WALK BY FAITH

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Throughout the Scriptures there is a constant theme that under-girds our discussion on genuine faith that is accompanied by works. It is best expressed as WALK BY FAITH. WALK—that’s what we are to do. BY FAITH is what we are believing God to do. So, in most every incident of life there is God’s part and man’s part.

By faith Noah built a boat. Noah worked very hard to build a boat by faith that God was going to do His part—to save the lives of Noah’s family in a boat that floats in the flood. Joshua fought the battle of Jericho. Joshua led his troops around the city to do their part by faith that God would do His part—to knock down the walls supernaturally.

Check out in the letter to the church of Jesus in Galatia: I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

In another passage in the letter to the church of Jesus in Philippi: Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. That is man’s part. I am to work out in my life the salvation I have in my heart. This is my responsibility—to flesh out this faith life in my body. Now, if this was the entire story, we could easily be quite discouraged and overwhelmed. But watch what the rest of the passage says. It goes on with: for it is God who works in you, both to will and to do of his good pleasure—the thing that pleases him. My work to work out my own salvation is totally dependent upon God’s work—to work in me with empowerment.

Here’s how it works. You are to do the possible (that’s your part), by faith that God will do the impossible (that’s God’s work). You cannot do the impossible, so don’t try. He will not be held responsible to do the possible, so don’t wait for God to do something that you can easily do yourself.

It’s 100% YOU and 100% GOD. Now don’t get upset with this. God’s 100% is far greater than yours. So now, live your life each day by faith. This gives you something significant to do while depending upon the God of gods to supernaturally intervene. So let go and let God! It’s the only way to freely and fully live!

YOU DO IT

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There’s a powerful passage in II Peter that offers more balance of a genuine faith that is proven out by your actions. In this case it starts out with what God has already done for you: Seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
God has already given us everything we need to live the faith life most effectively. Then, because of what God has done inside us, we are told to do some amazing things—to supply: Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.
Now, get this. God is not going to supply these things to our faith (moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and love), we are to supply them to our faith. The word “supply” has the meaning of “underwrite” an event. This is to come from our efforts, so we must be capable of doing it.
Now watch the 3 results if we do these things: FIRST—For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. You will become fruitful in the true knowledge of Jesus.
SECOND—For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; If you lack these qualities, you will find yourself blind—can’t see where you are, short-sighted—can’t see where you’re going, and having forgotten your salvation—can’t see where you’ve been.
THIRD—for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you. If you are faithful to supply these qualities to your faith, God will abundantly supply or underwrite a special entrance into the eternal kingdom.
TO SUM UP: God empowers us to live the faith life. We are commanded to do our part. Then, God supernaturally blesses us in our relationship with Him. It just doesn't get any better than this!

GOD'S PURPOSE FOR YOU--GOOD WORKS

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In the last few days we’ve been scoping out passage after passage where genuine faith will result in good works. All of this is under the theme “Faith alone saves, but the faith that saves is not alone.” As I get into it further I see this could go on for many more days than I had initially thought. So, let’s take 5 more days on this theme.

Today I want to look at a very significant teaching in Ephesians 2:8-10: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

You are God’s handiwork. This word is where we get our word—poem. So, it would be best said, “You are God’s poem or message.” I believe each of us has a special and unique message given to us by God Himself. This message is not given to us to sit on, but to release it in our relationships. So, now you and I are His message to the world. In other words, your story is His story.

By the way, this means you are needed by the “others” in the world and you have need of the “others” in your life. There is a significance to your existence that goes far beyond your vocation or building your kingdom. God has a plan for you to fulfill—some good works for you to do.

Not only will find your most satisfying fulfillment as you embrace your God-given message for the world, but your good works will shine as a light in the world of darkness. Listen to the words of Jesus: "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

The world doesn’t need to be told about Jesus as much as it needs to see Jesus in you and me. The challenge to us is to hang out with Jesus close enough to catch on to how to walk like Jesus, think like Jesus, love like Jesus and talk like Jesus. Then the world may see His face.

HEARERS AND NOT DOERS

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Yesterday I used the famous quote, FAITH ALONE SAVES, BUT THE FAITH THAT SAVES IS NOT ALONE. The faith that saves or the faith that is genuine and complete has a balance of faith and works.

Today I want to turn to another of the many passages that teaches that the faith that saves is not alone. I just ran across another time where Jesus chides those who claim Jesus as Lord of their lives, but He is stumped that these same people don’t do what He says to do. "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?” Luke 6:46

In the book of James there is a great visual of those who hear the word of God—they hear Jesus, they receive His words, but again they don’t do them. James speaks to hearers who actually do hear and welcome the word of God, but because they are not doers they delude themselves into thinking somehow they have already applied what they have just heard.

In James 1:19-25 he says, “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because our anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Those who listen to the word but do not do what it says are like people who look at their faces in a mirror and, after looking at themselves, go away and immediately forget what they look like. But those who look intently into the perfect law that gives freedom and continue in it—not forgetting what they have heard but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

As a good friend continues to say, “Look at what Jesus said and did and go do it. It is just too simple. If you believe it, then act like it.

You see, Christianity or any other religious system can be distributed by a class or a lecture. In this case, it is entirely possible to fill up people’s ears with so much stuff that they will never be able to do much of it at all. And after hearing these theological gems, they are able to pass along the thoughts point by point to others without ever allowing these teachings to be fleshed out in real life.

I find myself moving with the same innate tendency to disciple those who are interested by gathering them together in a seminar or workshop setting. But this is precisely what is totally different responding to Jesus’ revolutionary call to “FOLLOW ME!” Following Jesus is not a lecture, but a lab which demands definition & demonstration!

Jesus ends His first speaking session with these words:
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash." When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.

Be a doer of the words of Jesus and not a hearer who deludes himself.

THE BALANCE OF FAITH AND WORKS

Yesterday’s podcast begs the question—“When you put so much emphasis on following Jesus in order to get into heaven, isn’t that saying that salvation is of works and not faith alone?”

To answer this question I want to deal with a few passages over the next few days that will most surely give some clarity on this truth.

You see, I didn’t say that certain believers will not enter the kingdom of heaven—Jesus did! And there are all kinds of Scriptures that bring clarity to this. I can’t get it out of my mind the two most important words that have changed the world—FOLLOW ME! Jesus is still calling us today to follow Him.

Stepping out in faith, believing and trusting Jesus, requires some follow-through. That follow-through is to follow Him with all your heart. I referred to the false prophets/teachers and the devils as two groups that are believers in Jesus, but they won’t be entering into the kingdom of heaven according to Jesus. Why? Because they have chosen NOT TO FOLLOW Jesus.

Following Jesus is the necessary and natural “work” of genuine faith. So there is a certain balance of faith and works. One of the earliest writings is by James. He deals with this balance of faith and works in the following way:

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if people claim to have faith but have no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God's friend. You see that people are justified by what they do and not by faith alone. In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead (James 2:14-26).

NOTE the primary points James makes:
1. Faith without action is dead.
2. You show your faith by what you do.
3. Abraham’s faith was made complete by his actions.
4. People are justified by what they do and not faith alone.
5. Faith without deeds is dead.

I have always liked this statement which sums it up best for me.
FAITH ALONE SAVES, BUT THE FAITH THAT SAVES IS NOT ALONE.