Tag: By faith

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Devotion November 14th

MONDAY 14th

 

2 Peter 1:3-4

 

‘His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.’

 

I have included the two verses again this morning to enable you to look at them again for the context out of which I will continue the devotions today with the phrase, ‘through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence’.

 

Two things to consider, ‘through the knowledge of him’ and ‘who called us to his own glory and excellence’. But before we go into more detail the ESV uses the phrase ‘who called us TO his own glory . . .’ while the NIV uses ‘who called us BY his own glory’. The ESV has a footnote for the word ‘to’ to say, or ‘by’, but in my studying of it I have used the actual ESV translation, not the footnote. The sense changes slightly as BY suggests the means being called, while TO suggests being called to something. Either way we can say we have been called by his own glory and called to his own glory.

 

The divine power which is available, is granted to us through the knowledge of him who called us, that is it is a power that is made available only to those who have come to a knowledge of him who is the Saviour, who brings us to a true, real and dynamic relationship with God. We cannot have the power needed that pertains to life and godliness without first knowing Jesus who was sent from God. We may live good lives before salvation, but no matter how good our lives may seem to have been, it would never lead us to salvation nor to genuine godliness.

 

In our last devotion I mentioned the need to receive divine power through the reading of the Word of God, through the avenue of prayer and the ministry of the Holy Spirit, but I repeat what I also touched on in the devotion before that, that these avenues of reception can only happen when we have come to a saving knowledge and a deepening knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. The ‘all things’ come after we have in our lives the knowledge of him, first as Saviour and secondly as Lord.

 

Then, it is only those who have a genuine knowledge of Jesus who will be called to his own glory and excellence. That is, that not all will come to the place of seeing both the glory of Jesus and his excellence, we can know something of his glory and excellence in our lives now as he fills us with everything pertaining to life and godliness and in our living for him and in his ways, but I think there is something here that speaks also of his eternal glory and excellence. He has called us by his grace to himself, so that we share with him now, but we will share in an even greater way when we get to the place of our eternal dwelling. I am reminded of the Scripture, ‘But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”—these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.’ (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)

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Daily Devotion June 13th

SATURDAY 13th

Hebrews 11:7. Genesis 6:1-22

Noah – Faith in isolation

By the time we get to Genesis 6 it is easy to think that it’s not many years after creation, as it is only a few chapters on, but the reality is that by the time we get to Noah it is already one thousand six hundred and sixty years since creation and the whole world, that is all of humanity was deemed corrupt except for one man called Noah.

One of the fundamental doctrines of the Christian Church is concerning the utter depravity of human nature, and the need for repentance and the eternal punishment of those who do not believe. The utter depravity of human nature is summed up by Paul in Romans 3:22-23 ‘For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’ and in Romans chapter 1:18-32, this means that mankind in the 21st century is still in the same boat, utterly depraved. God has a standard and not one of us stand up to it.  Isaiah 64:6 ‘We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.’  

 And we see this depravity all around us and yet as we see things as being as bad as they are today, and they are, utter depravity was absolutely manifested everywhere when Paul wrote what he wrote in his letter and was also most certainly applicable to Noah’s day. Gen 6:5. In fact, as we saw concerning Cain and Abel mankind was depraved immediately after their parents had sinned. Beside the  words ‘utter depravity’ we use the words ‘the inherent nature of sin’ which means that we are all born sinners, they are both correct, but on its own the phrase ‘the inherent nature of sin’ does not describe how utterly depraved the sin nature is. We need to talk of both the inherent nature of sin, and the utter depravity of human nature because of sin. We are born in sin, and shapen in iniquity and live as vile hopeless sinners outside of the grace of God. Psalm 51:5 ‘Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.’ Romans 3:9-11 ‘What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God.’  

Noah was also born in sin, but something must have taken place in his life that changed him, that made him different from everybody else for God to declare what he said about him. Sometime in his life, Noah must have had a personal encounter with God, which to use NT terminology, made him into a ‘new creation’ for v9 says  ‘Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God!

