Faith That Works

A short but very significant phrase occurs at the beginning and the end of Romans.  That phrase is “the obedience of faith.”  The meaning of the phrase is this: obedience is faith and faith is obedience.  You can’t have faith unless you are walking out your faith in obedience, and you can’t have obedience unless you’ve first been given the gift of faith in salvation.

Pretty well all of the important doctrines of the New Testament appear in Romans, so for this phrase to book-end the letter means we need to pay attention to it.

We’ve suffered in the body of Christ from various misinterpretations and misunderstandings of faith.  I try to cover this in a chapter of my book “No Diving.”  But suffice to say, one of the most lethal misunderstandings is that merely by summoning up a quantity of mental belief we can speak things into being and cause things to happen.  Or that our mental belief somehow obligates God to do what we want.

When that doesn’t happen, because none of us can manipulate God — and who would want to worship a God who could be manipulated? — people get disillusioned and walk away from faith and from God.  The problem, of course is that they got disillusioned by believing an illusion to begin with.

Yes, Jesus did say whatever you believed in faith you would receive.  But the context in Mark 11 shows he was talking about what you believe that’s already in alignment with the will of God.

But let’s go back to the obedience of faith.  You won’t get far by just sitting back in your armchair and summoning God to give you what you want.  Maybe you need to take some steps of kingdom obedience.  Ask at church what needs doing.  Look around at your place of employment, college or neighborhood, and ask what God would have you do.  Look for people who need help and reach out to them.  And then go back to your prayer room and see what God does.

I don’t have any formula to offer for how to get your prayers answered other than do everything you can to line your life up with his Word and then spend regular time with the Lord.  And when you do, make sure not just to talk but also to listen.  You might be surprised by what he says and then what he does.

The bottom line is always this.  God will never fail those who truly call on him.

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CONSIDER PARTNERING WITH DAVID & ELAINE CAMPBELL IN HELPING TO SUSTAIN THEIR ACTIVE MINISTRY.

Changing Your Perspective May Change Your Life

Have you ever tried helping someone who is never happy with the situation they’re in?  They’re always looking for something different, something which beyond the shadow of a doubt is going to be a big improvement and the solution to all their problems.  Except when they find that different situation, it turns out they’re no more happy than they were before.

And it’s always someone else’s fault.  The blame may go on everyone from someone’s spouse to their employer to their pastor or — here’s a safe place to place blame — the government. 

Of course, neither you nor I have ever been like that.  Unless maybe you ask someone close to us.  

Paul had a similar situation to deal with in that most problem-free of all churches, the pastor’s paradise of Corinth.  

Nobody was happy with where they were at.  The unmarried wanted to be married.  The married wanted to be unmarried.  The Jews wanted to be Gentiles.  The Gentiles wanted to be Jews.  The slaves wanted to be free.  And if you can believe it, some of the free wanted to be slaves, because in those days it was an all-expenses paid gig that could set you up for a quite a nice lifestyle.

Paul had a one-size-fits-all answer for the lot of them.  Be happy with where you’re at because God has put you there.  I bet that made him popular.

Back in the day when we used to pick strawberries in the summer, it was always a temptation to go from row to row in search of what looked like a more promising patch.  Those who stayed in the same place inevitably filled their containers quicker.

There are lots of reasons why we are discontent.  Sometimes we’re in a legitimately tough situation, one from which we need to pray deliverance.  But often we don’t need deliverance, we need perspective.  God’s perspective.

There are reasons he has placed you and I in the situations we are in.  He is sovereign, after all.  How much better to cooperate with him while he does what he wants through the place or season we are in. 

That requires trust in his goodness and faithfulness, but he shouldn’t have to earn that from us.  He’s already given us everything.

In the end, it comes down to a search for freedom.  We never find freedom because we don’t realize the freedom we already have.  And we forget that the freedom we have is worth more than anything any change in our circumstances could give us.

Try looking at your situation with that perspective.  It may not change your situation, but it may change your life.

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CONSIDER PARTNERING WITH DAVID & ELAINE CAMPBELL IN HELPING TO SUSTAIN THEIR ACTIVE MINISTRY.