FAITH
- “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Eph 2:8)
- “faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1)
We all without exception have faith in something
There is only one “most holy faith” (Jude 20), which has God’s revealed truth as its object, and that is the faith I refer to below
We can never buy it or earn it
But we can in humility receive it as God’s free gift
God’s hand is outstretched generously offering us His gift of faith. But it will be of no benefit to us whatsoever unless we decide to receive it: and then everything changes for “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Some say they cannot receive it. I say is that because at some level they will not receive it? But when it is received everything will change.
However, for some this change is immediate while for others it is a longer process.
If you decide to receive God’s gift but you do not experience the change all at once, don’t give up but keep on believing and the change will come. You might have to persevere like the man who prayed to Jesus “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”(Mark 9:24).
- Faith is the passageway into grace
- If you do not have faith you had better go and get it – it is up to you.
- Faith is a gift from God that anyone who seriously seeks after it can receive – “whoever believes” (John 3:16
- Receiving the gift of faith is an act of will – a decision and life commitment
- God is holding this gift out to you but you have to receive it
- Faith comes by hearing the Word of God (Rom 10:17)
- Faith grows stronger as we fill our minds with the Word
- Faith is not blind
- Faith is reasonable
- Faith is far more than reason
- Faith is realty
- Without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb 11:6)
- “Whatever is not from faith is sin” (Rom 4:23)
- A person is justified by faith
- With faith we please Him
- A day lived without faith is a day wasted
- Each day lived in faith will have its reward
- Faith is a way of living – “the just shall live by his faith” (Hab 2:4)
- God rewards faith richly
- We need to be “steadfast “in our faith in God – (Eve switched her faith from Elohim to the serpent)
- Faith is far more precious than gold (1 Peter 1:7)
- God takes what we do in genuine faith (trusting Him, obedience, giving thanks, praise, acts of kindness) and turns it to our account as treasure in heaven
- Many things can only be seen by faith
- Faith opens up a far greater dimension of reality than that available to the mind of the flesh
- Faith is like night-vision as it enables us to see in spiritual darkness
- Faith alone can penetrate the veil between the Creator and creature
- The further you go behind that veil the clearer you see
- Faith connects us to the greater reality
- Those with faith may grasp the revelation God has given but those without faith cannot grasp it
- Faith enables us to “not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18).
- Faith is limited to what God chooses to reveal
- Intellect cannot ever take you where faith can take you
- Trying to understand the infinite God intellectually leads to confusion, endless questions and darkness
- Faith is not some vain hope for desperate people
- Faith enables us to give thanks in the midst of grief and pain
- Faith does not need to know why
- Faith does not need to understand what God is doing
- Faith does not question God’s inscrutable ways
- Thinking that God should explain Himself to us runs counter to faith and robs us of peace
- Faith believes implicitly that He “works all things according to the counsel of His will” (Eph 1:11) – even the seemingly impossible things such as The Cross (or my cross)
- Faith tenaciously believes “that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Rom 8:28) whether we understand how or not.
- Faith trusts God no matter what and not from a sense of obligation
- Faith enables us to possess the Promised Land instead of being paralysed by doubt on its borders
- Faith makes weak people strong
- Faith is demonstrated by obedience
- Faith derives from its Object and this gives hope and peace
- Faith opens the ‘grace-entrance’ to “every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ”
- Faith is how we embrace “Christ in you” and it is only as we do that that ‘it begins to happen’ in us.
- Faith connects us with the spiritual order
- Faith alone makes sense of the physical order
- Faith enables us to feel the reality in our spirits of both God’s grace and the gifts of His grace
- Faith produces a subjective experience of God communing with us
- Faith will give place to sight in the final spiritual order
- Finally nothing makes sense without faith and everything makes sense with faith
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All of the blessings of God’s grace are received through the passageway of faith and none are received without faith. This is the point that Paul was making when he wrote to the Galatians saying: “Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?” (Gal 3:2).
The realisation increases as we receive by faith and persevere in faith.
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As my medical prognosis is only “months” (cancer) and my dear wife departed this life a short while ago (cancer), my thoughts have been especially focused – empty “religion” is of no value at such times.
It seems to me that faith in the God of the Bible is the most reasonable belief system. To think that we can prove the all-wise and infinite God by our very limited intellect betrays that our god is way too small. Even the temporal and finite physical creation vastly exceeds our ability to fully understand.
This marvellous creation of which we are part is amazing. The more we find out about it the more I want to worship Him who made and sustains it. Through it God “advertises” to every human heart that He is present and that nothing is too hard for Him – “His eternal power and Godhead” (Rom 1:20) which exceed our comprehension.
Then there are the great many fulfilments of biblical prophecies to consider and the revelation through His Son become flesh.
As we traverse the passageway of faith, then and only then, does it all make glorious sense.