Instruct the wise, and they will be even wiser
Faith receives that which grace supplies and faith in Christ always honours God. When God speaks and you dare to believe him, he rejoices to bring his word to pass. It honours God that we believe in him even when every sense contradicts him. As new creations in Christ, our faith journey leads us to a profound experience of God’s love, a deeper understanding of His character, and more revelation of His blessings and miracles. The longer we walk with Him, the more evident these become. God is calling you to a deeper level of faith in him. He wants you to believe in His love and goodness towards you. So, start making decisions that honour God. In this article, you will learn about desiring to live for God’s honour through the expression of your faith.
God wants us to walk by faith. God likes this method of relating to Him. He invented this method for us. He operates this way himself and he loves to interact with us by faith. The Bible says ‘for we walk by faith, not by sight.’ This concept of a walk, in scripture, is symbolic of a lifestyle. A walk is progressing through life. We read in the book of Genesis that Enoch walked with God, and we are encouraged in the New Testament to walk in the light as he is in the light. So, the walk has to do with life here in this world, and walking by faith is what honours God. Walking by faith is a simple principle that is very difficult to do. Most of us are more dominated by our sense of sight than we are by our faith, and therein lies our basic problem. When we renew ourselves to the point that faith dominates sight, then miracles happen.
The Christian life is to be regulated and conducted by faith, as opposed to the external and outward appearances of physical sight. There is a sense in which sight is involved, but it is the spiritual seeing of faith rather than seeing with the physical eye. We may not like faith, but God wants us to operate in faith because faith honours Him. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”. The object of all true faith is God Himself, and not having faith in one’s faith. Faith must always go back to the promise of God and the God behind that promise. Faith carries the idea of being certain and assured of the reality of what is believed (Hebrews 11:1).
We walk by faith, not by sight, and these two principles of life of course are contrary one to another: Faith and sight. Faith is believing God as being God as he’s revealed himself to us. Faith is responding positively to God’s promises. A particular promise of His Word must be seen, heard, understood, and believed in the heart (Matthew 13:15, 23; Romans 10:8, 10) so that it may be acted upon and bear fruit. Faith is believing God’s word. Sight on the other hand is when we go by what we see even though God says something very different. So, these two principles of life are in opposition to one another. The big question is of course, which principle are we following? Do we walk by faith, or do we walk by sight? Even though sight says something completely contrary to what we’re given to believe, many of us don’t like to walk in faith.
Humans prefer written records in a natural world context. We’d rather have substance. It’s all about seeing is believing. You don’t want your manager to pay you by faith. Employers don’t want their employees to show up by faith. They want them there in person. When you go to the bank, they don’t loan you money by faith. They want security, insurance, and guarantee. So, we don’t operate that way on the human level. But when you begin to relate to God, everything you do with God is by faith. He’s invisible, you can’t see him, you can’t touch him. And so, when you pray, you pray in faith. When you get saved, you get saved by faith. When you believe God for his blessings and his promises, you do it by faith.
" The Christian life is to be regulated and conducted by faith, as opposed to the external and outward appearances of physical sight. "
Hebrews 11:6 says without faith it’s impossible to please God. I love that because I want to please God and I hope so do you. I’m glad he rewards those who please him by seeking him in faith. “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). He answers the prayers of those who please him. “And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight” (1 John 3:22). So, in this life who do you want to please the most? As for me, I want to please God and I hope you want to please God too.
Faith is something everyone can do, so God has his kingdom set up this way so that we interact with him by faith. In God’s kingdom, you get what you believe for, and we receive by faith. In fact, you don’t even get what he’s paid for, you get what you believe for. So, grace makes everything provided by God available to us with no limit, but each Christian or each person on earth receives as much of God’s grace as he or she believes for. You don’t get what you deserve in God’s kingdom, you get what you believe for. For example, salvation is available to everybody through Christ, but only those who believe in him are saved. “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name” (John 1:12). “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Many Christians in some denominations believe in salvation. They preach it, they promote it, they have altar calls, and get people saved because they believe in salvation. They get converts who believe to be saved, but they don’t believe in the other gifts of the Spirit. They believe the day of miracles has passed. They don’t believe in the baptism of the Holy Spirit. They don’t believe that’s for today and so they will never have that. But most Christians in other denominations have been Spirit-filled. We believe in these things. We accept that they are for today and we’re walking in them. This is not because we deserve them or because God loves us more than he loves others. It’s simply because we believe they are for today.
Some Christians have been taught against a lot of things and have developed so much resistance to the good things that God has for them. Only faith in God’s word will enable them to overcome wrong teachings. They are told that healing has passed away, God doesn’t do miracles today, or speaking in tongues is not for today. People who grew up in churches hearing these things have to overcome them. I was fortunate growing up as a Christian, I didn’t have much of that teaching and so as I got Spirit-filled, I just embraced the true gospel. I was so glad to find out that healing was for today. That God is still the God of miracles. That the gifts of the Spirit are in operation and so there is so much more to enjoy and to receive from God. But all this will only come to you if you do not doubt.
The Bible says doubters are double-minded and they will receive nothing from God. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways” (James 1:5-8).
Colossians 2 says as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord so walk in him. “6 As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:6-7). How did you receive Christ Jesus? By faith, so continue to walk by faith. Faith pleases God. Remember that without faith it’s impossible to please God. Therefore, we walk by faith and not by sight. How do you get faith? The answer is in Romans 10:17 which says: “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”.
