Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Commentary On Faith Conclusion - Classic Faith

Commentary On Faith

Conclusion: Classic Faith

gtcotr/ws083006

Perhaps more than having faith is what we do with it.

How it affects our ordinary every day life.

Make no mistake, People are seldom willing to die for something which they are unwilling to live for.

Key Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. (NKJV)

Lasting faith may have more to do with commitment than it does with mere conviction.

Can I interest you in some bible trivia?

In the King James version of the Bible, the word faith is found only two (2) times in the Old Testament. Once in Deuteronomy about people who have no faith and once in Habakkuk about the just living by their faith.

In the New Testament the word faith is found a total of 229 times.

Matthew 12 Galatians 20 Philemon 2

Mark 5 Ephesians 8 Hebrews 31

Luke 12 Philippians 4 James 12

John 0 Colossians 5 1-2 Peter 7

Acts 14 1-2 The 12 1-3 John 1

Romans 34 1-2 Tim 26 Jude 2

1-2 Cor 13 Titus 5 Revelation 4

In all of this I find it most interesting that in the Gospel of John, perhaps the most evangelistically used book of scriptures in the whole bible, the word faith is never found, not even once. When searched for, the closest derivative of that word found in the book of John is the word ‘faithless’, and this word is only found once. (John 20:27)

Yet John’s Gospel demonstrates great faith. This faith we see in the Gospel of John is not necessarily a mere admission of a conviction but rather lifestyle, a habit of acting out our convictions in daily living.

While studying and considering why John had not chosen to use the same aggressive, take it to the limits, swear to my own hurt and not be denied approach to teaching faith, I found the answer. Again, I saw John more interested in the ordinary every day lifestyle of a Christian more than the spectacular, extraordinary moments some of us face from time to time.

Perhaps the one scripture he knew about faith in the bible of his day told him that the just would life by their faith. (Habakkuk 2:4) Maybe this is why the only time he mentions the subject in his gospel was to show a rebuke to Thomas because Thomas had to have a spectacular demonstration before he would believe. John called this ‘faithless’. The implication is that if you have to be shown or have proof beforehand, one cannot call it faith.

John’s approach to life was not one of always being in need of a miracle, but rather the doctrine of abundant life, a life in no need of a miracle. How did John teach this? He used a different word.

The Greek word most translated ‘Faith’ in the bible is the word: Pistis

Faith - Greek Word: Pistis = Conviction of the Truth

John never used this word in his gospel. Rather he chose an outcropping of this word - a derivative - the Greek word: Pisteuo

While Pistis means to have a conviction of the truth,

Pisteuo means to have a commitment to the truth

Greek Word: Pisteuo = Commitment to the Truth

There is a difference.

For other writers of the New Testament it was a strong desire to have us trust God. For John, it was his strong desire that we try him.

John’s choice of Pisteuo instead of Pistis, is translated in his gospel as the variations of the word believe.

To believe: In the Old English of the King James Bible days, the word believe is the opposite of the word belie. Belie means to live a lie; to not be what you are.

The word believe means to live what you be: Be-live, if you will.

John, although he did not use the word faith not even once, he did use the word believe 86 times.

Lets look at some of these while we have the time. Perhaps more than having faith is what we do with it.

Maybe we should be questioning ourselves and others not as to what they believe, but rather what they are doing about it.

One of my favorite uses of this word is the scripture found in a key evangelistic verse - perhaps the greatest evangelistic verse in the whole bible.

John 3:16 "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.

More than just whoever is convicted of the truth about Jesus, but whoever commits himself to that truth is saved.

This is more in line with the whole counsel of the word of God concerning the doctrine of salvation.

First one is convicted of truth but conversion takes place when a commitment is made by an act of the will and not just by a revelation of the mind.

Even the demons are convinced there is a God however they are not committed to Him. There is a difference!

This carries on through out life and discipleship as we see in:

John 14 NKJV

12 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.

13 "And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

14 "If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.

This belief spoken of by John is more than a conviction, it is a commitment.

In conclusion of our Commentary On Faith series, suffice it to say that we have not at all exhausted what the whole bible has to say on this simple subject.