The statement in Genesis 6:5 says ‘The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually,’ whatever the population of the world was at that time, Noah was the only one of whom it is said, ‘found favour’ in the eyes of God! (v8) It was Noah’s great, grandfather, Enoch, we considered in our last two devotions and of him it was also said ‘He walked with God.’ I wonder what happened to the two generation in between them.

And because of who Noah was, or more because of what he had become in comparison to the rest of his generation God singled him out to be the key participant in what he was about to do. (6:13-22)

And we know the story of Noah and the ark, we could ask, what about Noah’s wife, his three sons and their wives regarding their relationship with God? I suggest that even if the same could not have been said about them beforehand, that after God had called Noah, he out of his love and compassion for his wife and family would have pleaded with them to also come to a place of faith and while the world watched on and mocked his family would join with Noah in preparation for the flood and in anticipation of deliverance from it.

What can we learn from Noah?

Faith allowed him to believe in the unbelievable

Faith led to Salvation

Faith moved him into action

He learned the lesson of Hebrews 11:6 ‘And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him’.

But something else we see should also encourage us, thus my heading for today’s devotion – FAITH IN ISOLATION. Of all the population just Noah, but God saw him, knew about him and came to him in salvation.

PERHAPS you are the ONLY ONE with a personal faith in God in your family, your school, college, university, workplace, your local community, the street where you live. As a result, it may be tough, difficult, it may mean you get mocked, maybe even persecuted, but remember the ones who are going to receive eternal reward are only those who have trusted God, put their faith in Him and see things through.

Can you picture the scene as Noah began to collect the colossal amount of material he needed to build the ark and then to start and build it, the mocking, ridicule, persecution. And then as the day’s past into weeks, months and years till the ark was ready – still the mocking, still the ridiculing and persecution, not a cloud in the sky, brilliant sunshine, but then he begins to load the ark with food, animal, and essentials, still the mocking, the ridicule and the persecution.

But the moment arrives, Noah and his family then enter the ark, GOD himself shuts the door and on that very day, the sunshine disappears as the thick black clouds appear and then the rain arrived, the floods came and those who laughed, mocked and persecuted were blotted from off the face of the earth. God always fulfils his word!

What mixed emotions Noah must have had, although many had mocked him, he would have seen friends and family, fellow companions being washed into a lost eternity.

In Noah’s day the world was drenched in spiritual darkness and yet in the darkness there was a single flicker of light as Noah shone as a lone light in the darkness. And we have been called to shine as light in the darkness. Matthews: 14-16 ‘You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house, in the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.’

The building of the ark took 120 years, it was well planned and well built. The 120 years speaks of the patience of God, allowing time for the mockers, scoffers and persecutors to repent and the persevering faith of Noah, imagine the sweat, toil, blisters etc. while all the time being ridiculed and mocked.

What a picture of the day of grace, God is waiting patiently for men and

women to be saved. We toil, faithful in service knowing that one day our redemption will be complete, but it also speaks of opportunity, for we have the opportunity and privilege of telling others about Jesus.

2 Peter 2: ‘He did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, A HERALD of righteousness.’

Noah built an Ark and it was only within the ark that salvation could be found. He had trusted, his faith was demonstrated in works (building the ark) and he was saved- those who disbelieved him must HAVE HAD SECOND thoughts when the rains came – and they would have WORKED HARD battling against the flood water to be saved from drowning- but too late, works could not save them – ONLY FAITH in God, but they had rejected Him.

Jesus became our NOAH, the only one who was truly righteous before God.

For Noah, the timber made an ark. For us, the timber made a cross and the righteous one went and hung on it for us so that as we believe, his righteousness is imputed to us and we are saved. And because we have come to the cross and found refuge in it, when God pours out his wrath and judgment on this utterly depraved, sinful world we will be saved.

Earlier in the devotion I mentioned that we are all born in sin, but thank God there was one who was born sinless, died sinless and took our sin upon himself, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. When the rain came and the floods began to rise, Noah was hidden in the ark, and we who have fled into Jesus are hiding in him, he is our Saviour, he is our protection, he will bring us not to Mount Ararat, but he will land us safely in the place which he has prepared for all who love him.

