How does one go about living their faith? Or, to re-work the question, allowing their faith to live through them?
Whether you’ve recently come to a saving knowledge of Jesus and are looking for a way to deepen the relationship or whether you’ve been walking with Him for quite some time now, it is good to ask questions and assess the relationship from time to time. These are good questions for any relationship; they are great questions for your relationship with Christ.
How are we doing? Is our relationship getting better and closer? Are there areas I need to focus on so that it can be better? Are there things I’m doing that are causing issues?
Today’s verse will help us frame our questions.
IT IS THROUGH FAITH THAT A RIGHTEOUS PERSON HAS LIFE
The point may be self-evident, but the walk of faith must begin by faith.
In our relationship with anyone, there are things that we know, and then things that we choose to believe. This combination of knowledge and belief form the foundation for the relationship. When built upon the truth, the foundation is strong and reliable.
True story. A flight attendant for a large airline fabricated an entire patchwork of lies to make people think that he was actually a first officer. He had purchased all of the relevant uniforms and gear. He made sure that he never accepted a flight from his home airport, so as not to be seen in the cabin instead of the cockpit by anyone he may know. A lovely young woman met him and fell in love with her “pilot” friend. It was only after they had married and had a daughter that the truth of the matter came to light. The household had been built upon a foundation of lies.
The combination of his deliberate deception and his refusal to accept personal responsibility caused the foundation of the relationship to crumble and collapse. The woman was crushed. In our relationship with anyone, there are things that we know and then things that we choose to believe; but she had been deceived in both areas. Even what she THOUGHT she knew was a lie.
Thankfully, our relationship with Jesus is built on a foundation that will neither crumble nor collapse. He makes us to be members of God’s household. It is a house built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. This household has a solid foundation that cannot be shaken, because in Him the whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord.
In our relationship with anyone, there are things that we know and then things that we choose to believe. Some things about Jesus can be known, but others must be accepted and believed. This is where FAITH begins to impact our lives, and bring us to deeper and stronger levels of love for Christ.
IT IS THROUGH FAITH THAT A RIGHTEOUS PERSON HAS LIFE
And so it is FAITH that initiates the life of Christ within us. When we choose to believe what the scriptures say about Jesus, and to invite Him to hold the place of lordship in our lives. He creates a new life within us, and the relationship begins.
It is also through FAITH that the life He places within us grows and becomes stronger. Like newborn babes, one begins with milk and proceeds to solid food with deliberate development over time.
My granddaughter is visiting us for Christmas. She is only about six months old, so all of her care and feeding are handled by others. While we feasted on ham yesterday, she had milk and baby food. She’ll eventually get to the place where she can eat the same food we enjoy, but it’s going to take some time. The goal of course is that she’ll come to the place where she can feed herself. Beyond that her parents hope and expect that she’ll eventually get to the point where she has learned to prepare food well and be able to feed others.
GROWING in faith follows the same process. The bible even instructs new believers in Christ that, like newborn babies, they should crave the pure spiritual milk found in God’s word, so that by it they may grow up in their salvation. There’s a phrase that bears some consideration — growing up in salvation.
IT IS THROUGH FAITH THAT A RIGHTEOUS PERSON HAS LIFE
We all need to keep growing up in our salvation. One of my favorite ways of putting this is my life’s verse from Philippians 3. I always encourage people to press on and take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of them. This “pressing on” so that we are able to grasp firmly those things that are still beyond our reach is the stuff of which a life of faith is made.
Every relationship in life requires attention; the ones you value most require it more than others. We give ourselves to the relationships we find most precious and meaningful.
IT IS THROUGH FAITH THAT A RIGHTEOUS PERSON HAS LIFE