Simple, you say! Yes simple.

Trusting in and committing to God through His revealed Son, Jesus, is the most simple and at the same time the most powerful decision any person can ever make.

Have you trusted God with your life, family and future?

Are you committed to Him, His Word, Will and Way, above all else?

Like the Apostle Paul, we should all have as our goal to:

Fight a good fight;

Finish our race;

Keep the faith!

Sunday, August 27, 2006

It Takes Time

It Takes Time

gtcotr/ss082706

Text for Today: Psalms 103 (NKJV)

6 ¶ The LORD executes righteousness And justice for all who are oppressed.

7 He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel.

8 The LORD is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.

9 He will not always strive with us, Nor will He keep His anger forever.

10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities.

11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;

12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

13 As a father pities his children, So the LORD pities those who fear Him.

14 For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.

I have two sermons this morning. Allow me to share another verse from Psalms 103 and dispense with the first sermon before continuing on with this particular passage.

The verse I would like to add and comment on is the first verse of Psalms 3.

Psalms 3:1 Bless the LORD, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name!

This Psalm of David written late in life holds truths to the secret relationship the King must have had with his creator and friend. What made David special in God’s eyes? What gave David the edge above others of his day? Let’s look at this one particular verse and see.

Notice who David is speaking to: Himself!

It is said that men may talk to men and men may even venture to talk to God, but rarely do men talk to themselves! Here I am talking about deep, spirit-level conversations.

In the same vein, men may know others, men may even know God, but do you really know yourself?

How long has it been, if ever, since you sat down alone in a quiet place and had a long, meaningful conversation with yourself.

Take the time this week. (It Takes Time) And, everybody else - be sensitive to others to let them have some unencumbered personal time … they may need it. You’ll be glad you did!

Now for the second sermon. (If church is a place we hear from God, we …)

Our Key Scripture: (for the second sermon) Psalms 103:7 He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the children of Israel.

Interesting here to note that in the Old Testament God revealed Himself differently to Moses than He did to the whole nation of Israel.

Why did God show Moses His ways while Israel only knew His acts?

It is most commonly understood that God did not make this choice Himself but rather left it up to each individual. It so happened in this case that Moses had a habit of drawing near to God while others seemed more comfortable with some distance between them and their creator.

We can see this acted out in the story of Exodus 20. God showed up in a rather spooky and spiritual way … He wanted to speak ---

Exodus 20:21 So the people stood afar off, but Moses drew near the thick darkness where God was. (NKJV)

This is the same trait observed in Moses’ life earlier, when he first encountered the burning bush in Exodus 3.

Exodus 3

3 Then Moses said, "I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn."

4 So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am." (NKJV)

Perhaps this turning aside, giving time (remember: It Takes Time) and attention, drawing near to God habit Moses had, was what separated him from the others of his day. At any rate, the results were astounding.

Moses knew Gods ways

The Children, Israel, knew only Gods acts

Moses knew what God wanted to do

Israel knew only what God had done

Moses knew where God wanted them to go

Israel only knew where they had been

Moses knew what God wanted them to have

Israel only knew what they had experienced

Moses saw the future

Israel saw the past

Moses was certain of victory

Israel was afraid of defeat

What do we know? God’s ways or only His acts?

What perspective do we have today? Well, I guess it depends on each of us and our pursuit of relationship with God. It is the direct result of our priorities - It Takes Time to value and grow anything.

Hosea 6:3 Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD … * Pursuit is required in any relationship - again - I - T - T

* God reaches out every day from heaven - we must reach back!

If we will spend time with God, we will trust Him more. Along with that, just like Moses, we too will come to know God’s ways:

* What He wants me to do

* Where He wants me to go

* His plan for my future

How does a person begin a relationship with God?

It Takes Time:

1. Prayer Time - keeps us clean and connected

2. Bible Time - teaches us God’s Word, Will and Way

3. Church Time - it’s God’s family

Where do you spend your time?

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

A Commentary On Faith Continued: Good Deeds Please God

Commentary On Faith

Continued: Good Deeds Please God

gtcotr/ws082306

Key Scripture: Hebrews 11:6 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. (NKJV)

For centuries people have argued the doctrines of faith and works as though they were two separate issues. This, I believe, is where many bible scholars make their mistake.

