Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

Faith is being sure of what you hope for and certain of what you cannot see. Faith is believing something when you have no physical evidence to prove your belief.

Faith is the opposite of unbelief.

Matthew 17:19-21

19 “Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?”

20 “And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”

21 “Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.”

We are saved by our faith in Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 2:8: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:”

John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Faith comes by hearing the word of God.

Romans 10:17, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

Fasting and prayer increase our faith. The more faith we have, the more powerful the Lord can do His work through us.

Fasting:

Fasting is doing without food and water for a certain period of time.

Fasting is asking our Father for mercy and favor.

Fasting is humbling yourself before our Father, recognizing Him as all powerful.

Food and water come from our Father.

Luke 12:24: “Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls?”

The Lord tells us where our food comes from when He taught us to pray.

Luke 11:2-3

2 “And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.”

3 “Give us day by day our daily bread.”

Fasting is a mild form of suffering that helps us to control our mind, body, and emotions.

I Corinthians 9:24-27

24 “Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.”

25 “And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.”

26 “I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:”

27 “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”

To be hungry, have food, and not eat takes self-control. Prayer and fasting go hand in hand. Together they increase our faith. Prayer brings you into the presence of the Father and fasting symbolizes your humility before Him making our prayers very special to Him.

Matthew 17:14-21

We are commanded to fast one day every year, the Day of Atonement, an annual Holy Day.

Jesus’ horrible death on the cross was His suffering for us and our fasting is our mild form of suffering for Him.

Tithing:

Under the Old Covenant the Israelites were commanded to tithe.

Under the New Covenant the church members have God’s Holy Spirit in them. Spiritual man is not commanded to tithe as the physical Israelites were commanded. We are part of the family of God, and we do not give tithes to ourselves; but in order for the Lord’s work to be done, we are to give cheerfully as we are able.

Laying On of Hands:

After a person is baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, the ministers lay hands on the person praying for him and the Spirit is given to that person.

Acts 8:15-19

15 “Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost:”

16 “(For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.)”

17 “Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.”

18 “And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,”

19 “Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.”

Acts 19:4-6

4 “Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.”

5 “When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.”

6 “And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.”

I Timothy 4:14, “Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.”

II Timothy 1:6, “Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.”

Hands were laid on disciples that were appointed to do certain works of the Church.

Acts 6:2-6

2 “Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables.”

3 “Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.”

4 “But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.”

5 “And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch:”

6 “Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.”

The laying on of hands is one of the principles of the doctrine of Christ.

Hebrews 6:1-2

1 “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,”

2 “Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.”

Drinking Alcohol:

Is it a sin to drink alcohol?

No. It is not a sin to drink alcohol.

Wine – Strongs Exhaustive Concordance Greek #3631 – wine, Hebrew #3196 – wine (as fermented)

Jesus made wine and drank wine.

John 2:7-10

7 “Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.”

8 “And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.”

9 “When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,”

10 “And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.”

Mark 14:23-25

23 “And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it.”

24 “And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many.”

25 “Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

The things that happened to the Israelites in the Old Testament are ensamples for us.

I Corinthians 10:11, “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.”

During the Feast of Tabernacles, the Israelites could buy wine and strong drink.

Deuteronomy 14:26, ” And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household,”

Christians may drink alcohol in moderation.

I Corinthians 9:25-27

25 “And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.”

26 “I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:”

27 “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”

Ephesians 5:18: “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;”

Philippians 4:5: “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.”

II Peter 1:6: “And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;”

Galatians 5:22-23

Titus 1:8

Titus 2:2

The Daily Sacrifice:

The daily sacrifice under the Old Covenant was the offering of two lambs upon the alter every day.

Exodus 29:38-39

38 “Now this is that which thou shalt offer upon the altar; two lambs of the first year day by day continually.”

39 “The one lamb thou shalt offer in the morning; and the other lamb thou shalt offer at even:”

The daily sacrifice under the New Covenant is dedicating your life to doing the Lord’s work.

Romans 12:1: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”

There is coming a time in the near future when the whole world will worship the image of the beast.

Revelation 13:7-8

7 “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.”

8 “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”

True Christians will no longer be allowed to worship God and to do His work under the penalty of death.

Revelation 13:15: “And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.”