[We’re still talking about why faith is important.]
Brothers and sisters, we all know that there are times we do “the right thing” but our heart isn’t in it. That’s what I’m talking about when I say that everything we do must be done in faith or it’s in vain.
Faith is a heart issue with God – not our actions and good works. Even in getting born-again, we have to do it from our hearts and not as a rote repetition of Romans 10:9-10. We have to actually believe in our heart that Jesus died for our sins, went to hell to defeat satan, God raised Him from the dead, and He is seated at the right hand of the Father. If we believe that in our heart, and speak it forth with our mouth, then we are saved.
You see, even though God has freely given salvation for all man-kind, it doesn’t benefit anyone unless they actually reach out and receive what God has freely given.
Ephesians 2:8 (KJV)
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
You see, it’s all by grace through faith. Grace basically is all that God has freely given and provided for us – independent of our actions. Faith is what reaches out and receives what He has given.
So what is this faith that God so desires of us to walk in? It’s the way He operates and functions – now and always. He’s a faith God and we’re faith children of a faith God. We are to live every moment of our lives by faith – rising up, sitting down, going to work, doing our chores, even in our recreation time. God wants to be a part of everything we do so that we can live the victorious life He has for us. It’s only when we choose to live independently from His ways that we run into trouble. And, brothers and sisters, this is a very dangerous place to be. Why?
Continued next time — Pamela
Pamela Moyle Ministries 