O safe to the Rock that is higher than I,

My soul in its conflicts and sorrows would fly.

So sinful, so weary, Thine, Thine would I be;

Thou blest Rock of Ages, I’m hiding in Thee. 

Hiding in Thee, Hiding in Thee,

Thou blest Rock of Ages, I’m hiding in Thee.

In the calm of the noontide, in sorrow’s lone hour,

In times when temptation casts o’er me its power,

In the tempests of life, on its wide, heaving sea,

Thou blest Rock of Ages, I’m hiding in Thee.

How oft in the conflict, when pressed by the foe,

I have fled to my Refuge and breathed out my woe.

How often when trials like sea billows roll

Have I hidden in Thee, O Thou Rock of my soul.

W O Cushing CCLI788682

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Daily Devotion June 9th

TUESDAY 9th

Genesis 3:1-21

Continuing from where we left off yesterday, the question could be asked, ‘how could Cain have acted differently, perhaps he didn’t know any different?’

I think it would be fair to say that both his parents, Adam and Eve would have shared with their children something of their history or story. We know what it was, how the fall came about and the banishment from the garden of Eden.

Adam and Eve had learned a hard lesson and any good parent would want to retell their story to save their children from making the same mistakes. I really do not think that in retelling what happened that they would have missed out telling the boys something of the wonder of God’s provision for them, remember after they had sinned, they attempted to cover themselves by taking fig leaves to make an apron, they attempted to deal with the sin problem by their own works, their own effort. (v7) Later we read in Genesis 3:21 ‘And the Lord God made for Adam and his wife garments of skins and clothed them.’ This provision would have spoken to them of the shedding of blood in the killing of the animal that provided the covering they needed after they had sinned. Here was God showing what needed to be done, and what would be acceptable before him and although we have a few words in our Scriptures describing this incident I am sure that Adam and Eve knew exactly what God was doing and in what it foreshadowed and would have told the boys all the details. The action of Abel later shows that he had understood something of this and yet Cain had refused the way of faith and obedience by preferring the way of a work-based religion. We learn later in Scripture that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin. (Leviticus 17:11, Hebrews 9:22)

Abel – I will do it God’s way, Cain – I will do it my way!

Although it is important to stress the importance of salvation by faith alone and in Christ alone it should also be stressed that although works cannot lead to salvation, works should be an evidence that we have come to salvation. This is the whole purpose of why James wrote his epistle. not to contradict Paul and the other apostles on what they taught, that salvation is by faith alone but to show that once saved, works should complement our faith. James 2:18 ‘But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.’

Hebrews 11:4 ‘By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks’

A final thought that really links back to Cain and his fruit. I think we can learn even more from this by taking from verse 4 the word ‘acceptable’, (ESV) and I believe that we should be ensuring that as we live out our life of faith we need to ensure that what we do, what we say, where we go, how we express ourselves is acceptable in the eyes of God. We personally do not need to come before God as Abel did with a blood sacrifice – Christ has offered himself on our behalf and he became the acceptable sacrifice, we in turn in our response need to live in an acceptable way.

Psalm 19:14 ‘Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.’

Proverbs 10:32 ‘The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.’

Paul sums it up for us in Romans 12:1-2 ‘I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.’

May we be approved and acceptable to the Lord our God as we seek to live by faith.

I’ll Walk with God from this day on

His helping hand I’ll lean upon

This is my prayer, my humble plea

May the Lord be ever with me

There is no death, tho’ eyes grow dim

There is no fear when I’m near to Him

I’ll lean on Him forever

And He’ll forsake me never

He will not fail me

As long as my faith is strong

Whatever road I may walk along

I’ll Walk with God, I’ll take His hand

I’ll talk with God, He’ll understand

I’ll pray to Him, each day to Him

And He’ll hear the words that I say

His hand will guide my throne and rod

And I’ll never walk alone

While I walk with God

CCLI788682

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Daily Devotion June 8th

MONDAY 8th

Genesis 4:1-16

Today we turn to verse 4 of Hebrews 11, ‘By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.’

