I hate to out myself in front of a crowd, but it is, … what it is, … and it would appear that God in addition to wanting my obedience to Him, God also wants my faith and trust in Him. That when God speaks repeatedly to us about in scripture… God providing for us. Well, I need to trust in Him, and belief that He really means it!
Well, I do want to please God, but living by Faith? Doesn’t God help those who help themselves? What about personal responsibility, and being accountable for the financial, health, and security of my loved ones? What about helping God so that He won’t have to help me? I know from experience, that if I don’t take charge of my destiny, the situation will take control of me. So, what is: “Living by Faith” and how does that please God?
Today, I would like to address faith and some of the concerns and thoughts that I think a lot of us struggle with in this Faithwalk of ours.
Perhaps it will help us if we look at a prime example of what living by Faith is not. The Lord has given us the history of our adopted family in the Old Testament. As a people of God, we have struggled from the beginning with trusting in and actually living a real relationship in and with our God. Faith is not living religion by going through the motions. How often you go to church, how much you give, or what you do around the church, just to say to God; “I did that!” In fact, faith is not based on you, but on God living inside of you, His Spirit living in the people in your life, guiding His Church, for His purposes.
To get a better perspective of how God feels when we are just doing stuff to look good, instead of exploring how good, how great our God is… please let me read to you from the annals of the children of God. Our family history with its ups and downs and lesson after lesson learned.
First, I would like to read God’s case against His struggling children named Israel (which means to struggle with God). Reading from Psalm 50:7-15;
7 “Listen, my people, and I will speak;
I will testify against you, Israel:
I am God, your God.
8 I bring no charges against you concerning your sacrifices
or concerning your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.
9 I have no need of a bull from your stall
or of goats from your pens,
10 for every animal of the forest is mine,
and the cattle on a thousand hills…
*Interrupting the Psalmist just to say; When our Father, the creator of everything has a case to make against us, we need to listen. So far God is not arguing about the sacrifices to Him that Israel is called upon. So, what’s wrong? Could it be that Israel is serving two masters at once? Continuing now at verse 17:
…17 You hate my instruction
and cast my words behind you.
18 When you see a thief, you join with him;
you throw in your lot with adulterers.
19 You use your mouth for evil
and harness your tongue to deceit.
20 You sit and testify against your brother
and slander your own mother’s son.
21 When you did these things and I kept silent,
you thought I was exactly like you.
But I now arraign you
and set my accusations before you.
Is God angered at Israel, because like you and me at times, we profess to love God and all that He stands for, but we people can flip on a dime in a second? This is not an isolated case against Israel, and I know it’s not a one off in my own transgressions. And I guess that I am not alone in being guilty of talking faith, but failing when: no one is looking, if I am provoked, or just putting my selfish me before God and other people.
God has more to say on His anger with His children living a sham faith, while going through the motions. Please let me share with you a prophet quoted by our Lord more than any other in the Gospels. Reading from Isaiah 1:13-18;
13 Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—
I cannot bear your worthless assemblies.
14 Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals
I hate with all my being.
They have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.
15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,
I hide my eyes from you;
even when you offer many prayers,
I am not listening.
*Cutting in to say; Perhaps God was looking for something deeper than the usual routine accompanied with form and style. Maybe God is really getting at what He teaches us through His prophet Hosea. Reading, Hosea 6:6;
6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.
Then and now, sacrifice, temperance, and worship are all good and essential, but they must be more than just form and style, rote routine actions that are a mere show like bling and tinsel. No, our lives must reflect an outpouring of a heart that has invited our Lord to set up house within. Reflecting a new you and me. Continuing now with God’s teaching through Isaiah;
Your hands are full of blood!
16 Wash and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds out of my sight;
stop doing wrong.
17 Learn to do right; seek justice.
Defend the oppressed.
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
plead the case of the widow.
18 “Come now, let us settle the matter,”
says the Lord.
**Interrupting Isaiah to say that; in the Revised Standard translation, God says: “Come now, Let us Reason together”. Giving you an idea of just how intimate a relationship can get with God or anyone else when we learn to have faith in someone, something other than ourselves. Our Lord! Finishing verse 18;
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.
God never gives up on you and me, even though at times we are a piece of work… to say the least. Trusting that God loves me in spite of me being me, is going to take some Faith. This brings us back to the Call to Worship that Tim read for us this morning. Reading again from Hebrews 11:1-3, 6;
1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 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…
6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Faith is what was missing so many times when Israel brought their sacrifices to God to cover their sin of the moment. What was lacking was Israel… The sacrifices required on Israel’s part, was an opening of the door for a deeper intimate relationship with God based on Faith. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, …
It’s like the rich man with the abundant harvest who had choices to make just like you and me. With his new found blessing of abundance, he could choose to serve his himself with his wealth (the harvest), like an insurance account for good times. That way if God wasn’t as bountiful with the crop blessings for the next couple of years, he would still be ok. Or,… he could help others.
