“Now, ‘the Just shall live by faith. But if he draws back, My
soul shall have no pleasure in him.’ But we are not of those withdrawing to destruction, but of those
who believe to the preserving of the soul.” Hebrews 10:38, 39 (MKJV)
Faith is the
foundation of having a true relationship with the Lord. With that being said,
it is no wonder that the theme of so much of the Bible is faith. Every story of
Biblical heroism is rooted in a central character’s deeply committed faith in
God—or, at times, the lack thereof. Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith,
it is completely impossible for us to please God. It is impossible for our
lives to be acceptable to God or to bear His divine seal of approval.
God is
steadfastly faithful—that is who He is—but that, on some level, is not enough.
We must also be faithful, and steadfastly so. Hebrews 10:38 says, “The Just
shall live by faith.” What that is saying is that those who are righteous, or
blameless, live their lives by faith, or by their fidelity to the call of God.
Faith is an action. Grammatically it could be classified as a verb because, in
the truest sense of the word, faith is always accompanied by some action.
Hebrews 12 is filled by a constant repetition of the words, “By faith, so-and-so
did such-and-such.” But faith can also be classified as a measurement. It is a
measurement of how true we are to God. It is our fidelity to what He has called
us to do.
Faith is an
experience that must be perpetual. The Just live
by it. If God’s followers pull back from the exercise of their faith, if they
allow their adherence to the Divine standard to which they are called to slack
off, if they attempt to hide who they really are, God has absolutely no
pleasure in them. He does not delight in such ones. Let us determine to not be
among that number. Let us not shrink backwards to our own destruction. Instead,
let us be among that number who holds fast to their faith, not holding out on
God. Let us believe what God says and act upon it, for, in doing so, we will be
preserved to stand in the final day.
“Let us walk
becomingly, as in the
day; not in carousings and drinking; not in co-habitation and lustful acts; not
in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not take thought
beforehand for the lusts of the flesh.” Romans 13:13, 14 (MKJV)
Living life as
a follower of Christ is often referred to as “walking with God.” In Romans 13,
Paul declares that it is time for all followers of Christ awaken from their
state of slumber, for the culmination of our salvation—the revealing of Jesus
Christ at His second coming—is nearer than when we first believed. Night—the
time when sleep is the common activity—is over. It is no longer acceptable for
those who would be on the side of Christ to remain in their listless
indifference and lethargy. Day has come; the time to work has arrived. The
precious daylight hours must be spent in soul-winning, for, “Night comes when no man can work”
(John 9:4). The end of the
day that is “at hand” is marked by the glorious appearing of our Lord.
In light of the
dawn of this final, metaphoric day, we must walk becomingly—or in the proper
manner—as the situation calls for. Because of the soberness of the message we
must bear, this is not a time for drunken merrymaking. Because the message
calls for a return to God’s standard of morality, this is not a time for lust
and immorality. Because the spreading of the message requires unity and
oneness, this is not a time for contention and jealousy. Because of our
personal inadequacy to spread the message, this is the time to “put on” the Lord Jesus Christ. In the original
Greek text, the word is “enduō,” which
means “to sink deeply into,” or “to invest in.” Literally, we are to completely
immerse ourselves in Jesus Christ, so that we will be so thoroughly inculcated
with His Spirit that He shines out in everything that we say and do.
Paul
closes by saying, “And do not take thought
beforehand for the lusts of the flesh.” Far too often, the self-proclaimed
followers of Christ think and plan beforehand for the lusts of the flesh. They
leave a space in their lives so that when a temptation comes along, they can decide
whether or not it is “good enough” or “worth” sinning to enjoy the temporary
pleasures it offers. Those who truly desire to walk honestly and fully immerse
themselves in Christ cannot and will not make these provisions for the
fulfillment of the fleshly lusts. To truly follow Christ, we must make no
provision for the flesh.
“For so says the Lord
Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, In returning and rest you shall be saved; and
in quietness and hope shall be your strength. And you were not willing. But you
said, No; for we will flee on a horse. Therefore you shall flee. And you said, We will ride on
the swift; therefore those who pursue you shall be swift.”
Isaiah 30:15, 16 (MKJV)
One of the most
difficult things to deal with is rejection—whether it’s over a business
project, a thesis proposal, an entry for some competition, or especially when
it is regarding a relationship, whether a rejection at the onset of asking a
date, or a rejection at the proposal of marriage. Rejection is an integral part
of the human experience. We hate to be rejected.
