Do you understand what it is to live by faith? Living by faith requires more than an intellectual approach–it requires a spiritual approach. It is important to understand that the absence of God in our life means that sin is present. It is only through the presence of Jesus Christ that we can experience the power of God in overcoming sin and its penalty.
To be a Christian means to live a life that exceeds the limitations of this world. Faith takes us beyond the limitations of fleshly knowledge. In faith, we see ourselves as children of God and as a part of His household. We are to live in such a way that we are living our faith in our everyday practical living for the glory of God and Jesus Christ.
Our faith is connected to Jesus Christ in the form of a real relationship with Him. Your healthy relationship helps you to draw upon the power of the Holy Spirit in order to live in such a way that you are able to glorify God. To do anything less is to live only by a set of rules and regulations, where you will ultimately fail.
Do we understand what it means to be a true Christian? In order to see the true power of God working in your life, you must operate in a true faith in God and be willing to sacrifice and pay the price. It is insufficient to simply say you are living for Christ and not put the true effort that it requires to live a life for Christ. Sometimes, we fail to grow in Christ because we are failing to acknowledge His presence in our life. While we have just enough knowledge to not deny Him completely, do we lack the confidence to completely live for Him by trusting completely in Him? Our life in Christ should be for more than just a saving faith…much more.
What is faith? Faith is a gift from God. It is in our faith that we can see how much God loves us and wants us to experience Him throughout our entire life. As we see God working throughout our life, our faith in Him should continue to grow. In your relationship with God through Jesus Christ, there should be a growing relationship with Him where you learn to trust Him even more.
Saving faith comes only from God.
“For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—” (Ephesians 2:8).
God extends the grace of faith that allows for the provision of your salvation. He gives you the faith to believe that He is the lone provider for your salvation. It is our faith in Him, provided by God for you, to recognize His grace and saving power for you to experience.
“Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures” (Luke 24:45).
God opens your mind to the understanding of godly things. The matters of God are not understood or obtained with our own earthly intellect.
“Simon, Simon, look out! Satan has asked to sift you like wheat. But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And you, when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:31-32).
Faith always has the ability to grow, but our adversary, Satan, desires to stunt our growth in faith, for he knows that we are unable to please God without faith (Hebrews 11:6).
Faith is a reliance upon God, who is trustworthy. He is faithful and reliable, and He helps us to continue to grow and develop our faith in Him because of who He is. He gives us the strength, protection, and ability to endure whatever we are encountering, which helps us to flourish as believers in Jesus Christ. Our faith in God is to operate in His confidence and to overcome any of our fears or reservations.
1 Thessalonians 5:24
2 Thessalonians 3:3
2 Corinthians 4:18
2 Kings 6:15-17
Job 42:5
Matthew 5:8
Hebrews 11:27
Our faith in God makes us the children of Abraham, which means that we share the blessing of God with Abraham. As we have faith in Him, He provides more for us to continue to have faith in Him and overcome any of our doubts (Galatians 3:7; Romans 4:2-3, 20-21).
We are to proceed in our life with Christ from one faith to the next faith, and so on. Throughout the journey, we will see God’s righteousness as we grow in our faith and trust in Him (Romans 1:16-17). His grace resides in a saving faith, which helps us to live our life as a living faith in our service for Him (Romans 12:3; 2 Corinthians 5:7).
Akron Alliance Fellowship 