The Marks of a Christian: Faith

And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6 NASB)

My previous post dealt with the idea of repentance. In short, repentance is a change from one course of life to another. Something is the driving force behind this change. Biblical repentance is a change of mind and action brought about by the conviction of the Holy Spirit. In repentance then, we turn from our unbelief and sin to submission to God. 

This is where faith comes in. Theologians differ on the question of what comes first: repentance or faith?

Regardless of what their opinions might be, they are basically two sides of the same coin. Again, we turn from sin to God. If one is not moved by a godly sorrow to confess and renounce sin and self it is impossible to exercise faith in Christ. Jesus died to set us free from a sinful lifestyle. Discipleship demands His Lordship over our lives. This we embrace in and by faith. To believe in Jesus is to follow Jesus. It cannot be anything less.

In the above verse we read that we cannot please God apart from faith. If you do not believe in His existence you will see no need to submit to or obey Him. You will not seek after Him.

This seeking after God is vital. A half hearted pursuit is no pursuit at all. Jeremiah called Israel back to God during their captivity in Babylon. He prophesied this,

Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.

And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:12-13 NASB)

This is just as pertinent to us today as it was to Israel in the days of her captivity. It's all or nothing. Do we kind of want God, or are we all in? Are we committed with all of our heart, or is our allegiance divided?

To seek God in the sense of these verses is to seek Him. We often seek God in prayer to meet a need, but what we see here not that. God Himself is the object of our seeking. We must believe that He rewards those who, as the KJV puts it, diligently seek Him. Our reward is the presence of God in our lives. A relationship with Him is what we must be after. And it involves the whole heart, a sincere passion to know and have God.

Faith is more than an intellectual knowledge of God. Many individuals have a head knowledge of biblical things.They believe historical facts about Jesus, but that's as far as they go. That is not faith. Faith is a confident belief in God that moves us into action. A person who has a firm conviction that Jesus indeed has died for him or her, and has been raised from the dead and sits at the right hand of God, will embrace the Lordship of Christ over their lives and yield to Him in loving obedience. 

Jesus said that those who love him will obey Him (John 14:21-24). Faith expresses itself in love (Gal 5:6), so if we are not obedient to the words of Christ our faith is dead. James tells us that faith without works is a dead faith (James 2:14-26). It is useless.

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. (Col 2:6-7 ESV)

So, just as we began in faith, we are to continue our walk with Christ in the same way. We are to grow and become established in the faith. Christ is to be our lives, the one we live for on a daily basis. This is what faith is. A vibrant and growing faith is a mark of a Christian.

The Faith of Enoch

     And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah:

     And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: 

     And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:

     And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

                     ( Genesis 5:21-24 KJV)

We do not read much about this man known as Enoch, but what we read is amazing. He walked with God and God one day took him. Only two men have ever been taken up without experiencing death, Enoch and Elijah.

We see that Enoch walked with God for 365 years. We should ask ourselves what it means to walk with God. Walking with God implies fellowship, agreement. One must be in agreement with God if one is to fellowship with Him. Can two walk together unless they are agreed? (Amos 3:3).

If we understand who God is-that He is transcendent, holy, sinless, then we also will desire to walk in holiness. We will love what He loves, and hate what He hates, and it will show by our attitudes and actions 

This is the message of 1John 1:5-7. God is light. There is no darkness in Him. Therefore if we say we have fellowship with God, yet are walking in darkness we are being dishonest, we stand in opposition to Him. Those who walk in light are the ones who are truly in fellowship with Him 

We read in Hebrews that faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). A few verses later we read this about Enoch,

     By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had the testimony, that he pleased God.

     But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

                      (Hebrews 11:5-6 KJV)

Ultimately it starts with faith. We read that it is impossible to please God without it. All of our efforts and intentions mean nothing without a firm trust in, and an adherence to God. Whatever is not of faith is sin (Romans 14:23).

If we are to come to God, we must believe that He exists. And if God exists, we must rid ourselves of ourselves and pursue Him. The above verse states that God rewards those who diligently seek Him. To diligently seek God goes far above the mere asking for things. To seek God in this context is to seek God Himself, because He is worthy. He must become our greatest treasure, the one thing we desire above all else. This is where are true contentment is found. We can be absolutely destitute but have God, and in that we have everything.

One thing I have desired of the LORD, that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.

