FAITH

(Belief and trust in and loyalty to God)


Faith is the beginning of our relationship with God.
When we hear His still small voice calling us to Himself.
When we understand that He exists and loves us,
And has a plan and purpose for our lives;
When we understand that we are lost and without hope, without Him;
When we understand that Christ Jesus suffered and died for us;
To give us His LIFE;
That He alone is LIFE,
And we make the decision to put our belief and trust in Him.


The righteous will live by faith. (Galatians 3:11)


Enoch was an early person in the Scriptures that demonstrated faith in God.
In fact he got so close to God that God took him away.


Enoch walked with God then he was no more, because God took him away.
(Genesis 5:24)


God taking Enoch away is precursor to God delivering Noah
Out of his evil generation in the Ark (Genesis 7) because of his faith;
God delivering Israel out of Egypt (Exodus) because of the faith of Moses;
And God taking the woman away to safety in the Book of Revelation
(Revelation 12)
Because she is the Bride of Christ.
These people all had faith and their faith produced an outcome:
God acted on their behalf.
God always acts on our behalf, on the basis of our faith.


Now faith is being sure of what we hope for
And certain of what we do not see.
This is what the ancients were commended for.

By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command,
So that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
(Hebrews 11:1-3)


The writer of the Book of Hebrews continues on to recount the faith
Of many of those in the Old Testament.


Consider Abraham: He believed God,
And it was credited to him as righteousness.
Understand, then, that those who believe are children of Abraham.
(Galatians 3:6-7)


The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith
And announced the gospel (good news) in advance to Abraham.
(Galatians 3:8)


God promised Abraham that:
'All the nations will be blessed through you.' (Galatians 3:8)


The apostle Paul goes on to explain that the “Law,” the Ten Commandments,
Could not save anyone because no one is capable of keeping the “Law.”


He even says that because no one can keep the whole “Law,”
Those who try are under a curse, because it is impossible;
They are rejecting faith and trying to please God in their own strength.


Paul then says: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’
Because the law is not based on faith, it cannot save anyone,
For this reason, God sent His only Son.


'Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law
By becoming a curse for us,
For it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.’
He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham
Might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus,
So that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.'
(Galatians 3:13-14)


Here we see that we are redeemed from the curse of the law
By receiving by faith the atoning work of Christ Jesus
And His shed blood;
By receiving the promise of the Holy Spirit.
The promise given to Abraham,
That all the nations would be blessed through him,
Was that the Holy Spirit would come to indwell the people of God by faith.
It is Christ in us, our hope of glory.


The whole purpose of faith
Is that we can be redeemed;
So that we can receive God’s supernatural provision,
His Holy Spirit.


The law was given by God to demonstrate to everyone
That they could not keep it
And therefore demonstrate their need for a redeemer;
A redeemer who could give them right standing before a Holy God.


The writer of the Hebrews says:
…'By one sacrifice he (Christ Jesus) has made perfect forever
Those who are being made holy.

The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this.
First he says:
‘This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord.
I will put my laws in their hearts,
And I will write them on their minds.’


Then he adds;
‘Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.'


And where these have been forgiven,
There is no longer any sacrifice for sin.' (Hebrews 14-18)


We can see that The New Covenant is
When the Holy Spirit comes to live within us,
And He supernaturally puts His laws in our hearts
And writes them on our minds.
Christ Jesus becomes our teacher.
He takes “knowing God” out of the hands of man
And puts it in His own hands.
Jesus said you have one teacher, the Christ.


When we by faith receive Christ Jesus and His indwelling Holy Spirit,
Allowing Him to put His laws in our heart
And write them upon our mind;
Our sins are forgiven and His sacrifice is effective for us.


Our part in this marvelous provision is simply to have faith,
Which activates God’s supernatural response,
The impartation of His Holy Spirit and the forgiveness of sin.


The blood of Jesus cleanses all of my sin
The blood of Jesus makes me clean deep within
He can make the blackest life white as snow
He can turn your darkness into light, I know
Hallelujah to the Lamb of God
Hallelujah to the ONE who gave all
He gave His life for me
Upon a tree
So that I could be set free