Post by JasonPensa on Oct 14, 2003 0:33:27 GMT -5
It's the Whole Thing
by James MacDonald
"For we walk by faith not by sight . . ." 2 Corinthians 5:7
I don’t know about you, but as a believer in Jesus Christ and as a pastor, I run into a lot of people who tell me they’ve “lost” their faith. They just don’t believe what they used to anymore. Do you meet people like this too? What should you tell them?
I start by getting right to the heart of their question. I ask, “what do you think faith is?” and “Who do you have faith in?” That usually clears things up real fast.
We’ll get to what God’s Book says about faith in a minute, but let’s first rid ourselves of the faulty notions about faith:
Faith is not pretending that something is real when deep down you really don’t believe it. That’s fear, not faith.
Faith is not a warm feeling that requires you to check your mind at the door. That’s feeling, not faith.
Faith is not a stained-glass and dreamy escapism. I cannot hide from reality in church. That’s fluff, not faith.
Faith is not a motivational seminar, with some high-powered guru telling you to picture a better future. That’s fad, not faith.
Faith is not some stupid, positive, you-have-to-keep-believing thing. It’s not ignoring pain and embracing optimism. That’s foolishness, not faith.
Real faith can be boiled down to a very practical definition: Faith is believing the Word of God and acting upon it, no matter how I feel, because God promises a good result.
Let’s break that definition down so you can see how it will work in practical ways:
Faith is believing the Word of God.[/i] That word believing is not “I hope so” as in, “Wouldn’t it be nice if . . .” Believing is a lot more than just shallow hope. Believing is “ I’ve got all my dreams in that place. I’m 100 percent in.” That's faith.
But faith doesn’t believe in a vacuum; it’s belief based on the Word of God. The Bible is the key.
. . . And acting upon it. Genuine faith always downloads into life. In family matters, an active faith means we will trust God to work through a wayward child or even an unbelieving spouse. In finances, we will trust God to meet our daily needs, while giving tithes and offerings; we believe the Scripture that says, “God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed” (2 Corinthians 9:8).
When you believe the answers to life’s deepest perplexities are found in Christ, then you are believing the Word of God and acting upon it.
No matter how I feel.[/i] This is critical. Faith discounts how we feel and boldly acts upon the Word of God.
Maybe you’re at a place of real financial hardship, and you feel giving a consistent offering to your church is unrealistic. I can understand the fear that limited funds can bring. When Kathy and I were in Bible college, we didn’t have two dimes to rub together. We had $180—$200 per week of expenses, and I was making $150 a week as a youth pastor. I can remember writing that little tithing check for $15 and thinking to myself “Why am I doing this?”
These were real fears and frustrations, but they were nothing compared to God’s faithfulness. I learned that God is true to His Word and can be trusted to meet all of our needs if, by faith, we choose obedience and refuse to be guided by emotion. Here’s the best part of faith: We can act upon our faith, no matter how we feel, because . . .
God promises a good result.[/i] Here are four questions I’ve heard from those struggling with faith:
“Why would I want to do what God tells me?”
“Why would I wait on God to bring my husband (or wife, child, friend) to Christ?”
“Why would I give of my finances when I have so many debts?”
“Why would I invest my energies in following hard after the Lord when I feel like my life is empty and meaningless?
The answer to each question is the same: Because God promises a good result.
This message of faith is somewhere on every page and in every true-life account in the Bible. Every step with God is a step of faith. Every victory won is a victory by faith. It’s on that basis that I say this: Faith is not a part of the Christian life.
Say what? That’s right; faith is not like patience, kindness or other character traits. It’s not like teaching or showing compassion or ministering. It’s not like worship or prayer or other actions that we take toward God. Those are all parts of the Christian life.
Faith, however, is the whole thing.
The Christian life will always be lived by faith. Genuine believers trust God and exercise an active confidence in God. When you do that you go forward spiritually in a phenomenal way. When you don’t do that you lose ground and fall away from Him.
Faith gladly admits that He is the One you can trust. There is no other way. The next time you meet someone who has lost their way, get to the heart of the matter and share with them the truth about faith.
