TRUE CHRISTIAN FAITH

                                                             FAITH

Faith is a core value for the Christian walk. But what is it really? Let's take a deep dive into what it is and why it is essential for the Christian walk.

1. What is faith?

Hebrews 11:1

'Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. '

So essentially this pretty sums up perfectly what the Christian walk is all about. Unless God opens our physical/ spiritual eyes to be able to see Him, we cannot see  Him, yet we know He exists. In the same way, even though we know that evil, demonic entities and Satan exists we cannot see them with our own eyes but we are instructed to be aware and pray always because we don't fight against physical things(flesh and blood) but against spiritual things( principalities, forces of evil etc.) (Ephesians 6:12).

2. Why is faith important?

Hebrews 11:6

'And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. '

Through faith, we please God, we obtain God's blessings, we persevere through trials and overcome, we receive forgiveness of sins (Romans 10:5-13) and obtain righteousness (Hebrews 11)

Faith helps us in our time of need and makes us live righteously for God. You have probably heard of the phrase "The just shall live by faith"(Habakkuk 2:4, Hebrews 10:38). As we live in this manner, we look forward to the end of all things where we shall obtain our reward since God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6) and through faith, we are able to endure all hardships as we fight the good fight and run the race while fixing our focus on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith ( Hebrews 12:1-2).

3. How can we obtain faith?

Romans 10:17

'Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. '

Well there you have it. Faith is obtained by reading the Word of God. Let's take a small detour shall we? Now, what is the Word of God? First of all, the Word is God and existed well before even time began (John 1:1). The Word of God was then made flesh and dwelt among men so the Word of God is Jesus Christ (John 1:14). So we can then say in confidence that faith comes by hearing about Jesus Christ. Disclaimer though, this doesn't mean we should focus on the new testament alone because Jesus is the Word of God in totality. Not only that, He is also present in the Old Testament since creation in Genesis, the evidence of the Holy Trinity is present. Furthermore, never forget that Jesus didn't come to abolish the law but He came to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17).  Jesus furthermore urges us to uphold the law and teach others about the law as well (Matthew 5:19).  We can then boldly say that Jesus Christ is the origin of our faith (Hebrews 12:2 'fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith...') and so we obtain faith by believing in Christ Jesus.

4. When, where and how can we exercise/apply /build faith?

As stated earlier above, the just shall live by faith ( Habakkuk 2:4). So as a believer and a child of God, we should always apply faith in our daily lives. Remember, faith is also part of the armor given to us By God to fight our spiritual battles. Remember we fight not against flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12) and so the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but they're might in power to demolish strongholds...( 2 Corinthians 10:3-6).  Faith acts as a shield which is able to quench the fiery darts of the evil one (Ephesians 6:16). Remember the Word of God in which we obtain faith when we hear it, it is also part of the armor of God which we live by and it acts as the Sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17).  We should then live by our faith daily.

Having faith is not enough as a child of God. Yes it's important as it's the basis of your walk and the quality of your walk with Christ. However, your faith can either be living faith or dead faith. Here's what I mean:

James 2:17

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead

Now , here is the real shocker, the quality of your faith will also be an indicator whether you're a true child of God. This is because, faith is essentially believing. Based on that, you should also know that demons believe that there is one God just as you do though they tremble (James 2:19). So, what is the distinction between our belief in God and the demons' belief in God? Drumrolls please🥁🥁🥁.... It is your works! Don't get me wrong, I'm not dismissing faith but faith without works is essentially useless. All our forefathers in faith ( Abraham, Rahab etc.) accompanied their faith with actions and it was accounted to them as righteousness(James 2:14-25). Faith and works should work hand in hand. We are free from justifying ourselves by our own works since we have Jesus (Galatians 2:16), However, we have a responsibility to exercise our faith by accompanying it with deeds and that is how we have a living and active faith.

Through faith, we become fruitful and bear good fruit. Stay with me now, because we will have to start from the beginning. Well you see, we become born again by grace through faith in Jesus Christ ( Ephesians 2: 8-10, Romans 10:8-13).Once we do, we become a new creation and die to our self as we live for Christ Jesus ( 2 Corinthians 5:17). We then abide in God through faith (1 John 4:15). We also abide in Jesus Christ who is the vine and we are the branches therefore, we produce good fruit (John 15:15). In addition to that, we as children of God, are called to be fruitful in every good work (Colossians 1:10).  This means that every time we are fruitful with all good fruits, we are exercising our faith. The quality of our fruit directly reflects the quality of our faith. Dead faith equals no fruit and active/living faith equals fruitfulness. Why is this important? Well anyone who doesn't produce good fruit is in danger of judgement and missing the mark (John 15:2, Matthew 3:10, Luke 3:9, Matthew7:17-20). However, good works and fruits will bring glory to God, our Father in heaven (Matthew 5:16)

We can build our faith by reading the Word of God (Romans 10:17) and by praying in the Holy Spirit ( Jude 1:20).  We should seek God and contend for the faith so that we won't lose our faith in the face of trouble and obstacles but instead view these obstacles as tests to grow our faith  and in turn we will move from faith to faith and the righteousness of God will be revealed unto us (Romans 1:17)

5. Conclusion

In conclusion, we should not only be readers/ hearers of God's Word but also doers of His Word (James 1:22-25). That way, we will increase in our knowledge and understanding of God, grow spiritually, build our relationship with God and show our love for Him (John 14:21). Then we can abide and dwell in the presence of God eternally. just so you know the eternal life promised to us when we accept Jesus Christ doesn't begin once we physically die; it rather begins the moment we accept Jesus Christ for He is life. However, we should strive to love and honor God in all that we do so that we can truly be identified or identify as His children.  By His Word, we have deconstructed the lie that faith in God alone is enough to spend eternity in Him. Remember some of the people who will miss out on spending eternity with God will work miracles in His name and will even believe in Him. However He will not know them (Matthew 7:21-23) so  no faith in God  and Jesus Christ is only part of the requirements that are required of us. We should accompany that faith with works as we actively engage that faith. That way, we can build a beautiful and thriving relationship with Jesus Christ. I hope this has blessed your heart and that you will live for Christ not only through your confession and words but also through your actions and heart. with every fiber of your being. God bless you🌝