus asks His disciples “Where is your faith?”, and in Matthew 8:26a He asks "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" So, I see Jesus’ first lesson they had to learn was about their lack of faith, and His second lesson was about their fear. If the disciples had not been paralyzed by the fear of death, they might have remembered Who it was that slept in the stern of the boat. Their unbelief was more dangerous than the storm. He had already told them they would be crossing over to the other side of the lake (8:22), there was therefore no need to fear or worry, all they had to do was to trust Jesus. The disciples were afraid, but Jesus was not! He kept on sleeping, confident that His Father was completely in control. “O LORD God Almighty, who is like You? You are mighty, O LORD, and Your faithfulness surrounds You. You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, You still them” (Psalm 89:8-9). Jesus rebuked the storm, and reprimanded them for their fear and their lack of faith in Him. For us, fear can wipe out any faith we had, and often results in feeling sorry for ourselves instead of focusing on what God is doing in our lives. Faith and fear cannot dwell together in the same heart. “When I am afraid, I will trust in You (Psalm 56:3). “God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid” (Isaiah 12:2).

1. What was the most important lesson that you think Jesus intended His disciples to learn from this? I think Jesus intended His disciples to be fully aware that He is Lord overall creation, and they are therefore to trust Him in the storms of life. At this stage the disciples must have been still growing in their awareness of who Jesus actually was – God in human flesh, Messiah. Like the apostles, who had Jesus in their boat, believers today are not exempt from the storms of life, and we know that these storms have a habit of hitting us suddenly without warning. But we must remember that God is sovereign and is ruler over light and darkness, over good times and bad times, and for us to grow spiritually both are needed. When good times come, we are to thank God and use them to glorify our heavenly Father. When bad times come, we are to ask God what can we learn from them to make us better servants. It was one of those unexpected storms - unexpected to the disciples, but not to the Lord Jesus, for He led them directly into it, to teach them the lesson of faith. He was looking for faith in His disciples but did not find it, instead they awoke Him expressing anguished fears at His lack of concern for their wellbeing. The disciples’ lack of faith was viewed by our Lord as a most serious problem, and He then gently, but firmly, rebuked them for their unbelief and for their fear. We are to trust Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour at all times, and in all situations.

5. If you must state a single theme of Luke 8:1-21, what would it be? Pay close attention to how you listen/hear (8:18). This would be my single theme, and I think it is very applicable to the passage under consideration. It is a message sent from God, directed to everyone that hears it, and as such should be heard and listened to with close attention. It is personal message sent on a one-to-one basis and should be heard by that person. It is a blessing to have an opportunity to hear the Word.. It is a greater blessing to have a hunger to hear the Word and embrace it. It is the greatest blessing of all to hear the Word and be conformed to the likeness of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. It expresses the thoughts of God and speaks about the most solemn and important doctrines in life. It should be heard with prayer, as the Holy Spirit alone can unfold and apply it to our heart. It should be gratefully and faithfully heard, believed and accepted, knowing that it is the absolute truth. It should be heard and compared with God's written Word; for many false teachers have gone out into the world. There are many thoughtless hearers who hear the Word but do not understand. There are many shallow hearers whom the devil amuses while they think they are listening to the voice of God. There are many prayerless hearers, on whom the Word falls as good seed upon a barren rock! There are many unbelieving hearers who have no faith and consequently the Word has no meaning. There are many who hear for others, but not for themselves - forgetting that it is God's message to them! Pay close attention to how you hear for you will be held accountable for the use you make of the Word. God will demand an answer for the use or abuse of it – He is a jealous God and will avenge His injured grace. Blessed are believers who hear the Word of God, who keep it, who hide it in their hearts, who memorise it, who embrace it with love, who obey it in their lives. For they have a lamp to enlighten their darkness, a map to mark out their road, plenty of nourishment for their soul, and the promise of eternal life.

4. Why would Jesus speak so disrespectfully of His family as He seems to in 8:21? I don’t think Jesus was speaking disrespectfully about His family. It is more about Him obeying the will of His heavenly Father. The Son of man must do the work which the Father gave Him to do (John 17:4), and no interference can be tolerated. The answer of the Lord was that real relationship with Him does not depend on natural ties, but on obedience to the Word of God. Jesus' true family is comprised of all those who not only listen to the Word of God but who also actually obey it, these are His mother and brothers. All who have taken to heart the messages of Jesus, belong to the spiritual family, a family far more important than any merely physical family could ever hope to be. Jesus assures us here that to be in the kingdom is to become a part of His family. He says that His earthly mother and blood brothers are not His only relatives, but that whoever has heard the Word of God and does it will enter His kingdom. These are His mother and brothers. So, learn to listen. Be careful how you listen. Most of all, listen to the Holy Spirit. You and I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens us. Don't listen to your doubts; don't listen to your fears. Listen to the Holy Spirit who points the way to the King, and take your place as part of the family of God.

