All tagged faith
Are we being a disappointment in our faith, and worrisome to God? This is one of those questions we should each ask ourselves from time to time. Ephesians 4:17-32 contains guidance for us pertaining to the new life we are living in Jesus Christ. The question then becomes, are we living it fully as the Holy Spirit reveals and teaches us, or are we causing our God to grieve over us instead?
What does it mean when scripture tells us to rest, be quiet, and trust the Lord? How does it sit with us when it says that this is our strength, and our salvation? To us this sounds so foreign because we feel like there must be something that God would have us do. We want to be actively involved like the young David who used his sling to slay Goliath. Yet in many scriptures we are told that by just sitting in the presence of God, and waiting on Him we will experience our greatest strength... and so often we resist this... we are unwilling.
How strong is your faith? Is it strong enough that you can face the hatred of those around you? Is your faith firm enough to withstand the trials and persecution that nonbelievers will put you through? Is it like steel when Satan comes against you because of it? Is it invincible even when those who you love, and that you thought loved you, turn against you for it? When your faith has grown, and becomes like an adornment of shiny armor, that is when the evil one will test you most, using every weapon at his disposal. It is then that you must trust wholeheartedly in the Lord because at that moment the very survival of your soul lies in the balance.
The Holy Spirit comes to us in two installments, the first is the one that leads us to God through Jesus, and the second comes at some point after our initial conversion. There is no mandatory waiting period so you might receive both almost simultaneously. Do you have both inoculations, the initial injection, and then the booster? Did you even know what you felt was the Holy Spirit, or did you think it was just a yearning for the Lord God that you felt, but couldn’t fully describe? By praying we are led to the fullness of the Holy Spirit; yet he is not a reward for righteousness, but rather a helpmate for our spirituality... especially in times of greatest need.
How does hardship affect us, and specifically, how do we react to illness or calamity that threatens to end our lives? Do we remain steadfast in our faith, or do we give up on God and believe only in our own demise? Suffering, and facing imminent death, can lay waste to the importance of all the things of a life that once seemed so valuable to us, and it can whittle us down to just those few things and beliefs that are central to our core selves... so what is that for us? Have we taken the time to define them for ourselves? Do we really want to know before we actually face them?
Is studying the Bible and theology something that you do so that you can mine the truth from it? Do you read in order to gain an understanding of God’s embedded mysteries? Are you seeking the title of “Bible Scholar?” If this is you let me encourage you to continue your studies, but remember to approach them in childlike fashion. Bring the heart and wonder of a child into the effort. Because God reveals his hidden wisdom to the children of faith... the childlike.
If we are Christians, and true believers, then those in the world will hate us. They will dislike us because we are different... because we are new creations, but most of all because we are like Jesus Christ, and by that I mean “not of this world.” We know this to be the case because we hear it in our daily lives and in the conversation (prayer) between Jesus and God Himself.
Do you believe that your prayers will be answered? I mean, do you believe unconditionally that your prayers will be answered? I am as guilty as the next for saying “God answers prayer”, and then immediately making excuses for Him by saying such things as “If it is His will.” By doing this I am rewriting his Word, and I am asking forgiveness now for this doubt and lack of faithfulness... will you join me in asking forgiveness and reestablishing our firm belief in His word regarding prayer?
How do our lives fit together with our faith? Do our lives contain our faith, or does our faith contain our lives? The answer to this question dictates how we will approach the Holy Spirit, and even more than that, what our perception of faith actually is. Will there be joy flowing from our faith, or will we study its details looking for perfection, and fail? Perhaps we have solved this mystery... so that by living within our faith we find perfection and joy through Jesus alone. We are imperfect yet live encapsulated within the perfect sacrifice of Christ, and surrounded by grace and the will of God.
In the name of Jesus Christ rests great power. We call upon it in faith, and by so doing it heals, saves, and provides for our forgiveness of sin. No other name has such strength in it, or reaches the Father’s ear with such clarity, but before we can call on His name we must believe in the man, the Son of God, and obey. We can add nothing to His name that will improve upon it. So, call His name, but call it in faith, precision, and with certainty.
God is our creator, and following the fall of Adam and Eve from grace in the Garden of Eden He has worked out the means of our redemption, and our salvation. His Son Jesus Christ was nailed to the cross, but wasn’t it God’s will that sent Him there? Since His crucifixion have we picked up our own crosses to follow Him? Do we do this because we believe or are we still waiting on God to say “come”? Believing becomes much easier once we realize that God formed us, provided us with a means of salvation, and that we will be living in His presence for eternity. But do we know who He is, or do we simply have faith and believe in Him like we would an unknown philanthropist or a mysterious benefactor?
Is your life so disjointed, and your spiritual journey so up and down that you often doubt that God abides in you at all? If this describes you then you need to lean on the Word of God and listen as scripture reassures you that He absolutely desires to be the central and focal point of your life, and longs to give you the fullness of His joy and His overwhelming rest, peace, and comfort that resides within Him.
Prayer and living make up a two-lane road. When we pray, we know enough to listen for God to answer, but that conversation isn’t the two-lane road we will speak of today... instead we will consider the impact our life is having on our faith, and prayers. How we pray influences how we live, and how we live has an incredible effect on how we pray. Can you have a terrible fight with someone, and then pray a sweet prayer over them? What we do in life each day also sets the tone for our relationship with the Lord.
Are you a wanderer in Christ? By that I mean, did you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, go down in the waters and spirit of baptism and then walk off into a spiritual desert? Well, if you did then it is time to come back from where you have been and rejoin the household, and the kingdom, of God. Like our savior, we are not meant to remain alone in the desert... are your 40 days up?
The conflicts and troubles in which we are most uncertain will all be won by our Lord because He is great beyond measure. How patient and faithful are we in His victory? Are we waiting in total confidence for Him to act? When those around us are challenging our patience in God we can be tempted to take matters into our own hands, and to abandon our assurance in His promise. However, in such times I look to scripture and hold tight to it… you should too.