Walk in the Word
His Servant,
Jason
by James MacDonald
"For we walk by faith not by sight . . ." 2 Corinthians 5:7
I don’t know about you, but as a believer in Jesus Christ and as a pastor, I run into a lot of people who tell me they’ve “lost” their faith. They just don’t believe what they used to anymore. Do you meet people like this too? What should you tell them?
I start by getting right to the heart of their question. I ask, “what do you think faith is?” and “Who do you have faith in?” That usually clears things up real fast.
We’ll get to what God’s Book says about faith in a minute, but let’s first rid ourselves of the faulty notions about faith:
Faith is not pretending that something is real when deep down you really don’t believe it. That’s fear, not faith.
Faith is not a warm feeling that requires you to check your mind at the door. That’s feeling, not faith.
Faith is not a stained-glass and dreamy escapism. I cannot hide from reality in church. That’s fluff, not faith.
Faith is not a motivational seminar, with some high-powered guru telling you to picture a better future. That’s fad, not faith.
Faith is not some stupid, positive, you-have-to-keep-believing thing. It’s not ignoring pain and embracing optimism. That’s foolishness, not faith.
Real faith can be boiled down to a very practical definition: Faith is believing the Word of God and acting upon it, no matter how I feel, because God promises a good result.
Let’s break that definition down so you can see how it will work in practical ways:
Faith is believing the Word of God.[/i] That word believing is not “I hope so” as in, “Wouldn’t it be nice if . . .” Believing is a lot more than just shallow hope. Believing is “ I’ve got all my dreams in that place. I’m 100 percent in.” That's faith.
But faith doesn’t believe in a vacuum; it’s belief based on the Word of God. The Bible is the key.
. . . And acting upon it. Genuine faith always downloads into life. In family matters, an active faith means we will trust God to work through a wayward child or even an unbelieving spouse. In finances, we will trust God to meet our daily needs, while giving tithes and offerings; we believe the Scripture that says, “God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed” (2 Corinthians 9:8).
When you believe the answers to life’s deepest perplexities are found in Christ, then you are believing the Word of God and acting upon it.
No matter how I feel.[/i] This is critical. Faith discounts how we feel and boldly acts upon the Word of God.
Maybe you’re at a place of real financial hardship, and you feel giving a consistent offering to your church is unrealistic. I can understand the fear that limited funds can bring. When Kathy and I were in Bible college, we didn’t have two dimes to rub together. We had $180—$200 per week of expenses, and I was making $150 a week as a youth pastor. I can remember writing that little tithing check for $15 and thinking to myself “Why am I doing this?”
These were real fears and frustrations, but they were nothing compared to God’s faithfulness. I learned that God is true to His Word and can be trusted to meet all of our needs if, by faith, we choose obedience and refuse to be guided by emotion. Here’s the best part of faith: We can act upon our faith, no matter how we feel, because . . .
God promises a good result.[/i] Here are four questions I’ve heard from those struggling with faith:
“Why would I want to do what God tells me?”
“Why would I wait on God to bring my husband (or wife, child, friend) to Christ?”
“Why would I give of my finances when I have so many debts?”
“Why would I invest my energies in following hard after the Lord when I feel like my life is empty and meaningless?
The answer to each question is the same: Because God promises a good result.
This message of faith is somewhere on every page and in every true-life account in the Bible. Every step with God is a step of faith. Every victory won is a victory by faith. It’s on that basis that I say this: Faith is not a part of the Christian life.
Say what? That’s right; faith is not like patience, kindness or other character traits. It’s not like teaching or showing compassion or ministering. It’s not like worship or prayer or other actions that we take toward God. Those are all parts of the Christian life.
Faith, however, is the whole thing.
The Christian life will always be lived by faith. Genuine believers trust God and exercise an active confidence in God. When you do that you go forward spiritually in a phenomenal way. When you don’t do that you lose ground and fall away from Him.
Faith gladly admits that He is the One you can trust. There is no other way. The next time you meet someone who has lost their way, get to the heart of the matter and share with them the truth about faith.
Walk in the Word
His Servant,
Jason