Sep 15, 2023 Firm in Faith – Words of Grace – September 15, 2023
Living by faith is dynamic, marked by continuous internal activity of the heart. At all times we are taking in information, experiencing events, and making decisions that call for faith and that reflect the presence or absence of it in our lives.
We “come to faith” in Christ and are saved. By faith, we are “in Christ” and are kept so by him. So, there is a settled state of faith for the Christian. But living in this world by faith in Christ is not a static experience. Every day and in everything we are called again to be firm in faith because our faith ebbs and flows and is strengthened or weakened with each new trial and testing.
Some days the call to faith is in the routines of life. We trust and obey as we did the day before. We take up responsibilities, love and serve others, and end the day with gratitude.
Other days we are in a crisis of faith. The situation in which we find ourselves is fear-producing. Doubt sets in. We’re looking for answers, solutions, and directions that aren’t coming quickly. Prayer doesn’t seem to help. At these times the workings of the heart are in flux as one minute we trust, another minute we panic.
Every day, whether it’s a day of routine or severe testing, we are called to be firm in faith.
To be firm in faith involves many things. There is prayer, reading the promises of God in the Bible and thinking true thoughts, and repenting of self-trust and resolving to obey the Lord.
In all these faith-strengthening activities, there is an internal, heart-level turning to God. This is the dynamic of faith. We must turn to the Lord, and then turn to him again. Every prayer, opening of the Bible, decision not to trust in the prideful wisdom of man, and step of obedience in relation to others is an act of turning to the Lord.
There is no static living by faith. We are at every moment turning toward the Lord and his ways, or away from him to something else. The way to be firm in faith is to actively turn to him.
This Sunday at Grace Community Church the sermon will be from Isaiah 7. King Ahaz faced a crisis of faith. The word of the Lord to him was, “If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.” This call to faith is repeated throughout the Bible. We will hear it again as we gather to worship the Lord together. Pray with me this weekend for the Lord to revive our hearts in faith.
-Scott