You see, there is an inseparable link between faith and good works.

What do faith and good deeds have in common?

For decades now I have been preaching that while grace may get you into heaven, works decides the seating arrangement.

However, to get a more biblical understanding of faith and works, lets look at:

Ephesians 2 (KJV)

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

I really like the way that the New Living Translation reads here:

Ephesians 2 (NLT)

8 God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.

9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

God does not save us because we did good things but rather so that we can do good things.

Works alone won’t save a person. We must have a Savior and then we should live a life dedicated to fulfilling His will.

It’s not about what you do, but who you are doing it for.

Our key scripture, Hebrews 11:6, talks about the impossibility of pleasing God without faith. This verse is followed up by verse 7 which describes the action faith requires:

Hebrews 11 (NKJV)

7 By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.

9 By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise;

10 for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

v.7 By faith Noah prepared

v.8 By faith Abraham obeyed

v.9 By faith he dwelt

v.10 By faith he waited

All of these give firm reference to the fact that faith required action.

In order to get a better handle on this doctrine, lets simply let the word of God speak for itself as we pick up where we left off last time in James 2. Actually, lets back up to the last two verses of Chapter 1, just because I like the way they read.

Please don’t check out on me here … I could never be a better preacher than James, the half brother of Jesus who was also the recognized pastor of the first church in Jerusalem.

Imagine each Sunday Peter, John, Andrew, Phillip, Steven, Mary, Martha, Mary the mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Joseph of Arimathea, Nicodemas, and many, many others, listened to James preach his messages from the fresh inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

Let’s listen to him now as he is already in the middle of his sermon. I don’t expect we will get finished with this tonight, but you can continue later yourself. This message will change your life!

Remember we are talking about our good deeds being a key to pleasing God.

James 1 (NLT)

26 If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are just fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.

27 Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles, and refuse to let the world corrupt us.

James 2

1 ¶ My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim that you have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people more than others?

2 For instance, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in shabby clothes.

3 If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, "You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor"—well,

4 doesn’t this discrimination show that you are guided by wrong motives?

5 Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him?

6 And yet, you insult the poor man! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court?

7 Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear?

8 ¶ Yes indeed, it is good when you truly obey our Lord’s royal command found in the Scriptures: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

9 But if you pay special attention to the rich, you are committing a sin, for you are guilty of breaking that law.

10 And the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as the person who has broken all of God’s laws.

11 For the same God who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." So if you murder someone, you have broken the entire law, even if you do not commit adultery.

12 So whenever you speak, or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law of love, the law that set you free.

13 For there will be no mercy for you if you have not been merciful to others. But if you have been merciful, then God’s mercy toward you will win out over his judgment against you.

14 ¶ Dear brothers and sisters, what’s the use of saying you have faith if you don’t prove it by your actions? That kind of faith can’t save anyone.

15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing,

16 and you say, "Well, good-bye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well"—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?

17 So you see, it isn’t enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all—it is dead and useless.

18 Now someone may argue, "Some people have faith; others have good deeds." I say, "I can’t see your faith if you don’t have good deeds, but I will show you my faith through my good deeds."

19 Do you still think it’s enough just to believe that there is one God? Well, even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror!

20 Fool! When will you ever learn that faith that does not result in good deeds is useless?

21 Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was declared right with God because of what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar?

22 You see, he was trusting God so much that he was willing to do whatever God told him to do. His faith was made complete by what he did—by his actions.

We all ought to stop here a moment and think about our own lives. Faith puts demands on our life to trust God so much that we are willing to do whatever He says. If He says love, forgive, submit, give, go, tell, whatever --- then we trust that He knows more about it than we do and He knows best.

It is easy to obey when we trust.

23 And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: "Abraham believed God, so God declared him to be righteous." He was even called "the friend of God."

24 So you see, we are made right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.

25 Rahab the prostitute is another example of this. She was made right with God by her actions—when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road.

26 Just as the body is dead without a spirit, so also faith is dead without good deeds.

James 3

1 ¶ Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged by God with greater strictness.

