Living The Faith

Destiny Part Three

What is meant by living the faith? This is different than living by faith.

Living by faith is trusting God to provide all things needed
- The righteous live by faith
- That is, faith in Christ Jesus for salvation and eternal life
- We are made righteous in Christ

Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.”

Galatians 3:11 ESV

Living the faith is to live life in such a way that people see and recognize that following Christ is the priority of one’s life
- People of the Way – as referred to in bible times
  - Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6)
- Christians loving one another

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love

for one another.”

John 13:34-35 ESV

Because of His love for us, God sent His Son to restore us to a proper, loving relationship with Himself. The picture we need to keep in mind is that of God meeting with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden in the cool of the day. We need to learn to walk with God and communicate with Him.

Walking with God

Walking with God is to live life in agreement with God. To do so, we must renew our mind to think as God thinks about a matter. We must transform our thought processes from a focus on selfish desires to a focus on loving one another.

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.

Romans 12:2 ESV

The renewal of our mind, or the change in our thinking, will enable us to discern, or have understanding of, what the will of God is.

What is the will of God? This is a question more often asked about a specific item, such as, a job or career, a place to live, ministry to do, etc. Scripture is filled with passages telling us parts of the will of God. This is where we need to start. This will enable us to walk with God in a few ways, including:

Walking out the good works
- The good works God prepared for us to do (Ephesians 2:10)
Walking out what is written in the books
- In heaven and in Scripture
  - We have the Scripture now, and if we ignore it, why would God share what is in the other books with us?

Walking out what we hear from, and see in, God
- Through Scripture
- Through revelation

As Paula Shaughnessy covered thoroughly in a previous episode, #26, “Purpose, Calling, Destiny”, we read what Paul the apostle wrote.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV

Are we doing these three things? Paul directly tells us that this is the will of God for us. Additionally, these three practices will take us into a deeper relationship with God, which I believe, is the true purpose of our having been created.

Walking in Good Works

We are relatively self-centered
- From the minute we wake up each day, it’s me
  - What am I going to do today?
  - Where do I need to go today?
  - How am I going to spend my time?
    - Whose time? – a gift from God
  - When will we wake up thinking of serving others?
    - Not my job is the wrong thinking

Seeing time as another resource God supplies
- You are not your own
  - Neither is time yours

Even the good works we do are prepared by God
Spirit led, or in the flesh?
- Good works – does it matter?
  - Maybe in a corporate setting there is a reason to say no to doing a good work
    - Perhaps someone else is supposed to step up in faith
  - In a private setting we are to do good as we see the opportunity
    - Waiting to be told to do the good work can be a cop out

So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

James 4:17 ESV

We have some personal accountability here
There are times we just know what the right thing to do is
- We must do it, or it is sin to us (sin of omission)

I used to think that I was the first believer, one not relying on religion, in my family, and I often wondered why. Then in some family research I discovered that my great-grandfather was a preacher in a few small churches every Sunday. Now I wonder if my salvation and ministry is a result of his prayers. Is my destiny intertwined in some way as a part of his?

Living the faith as best I can
- But really?
- One destiny
Fulfilling the works prepared for me
- Another destiny
Great grandfather was a preacher
- Someone then praying me into the kingdom?
- Fulfilling a part of his destiny?
  - Are destinies intertwined?

Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who

works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

Philippians 2:12-13 ESV

The Journey

This live is a journey that includes learning, experiencing, and testing. It is a growth process to bring us to maturity in Christ.

For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality;

1 Thessalonians 4:3 ESV

Paul was instructing the people that they were not to live in the same manner as the culture in which they had been living. They were now being called to holiness, a lifestyle of the followers of Christ Jesus. Life then, and maybe more so now, seems to fulfill the prophetic tone of a verse in Isaiah.

Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!