                              (Psalm 27:4 KJV)

Trusting God Wholeheartedly.

     Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
     In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
          Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV

     If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
              James 1:5 KJV
    
                                                                           

Whole hearted trust
     What does it mean to trust in God with the whole heart? It is one thing to believe the promises we read in the word, but quite another thing to fall upon Him with an active faith when called to do so by the circumstances of life. It is easy to identify with Peter, sinking, as the wind driven waves crashed around him (Matt 14:28-31).
     James tells us that if we lack wisdom, God is more than willing to give it to us, if we will only ask. However, we must ask in faith,

     But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering: for he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
     For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord.
     A double minded man is unstable in all  his ways.
                                         James 1:6-8 KJV

     Peter was able to walk on the water, at Jesus command, as he kept his eye on Christ. When he looked at the storm around him, Jesus grew dim, and he lost his faith. Likewise, we are tossed about like waves of the sea, if we are double minded. A double minded man is a man who is not committed. This kind of person has no settled convictions or principles. He might have a half hearted commitment to Christ, but in reality, he is on the fence. It is impossible to have a living vibrant faith in Christ, if we are not surrendered to Him. This is why we see so many individuals falling apart today. They cannot trust Christ, if they do not really know Him. They are tossed about in all areas of life. Their opinions waver as the tossing sea. As the storms of life buffet them, they find it impossible to walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor 5:7), and to look at what is unseen, rather than what is seen (2 Cor 4:18). 
     We are exhorted to come boldly to the throne of grace for help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16), and to draw near to God with a true heart, in full assurance of faith (Hebrews 10:22). This is trusting God with all of your heart. It is to be confident in Him; that He is good; that He is dependable; that He can be taken at His word; that He desires our highest good. 
     To trust Him with all the heart implies that we mean business with God; that we are serious in our pursuit of Him. Diligence is a forgotten word nowadays, but it is something that God desires us to be. We are to be diligent, making every effort, in our knowledge of Him. This includes our trust in Him as well. Proverbs 2:1-5, gives us a good idea of what it means to seek wisdom with diligence. It involves a conscience effort to hear; to apply the heart to understanding, to cry after knowledge, to lift up the voice after understanding. a diligent effort is compared to one seeking after silver and other treasures. This is what it means to trust in the Lord with all of the heart.

Our faulty understanding
      We must forsake our own understanding, if we would truly desire to know the way of God. Take a look at Abram and Sarai (Genesis 15:1-6,  16:1-4). God had promised Abram that he would have an heir. In the natural this would seem impossible, as both Abram and his wife Sarai were past child bearing age. After a long while, Sarai, decides to take matters into her own hands, and gives her maid Haggar, to Abram as a wife. They leaned unto their own understanding, and tried to bring about the promise of God, through their own efforts. This resulted in disaster, as so often happens when we decide to do things in our own way, instead of waiting on God. I admit, it can be difficult to trust God, when things do not seem as they should be. We often face impossible situations, and feel that the odds are insurmountable, but does not Jesus tell us that if we have faith, we can move mountains (Mark 11:22-24)? When we have a promise from God, we need to cling to that by faith, and forsake our own natural reasoning, no matter how ridiculous it may seem. Remember, we walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor 5:7).
    
Acknowlege Him in everything
     We often want to trust God with some things, but not everything. However, we are to acknowledge God in all of our ways. Every decision we make, every obstacle we face, every plan and purpose that we have, should be placed in God's hands, if we would want to walk in His will. James tells us that it is presumption to make plans without considering God (James 4:13-15). We often take things for granted, but we do not know what tomorrow will bring. Once again, this is often where our own understanding of things gets in the way. It is not a matter of God's plans that we will follow, and then our own plans that we will also pursue, but God is all. Too many people are guilty of merely adding Jesus to their already full lives. He says make Me all! This is what self denial is about. It is losing our lives for His sake (Mark 8:34-35).
     If we do this, trust Him with all of our heart, forsake dependence on our own understanding of things, and consider Him in every area of our lives, God promises to direct our steps. His wisdom will flood our hearts and minds, and we will find ourselves walking in His perfect will for our lives!


    

    

      

Is Your Faith Evident To Christ?