2 We all make many mistakes, but those who control their tongues can also control themselves in every other way.

3 We can make a large horse turn around and go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth.

4 And a tiny rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot wants it to go, even though the winds are strong.

5 So also, the tongue is a small thing, but what enormous damage it can do. A tiny spark can set a great forest on fire.

6 And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is full of wickedness that can ruin your whole life. It can turn the entire course of your life into a blazing flame of destruction, for it is set on fire by hell itself.

7 People can tame all kinds of animals and birds and reptiles and fish,

8 but no one can tame the tongue. It is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison.

9 Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it breaks out into curses against those who have been made in the image of God.

10 And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right!

11 Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water?

12 Can you pick olives from a fig tree or figs from a grapevine? No, and you can’t draw fresh water from a salty pool.

13 ¶ If you are wise and understand God’s ways, live a life of steady goodness so that only good deeds will pour forth. And if you don’t brag about the good you do, then you will be truly wise!

14 But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your hearts, don’t brag about being wise. That is the worst kind of lie.

15 For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and motivated by the Devil.

16 For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and every kind of evil.

17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no partiality and is always sincere.

18 And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of goodness.

Good deeds done for God please Him like nothing else!

Sunday, August 20, 2006

The First Message

The First Message

CCOTR/ss082006

When the Apostle John wanted to introduce Jesus to us, he did not take us back to Abraham, Noah or Adam as did Matthew, neither did he take us back to the miracles as did Mark nor back to His birth as did Luke. Rather John, the one closest to Jesus, the one who leaned upon Jesus’ breast at the last supper, the one who was given charge of Jesus’ mother, Mary, at the crucifixion, John, the Apostle who outlived them all said this:

Key Scripture: John 1:1 ¶ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (NKJV)

John took us back to the very beginning. He continued:

John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Why did the Jesus come to us in human form?

John 1:18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

* God’s Word was with Him in the beginning.

* The Word was clothed in humanity.

* The Living Word shows us the Father.

Moses, like John, was also given the privilege of introducing someone to all mankind. Inspired by the same Holy Spirit who would one day guide the Apostle John, Moses, in his introduction of God, goes all the way back, past the Red Sea, past the burning bush, past the Nile River, back past Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, back past Noah and Enoch, all the way back to the beginning as well.

Since we can go no farther this morning, allow me to take us back to The First Message, back to the beginning, and let’s see if we can find out anything about God today.

This same Holy Spirit Who inspired Moses and John, will no doubt inspire us right here, right now, as we give ourselves over to His expert guidance.

After all, teaching us is one of the Holy Spirit’s main duties.

John 16:13 "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. (NKJV)

Ok, are you ready, let’s go to the beginning of the book of beginnings, Genesis, Chapter 1.

Genesis 1 (NKJV)

1 ¶ In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

What can we learn from this?

* God is the One ultimately responsible for all that we see and know

* God is a creator - a forward thinker - not a stagnant God - but One Who has plans for the future - not lazy or apathetic - a doer - active - involved - willing to start something new - accepting of a challenge - unafraid to begin - God is a creator, Who can make nothing into something.

Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. (NKJV)

Perhaps if we want to be more like God, we should consider how He is and work on ourselves in these areas.

2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

Now I don’t know when the beginning was or what was before the beginning however, the beginning is as far back as we can go.

It’s hard for me to imagine that God originally created the heavens and the earth in such chaos. Some think that there was a long, as yet undisclosed period of time between Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2, called the pre-Adamic age, wherein the earth fell into chaos.

I don’t know. For one thing I am just not that smart, for another thing I don’t have to have an answer for all the questions of the universe. Perhaps the biggest reason I haven’t studied or considered it more is because I am still trying to get a handle on all of the things that I do know for sure, things which the bible does address.

Anyway, if I did study it out to some personal conclusion, all I would be left with was unsubstantiated theory. Why bother, in my mind, when I have so many documented facts to work with already.

So: Verse 2:

2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

* God had a dream - the heavens and the earth.