Isaiah 5:20 ESV

We certainly seem to live in such a day where this is happening. We live in a culture where moral relativism has replaced the absolutes of right and wrong, of good and evil. Immoral practices are commonplace and those who participate in such practices have gone from the cover of darkness, to requiring tolerance, and now demanding acceptance and approval of their activities. Followers of Christ are not to act in such a way nor condone such activities which are sin in the eyes of God.

Whereas the activities are sinful, there is hope for those who participate. Christ Jesus went to the cross for the sin of all, and for the forgiveness of those who repent, those who change their ways of acting and thinking. In fact Paul reminds us that we were among such people before we surrendered to Christ at the cross.

And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

1 Corinthians 6:11 ESV

So we can bring no condemnation upon others, for it is the evil that is detested by God, but His love reaches out to all people, as it did to us, with the offer of salvation with forgiveness through the work of Jesus on the cross. Our love also ought to reach out to the people with compassion.

Sanctification (Holiness)
- Strong’s #38: consecration, sanctification
  - The process of making or becoming holy, set apart
- This is a process over the course of our life
  - enabling us to mature in the faith
  - growing in intimacy in our relationship with God
- Set apart unto God
  - Living differently than the world and culture calls us to
  - Living according to the ways of God
    - According to the will of God

Justification
- Strong’s #1347
  - The act of pronouncing righteous, acquittal
  - Acquittal, a process of absolution
- This is at a point in time of our forgiveness
  - Salvation – saved from the penalty of sin
  - Adoption – given the right to become a child of God
- Covered by the blood sacrifice of Christ Jesus
  - He redeemed us, or bought us back for God
    - He paid the price that we could not pay
  - His love changed the trajectory of our eternal destination

At the point of our surrender, our decision to turn to Jesus as our Savior, we are justified, that is, we are seen by God as innocent and free from the penalty of sin. We are justified, covered by the righteousness of Christ. This happens at a point in time.

Sanctification takes place over the remainder of our life as we mature, and God works out actual righteousness in our lives. It is the ongoing maturing in the faith as we are set apart to God, and as we walk with God in a growing, deepening relationship.

It is good and necessary to spend time in Scripture, prayer, and worship to discover the will of God. It is essential to our walk with God. As we saw in Romans 12:2, we need to discern what the will of God is. Doing the will of God, like loving one another, identifies as being with Christ Jesus.

“For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”

Mark 3:35 ESV

Another benefit of the will of God is that it is for our sake, our well-being. Holy Spirit acts on our behalf according to the will of God.

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And He who

searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

Romans 8:26-27 ESV

Couple that with Jesus, interceding for us and we have two-thirds of the Godhead interceding for us to the one who loves us and has our welfare at heart. That puts the whole of the Godhead in our corner with us.

Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died – more than that, who was raised – who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

Romans 8:34 ESV

The same Christ Jesus who has been given all power by the Father and will one day sit in judgment over all creation. Why wouldn’t we want to be in fellowship with Him? Referring to Jesus …

For He whom God has sent utters the words of God, for He gives the Spirit without measure. The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand.

John 3:34-35 ESV

Who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to Him.

1 Peter 3:22 ESV

Part of the will of God is that we recognize Christ and not be deceived by the things of this world, including a religious spirit, which leads to idolatry.

See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in Him

the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in Him, who is head of all rule and authority.

Colossians 2:8-10 ESV

And Christ Jesus is the one who grants eternal life to those who know Him, love Him, and serve Him in obedience in love.

When Jesus had spoken these words, He lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify You, since You have given Him authority over

all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom You have given Him. And this is eternal life, that they know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

John 17:1-3 ESV

And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

1 John 2:17 ESV

And as we saw in Jesus, the will of God must be sincerely lived from the heart.

Not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart,

Ephesians 6:6 ESV

The will of God is to do good, and in doing so we cannot be condemned by anyone, and will be given eternal life in Christ Jesus.

For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.

1 Peter 2:15 ESV

We should always be doing that which glorifies God and causes others to turn to him and worship Him.

“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,