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Abraham Believed
To believe and obey God is to love and trust Him. A verbal faith must be combined with an active trusting faith for it to be valid. The apostle asks “What good is it, my brethren, if a man professes to have faith, and yet his actions do not correspond? Can such faith save him?” (James 2:14 WEY). (17) “So also faith, if it is unaccompanied by obedience, has no life in it--so long as it stands alone [not accompanied by action].” The faithful believers of Hebrews 11 placed a trusting faith in God because they knew that (6) “without faith it is impossible to please God.” A trusting faith in the atonement work of Christ (that is pleasing to God) is our concern. Since eternity is forever and "It is hard for the righteous to be saved” (1 Peter 4:18) we must allow God to prepare our heart (by trusting Him to do the work). Everyone is born in sin and deserves the lake of fire, but if we will continue to believe God and trust in the atonement work of Christ, we will receive the glorious kingdom instead. A true Christian is a genuine believer who loves God with all their heart, has faith in Jesus Christ, and puts the Word into practice. We are born again (John 3:3) when we accept Christ as our Messiah, Redeemer and King. This brings about a huge attitude change of our heart—(from rebellion to obedience). This statement of belief is to be followed by a life of acting faith in Christ. Jesus told Nicodemus twice (John 3:3) "no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." The new person is born who desires to believe God and put a trusting faith in His Son. “Although he died on the cross in weakness, he now lives by the mighty power of God” (2 Corinthians 13:4 NLT). If we do not believe that Jesus has the power to change our hearts, forgive our sins, heal our bodies and provide every other need, then we would eventually die in sin (because we are all sinful by not believing). (John 8:24) “I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am [the one I claim to be].” Believing that Jesus is God in nature who is able to do anything for us (when the prayer of faith is offered in His Name) is of first importance. When God told Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac (to prove that God had first place in his heart), Abraham obeyed without question. God may not be asking us to sacrifice a loved one, but He is asking us to extend forgiveness to everyone who hurt us (to also prove that He has first place in our heart). To accept forgiveness from Jesus includes extending it to others. “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. If you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:14-15). An active faith (because we trust a living God) is evidence we love Him with all our heart. (James 2:18-21) “Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that--and shudder.” Just knowing there is a God is not the same as believing He is God Almighty. “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1 John 4:8). It takes love to forgive. Abraham believed God, obeyed Him, and was declared righteous. (James 2:21) “Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.” Obeying God’s Word completed Abraham’s faith. The true gospel (which is a trusting faith in the atonement work of Christ) is explained in the Bible in hundreds of languages for the world to read (believe, accept, and live), but Satan constantly hides the truth and tries to delete God’s Word from memory. “When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart” (Matthew 13:19). Jesus warned that many would seem to believe and have faith (even saying His name and having a religious appearance), but He will have to tell them (Matthew 7:23) “`I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'” (if there is no true repentance, turning from sin, and following in faith). Loving God with all our heart is Commandment #1. God loved us first and sent His Son to prove it.
Salvation depends on the sincerity of our love toward God.
Jesus was asked a question about salvation (Luke 13:23-24) "’Lord,
are only a few people going to be saved?’ He said to them, ‘Make every
effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will
try to enter and will not be able to.’” The Bible warns of falling away from trusting God. (2 Peter 1:10-11), “Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things [trust God, have faith in Christ, obey the Word and persevere to the end], you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” As the Author and Perfecter of faith (Hebrews 12:2), Jesus “is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault” (Jude 1:24). A willing and obedient heart toward the Word of God must remain in us. Jesus said that the Word is not in us if we do not believe in Him. To the religious leaders He said (John 5:39) “You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life.” True believers possess eternal life because they “hear God’s word and put it into practice” (Luke 8:21). It all depends on the sincerity of our heart in trusting God in faith. Jesus said "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me” (John 14:23). This change from a rebellious heart to an obedient heart must take place here on earth and now in this life (because it cannot be accomplished anywhere else). We have one life to live and one time to die—then the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). We all deserve the lake of fire until some One intervenes. We must make a conscious decision to accept Jesus as our Savior and trust God to change our heart. If we do not stay connected to Christ (by an active faith in Him) we would die spiritually and wither continually. This present world is a rebellious age, so the apostle was inspired to say, “Do not follow the customs of the present age, but be transformed by the entire renewal of your minds, so that you may learn by experience what God’s will is--that will which is good and beautiful and perfect,” (Romans 12:2 WEY) The moment we are committed to do the will of God, everything (and everyone) we come in contact with will begin to transform our heart to one of obedient faith. Every insult, request for our money, demands on our time, injustice, and difficult situation will work together for good (if we do not hinder the spiritual work God is doing—transforming a rebellious heart to an obedient one). Satan is the enemy of our faith, but God wants us to maintain an obedient faith in His Son. The devil often suggests that we trust in some thing else. The Three Hebrews faced that temptation but they believed God and trusted Him at the risk of their lives. These men felt the same fear and were tempted by the same devil, but their decision to trust God gave the victory. That trusting faith in God enabled them to walk away without injury. God created fire so He is able to control it. The bush in the desert was on fire but not consumed. The obedient faith of the Hebrews is just a pure expression of faith (from trusting and obedient hearts). Abraham sacrificed his son by faith and Joseph believed God’s promises by faith. Anyone can have that same faith today, because we can trust the same God. It is by faith that we trust God and reject Social Security, pensions, unemployment compensation, houses, real estate and other laid-up financial resources. We have faith in the atonement work of Christ for good health and divine healing, so all health insurance, medical prescriptions, and drugs are refused and rejected. We trust God to heal and provide. We believe God and put a trusting faith in Him for protection from accidents, injury, or loss. By faith we trust God for employment and the ability to do our work well (regardless of the wages paid or the workers beside us). We work diligently and faithfully because we are working for the Lord. Every believer has entered a race to reach a goal. (James 2:21-23), “Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’” Abraham believed and obeyed, so he “was called God's friend.” †††
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Century Gospel Church © 2010 |
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