Sabbath: The Perfecting of Our Faith
Read for This Week’s Study: James 1:2-3; 1 Pet. 1:6-7; Phil. 3:12-15; James 1:19-21; Luke 17:5-6; Luke 12:16-21.
Memory Text: Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God
(Hebrews 12:2, NIV 1984).
A dentist explained why his crowns are always flawless. Unlike some dentists,
he said, I never have a problem with the crowns that come back from the lab. If I send them perfect work, they send me perfect crowns.
This dentist doesn’t worry about the end result. He focuses on his role in the initial stage of the process.
Likewise, as Christians, we need not get all worked up over whether or not our characters will be good enough in the end. That is God’s work. Our role is to fight the good fight of faith
(1 Tim. 6:12) by keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.
Such faith in Christ enables Him to work in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure
(Phil. 2:13) and to finish the good work He has begun (Phil. 1:6). Without faith, it is possible to feel defeated even before we begin because we focus on ourselves rather than on Him.
As Jesus says,
(John 6:29, NKJV). James, as we will see, helps us to understand this important spiritual truth.This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent
*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, October 11.
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I heard someone on 3ABN this morning say FAITH stands for
Fantastic
Adventure
In
Trusting
Him
Sounds good to me!
FAITH is what's required to make the TRUTH come alive through our actions.
We must remember that it is not the faith that we conjure up within ourselves. It is the Faith of Jesus in us that is the power of God to produce His character in us unto good works.
The Faith of Jesus is by invitation only. We have already been invited. It is now up to us to accept the invitation and open our hearts to the Spirit of God that He may enter our hearts as the very motivation of life and thought and feelings that we may be made like God in our character just like Adam was before the fall and just like Jesus was on Earth as the "Son of Man" and the Son of God.
The Faith of Jesus is a result of the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, the fruit of which is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, FAITH, meekness, temperance, righteousness, mercy, grace, and all the attributes of God. Notice FAITH is included in the Galatians list. This faith is the Faith of Jesus because it is His Spirit that brings it and motivates it in our character.
This is not the type of faith I make on my own. It is the kind of faith that comes into me by the choice to allow the Holy Spirit take the driver's seat so to speak in my soul. As we invite this Spirit to take control in every compartment of our life (every issue of life) this FAITH of Jesus fills more and more of our life until our life is at some time filled totally with His Spirit and His Faith.
Without this continual Faith of Jesus, it is impossible to please Him with our own contrived faith.
Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, [a]the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses]. Hebrews 11:1
Just how does faith make the TRUTH come alive through our actions?
1. Testing of our faith. James 1:1-2.
2. Trials bring out the genuineness of our faith, giving us praise, honor, and glory to Jesus Christ. 1Peter 1:6-7
3. Perfecting faith helps us to refrain from looking back, rather to pressing forward to the things which are ahead, mainly the praise of the upward call of God in Jesus Christ. Philippians 3:12-15.
4. Faith in God allows us to be slow to anger and shun the wickedness of the world. James 1:19-21.
5. We can ask God to increase our faith. Luke 17:5 Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you. Matthew 7:7.
6. Faith in action is laying up our treasure in heaven rather than build bigger barns to store our treasure here on earth. Luke 12:15-21.
I am running a race with Christ, who has already ran the race and obtain victory. It is encouraging to know that my victory is not dependent on my efforts, it's Christ who give me victory. This is a unique race. Let us consistently seek him.
The word "faith" is better understood (by me) as "trust." The term "faith" has been used so many different ways so that the meaning and experience has diminished in our modern culture. It has become a word, among unbelievers, that insinuates blind, mindless, belief in something. But, trust, means you have developed an experience with God that now has the important element of trusting all that He does or says. This trust does not come blindly. It comes because you know Him in a personal way and through His inspired word. It is based on substance and evidence, not tradition or anyone else's experience.