Who knew his life would be taken that very night? Well, God did, and looking to our Lord always a wise proposition. Perhaps if we begin to live each day as if it were our last, we will begin to employ all those tools that has been made available to us from the very beginning at Pentecost. Those gifts of the Spirit we spoke on last week, are just as important this week. They are available for the asking in the service of God!.
Faith is another gift of the Lord’s Holy Spirit. It helps us grow beyond the narrow precepts of how the world processes supply and demand. Faith tells me that I should not hoard my wealth, gifts, knowledge, and understanding of God to myself or for those who think like me. And as I begin to share those gifts that God is providing, I am beginning to show God, other people, and myself that I know how to use those things God gives us, and somehow, He provides more and more for us to share.
All of a sudden, somehow, little by little our Faith that God can sustain us begins to grow with little victories of service in Him. Now, instead of focusing on building up and acquiring more stuff for me, I am moved to celebrate the growth of God’s Kingdom. Old instructions begin to take on new meaning due to our new found Faith in Him, and the Lord’s instruction in the Gospel of Mark begins to hit home in a personal way. Reading from Mark 8:35-37;
35 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. 36 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? 37 Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?
Too bad the rich guy in our message reading, with the great harvest, didn’t have the insight to seek God’s Spirit, to begin to understand that wealth, fame, and popularity are a fleeting glimpse of bling. Additionally, a person can overprepare for their journey through life, and end up with less than nothing!
I can almost hear a few of you thinking, yea but… Not because I have any great gifts in reading minds, just ask my much better half… No, it’s because I have been there myself, with the following argument(s):
- Living by faith is a hard undertaking, because there are a lot of bad things that can happen in our sick society.
- It is unreasonable to think that anyone can just let go and live by Faith.
- My financial, our family’s wealth, and the hazardous position of being an honest person in this sinful world requires secrecy and a firm eye to avoid being taken advantage of. I don’t want to be manipulated!
All real concerns for some people, andI’m sure most of you could build on these ideas, and should. Question everything, and use God’s Word as your compass.
Here are some random thoughts, feel free to come up with some of your own.
First, living by Faith is so much deeper than your finances or giving control over your own life to other people. I don’t think God cares about your wallet. … God wants your heart. What’s inside, the real you that makes you; … an incredible one of a kind, that makes you essential to this Church! We need every one of you, and I want to spend eternity overcoming adversity, and glorifying God with each of you!
Once we begin to recognize those worries of the world for what they are, distractions from our living the good life… Little by little, everything begins to take form in our Faithwalk. We begin to have Faith that God will show us the way, through His Word, His Holy Spirit, and the Body of Christ. It will happen. That’s when the Church starts to do God’s work in this community. And we are!
God’s real Church has no desire to manipulate anyone. Our goal must be to give anyone interested skills to help all the willing, to live by faith. We want to equip people for a life in Christ, a Faithwalk. Which is distinct, always changing as you grow in the Lord, and unique for every person. The Church shows people how to do that through example. When a Church is involved in service, people learn how to serve and grow personally.
Make no mistake about it, learning how to Live by Faith is not a cake-walk for most people. In fact, for many it can be a hard road to learn how to trust, … even God. It begins with a little bit at a time, like learning to walk.
For God’s word of encouragement, I want to remind you of last week’s Benediction from Paul to the Church in Rome. Reading from Romans 5:1-5;
1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.
And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.
5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
Given to all of you who come to Him and ask the Lord for help, and then start to trust in Him, and little by little your Faith walk will lead you to the conclusion that if you; Want to Please God? Begin in little baby steps at first to; Live by Faith!
You might be thinking;
Yea but…I cant give of my time or resources like that other person. Then don’t;… Be you, and let God help you figure out how you can serve him, even when… uncomfortable. I want to help you in any way I can to equip you to walk, your walk in Him!
Or you might be thinking (cuz I have); I have nothing to offer, I’m old, I’m sick, I have no skills, and I am going through bad times. Who am I? Well, You are…you; and you are essential to this Church. And when we walk through those doors, we all get stronger together, and we kind of all agree that we would put God and others before ourselves. And to do that, you just have to be… you…a work in progress!
God bless you my beloved family. Serving God with you is a blast! Amen!