Unbelief Is Sin

There is a sad reality that we ministers must face as we lead the people of God. No matter how holy, articulate, or Holy Ghost led and inspired we are, there will be some who will never accept and embrace the truth as law for their lives. There are things the truth demands that they have no intentions of doing. These, I am sad to say, are eternally damned, simply because they have rejected the truth they heard. Nevertheless, there are some who may not have a conscious desire to reject God, or His Word, but have done so through unbelief and hardness of heart. Below are some scriptures I want to remind you of.

Matthew 21:32

For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him.

Jesus laid the foundation and gave us the principles of belief. In the above passage, Jesus cites how John the Baptist came to Israel, in holiness, proclaiming the righteousness of God. His words were from God, and he stayed true to the purpose for which he came.

I want you to replace John with the Holy Ghost in the lives of the sons. He came and brought with Him the power to make us the righteousness of God. On the day of our salvation more than any other time, we knew that to be true. We changed in a moment, and in the twinkling of an eye, we were made new.

We were amazed and excited at the same time. But moreover, we understood that God’s power to transform a life was real. However, when He began to teach us the Word based upon, or having its foundation in the power of our transformation, some would not repent for their unbelief of the Holy Spirit’s teaching of the mystery of Christ. In their excitement, they believed the power of their transformation, but they disbelieved in the power to walk in the Spirit in their sobriety.

We often say God has the power to keep us, but somehow, many refuse to embrace the fact that the keeping power is within us; and is manifested in our ability to walk in the Spirit of the Living God.

They prefer to believe that yes, God saved us, BUT now we must walk in righteousness according to our own will and the aid, assistance, or support of the Holy Ghost. He is our helper, and He will simply help us as we attempt to walk in this new religion.

But the scriptures do not teach such a concept. The Holy Ghost is not the helper of our walk in willpower. He is our life. He is the life given to us by the Father. Furthermore, such a concept maintains the humanity of the sons. But there is no such thing. The sons of God are divine creatures.

But note this very important declaration of the scripture:...and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him (Mt.21:32). Jesus makes it clear that one must repent of unbelief before they can truly believe.

DO NOT REJECT THE WORD

Saints, it is time for the Body to take these truths seriously. It is an insult and an affront to not believe God. There is no justification for unbelief. We cannot even blame the individual who brings the Word. Even if they are not examples of it, the Word itself is truth and it is Spirit. The Holy Ghost in them is able to discern the authenticity of the Word of God. Therefore, repent for your unbelief that you might be able to believe. There is a severe consequence for not repenting of unbelief.

Hebrews 3:10

Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said,They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways.

The error is always in the heart. It is to be wrong in the judgments of the heart or soul. To reject or refuse to embrace any portion of the written Word is an error in the heart. The end of the matter is to not know the ways of God. This was true for Israel and it is certainly true today; that is why the apostle is writing of this principle to the Church.

Hebrews 3:11-12

11 So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.)

12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

Here we continue to see more clearly the severity of unbelief from God’s perspective. He calls the unbelieving heart evil. But He also goes a step further and describes it as a departure from the living God. Many in the Body do not see unbelief in this way. They have trivialized it, and made it of no consequence. They really believe that they can cherry-pick the Word they hear by deciding what parts of it they are going to believe.

Hebrews 3:13

But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

Unbelief is also a hardening of the heart. Remember the error of judgment is in the heart; therefore, ask yourself, “Why is this so?” When truth seeking to enter the heart is met with a hardened wall of defense, the hardness is due to impurities in the heart. Thus, you cannot know or comprehend the ways of God.

In such cases the heart has already departed from the righteousness of God, but now it manifests the deceivableness of sin; because many in such cases will continue to blissfully convince themselves that they are on one accord with God.

Hebrews 3:14-15

14 For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;

15 While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.

Hebrews 3:18-19

18 And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not?

19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

To harden our heart against the truth is to provoke the wrath of God. That which we believed from the beginning of our salvation must be held on to. We can only enter into the final manifestation of the Kingdom of God if we maintain our confidence in every Word God has spoken. 10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: 11 For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:10-11).

And to those who have rejected my word, say…

Be still and know the salvation of the Lord, for it is not as you have supposed. It is the power to become my children. You think yourself to be wise as you have sorted out your own way, and have made it the way of my people. Yes, you think yourself to be wise. But you are not wise. You are fools, and caught in the snare of your own conceits. I will not chide nor debate with you concerning that which I have said. My word will stand, but you shall fall, even as my enemies, though you be my sons. It is manifest that you have an evil heart of unbelief, though you cannot disprove my Word. Instead, you have judged it according to your own unrighteousness. But my Word will judge you and find you to be wanting. I have found that it is not in your heart to change. It is not in your heart to submit to my way. You have grown accustomed to your way and your will. I have manifested myself to you in many ways. But you continue to reject the truth that will glorify me on the earth. Repent of your unrighteousness, or I will visit you with a rod of iron. Repent, and provoke me no further. Return to my way, or perish in your own. And again I say repent.

Beloved, God is working with the Body of Christ to bring it to walking in His Spirit. Take heed to the truth you cannot refute. Submit to God. Return unto Him, and He will return unto you.