      And when He had come back to Capernaum several days afterward, it was heard that He was at home. And many were gathered together, so that there was no longer room, even near the door; and He was speaking the word to them. And they came, bringing to Him a paralytic, carried by four men. And being unable to get to get to Him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above Him; and when they had dug an opening, they let down the pallet on which the paralytic was lying. And Jesus seeing their faith said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."
                                                Mark 2:1-5 NASB

     These men had a desperate need, and were desperate in the measures they took to see Jesus. What would have happened if they would have been discouraged as they looked upon the crowd in and around the house where Jesus was teaching? What might have happened if they would have given up in despair and went home? I imagine that their friend would not have been healed, or forgiven of his sins.
     You see, these men had a fervent faith that refused to take no for an answer. Their determination arose from their absolute confidence in God and His goodness, and drove them to do whatever had to be done, to see Jesus. In this case, they went up on the roof, tore out a section, and lowered their friend down in front of Jesus. They did what was necessary, instead of giving up.
     Notice that Jesus saw their faith. I understand that God knows what is in our hearts, and He knows if we have faith or not, but it is also true that if our faith is not evident by action, it is non existent (James 2:18).
     In the same way that these men were determined to see Jesus, we too must be determined in our pursuit of Him. We must also refuse to take no for an answer, being driven by a holy desperation, a fervor to know and experience God in all His fullness in our lives.
     If true faith exists in our hearts, it will compel us to seek Christ (Hebrews 11:6). We will do what is necessary to run the race with endurance. We will lay aside every hindrance, every besetting sin (Hebrews 12:1). Like Paul, we will count all things as loss for the sake of Knowing Christ (Phil 3:8).
     Too many professing believers have a shallow faith. We seem to be motivated with a microwave mentality today. We want everything quick and easy. We expect our Christian life to be the same way. We want salvation, but no self denial, no crucifixion of the old man, no death to self. We want God's blessing, His healing, His care and guidance in our lives, but we are often unwilling to seek Him out in persistent prayer. We often think that faith is an instant thing that does not need to do very much; in fact, if we put out any persistent effort, we are taught that it is not faith.
     This is all wrong. Jesus, in teaching us to pray with a determined faith, questions if He will find this kind of faith on the earth at His return (Luke 18:8). It is evident that many people have a shallow faith that gives up easily. What we are called to is to persevere with an unshakeable faith; a faith that takes desperate measures to lay hold of Christ!

Which City Are We Seeking?

     Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate.
     So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach.
     For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come.
                                Hebrews 13:12-14 NASB

     I want to ask professing Christians some very serious questions. Which city are you living for? Which kingdom are you seeking? Is it the heavenly kingdom of Christ, or the world in which we live?
     The Bible speaks of Christians as those who are seeking a heavenly kingdom. Look at the above text. It says to us that just as Christ went outside the gate to die for our sanctification, so we to are to bear His reproach outside the camp.
     Outside the camp was the place where refuse was discarded and burned (Hebrews 13:11). This is not a pleasant place to think of going out to, but being a true follower of Christ in this world is not always an easy pleasant thing to be either. The world will despise those who have renounced it and its ways. History has shown us how this world has treated godly men and women down through the ages. It has scorned them, mocked them, imprisoned them, and killed them.
     The temptation for many is to please man rather than God. We might claim to be Christians but remain silent, watch what we say, compromise the truth, etc. Jesus said if we are ashamed of Him, He is ashamed of us. It is just that simple (Mark 8:38)! If are trying to please man, then we are not servants of Christ (Galatians 1:10).
     This world is not our home! We must go outside the camp, just like Christ! Be willing to suffer reproach.
       This world is only temporary. It will not last, so why do we spend ourselves in pursuit of all that it can offer us? Someday all that can be shaken will be shaken. Only the Kingdom of God will remain. That is what we stand to inherit as followers of Christ, and not this world (Hebrews 12:26-28). 
     Jesus told us to lay up eternal treasure, to live for eternal things, not temporal material things (Matthew 6:19-21). What we pursue, the things that take up our time, thoughts, money, effort, are what we worship! That is right. Is Jesus Christ enthroned in your heart? Are you consumed by Him and His service, or are you consumed by the things of this life? Are you spending your days living for temporal things? Even things innocent and even needful can become snares and idols to us!
     Look at men like Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Bible tells us that they did not consider this world their home. They were looking to the city whose builder and maker is God (Hebrews 11:10, 13-14). They had come out of this world. They did not look back at what they had left or else they would have returned to it (Hebrews 11:15). Remember Lot's wife looked back as Sodom and Gomorrah were burning up? Where do you suppose her heart was (Genesis 19:24-26)?
     Jesus said that no one who puts his hand to the plow and then looks back is fit for the kingdom of God (Luke 9:62). What are we looking at, our eternal home with Christ, or our temporal life on this earth?
     These patriarchs of renown did not look back from where they came from, but looked to the heavenly kingdom they would one day possess. They clung to the promise of God by faith while living on this earth, and God was not ashamed to be called their God ( Hebrews 11:16). 
     What about us? Is God unashamed to be called our God, or do we bring Him reproach by our worldly mindedness?  What our we looking forward to, the city whose builder and maker is God, or mere material things that will someday be shaken and destroyed?
     As Christians, we are indeed strangers and pilgrims upon this earth. Let us live like it.