* God was not experiencing His dream - (chaos was not His dream)

* God did not become reactionary to the chaos and just go off on a rage, or in fear, or in depression or denial, hastily changing stuff

* God meditated and deeply considered what He wanted.

* God allowed a plan to develop in His mind so He could act responsibly instead of reacting irresponsibly.

1. Consider what you want

2. Consider if what you are doing is getting you what you want

3. Consider what will achieve the results you want

4. Do something about it

* hover - Used only 3 times in the bible. Once in Deuteronomy 32:11 in respect to an eagle settling over her young, taking them in under her wings; once in Jeremiah 23:9, speaking of the relaxed and limp state of a drunk man’s body; and then here in Genesis 1:2.

> to grow soft; relax; brood as a hen on a nest of eggs; settle down over; ruffle up and sit on or stretch over, rest upon

> incubate; meditate; consider; relax and ponder with purpose.

God created the heavens and the earth and then, at some point, found them in need of change.

Here is God’s process to get Him from where He is to the future He wants.

1. Inspiration

2. Observation & Consideration

3. Declaration

1. Decide what you want

2. Decide how to get it

3. Decide to start now

verse 3:

3 ¶ Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light.

* God made a declaration

* This is where ownership takes place

* This is the first official action - adding works to faith

* This is where commitment is born - the starting bell

* Like the Declaration of Independence

The founding fathers of the United States were men who were not just rebels in a hostile reaction to the chaos of their day. They were men who had an inspired dream, observed and considered what it would take to make that dream a reality, and then after they had their plans all thought out and had counted the costs, the time was ripe, they made their declaration of that dream and the rest is history.

So, today we can leave here with the understanding that:

* God has a dream of a better future

* God has plans for that future

* God is verbally committed to the dream

Now, I encourage us all to be more like God:

* Dream the dreams of God

* Think, don’t react - meditate and develop a plan

* Commit - declare

Job 22:28 You will also declare a thing, And it will be established for you; So light will shine on your ways.

An inspired declaration shines it’s own light on the pathway of life.

If you want a fourth step: Verse 4 continues to reveal the process:

4 And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness.

* God inspected and kept tabs on the progress and tweaked it as necessary all along the way.

* We must also stay tuned into and take advantage of every opportunity to make the dream God has for us become a solid reality.

1. Decide what you want

2. Find out how to get it

3. Commit to the future

4. Keep track of the progress

This is the first thing God reveals to us about Himself

* How He did planet earth and the heavens.

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

A Commentary On Faith Continued: How Faith Works

Commentary On Faith

Continued: How Faith Works

gtcotr/ws081606

Faith comes in many sizes and strengths:

* No Faith

Deuteronomy 32:20 And he said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their end shall be: for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith.

* Little Faith

Matthew 8:26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.

* Great Faith

Luke 7:9 When Jesus heard these things, he marvelled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.

Three Ways Faith Works

1. Galatians 5:6 Faith works by love

This speaks to the necessity of a proper motivation.

2. Faith works through our agreement

Philemon 6 That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

(Note: This is one of those scriptures which needs to be studied to understand the full application of its truth: I believe that several translations do not strongly represent its core meaning.)

Faith works, (becomes effective), by acknowledging every good thing which is already in you in Christ.

Colossians 1:27 Christ in you, the hope of glory

2 Corinthians 1

KJV

20 For all the promises of God in Him are yea, and in Him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.

NIV

19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by me and Silas and Timothy, was not "Yes" and "No", but in him it has always been "Yes."

20 For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the "Amen" is spoken by us to the glory of God.

21 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us,

22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.

* God and all His promises are in Christ for sure.

* Christ is in you.

* Therefore: God and all of His promises are in you.

Philemon 6 That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

* This scripture details the power of right thinking.

* The man who had been given the one talent in Matthew 25:24, thought that God was a hard and unfair Master he received what he believed.

So:

1. Faith works by love (by pure and unselfish motivation)

2. Faith works by agreement (knowing & agreeing with God)

3. Faith works by application (as we work it and work on it)

James 2 KJV

20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?

21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?

22 Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?

23 And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.

24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.

25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?

26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

Next Week’s Conclusion (hopefully): Recap of Faith