3. In view of 8:18, is there any hope for people who think they are Christians, but don't really "get it"? Pay attention to how you listen! (8:18a). Throughout Scripture we are told to pay close attention to how we listen. Some people hardly listen at all, others listen to be entertained, and others to find fault, but the true believer listens to obtain wisdom and to put it to good use. So, we find that disciples listen with a mind eager to understand and ready to believe and obey, while the rest of the people only hear with little interest, or out of curiosity, or even in stubborn opposition. If we are faithful in sharing the truth with others, God will reveal new and deeper truths to us. If, on the other hand, we do not have this spirit of evangelistic zeal, God will deprive us of the truth we think we possess. In other words, to the former more knowledge would be granted; the latter would be deprived of what knowledge they seemed to have. They don’t get it! What we don't use, we lose. Yes there is hope for all believers as long as they realise that applying God’s Word helps them grow spiritually. Our Lord Jesus is emphasizing the importance of what believers do with His teachings. We should let our light shine by living and spreading the truth for all to see.

2. Why must the lamp be placed on a lampstand rather than hidden? What does this mean in the twenty-first century? Once we have received and understood God’s Word, we have a duty to let our light shine for the Lord. For this to happen we need to be well placed, spreading the truth, and at the same time seeking opportunities for others to hear and understand God’s Word. Just as we don’t light a lamp in order to hide it, so also we are not given the “secrets of the kingdom of God” in order to keep them secret. I think the world today is more in need of the saving grace of the Word than ever before. Recently, I read a news article about the hundreds of churches that are closing and being sold throughout Western Europe. Darkness is spreading and gaining momentum! If ever there was a need for the light of the Word to be placed on a lampstand rather than hidden, it would be now!

1. What or whom does the lighted lamp represent in 8:16? A disciple? Jesus? The Message? Tell why you identify it in the way you do. The New Testament uses the image of light in a few different ways. When referring to a disciple: “You are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14; 1 Thess 5:5). As believers we are to reflect His light and shine in this world of darkness. When referring to Jesus: Jesus Himself said: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness” (John 8:12; John 1:4; John 1:9). His life brings light to humankind, helping us to see the world, and our condition clearly – overcoming the darkness of evil. When referring to The Message: “Your Word is a lamp unto my feet” (Psalm 119:105; Isa 9:2). The Word is the light that shows us the way ahead so that by hearing/listening we don't stumble as we walk. We see that this parable is a logical extension of the Parable of Soils, and the emphasis here is again on hearing or listening, “pay attention to how you listen!” (v 8:18). Remember also, the soil is the human heart, and the result of the hearing of the Word is dependent on the condition of the hearer’s heart. At the same time Jesus Himself gives us the meaning of the parable, "This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the Word of God” (Luke 8:11). These seeds (The Word of God) that fall on good ground are the people who listen to the message, understand it, develop true Christian character, persevere, and produce fruit for God (Luke 8:15). In the same way, one does not light a lamp in order to hide it, so also a person is not given “the secrets of the kingdom of God” (Luke 8:10) in order to keep them secret. This helps me identify the lighted lamp as The Message, the gospel, The Word of God.

6. Why do you think Jesus told the Parable of the Soils? Early in His ministry Jesus spoke in simple analogies that everybody could understand, but from this time on He spoke to the crowds only in parables (Matt 13:34). But as soon as you lengthen the analogy and you begin to tell a story, on the one hand you immediately obscure the meaning in the story. The story could mean all kinds of things, and it demands an explanation. So, from now on the teachings of Jesus would be hidden from unbelievers and revealed only to believers. As His ministry moved on, He began to speak in more prolonged stories, prolonged illustrations and analogies, and these He explained to His disciples. This is a monumental turning point which started with the telling of the Parable of the Soils. Judgment has fallen on Israel and that judgment is seen in the fact that they can no longer understand their own Messiah. We see this in 1 Cor 14:21, where Israel had rejected God’s message and had mocked it - He would then only speak to them in a language they wouldn’t understand. Also in Isa 28:11, with foreign lips and strange tongues God will speak to His people who had rejected Him. “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, ‘though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand’” (Luke 8:10). Jesus did not withhold anything which the people were both eager and able to understand. Mark clearly tells us that Jesus taught the crowds all they could handle: “With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand” (Mark 4:33). This Parable gives us an understanding why people respond the way they do to the gospel, and in that way helps us to fulfil the great commission.