    

The call of God part 6.

     I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
     Philippians 3:14(NASB)


     We have, like the Apostle Paul, have been called to know Christ. This is not mere knowledge about Him, nor is it about saying a sinners prayer, or making a one time commitment. This is a life long pursuit of Jesus, the lover of your soul. It is a pursuit to know Him in an ever increasing intimate way. It will cost you everything. Paul counted everything loss for the sake of knowing Christ, so must we.
     This is not something we can add to a list of things to do in an already crowded life. It must be the one consuming passion of our lives. Paul said "One thing I do" (13). Paul did a lot of things. He planted churches, wrote major portions of scripture, preached, travelled, etc, but in reality he only did one thing, not "This is one thing I do among many other things". The one thing he did was to passionately pursue Christ. He was consumed by this goal; to know Christ. This is the call that God is sounding out to us, deep calling unto deep, the call to deep intimacy. Out of this pursuit Paul planted churches, wrote scripture, preached and travelled. He also suffered persecution, hunger, shipwreck, and travail of soul. It is a costly call, but all that matters is Christ, knowing Him, pleasing Him, fellowship with Him, being formed into His image.
     Count the cost, and pursue Him with total abandon!

The call of God part 1.

     Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called.
     Ephesians 4:1 NASB

     We have been called by God with a holy calling (1Timothy 1:9). This calling is a vocation, a way of life. This calling requires us to walk in a manner worthy of it. This is no different than an employer hiring a qualified individual for a job. He would have every right to expect this individual to do the job to the very best of his ability. A doctor is required to be thorough in examining his patient. He must then prescribe the proper treatment. A doctor who is careless, neglecting important tests, or treatment, would soon loose his job, license, and face malpractice suits. Likewise we are under obligation to walk in the call of God upon our lives in a manner that is worthy of Him (1 Thessalonians 2:12).
     Just what is this call of God upon our lives? What does it consist of?
     1. It is a call to be holy (Ephesians 1:4). To be holy is to be set apart for the service of God. It is to be separated from ordinary use, and devoted to God. We are called to separate ourselves from sin and self, and to give ourselves to the service of God. Even our everyday ordinary tasks are to be done in the name of Christ, and for His glory. This is not dealing with a positional standing before God, but with how we live out our lives on a daily basis. We are to be holy because He is holy, holy in all of our conduct (1 Peter 1:14-16). We are called to live a holy, blameless life, to be above reproach.
     I will expand upon this idea of the call of God, and what it means to us, in the next several posts. I hope that it will challenge each one of us to pursue God in a deeper way, to become more intimately aquainted with Him, growing in His grace.

                                                                                                              

Christ, the object of our pursuit.

     And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
     Hebrews 11:6 ESV.

     Many individuals seek God. they seek Him to meet needs, they seek Him to provide things, they seek His forgiveness. Many of these needs are legitimate. In fact we are to bring our needs to God, and trust Him to provide for us. Ample scriptures can be found to encourage us to come to God with our cares and burdens.
     However, I believe that far too often we neglect the greatest pursuit of all. We tend to seek our needs. We seek the gift, not the giver. This verse speaks of drawing near to God, seeking Him. We are to believe that He will reward those who seek Him. Our greatest need, and the greatest blessing we can obtain, is the presence of Christ Himself. To walk with Him, and dwell with Him, to live as it were in the very holy of holies itself.
     Let's begin to pursue God Himself, not for what He can do for us, but for the sake of knowing Him deeper. That is true relationship!