Our example today and tomorrow is that of Abel, ‘By faith Abel offered’.

I will call todays devotion ‘Faith Versus Works.’

What we discover about Cain and Abel in this chapter is that they both worship God and they both bring a sacrifice to God, Cain’s sacrifice was from the fruit of the ground and Abel’s sacrifice was through the sacrifice of an animal, Cain’s sacrifice was rejected by God while Abel’s sacrifice was accepted by God

The end result was that a jealous Cain on seeing his sacrifice rejected and Abel’s accepted became very angry and his outward expressions became contorted and God gives this verdict in v7, ‘Sin lies at the door of your life and you are allowing it to control you rather than you controlling it.’ Later Cain catches up with Abel and the sin that lay at the door expressed itself in an even greater measure to the point that Cain killed or murdered his brother Abel. V8 shows us how one sin can lead onto another. Cain then lies to God as to the whereabout of his brother to which God in response punished him by saying his future labour would be decreased in what it produces and that he would become a vagabond and a fugitive, never finding a place to rest or settle. V16 is a sad verse, ‘Then Cain went out from the presence of the Lord’.

What can we learn from this account?

Hebrews 11:4 answers the question for us, ‘By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice.’

It could be said that although Cain brought FRUIT as a sacrifice to God it was a sham because the fruit that was expressed through his life and his character was far from anything that it should have been if he had had a genuine relationship with God.

We should challenge ourselves here – as we seek to worship God and bring our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving to him, in particular on a Sunday morning worship service would it be acceptable to God if it was contrasted to the kind of fruit we may have been showing during the week? We cannot live one way in the world during the week and then act differently when we come together on a Sunday. The fruit of our lives, the fruit of our lips should be the same 24/7.

The difference in the two sacrifices these brothers made is symbolic as to how mankind will try to seek to come to worship or to reach God throughout history. It will be one of two ways:

The way of Cain which is through works or the way of Abel which is by faith.

Cain’s sacrifice was a result of his works, that is working and toiling with the ground. Abel’s sacrifice came through the shedding of blood, he took from the firstborn of his flock.

Cain represents all the man-made religions of the world that seek to come to ‘God’ through human effort, through works centred religions and isms. Abel represents all that will come by faith to God through the blood sacrifice that Christ has made on their behalf.

The one through works the other through shed blood. And God will only accept the one way, the better way, the way of the cross and not the way of works. Isaiah clearly portrays for us that all our own efforts are like filthy rags, or polluted garments, ‘We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.’ (Isaiah 64:6) This verse clearly portrays that even our very best of efforts cannot redeem us, or as Paul later says in Ephesians 2 that even with the very best we can give in the way of good works this will never be sufficient to save us. ‘For by grace you have been saved, through faith. And this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God, not of works, so that no one may boast.’ (Ephesians 2:8)

Going back to Cain and Abel, you can imagine Cain picking the very best of the produce, proud to present his very best before God – sounds good doesn’t it, we would think that it seems a good thing to do, yet it was rejected. When Abel took his sacrifice, it would have been bloodied and marred and in all honesty not really a very pretty sight, nothing really to be able to boast about and yet God accepted it. Abel’s sacrifice reminds us of Isaiah 53 ‘He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief: and as one from whom men would hide their faces . . . Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.’

Psalm 149:4 ‘For the Lord takes pleasure in his people, he adorns the humble with salvation.’

Psalm 138:6 ‘For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly, but the haughty he knows afar off.’

Cain’s murder of Abel comes about because of the rejection by God of his works orientated sacrifice and of his refusal to come the same way as his brother Abel did, the way of faith. This is also symbolic of the struggle, strife, hatred and persecution that faith-based Christianity has faced and still faces from the works-based religions of the world. As Cain persecuted Abel even to death, so the Church throughout its history has been persecuted by all who reject the way of faith.

What we can clearly learn from the lesson of Cain and Abel is that all who base their religion in the  same way as Cain, will go the same way as Cain, they will be cut off from the presence of God for eternity but all who go the way of Abel because of faith in the blood sacrifice that Christ has made on our behalf, even though we will die we will be raised to be with God throughout eternity.

