Gateway Baptist Church
April 26, 2026
      • Bible Trivia
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      • Matthew 25:40NKJV

  • Victory in Jesus
  • Just a Closer Walk with Thee
  • Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus
  • I Love To Tell The Story

  • Acts 9:10-19

    What is faithfulness? Faithfulness is the quality of being loyal, steadfast, and trustworthy, characterized by maintaining commitments, integrity, and truthfulness in relationships or duties. The Greek word “pistis” means belief, trust, and confidence. Billy Graham calls faith “to give up, surrender, or commit.” Faith is complete confidence. Do we have confidence in Christ? F.B. Meyer said, “Don’t waste your time waiting and longing for large opportunities which may never come. But faithfully handle the little things that are always claiming your attention.”
    Some of the most powerful faithful experiences will be birthed out of the confidence of the little things that Christ has you to do (Luke 16:10-12). What is the most important time in your life? Right now, this second. How are we praising and worshipping our Lord? How are we serving Him and others? Are we being faithful in this second?
    Luke 16:10–12 LSB
    “He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much, and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. “Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you? “And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?
    Ananias shows us three attributes of a faithful servant. The first attribute is being in tune with the Lord. The second attribute is faith over fear. The last attribute is kingdom growth.

    In Tune:

    Ananias was a disciple of the Lord’s. Acts 22:12 gives us a little more detail about Ananias. He was likely one of the spiritual leaders of the Church in Damascus. If so, he would have been one of Saul’s main targets. Ananias would not have known of Saul’s conversion; this would have been a severe test of his faith. I love it when people tell me that God won’t test us. No! He won’t tempt us (1 Pet 1:6-7; James 1:2-4; Deut 8:2). To pass the test, we must be in tune with the Lord. Ananias was in tune with the Lord. He saw in a vision. The Lord spoke to him.
    Acts 22:12 LSB
    “Now a certain Ananias, a man who was devout by the standard of the Law, and well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there,
    1 Peter 1:6–7 LSB
    In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
    James 1:2–4 LSB
    Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith brings about perseverance. And let perseverance have its perfect work, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
    Deuteronomy 8:2 LSB
    “And you shall remember all the way which Yahweh your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.
    How many of us remember the rabbit-ear antennas? Remember having to move them to get in tune with the picture? Sometimes you had to use foil on top to improve reception. Some of us may need to get the foil out while we are in prayer to better tune us into the Lord. Without being in tune, you won’t be able to overcome fear with faith.

    Faith over Fear:

    Ananias chose faith over fear. Does it mean that fear was not there? No. But his confidence in the Lord was greater than his fear of Saul. Paul is praying, and the Lord tells Ananias that it is a sign of a person who has been transformed. Those truly transformed by Jesus Christ find themselves lost in the wonder and joy of communion with Him. Ananias was in prayer when the Lord came to him, and Paul was in prayer, waiting on Ananias.
    I love the story of Benaiah and how he went down and stuck a lion (1 Chronicles 11:22). Faith overcame fear as he chased a lion into a pit on a snowy day. Ananias did not allow his fear to stop his faith in his Lord. His confidence was not in him but in Jesus. When we have faith like this, we can move mountains. Not because of us but because of Jesus. This faith is what grows the kingdom.
    1 Chronicles 11:22 LSB
    Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, mighty in deeds, struck down the two sons of Ariel of Moab. He also went down and struck down a lion in the midst of a pit on a snowy day.

    Kingdom:

    Being faithful is growing the kingdom. Ananias overcame his fear and allowed his faith to go to his brother Saul. What Ananias did not know at that time was the part he would have in reaching the Gentiles. We do not always know the outcome of what God is doing in and through us. When we are faithful, He will use us to impact and have a reach that is farther than our understanding.
    Ananias was there not only to pray for Saul’s sight but also for a more wonderful gift, the filling of the Holy Spirit. How many of us is God calling us to go somewhere that makes zero sense? We might be sent to give not only sight to those in darkness but to fill them with the Holy Spirit, so God can use them like He would Saul. We need to be moved from the comfort of this life to anguish for our Lord and His kingdom. Both Ananias and Saul had a desperation for the Lord and His will in their lives. What these men did not know was the impact they would have on each other.
    Saul helped Ananias overcome his fear for the Kingdom, and Ananias helped Saul regain his proper sight and filling of the Holy Spirit. This life is not about us; it is about the Kingdom of our Lord and the Good News being spread.
    Listen to the Words of Jesus (Acts 1:8; Matthew 28:19-20). We can Be Faithful just like Ananias and be used by the Lord. If we are in tune, faith over fear, and kingdom-minded.
    Acts 1:8 LSB
    but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the end of the earth.”
    Matthew 28:19–20 LSB
    “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to keep all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

    "Some Wish to Live Within the Sound of Church and Chapel Bell. I Want to Run a Rescue Shop Within a Yard of Hell!" C.T. Studd

      • Luke 16:10–12LGCYSTNDRDBBLSB

      • Acts 22:12LGCYSTNDRDBBLSB

      • 1 Peter 1:6–7LGCYSTNDRDBBLSB

      • James 1:2–4LGCYSTNDRDBBLSB

      • Deuteronomy 8:2LGCYSTNDRDBBLSB

      • 1 Chronicles 11:22LGCYSTNDRDBBLSB

      • Acts 1:8LGCYSTNDRDBBLSB

      • Matthew 28:19–20LGCYSTNDRDBBLSB

  • Just as I Am
Gateway Baptist Church
gatewaybaptistchurch@live.com
8128533787
11 members