faith

Living by Faith

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6So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, 7for we walk by faith, not by sight. 8Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. 10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. 2 Corinthians 5:6-10

Yesterday a student shared how she just could not imagine living without sight, without the joy and pleasure of colours. I agree. Yet, the life of following Jesus is to follow One whom we have not seen. Can you imagine following someone you have not seen?

Living by faith is the way of the Christian. It is rooted in our relationship with God who is unseen. Paul describes the courage, the heart and passion, that is generated by the promise of our eternal life with God guaranteed by the Holy Spirit who is with us now. There is a certain tentativeness that accompanies walking in the dark or blindfolded. But Paul wants the followers of Jesus to develop an ease with the ways of faith.

Though we may yearn for the day when our faith becomes sight, we live now with a desire to please God. Living by faith then is occupied with the intent to please God because of the certainty of God’s graceful acceptance of us in Christ. Now we can live “at home” with Him, as indeed we will be “at home” with Him.

Suffering, Injustice, and Faith

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“John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’”  Luke 7:18-19

John the Baptist had a crisis of belief.

Faith always has an object, a “who.” Who is your faith in?

Arrested for speaking critically about Herod’s relationships, John sat in prison and had time to wonder. He wondered, “Is Jesus really the one?”

I would have wondered, “Are you the one who is going to rescue me?”

Jesus sent the two disciples back with this message, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good new preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”  (Luke 7:22-23)

Not a technical or a theoretical answer. Yet for the ear trained by the Scripture there would be echoes of the prophets.  (See Luke 4:16-21)

The Messiah had come. Jesus is The One.

Suffering can create intense self-awareness. Suffering can bend faith away from the One who loves us and for whom we were made. Jesus did not think less of John for this crisis of belief. In fact, Jesus went on to affirm John and to call him one of the greatest persons ever born. (Luke 7:28) Jesus called John to consider the Scripture and the evidence. Implicit in Jesus’ words is the call to remain full of faith even through the trials.

Faith ~ Key Verses — GLORIFYTHELORD

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“And it is impossible to please God without faith.  Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.  Hebrews 11:6  NLT

I had a friend who would ask, “Do you believe God?’’ Her simple question pushed deep into my relationship with God.  Faith matters to God.  It is the way we enter into our relationship with Him.  To trust Him, to believe Him, to adjust my life accordingly, are all responses to His love shown to us through Jesus Christ.

Do you believe God?

“And it is impossible to please God without faith.  Anyone who wants to come to him just believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”  Hebrews 11:6

Body Faith

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Its tempting to carve up our lives into little compartments

such that we separate what we do with our bodies

from our faith.  God wants us to see the connection:

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, 

to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—

this is your true and proper worship.” Romans 12:1

In response to the Gospel of Jesus offer your body to God.

Offer your body as a living sacrifice.

Obvious:

Your body is the only vehicle you have for serving Him.

Yet we too often disconnect what we are doing in our body from our faith.

Two implications:

  1. Sin enslaves the body to act according to desires that are contrary to the way of God; but the Gospel frees us to progressively choose and act in keeping with the royal law of love.  Jesus has made us and is making us holy and pleasing to God.
  2. Worship is not confined to a specific hour or place; worship is what we do when we are continually offering what we are doing to God — at work, in relationships, at home.

For a good start of the day develop a spiritual exercise out of Romans 12:1:

Reflect on the extraordinary love of God shown us in the cross of Jesus.

Then in view of God’s mercy offer each part of your body to God:  My head — its yours; may my thoughts honour you.  My eyes — they are yours, may I see the world as you see.  My ears — they are yours, may I have your grace to listen to people and hear what you are doing in their lives.  My mouth…  My hands…”

To believe

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Yesterday there was a full house at the Norm Theater to hear Dr. William Lane Craig address the topic — Are we a cosmic accident?  Does a fine-tuned universe point to a cosmic designer?

Fine-tuning is a construct that reflects on scientific data that demonstrate that the margin of change allowable in the “laws of nature” for the existence of life are very, very small.  Dr. Craig argues that fine-tuning and the existence of life is best explained by “cosmic designer” rather than “chance.”

The talk was engaging but I was particularly impressed by the question period afterwards.  I was delighted to hear Dr. Craig share his own journey into faith in Jesus Christ.  I was reminded 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.

To believe and experience that the creator of the universe loves us is immense.

This  reality crashing into our consciousness changes everything.

Faith animated by the Gospel moves us out of despair and emptiness and into wonder and openness and possibility.

Psalm 8:1-4

1O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the heavens.

2Out of the mouth of babies and infants,

you have established strength because of your foes,

to still the enemy and the avenger.

3When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,

4what is man that you are mindful of him,

and the son of man that you care for him?