John11:25-26 ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?’

Grace! ’tis a charming sound,

Harmonious to the ear;

Heav’n with the echo shall resound,

And all the earth shall hear.

Saved by grace alone!

This is all my plea:

Jesus died for all mankind,

And Jesus died for me.

’Twas grace that wrote my name

In life’s eternal book;

’Twas grace that gave me to the Lamb,

Who all my sorrows took.

Grace taught my wandering feet

To tread the pilgrim road;

And new supplies each hour I meet

While pressing on to God.

Grace taught my heart to pray,

And made my eyes o’erflow;

’Tis grace which kept me to this day,

And will not let me go.

Grace all the work shall crown

Through everlasting days;

It lays in love the topmost stone,

And well deserves the praise.

Oh, let that grace inspire

My heart with strength divine;

May all my powers to Thee aspire,

And all my days be Thine.

P Doddridge CCLI788682

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Daily Devotion June 7th

SUNDAY 7th

Hebrews 11:3 ‘By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.’

In this chapter, the Hebrew author takes the readers of his letter right back to the very beginning, Genesis Chapter 1 and to the account of creation.

He was writing this Hebrew letter to Jews who had come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ but were mixing their old Judaism religion with the new covenant of grace and some were even possibly being drawn back to the old rituals and rejecting afresh the new covenant because of the fear of impending persecution.

And as he starts to encourage them from the example of their ancestors in chapter 11, he first takes them right to the beginning of their Hebrew Scriptures and the account of creation.

What he is saying to them is, ‘you are holding fast to what you have believed about creation, you stand firm on your confidence in the one true God who made everything. In the same way I want you to grasp a stronger hold on to genuine faith in the Lord Jesus Christ by seeing faith at work in the report of your ancestors lives’ and then as he gets to Hebrews 12 he wants them to see their ancestors as a large crowd standing in the arena of life cheering them on, encouraging them not to give up the new found life of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ but to persevere to the end.

Verse 3 is a good starting point for us as well. If we are going to doubt the first few chapters of the Scriptures, and not believe in the creation account, then what is there to stop us from doubting everything else that follows through the rest of this book? None of us were present at the beginning to witness what took place, but by faith we believe what has been recorded for us.

We believe by faith that ‘In the beginning God . . .’ That is, God was already there. We believe by faith that God spoke and as he spoke whatever it was he spoke came into being, the land, the sea, the creatures in the air and in the sea and upon the dry land, the fruit and the flowers and the trees and the shrubs, the moon and the stars and the sun and the galaxies which are still being discovered billions of miles away in outer space, and we believe by faith the creation of man from out of the dust of the ground. YES, humanly it does seem difficult to fully comprehend, but we believe BY FAITH,  faith enables us to believe that the universe was created by the word of God, and exactly as the Genesis writer says, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. The term used to describe this is ‘ex nihilo’ ‘out of nothing’. David the psalmist records in Psalm 19:1 ‘The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork,’ and Psalm 24:1-2  ‘The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,  for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.’

And I declare today in this devotion that BY FAITH, I believe. I also believe in the work of creation taking 6 literal days of 24 hours as it records for us ‘and there was evening and there was morning, the first day, the second day, the third day, the fourth day, the fifth day, the sixth day and then on the seventh day God rested from all his work that he had done.

And it is BY FAITH that if we were to move further into the Scriptures and read the characters, accounts, stories, happenings etc, I believe them to be literal and true. Noah and the flood, the Egyptian plagues and the Israelites exodus, David and Goliath, Jonah and the Whale, Daniel and the den of lion’s, the Hebrew lads and the furnace, and moving into the New Testament, the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, his full and complete atoning sacrifice for the sins of the world, and the many more accounts which speak of seeming impossibilities having taken place but by faith I believe because I believe in the God of the impossible and the Hebrew writer makes it very clear that Christian Faith requires this kind of faith. Hebrews 11:6 ‘And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God MUST believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek Him.’

