Bible Lesson 180

Faith equals peace’.John 14:27

Jesus said'”Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither be afraid.”

“FAITH IS THE GOD-ENDOWED ABILITY GIVEN TO EVERY CHILD OF GOD TO CONVERT DIVINE TRUTH INTO PRESENT REALITY”.
Manley Beasley.

In this lesson we will attempt to bring Faith into focus for all of us including this writer. Faith is a subject that deals with our relationship to God and we normally tend to glide past the things of faith because it is something that we cannot take to the bank and use it like we like to use our money. If that is how you view faith in your religion, then perhaps you need to pay close attention as we take the subject of faith, and put into proper perspective. What will connect us to God’ Where does it come from’ How can we be sure that we have true faith, and a multitude of other questions about faith, if we view it as simply a word, we should ask of ourselves.

First let’s make it clear that God takes charge of every real salvation; and He is the power that makes it possible for us, by His Grace through His faith, to be brought into the presence of Almighty God! God has always been Gracious, and because God is gracious, a few people who walk that difficult path of faith to enter that strait gate and walk that narrow way that leads to eternal life, Matthew 7:13-14. We began this lesson by connecting faith to peace, and truly if you have saving faith you have peace because you know the Lord and you know that He is faithful to those who truly believe enough to obey. Jesus made that clear for us when He spoke to the disciples after they became afraid of the storm on the sea of Galilee, and they woke Him from sleep, and Jesus Christ said to them “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith'” Matthew 8:26.

Certainly the disciples believe in Jesus Christ, but their knowledge was very simple. There was something about Jesus Christ that made them believe that He was capable of ruling Israel, and driving out the Roman invaders. They had further to walk and much to learn from their teacher. What they had to learn was that He was God (In the flesh), God with them and that His power was unlimited. We need to learn that same thing; because the world is full of ‘nervous nellies’, who profess to have faith but their fear in all situations proves them liars. Christians may begin with weak faith or little faith, but they are always driven by the Holy Spirit to move past that and become strong, sound Christians who trust God enough that they obey His Son, Jesus Christ.

Naturally, anything that God does in this world, Satan comes up with something that will attempt to counter it. Christ comes into our lives with Faith for living the Christian life; but now there are all kinds of faith that people can choose from. We have those who profess to know and believe and love Christ; however, their faith is in some kind of ‘me and Jesus’ belief. By that I mean that Jesus may have power to move mountains but He can’t use it unless I ‘let’ or ‘allow’ Him to work.

That is about as silly a notion as I have ever heard. Here we are puny creatures of God, unable to do anything but sin and yet we believe that we can stop or hold back the power that merely spoke and all that we know came into being. Remember Christ acted as the Father’s agent in Creation, John 1:1-5. If any person ever born into this world by the flesh, is ever truly saved, it will not be because they sought God and His plan to redeem those who would obey Him. I know that it is almost universally believed in our society, that Jesus loves every one and Jesus died for everyone; but you cannot make the Bible say that, in fact the Bible says the opposite. (John 14:15, 21-24; John 15:1-14; Hebrews 5:8-9; John 3:16-21;).

Many or at least most church members today believe that man is in charge rather than God, and that they can choose anytime they want and God will save them. They believe that because they want to and because they have heard it preached for so long. Christ told His disciples, that they did not choose Him, but that He choose them, John 15:16.
Faith is powerful because it is provided by God Himself, Ephesians 2:8-9. I can almost hear people yelling at me and saying ” Well brobob, Jesus spoke to the people and said “come unto me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” Matthew 11:28. That is true but scripture also clears up that verse in John 6:44: Where we read that Jesus preached “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day”. See Philippians 1:29; and 2:12-13. That means that we do nothing at all to be saved, God works in us and on us to save us and it is His power that keeps us.

Faith is Precious because without true saving faith, no man will ever gain entrance into the Kingdom of God. Faith must be focused and it’s focus must be Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself says to us in John chapter Three, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life”, John 3:16. That verse of scripture has been lifted and quoted in error so often that it requires some explanation. That does not say that everyone who nods their head or says that they believe are automatically saved. What it does is lead us into the following five verses, that are so often omitted.

What do you think is meant by the world ‘God so loved the world, that He gave His son” First let’s consider what is meant by the word loved! Did God love all men at that time’ Absolutely not! See Ephesians 2:1-3 which makes it plain that all of us born after the fall in the Garden, were born as God’s enemies. God loved us in eternity past when His plan was made to redeem those who would obey. None of us are born into this world obeying God, rather we are born with our backs to God and unless God had made the provision to change us and save us, nobody would be saved. Verse 4 of Ephesians chapter Two tells us why God would save anybody rather than sending us all to hell. The reason is that He is rich in Mercy, and He loves those whom He loved in eternity past. Ephesians 1:3-6; Ephesians 2:4. What is it that makes the difference between God’s Love and God’s Wrath’ It is God’s Faith! Faith is not something that any person on this earth can work up, develop, or exercise, just as the Bible teaches us, we are saved by Grace through faith, Ephesians 2:8-9.

