Live By Faith

Two verses come together this morning in a way I’d never seen it before.  John said, “Everything that has been born from God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith.”–1 John 5:4. Faith is looking to God. It depends on God–not your conniving, ingenuity, bully-ness–or others–for help…for answers…for wisdom…for creativity…for open doors.  It’s not mental gyrations trying to convince yourself of something.

I’ve always loved this verse but never had a solid grasp on exactly what is overcome. What is meant by “the world”  was my question. Today this landed on a situation I was faced with. I didn’t know what to do.  I needed both guidance and God’s help.  This verse stirred me to think that every situation we face is meant to be a “God-looking to” situation–where we are–in our hearts–looking to God for everything. Even in the midst of the most diligent creativity and work..our heart is fixed on Him..so EVERYTHING  becomes being a co-worker with Him–where His grace, power, creativity and wisdom joins with us in everything.

Great Power With God Comes By…

Jesus lived this.  He was always looking to His Father for everything–even His guidance and words.

The second verse that came to mind this morning in this area was Galatians 2:20.  Paul wrote, “The life I like in the flesh I live by FAITH in the Son of God who loved me and delivered Himself up for me.” Paul had great power with God. God used him in mighty ways. Was it his looking to God every moment -–his faith– the key?

Daniel

Daniel loved God. The edict came to not pray to any other god than the state god. Daniel loved God.  He couldn’t comply. He knew it meant death. But the Lord meant more to him than anything in this world. He prayed and braced himself to die.

But then God moved. When Daniel saw God move, his faith was strengthened. We are encouraged by his story, but he lived it. His faith in the power of God soared that day, and it remained with him for the rest of his life. 

This is where growing in true faith happens: we obey God–like when Daniel did here or when Abraham left his secure place in Ur or when Esther went before the king–and God grows our faith as we experience God working in us and on our behalf.

Moses

Moses had a growing desire to helped his people. He had the cushiest, richest existence on the planet with unlimited doses of any pleasure he wanted. But, like CT Studd, he turned his back on wealth to take a risk to help others which he somehow came to understand was his calling. 

Moses landed in the wilderness doing common things, not unlike Paul sewing tents. But, like Paul, he knew life wasn’t about growing in his greatness or pursuits of pleasure.  He, like Paul and Jesus, too, embraced littleness and did all heartily as to the Lord. He learned that God was hugely in the little and grew in little places in faith and trust in God as He learned God lessons. 

Finally, when he had grown–or maybe I should say, shrunk–to be the most humble man on earth, he was where God needed him, absolutely pliable and not out for his own agenda. From here, God exhibited power through him to accomplish his purposes like no other man in history.

Timothy

So many young people today are all about their goals and ambitions. Timothy wasn’t. He recognized the significance of the calling on Paul. He loved God and wanted His purposes to go forward even if he wasn’t in the center stage. He served God in the million little things that it took to be a son to Paul. God grew his faith and used him and Paul to affect billions.

Joshua was the same way. It wasn’t his agenda he was pursuing; his desire was to help and serve Moses.  He humbled himself to do this and Moses was helped and blessed by Joshua. Then God selected Joshua to lead everything as Moses’ successor.  God grew Joshua’s faith as he was about His Father’s business, and to Joshua, it meant serving another for many years.

Lydia, Job and Count Zinzendorf

Lydia had money. As did Job and Count Zinzendorf of the Moravians, too. Unlike Solomon, they used their money to help the cause of Christ. They didn’t live in opulence and give a tiny bit. They risked it all. Why? Because they truly loved God and wanted others to experience the beauty, love and power of God.

Because this was their true heart focus, God could do what it talks about in Philippians 2:13, “For it is God who is working in you, enabling you both to desire and to work out His good purpose.”  God was able to form their heart to want what He wanted and to desire what He desired. Along the way, He was able to increase their faith.  When we live for ourselves and our agendas, it hinders the work of God in us. Part of this work is good, increasing our true faith–our true confidence–in Him.

George Mueller

George Mueller deeply loved the Lord. He meditated on the word night and day. He loved to spend time with Him. He was a friend of God.

He realized that God’s call on him was to live simply and to live by prayer and to live for the sake of orphans and for the sake of helping others’ faith and trust in God. He accepted inconveniences and lived an extraordinary life, both having his faith strengthened and others’ faith strengthened through God’s working through him.

Joseph

Joseph did a whole lot of things right in his heart. One was that he forgave completely. He was betrayed twice, once by his brothers and once by Potiphar’s wife. He didn’t seek revenge for what was done to him when it was in his power to do so. He forgave as the Lord forgave him, and he peacefully lived to help others.  And in his blessing others, he was wildly blessed.  

What train Are We On?

Faith is not mental gymnastics. God Himself grows our faith then we encounter things day -to-day that annoy, bug, trouble and worry us. 

We encounter the need for open doors, miraculous provisions, and for hearts to be touched by God.  Along the way, God whispers to us, “You know in whom you have believed; I’ve revealed to you much about who I am. Stand on the truth of who you know Me to be.” As we continue to trust in the being of God,  He works, and our faith in God’s love, beauty, power, and intelligence grows even greater.

Part of the art of staying on the right train where God is working and growing our faith in Him is also listening well to the Lord for His surprising leadings. 

Many people follow the Lord through the years, and God calls them here and there to set out to do new things that they think they cannot do. Rather than retreating in fear or dismissing something as unimportant, they hear God’s call to venture out boldly, and they take the risk and do so.  They follow God into new challenges like Joshua, and Caleb did by going into the promised land. Like Joshua and Caleb, they acknowledge that obstacles are great, but like God’s two warriors, they have the attitude that with God’s help, they can do what God is calling them to do. 

When people are bold and courageous in the things that God is leading in,  God does new things. The result is that their true faith, trust, and love for God grows.

Sucking It Up

1 Peter 2:23 talks about a hard time Jesus had, “while being abusively insulted, He did not insult in return; while suffering, He did not threaten, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.”  Jesus “sucked it up” and entrusted Himself to God the Father, who judges righteously. This is true of people who grow in faith.

When people who grow in faith encounter something annoying, frustrating or problematic, they do something important. They suck it up. They don’t give up, complain, or get angry…though they might have bouts with all three. They entrust themselves to God as Jesus did and do the next right things. 

This has enormous application. As we endeavor to accept with joy problematic situations, we also seeking the Lord for His help to overcome them.  As we are entrusting ourselves to “Him who judges fairly, ”God knows exactly what is going on.As we forgive and go forward in uncertainty in an effort to please Him, He sees it all. As we try to do new things, He leads us to help our families and others; He is completely aware. And in God’s time, He acts with power and gives critical guidance, wisdom, and open doors.

In all these ways, we “overcome the world.” The victory that overcomes the world is our faith because God acts in concert with our true faith in Him.  

And pretty beautiful things happen!  Unexpected beauty comes our way more and more!