Let us remind ourselves that it is possible to have this kind of faith, though not out of ourselves but as a gift from God to all who would believe. (Ephesians 2:8)

How is your faith to believe today? Remember we only need to have faith as small as a mustard seed to accomplish great things with God (Matthew 17:20) but however we feel our measure of faith is we can call out with the same plea as the disciples, ‘Lord, increase our faith.’ (Luke 17:5)

Incidentally if Jesus said we could remove a mountain with mustard seed sized faith a seed which is about 1 or 2 mm in size, imagine what we could do with faith the size of the world’s largest seed, a coco de mer from a palm tree which is about 12 inches in size (30cms) and weighs about 40 pounds (18kg). Wow, Lord I will be grateful for the mustard seed sized faith, I have not even yet started to move mole hills, let alone mountains!

Today I am repeating the same song as last Wednesday

By faith we see the hand of God

In the light of creation’s grand design

In the lives of those who prove His faithfulness

Who walk by faith and not by sight

By faith our fathers roamed the earth

With the power of His promise in their hearts

Of a holy city built by God’s own hand

A place where peace and justice reign

We will stand as children of the promise

We will fix our eyes on Him our soul’s reward

Till the race is finished and the work is done

We’ll walk by faith and not by sight

By faith the prophets saw a day

When the longed-for Messiah would appear

With the power to break the chains of sin and death

And rise triumphant from the grave

By faith the church was called to go

In the power of the Spirit to the lost

To deliver captives and to preach good news

In every corner of the earth

We will stand…

By faith this mountain shall be moved

And the power of the gospel shall prevail

For we know in Christ all things are possible

For all who call upon His name

Keith and Kystyn Getty  CCLI788682

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Daily Devotion June 6th

SATURDAY 6th

Hebrews 11:39-40

Continuing in Hebrews 11, these heroes of faith have been recorded for our benefit, to learn from their example, so that in turn we can learn to live by faith as well.

Let us remind ourselves of something vital that the writer records in this chapter: ‘And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him’ (v6)

By reason of our choosing to follow the Lord Jesus Christ we should be people who live ‘by faith’ a phrase which appears in this chapter about 17 times.

The phrase living by faith does not mean that we should all be living by faith in that we shouldn’t have gainful employment, and just expect God to prompt someone to drop an envelope through the door with a wad of money to get us by, (although in spiritual  ministry there are times when God does call some to live this way, but it is not the norm’) work is part and parcel of how God expects us to get by, (Genesis 2:15, 2 Thessalonians 3:6-12) although there may be times when God does bless with unexpected gifts especially in tough times. It also doesn’t mean that when we are ill we refuse to take any medication or get medical help, living by faith means that we trust God firstly in the realm of salvation, then we trust God in the circumstances of our lives and we finally trust God in his provision for us into eternity.  It is putting our faith, or trust and confidence in an invisible God and in things we cannot see or maybe not even fully understand, and having an assurance in our hearts and a confident conviction and hope in the unravelling of God’s purpose in our loves. Our faith is linked to God’s faithfulness, and he is a faithful God. Lamentations 3:22-23 ‘The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.’

In Romans, Paul writes this 1:17 ‘For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, the righteous shall live by faith.’ This is linked to the previous verse where we read (1:16) ‘For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.’ That is, that within the gospel of which Paul was not ashamed, the righteousness of God is revealed, and the righteous, (that is those who have been justified by faith and transformed by this gospel) shall live by faith.

In John 14:1 just prior to his crucifixion, Jesus speaking to the disciples said this: ‘Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.’ The NLT uses the word TRUST, we have been called to a life that totally, fully relies on, believes in or trusts in God, that is a life of faith, and at the end of the journey a report will be given, and what will it say?

The Apostle Paul said this in his first epistle to Timothy (6:12) ‘Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.’

In his second epistle to Timothy he says this: ‘I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith’ he continued: ‘Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.’

In these two Scriptures  when Paul talks of having ‘fought the good fight of the faith’ and of ‘keeping the faith’ here the word faith is used to describe his keeping or holding onto the message of the gospel, but at the same time he has held onto it by faith. 

We know what we have believed, that is the ‘Faith’ to which we have been called to by God’s grace, but we continue in it by faith, faith which also is a gift from God.