5. Even good soil can have factors that hinder growth in various parts of the field, or make some areas grow taller and fuller wheat. What factors make a disciple especially good soil for the growth of the word? To start with the disciple should have an honest and good heart, made so through the miracle of regeneration. It's all honest and all good with no hypocrisy, no rock bed underneath, and no weeds here. A well-prepared heart with a hunger and thirst after righteousness, and a true understanding of the gospel. In Matthew 13:23 Jesus talks about the good soil and He says, "It's those who hear and understand the Word." The heart is so well prepared that there is a true understanding and acceptance of the gospel, both its message of sin and judgment as well as grace and eternal life. Besides having an honest and good heart the disciple should not only be hearers but also doers of the Word. They feed continuously on the Word so that it confronts their sin, it challenges their wrong attitudes, and it shows them how to live a life in a manner that is pleasing to God. They do not conform to this world, but are continuously being transformed by the renewing of their mind (Rom 12:2), as they discover the truths of God. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isa. 55:8-9). Jesus told His disciples that He has explained the secrets about God's kingdom to them (Luke 8:10); the wisdom that had been hidden and has been destined for their glory before time began. As it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, No mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Cor. 2:7-9). Another factor is that of bearing fruit with perseverance. This is the disciple who perseveres under any trial, under any temptation, under any pressure, and under any difficulty. They persevered, unlike the false disciples who showed their unbelief by leaving the Christian fellowship: “They went out from us because they were not of us” (1 John 2:19). True faith always has the quality of permanence, they are truly born again and cannot lose their salvation. Jesus said, "If you continue in My Word then you're My real disciple" (John 8:31), and continued to say that “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:32). Unlike the Jews who did not know the truth, and were in the bondage of ignorance, error, sin, law, and superstition. Those who truly know the Lord Jesus are delivered from sin, they walk in the light, and are led by the Holy Spirit of God. Of the four soils they are the only ones that bear fruit. This is seen in their attitudes of love, joy, peace, faith, meekness, gentleness, goodness - their love for God, their love for Christ, their love for others, the joy in trials, and the peace in tribulation. Their life will be filled with all the fruits of righteousness (Phil 1:11).

4. Here's a controversial, but important question: Can verse 14 describe true believers? I know that the first soil represents those who are lost (they immediately rejected the gospel), and that the fourth soil represents those who are saved. But, when it comes to the second soil (those who too quickly accepted the gospel), and the third soil (those who accepted the gospel but fizzled out over a longer period), I’m not so sure that they are all unbelievers. They are not saved, that is born again, for we cannot be un-born that is lose our salvation. Initially, one finds that the common factor among these first three soils is that none of them bear fruit. Some look promising for a while, but there was no fruit because they were never truly saved and are unbelievers. Perhaps our Lord Jesus was not telling us the parable to distinguish between believers and unbelievers, and it might be a bit harsh in judging them as not being believers. The kind of believer that pleases God is the one that thoughtfully hears the gospel, understands its implications, and then consistently grows and matures, and which bears fruit as a result. So, we should give the third soil (“thorny soil”) person the benefit of doubt as they could be on the journey of salvation and have not yet reached full maturity, being in the process of being sanctified and eventually in the long run, will repent and put their full trust in Jesus and be regenerated. I have heard several pastors say that the churches today have as a majority the “thorny soil” person in their congregation. They could fizzle out over a long period, but how do we know that they have been going through a very rough time and that in the end they will endure and bear fruit. They will eventually reach full maturity and start bearing fruit. We cannot know or judge a person’s heart only God can do that. We don’t know. One could say they have not been truly saved, born again, regenerated, but they are still believers?

3. Which of the thorns that Jesus mentions in verse 14 do you think is the most dangerous? Worries, riches, or pleasure? Why do you think so? These people are the ones that come the closest to salvation, but then the worries, riches, and pleasures are like weeds in a garden that choke out the Word and prevents them from producing the fruit of the spirit. They professes to believe in Jesus, but their heart is divided - they want the best of both worlds – they are still drawn to what this world has to offer. They are not fully committed to seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Instead, they are trying to serve two masters, but in reality they are really serving mammon, not God. I don’t think the Bible condemns riches or pleasures as such, but it does condemn living for riches and pleasures (1 Tim 6:9-10). Personally, I think the most dangerous to our faith, is worry. It can leave you in a state of deep depression and it can fuel your feeling of doubt – it can grip you and leave you powerless and unable to function properly. Alienating you from our Heavenly Father. As a Christian we are taught not to worry or be anxious about anything but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God (Phil 4:6). In Pet 5:7 we are told that God cares for us and we are to turn all your worries over to Him. We are to trust Him fully; spirit, soul, and body, not only for our salvation but also for the direction of our lives (Prov 3:5-6). Scripture teaches us that we should bring all of our needs and concerns to God in prayer rather than worry about them. Even those who truly know Christ must continually pull out these weeds. “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them” (1 John 2:15).

2. Why, according to verse 13, do some people demonstrate "flash-in-the-pan Christianity"? What is the problem with them? These people respond emotionally to the message, and then quickly lose interest and do not continue. Perhaps they had heard that following Jesus would magically solve all their problems and that Jesus offers an abundant life. Besides having all their problems solved, they were thinking prosperity, health, wealth, and happiness. At first, they seem to be zealous for the Lord, and even seem to be making rapid progress in the faith. But then, trials and problems hit, and because their faith was based more on emotion than on truth, they have no deep roots into the Word. Consequently, they fall away. They believed for a while, but as Jesus explained their roots didn’t go very deep, so when difficulty comes, they do not persevere. Trials and tribulations can deepen the roots of a true Christian, but it only exposes the shallowness of the false Christian. It’s not that they lost their salvation; it’s that they never truly were saved in the first place. In John 8:31, Jesus said that “If you continue in My word, then you’re My real disciple.” True believers are those who persevere – these only believed for a while.