I am well aware of the Armenian belief that God would not be fair, if He elected some, and passed by some, before He created the world or anyone to inhabit the world, but If we serve God we know that He has that power. I don’t say that to judge the Armenians but to make it plain that we are all born with a will and in a sense it is a free will, but what we tend to forget, is that that will was a corrupted will because of the fall of mankind (in Adam), in the Garden of Eden. Our will is our problem, we can choose to do a lot of things but whatever we chose as a fallen person, will be nothing but sin. In Salvation, God who saves those that He wills to save (John 1:12-13), changes our will (Our want to), from a will that can do nothing other than choose to sin, into a will that will nothing but obey God (Philippians 2:13). Let’s take a minute to go back a little bit and really understand how true Salvation works. First we have to understand the basics and the bottom line is that we are not God, He is God and we must first and foremost come to the understanding of that fact before we can even understand that there is a God. We are not popular with God (and that includes the elect), Ephesians 2:1-3. In Chapter Two of Ephesians we find God inspiring the writer of Ephesians to write to people who, in Chapter 1:1 of Ephesians, He had called Saints, and He reminds them in Chapter Two of Ephesians that originally they were dead in trespass and sin, under the Wrath of God. We were judged and found guilty in Adam in the Garden. What God does in salvation is to wake us up spiritually, and make us aware of our depraved condition, and He calls us to the Cross of His Son Jesus Christ. We are made able to respond in that God given Faith, (Ephesians 2:8-9). Notice that salvation is all of God; because God inspired the writer to write in Ephesians 2:8-9; that we are saved by Grace through Faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

We need to stop attempting to prove that God, is not fair, or that He played favorites in our election. It is apparent that God did not elect on the basis of what we would do, or how we would act, or how smart we were, or how good-looking we were: God chose because He chose to choose. He is God and if you have a problem with that you will have to take it up with God. I’m sure that most of you have heard that old saying that goes, ‘The proof of the pie is in the pudding’ and that applies to salvation. Those who are truly saved, those whom God has granted the gift of faith, will be eternally changed. We will have a new nature that has been cleansed by God and the old things that we loved (sin) have passed away and behold all things are become new (godly). Titus 2:11-14 tells us “For the Grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lust, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age. Looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.” now there is a measuring rod that you can judge whether your faith is just faith in yourself or faith that is saving faith that God gave you in Salvation. There is an old saying that we should begin to use in our lives, and it goes like this’. “If it walks like a duck, and looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it is probably a duck. So if you walk like Christ and look to the world like Christ and speak like Christ, chances are you are a Christian; but if not you need to go back to the cross and make it right. That leads us to a problem within the visible church. That is that the church has lost it’s first love and has gone after the world’ way of doing business. The visible churches of our day desire, numbers (Nickels and Noses), more than they desire the presence of God. We have sought like a preacher told me one time after I had preached that the church needs to be careful in extending membership to any and all, without regard for the condition of the lives they live. This old pastor came to me after the service and said’ “Brother Bob, we don’t care about their condition when we receive them into the church and enter them on the rolls, we will straighten them out after they join.” I told him, that I had observed some of those that they had straitened out and as long as I preached there, we would do it God’s way. The church of our day is generally worldly looking and acting. We prove that we don’t trust God because the Bible tells us that we should support the church with the tithe, but we run ahead and have bake sales, car washes, garage sales, and other worldly things. God can and will support His Word. Now, I’m not against bakes sales, car washes, and things like that but let’s don’t get the church involved in them.

We have to understand that there is only one kind of saving faith and that is that faith that is given us by our Gracious God when He begins the act of salvation in us. Some of us have some kind of faith but it is a faith that does not reach the blood of Christ. Faith in our faith is not saving faith, instead our faith must be in Jesus Christ and we must understand that our faith must be focused in and on the person and work of Jesus Christ. Saving faith will always believe in Jesus Christ, and that means believing in everything that the Bible has to say about Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the Word of God in the flesh and He is God and has always been with God. Christ was sent from heaven by the Father to redeem a people by dying in their place on the cross, and in doing so taking the punishment of their sin in order to placate the wrath of God, against their sin. Christ came through the womb of a Jewish virgin, who had never known a man. He was God with us and as He made that long journey from the manger to the cross, He called on people to repent of sin and turn to God. He did many miracles as He walked the earth but His face was set like flint to go to Jerusalem to die on the cross. He was nailed to the cross in humiliation and died, was buried in a borrowed tomb, and on the third day He arose! 40 days later He ascended back into heaven from whence He had come. He now sits on the right hand of the Father making intercessions for us. That is not nearly all but it is important that we know who it is that we place our faith in. Further than the fact that He rose from the dead, was recognized by many as Jesus, and ascended back into heaven where He sit on the right hand of the Father. We have the promise that He is coming again to take His people to spend eternity with Him. Faith is the engine that brings justification, sanctification and glorification, Romans 8: 30. Our hearts are purified by faith, Acts 15:9. Those who have saving faith live by that faith, Romans 1:17. We walk by faith, not by sight, 2nd Corinthians 5:7. Saving Faith brings with it a duty to fight the good fight of obedience, 1st Timothy 6:12. God give us good examples of faith, Hebrews 11.

There is no such thing as faith which does not trust God and His Son Jesus Christ. We are saved by Grace through Faith and it is a gift from God, so it is not sought after, nor special ordered, it is a gift like every other good thing from God. We still have people who advertise the fact that they decided when they would be saved, which means that they decided where and when and what would be results of being ‘born again’. Think about that for a moment, were you able to decide when you were born to the flesh, did you set the date and time, how you would look and all that goes with birth, or was that a result of what your parents decided’ Before we close this lesson, we need to think for a moment about two words that occur in the Bible; but many do not understand how they function. Faith is one of the words and works is the other. We are not saved by works or anything other than Faith in Christ; however, Christ always saves us to do good works. Faith causes good works which God had before predestined that we would do. Ephesians 2:10; James 2:14-20. In closing, let me say, that anything we do without Saving Faith is sin. All that a sinner does is sin. If a sinner goes to church and give his offering, it is a sin, if we pray and sing and do things that the saved people do, it is just plain old sin. We are sinners until we receive the gracious gift of God , which is faith

Until next time,

may God bless and keep you

This is Bro. Bob