In Matthew 25:23, Jesus perhaps gives a hint of what we should seek to be attaining for, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’

Thinking of the old school reports probably my most frequent comment from the teachers was ‘Could do better’ well spiritually, within the context of this devotion I know I could do better in regard to attaining the final end of life report and by God’s grace I aim to attain a better standard, to be approved rather than ashamed at his appearing. May God help each one of us as we run the race to finish the course and to receive a good commendation at the end.

Over the next week we will look at some of the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11.

Turn, turn your eyes upon Jesus

Look full in his wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim

In the light of his glory and grace

CCLI 788682

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Devotions

Daily Devotion June 4th

THURSDAY 4th

Hebrews 11:8-16

I will continue today with another look at the subject of faith drawing from this chapter. As I have been preparing, what I want to share in this devotion is too long for one, so will break it in such a way as to share over three days.

Verses 1-3 ‘Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.’

I use the English Standard Version, which in verse 2 uses the phrase ‘received their commendation’

 This is how it is translated in another six translations:

NIV ‘This is what the ancients were commended for’

NLT ‘Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation’

CSB ‘For by it our ancestors won God’s approval’

NASV ‘For by it the men of old gained approval’

NKJV ‘For by it the elders obtained a good testimony’

KJV ‘For by it the elders obtained a good report’

Also, from the Amplified Bible, ‘For by this [kind of] faith the men of old gained [divine] approval.’

I wonder what each of these words conjure up in your mind when you put them into the context of living a life of faith?

In the normal usage of the terms I conjure up the following:

Commended reminds me of a flower or fruit show where an individual is commended for their effort, obviously hoping to be the highly commended choice.

Earned a good reputation reminds me of an individual who has excelled in his trade and as a result of his excellent work such as a blacksmith, or painter and decorator they have a good reputation in the sphere of their trade. You would have no questions over recommending him (or her) to someone and you would not hesitate to give them doing a job to do for yourself.

Won approval or gained approval reminds me of something like an award given to a company or an individual who has achieved the highest standard in design, or quality of product and therefore are given a seal of approval. Much like a company that has been given the Queens stamp of approval.

A good testimony reminds me of someone who is an individual of good upright standing in the community, however hard you tried you would not be able to point the finger of suspicion towards them for anything.

A good report reminds me of the end of the school year report that goes home to the parents – I think in all my years at school I failed to receive a good report! Always could have done better or needs to improve in this or that area!

I’ve drawn the varied conclusions because at the end of each day and at the end of our earthly lives every single one of us should have sought to have lived in such a way as believers that God could use any of these phrases to sum us up.

So how can we assure ourselves of receiving a commendation, a good reputation, a good testimony, a good report, or God’s approval? Hebrews 11 answers it for us, it is BY FAITH, by living a life of faith. It happens when we learn to totally rely on and trust in God and this trust needs to be evidenced in every area of our lives. Let us remind ourselves what Hebrews 11 says: ‘Now faith

is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it (that is by faith) the people of old received their commendation, or good report, approval etc.

Although I use the ESV, if I had to choose any of the translations or phrases from the list already mentioned it would be difficult. I want to have a good report, I want to be commended, I want that I would have a good reputation, I want to have a good testimony, I want to gain or have God’s approval, it should be the desire of each one of us and I want that it is not just something that will be a final analysis when I have died as the Hebrew writer is doing here about the various characters, but that it could be said of me now, but I know that far too often I fail, but then I am reminded that at times so did these OT heroes, and God didn’t give up on them and he will not give up on us, we are still work in progress.

But if I had to choose and there is the sense in that we agree whichever phrase is used we know what the writer is meaning, I would choose ‘God’s approval’ (the NAS and CSB) we will continue from here tomorrow with my reason why.

I have chosen a hymn today which is one of my favourites, it reminds me that to know God’s approval in our lives we need to align our heart to his will, which comes through in the words of the hymn. It is a hymn that was constantly my prayer while growing up, ‘ready for all thy perfect will,’

O Thou Who camest from above,

The pure celestial fire to impart,

Kindle a flame of sacred love

On the mean altar of my heart.

