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Faith |
Dear Brethren,
In this end time,
genuine faith is so rare on the face of the earth that Jesus Christ
was compelled to ask the question, “Will I find faith when I
return.” (Luke 18:8) Most people have a duplicitous faith,
which causes them to profess one thing and then live another way.
They do not know the kind of faith of which Jesus spoke. Unfeigned
faith is a genuine and sincere faith without any pretense or
hypocrisy. It is a gift of God that is given only to His
spiritually begotten children through His Holy Spirit. It is a
belief system and conviction that is so real that it changes a
person’s thoughts and actions. Unfeigned faith is necessary and
essential for salvation.
The faith that
Jesus Christ brings to us is one, whereby, we believe so
whole-heartedly in His perfect way that we yield our minds and
desires to the will of God. We fully embrace and implement His
teachings in all our thoughts and actions. We realize that we are
unrighteous sinners, and as such, are totally incapable of ever
saving ourselves from the fate of all sinners – eternal death. We
believe, too, that only Jesus can spare us from this death
and bring us to eternal life. With this faith, God the Father in
His mercy attributes the righteousness of Jesus to us so that we
might live. “The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is
eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23) It
is only by the grace of God that we accept Jesus Christ as our
Personal Savior.
Is God’s Spirit
with us, or is it in
us? When God begins calling us to salvation, His Spirit is working
with us. We respond in faith by accepting
Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, and then we are baptized.
After that, with the laying on of hands, we receive the promise of
the Father – which is God’s Holy Spirit in
us (John 14:17, Acts 2:33-39). Our guilty past is eradicated, our
sins are forgiven by the faith of Jesus Christ, and thus being
justified, we live in faith (Galatians 3:11). “…We have
believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the
faith of Christ.” (Galatians 2:16, Philippians 3:9)
It is not our
faith, but the faith of
Christ in us that saves. “We shall be saved by His life
[in us].” (Romans 5:10) As children of God, true
believers have the faith of Jesus Christ in them, because
He abides and dwells in them through His Holy Spirit (John 14:17).
“Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit… you are the temple of
the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them,
and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my
people.” (1Corinthians 6:19, 2Corinthians 6:16)
Pure faith has to
do with knowing and believing down to the core of our being, that
the plan of God will be fulfilled, and that it is being worked out
in us. Our God is a loving Father who always does right for his
children. “We know that all things work together for good to
them that love God, to them who are the called according to his
purpose.” (Romans 8:28)
True faith brings a
complete change from our former beliefs and lifestyle. Godly faith
grows in us as we begin to live our Christianity. “Faith
without works is dead.” (James 2:20) “I am crucified with
Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in
me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by
the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave
himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20) Our works do not save us,
but we are saved by the faith of Jesus in us, which enables us to
live according to God’s righteous law. Faith causes a Christian to
leave behind a life of sinful conduct and pursue God’s higher
calling according to His commandments. We no longer walk after the
flesh, but after the Spirit.
“There is
therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who
walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the
Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin
and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak
through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful
flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the
righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not
after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” (Romans 8:1-4)
Faith means
believing on Jesus, but just what does that mean? “This is the
will of Him that sent me, that every one which acknowledges the Son,
and believes on him, may have everlasting life: and I will
raise him up at the last day." (John 6:40) Jesus is our
ideal. His life and teachings are the perfect example we strive to
attain. Far too many people have faith in, or believe in an
historical Jesus, or a distant God who is to be called on only in
times of trouble and need. They are not able to envision a God in
whom a close personal relationship is possible – a God that they
would ardently want to please. Our faith grows day by day as we
interact with God by following His lead. “The end result of
keeping God’s commandments is Godly love out of a pure heart, and of
a good conscience, and of unfeigned faith.” (1Timothy
1:5)
Some people think
that faith means trying to believe with all their might that
something that they wish for will happen, and that if they do not
have the slightest of doubts, then God is somehow obligated to
perform what they want. That is not faith. That is a false faith
that causes disillusionment. Faith is knowing that God, in His
perfect love, continuously intervenes in the lives of those whom He
has called, to bring about His plan in accordance with what is good
and right for us. We do not stumble at the promise of God through
unbelief; but are strong in faith, giving glory to God; being fully
persuaded that what God has promised, He is able also to perform
(Romans 4:20-21).
God produces
“spiritual substance” in us when we live according to His ways and
are obedient to His laws and commands. That spiritual substance is
the Godly faith that elevates our existence from a physical level to
a God plane relationship with our Creator. In other words, God
becomes real to us, and we are able to trust and believe in His
promises (1John 3:22). “Faith is the substance of things hoped
for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)
This world is totally void of Godly faith.
There is not a
single evolutionist on the face of the earth who has one ounce of
genuine faith. Why? If an evolutionist were to acknowledge the
existence of a supreme being, he would also have to recognize God’s
authority over his life. Evolutionists teach that the universe and
everything in it, including life itself, evolved from absolutely
nothing. Faith causes us to recognize the sovereignty of God over
all creation. “Through faith we understand that the worlds were
framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not
made of things which do appear.” (Hebrews 11:3)
The world thinks
that saying, “I believe in Jesus,” meets the requirement of faith.
It is not that simple, in fact, it is impossible for us to generate
the faith to believe in Jesus. God the Father must give this faith
to us. “By grace are you saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:8,
1Corinthians 12:9) Those words, “I believe in Jesus,” are hollow
words unless they are accompanied by a total commitment to live our
lives according to every word, principle and instruction of Jesus.
It is a false faith
that claims to believe in Jesus, while breaking His commandments.
Jesus asked, “Why do you call me, Lord, Lord, and do not do
the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46) Simply believing that
God actually exists is only one component of faith – even the demons
believe that God exists (James 2:19). In order to be in the Kingdom
of God, we must also continually seek to live God’s perfect way of
life. A Godly faith is a belief in a benevolent God. “Without
faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must
believe that God really exists, and that He rewards them that
diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)
On the day of
Pentecost the people asked Peter, “What shall we do? (Acts 2:27)
He had just explained to them that they were responsible for the
death of Jesus. “Then Peter said unto them, repent, and be
baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the
remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to
all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.”
(Acts 2:38-39) It is only with God’s Holy Spirit in us that we have
the faith of Jesus Christ.
Faith follows
repentance, and makes it possible for us to obey every teaching of
Jesus, and truly believe the good news that Jesus brought about His
Father’s coming kingdom. Jesus said, “The time is fulfilled, and
the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.”
(Mark 1:15)
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Sermon: "Faith To Faith"
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