We need to grow up in Christ, grow in by loving each other and grow out by bearing fruit - sharing the gospel with others. If we are not connected to Jesus, then we can do nothing in bearing fruit. How important is God in your life?

We have words and sayings that hold true in our lives. In this passage we are reminded to fix the words of God into our hearts and into our mind, but also to teach and write these words down. Just as we need to take in the word's of God, we also need to take in the word's of Jesus and allow them to shape our lives. In John 14:6, Jesus said "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

God has a plan and purpose for each of us in our lives. He has assigned a race for us to participate in. How committed are we in running that race with endurance, perseverance, passion and patience? There are many examples of people who have gone before us that showed evidence of faith in Jesus Christ, despite their own failings. God knows the struggles we have that hinders us from handing our live totally over to Him. Psalm 23 gives us the encouragement to run the race that God has proposed for us. We need to fix our eye on Jesus, the only one we can truly depend on.

True biblical faith is not a "I hope so" type of faith, but as Warren Weirsbe indicated, it is a "confident obedience to God's Word in spite of circumstances and consequences". How does faith work in our life? We hear God's Word, we trust God's Word and then we act on it. Faith is only as good as the object we place our faith in. As Christians, our faith is in God and Jesus Christ. Faith is our foundation - it is the confidence of things hoped for. Faith enables us to see what others cannot see - it enables us to do what other people cannot do.

The law of the Old Testament was only a shadow of what was to come with Jesus. The old sacrifices were a constant reminder of the sin of man and were never going to take away the need to carry out more sacrifices as the sin continued. There needed to be a better way - a sacrifice that was once for all time. Jesus has come to do God's will - to give up His life on the cross and establish a new covenant. Whilst living tn this world, we are not perfect - we have sinned and rebelled against God but can be made whole and perfect in the eyes of God because of Jesus' sacrifice. We are all accountable for our sin. We need a Saviour. We need Jesus.