Imagine, for a
moment, how God feels. God calls upon us to return to Him, to rest, and to be
saved, offering quietness and hope as strength. Never before has a proposition
been so simple and risk-free. Every day, God begs us to give our problems to
Him, to give Him the stresses we cannot manage, and to allow Him to remove the
mental, emotional, and spiritual burdens that we have tied on our backs. His
plea is that we surrender to Him the things we know are bad for us anyway. His
offer is to give rest from the chaos of the world around us. He spreads before
us the gift of salvation. He offers full, complete deliverance. “Give me your
burdens, and I will give you strength,” He cries. But we say, “No.”
Who in their
right mind would reject such an offer? You would. And so would I. We do every
day. We refuse because we think that we’re really going to be missing
something. Perhaps we secretly enjoy the troubles we face. Maybe we like to
struggle and lose. Then, at least, we can feel more pity for ourselves. Why
else would we reject the offer love extends? It could be that we’re more than
happy to give up some of the things
in our lives, but our most beloved, darling sins are too dear to us. Perhaps,
yesterday, you heard God say to you, return to me, rest, and be saved. Find
strength in Me through quietness and hope.” But you said, “No.” Again, today,
God asks you again. Now what do you
say?
“Because this people
draw near Me with
their mouth, and with their lips honor Me, but have removed their heart far
from Me, and their fear toward Me is taught by the command of men; therefore,
behold, I will go on doing among this people, a wonder, even a wonder. For the
wisdom of their wise ones shall perish, and the understanding of their
intelligent ones shall be hidden.” Isaiah 29: 13, 14 (MKJV)
God is jealous.
He refuses to be a second-place anything in our lives. He, being the only true
God, does not accept half-hearted efforts. Working with God is an all or
nothing situation. God makes it clears that when we as humans attempt to give lip
service, it is wholly unacceptable.
Through Isaiah,
God declares that even though so-called believers, the alleged chosen of God,
make glorious professions of their faith in God and reliance upon Him, if their
hearts are not completely surrendered and solely moved by the impulse of God, their
professions are worthless. God further states, “their fear toward Me is taught
by the command of men.” He is saying that the respect that His so-called
followers have for him is not inspired by His spirit, but by the teachings and
traditions of men. Jesus Himself said of these teachers, “But in vain they worship Me, teaching
for doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:9). If the teachers of these false commandments worship
God in vain, even more so do those who respect God solely based on the erroneous
teachings of these vain worshippers!
God states that
He is doing and will continue to do “a wonder” among these pseudo worshipers—something
amazing. The wisdom and understanding of the wisest ones will be taken away and
destroyed. How can such a thing be? God is the source of all the wisdom,
knowledge, and understanding. Refusing to share these things with people who half-heartedly
worship Him makes perfect sense. Those who reject God are ultimately rejected
by God, though His mercy is yet extended to them for a time. “Woe to
those who go deep to hide their purpose
from Jehovah!” (verse 15). God is not fooled by the half-hearted devotion of
those involved in the pseudo worship of God.
“And Aaron threw down
his rod in front of Pharaoh and in front of his servants, and it became a
snake. Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers. And they, the
magicians of Egypt, did the same with their secret arts. For each man threw
down his rod, and they became snakes. But Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods.”
Exodus 7:10-12 (MKJV)
Moses and Aaron
had been sent by God to bring before Pharaoh the divine message, “Let my people
go.” Along with the message, the Lord sent signs to be given to Pharaoh,
proving God’s supremacy over humanity. Aaron cast his rod down and it became a
serpent. The Egyptian wise men followed suit, casting their rods, which also
became serpents. God, possessing superior power, caused Aaron’s serpent to
swallow the others, leaving the wise men to go buy new rods.
We can learn a
valuable lesson from the experience of Moses and Aaron in the court of the
Pharaoh. Paul, in 2 Timothy 2 declares that in the last days, grievous times
will come. He goes on to describe the depraved conditions that will pervade
humanity. People will have a form of godliness but will deny the power of it. They
will be “ever learning
and never able to come to the full knowledge of the
truth.”
Paul
compares these people to the Egyptian wise men who opposed Moses and Aaron. “But
as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so these also resist the truth, men of
corrupt mind, reprobate concerning the faith. But they shall proceed no
further. For their foolishness shall be plain to all, as theirs also became”
(verses 8, 9). As the end of time draws nearer, all those who would follow God
will meet the opposition of learned men and women. The wisest of the wise will
come forward arguing that they have everything the followers of God have but
that they have it without having to obey God. To onlookers, their argument
seems to stand; nevertheless, it quickly becomes apparent that God’s way is the
true way—just as it became apparent from the swallowing of the wise men’s
serpents to the final plague in the days of Moses and Pharaoh. Their
foolishness will become plain to all. All who would stand in the last day must
learn to look beyond the present appearances to the eternal realities.
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