There let it for Thy glory burn

With inextinguishable blaze,

And trembling to its source return,

In humble prayer and fervent praise.

Jesus, confirm my heart’s desire

To work and speak and think for Thee;

Still let me guard the holy fire,

And still stir up Thy gift in me.

Ready for all Thy perfect will,

My acts of faith and love repeat,

‘Til death Thy endless mercies seal,

And make my sacrifice complete.

Charles Wesley CCLI788682

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Devotions

Daily Devotion June 3rd

WEDNESDAY 3rd

Hebrews 11:1-6

Over the next few days, and into next week, we will look at this chapter and look at the verses that cover Abel, Enoch and Noah and if lockdown continues, we will get to look at some more of the characters that are mentioned in Hebrews 11 at a later date, we often give them the title of ‘heroes of faith’, they became heroes because they believed God in their circumstances.

The circumstances of each one of them was different, but they all looked toward and served the same God, the true and living God, the God of the impossible. They learned that without faith it is impossible to believe in the God of the impossible. 11:6 ‘And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.’

In the following chapter, 12, the Hebrew writer encourages us to learn from these heroes or examples of faith, to let their testimony and experience be a model to encourage us in our personal relationship and walk with the Lord Jesus Christ to help keep us focused and to spur us on to finish the race. 12:1-2 ‘Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.’

We all need encouragement and we all need to encourage one another, we all need at times to be given a reminder or a boost or a lesson or an experience to spur us on, life can become wearisome, ofttimes it can become challenging, there are moments when life even causes us to doubt or falter, but the testimony from these heroes of faith should remind us and encourage us that in the midst of it all the God of the impossible is with us. In fact, when we think we have got it tough, it is a good thing to read verses 32-38 of chapter 11 and then line up our circumstances with their circumstances and realise life is not too bad for us after all! This is just from verses 35-38, ‘. . . Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.’

The Hebrew writer commences this chapter with (1-3) ‘Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.’

Faith enables us to believe the unbelievable and the invisible because what seems unbelievable and invisible is possible with the invisible God of the impossibility! The invisible God has made himself known, he has made himself known through that which he has created, and through his upholding of that which he has created. (Romans 1:20, 1 Timothy 1:17) He has revealed himself through his Word and he has also made himself known through his Son, the Lord Jesus. (Hebrews 1:1-3) By faith we see the hand of God in the created world around us, by faith we see God at work in the cross and as a result it is also by faith we see the hand of God in the circumstances of our lives.

But how do we get the faith to believe? Ephesians 2:8, the chapter of grace reminds us that we are given the faith to believe as a gift from God, faith to believe in his mercy and grace, faith to believe unto salvation, and the faith he gives to us is not limited to the realm of salvation but it is also given as an essential component toward our ongoing walk as believers, faith to believe that in all of our life situations God is working out his eternal plan and purpose, and Hebrews 11 helps us to see that this faith that was outworked in the Old Testament heroes can also be outworked in our lives as well.

Peter in his first epistle, shows to us that God’s saving faith given as a gift to us is also what guards us and keeps us till we receive the outcome of our faith – an eternal inheritance. 1 Peter 1:3-9 ‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.’

By faith we see the hand of God

In the light of creation’s grand design

In the lives of those who prove His faithfulness

Who walk by faith and not by sight

By faith our fathers roamed the earth

With the power of His promise in their hearts

Of a holy city built by God’s own hand

A place where peace and justice reign

We will stand as children of the promise

We will fix our eyes on Him our soul’s reward

Till the race is finished and the work is done

We’ll walk by faith and not by sight

By faith the prophets saw a day

When the longed-for Messiah would appear

With the power to break the chains of sin and death

And rise triumphant from the grave

By faith the church was called to go

In the power of the Spirit to the lost

To deliver captives and to preach good news

In every corner of the earth

We will stand…

By faith this mountain shall be moved

And the power of the gospel shall prevail

For we know in Christ all things are possible

For all who call upon His name

Keith and Kystyn Getty  CCLI788682