Living the Life of Faith, Part 2, December 14, 2014

Posted by on Dec 27, 2014 in Sunday School |

Living the Life of Faith, Part 2

 

 

Central Thought: Living a life of faith is the norm for the believer.

 

 

Text: Jeremiah 29:11; Psalm 32:8-1

 

 

In the first part of this study, we learned that Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see because God’s word says so.  We went on to examine the lives of men that demonstrated Faith in God.  How faith comes and what the scripture means by “the righteous shall live by his faith”.  Today we shall explore a few more practical aspects of living a life of faith.

 

 

  1. How should we express faith in our general outlook to life? Numbers 13:26-33; Jeremiah 29:11; 1 John 3:1-2

Many of us judge ourselves by the world’s standards and this gives us a very poor estimate of our worth, a bleak out look to life and fear of the future.  We measure ourselves by how educated we are, our natural talents, socioeconomic backgrounds, our bank accounts and so on.  In one of the scriptures above, 10 out of the 12 spies reported purely out of a physical perspective, they saw only the obstacles on their way to possessing the promised land: Fortified cities, giants, hostile tribes and so on.  In the end they felt like grasshoppers going to confront giants; helpless, clearly out powered and hopeless and were convinced that the best option was to turn back to Egypt!  But Joshua and Caleb saw things through the eyes of faith.  They reasoned that the Lord who promised them the land was capable of taking them in if only the Lord was pleased with them and they did not walk in fear, Numbers 14:6-9.

We often fall into the same error forgetting that we are children of God and that nothing is impossible to Him!  God will make us what He wants us to be.  He will make a way where there seems to be no way.  When fearful thoughts creep in, when the future seems bleak and we cannot reason out how things will go, that’s when to rest on Jeremiah 29:11.  He will bring you to an expected end!

 

  1. What is the place of faith when making crucial life decisions? Psalm 32:8-11; Philippians 4:6-8; James 1:5-7

There are crucial decisions that could make or mar our lives:  what vocation or course to pursue, who to get married to, whether to go overseas, what city to settle down in.  For those in business, there can also be very challenging decisions.  In the scriptures above God clearly undertakes to guide us through life: “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you”, Psalm 32:8.  God delights in showing His children step by step the ways He has chosen for them and expects us to ask in faith.  Believers should learn to seek and consult God first. The truth is that He gets glorified and gets immense pleasure when we make the right decisions and walk in His will; hence He is ever willing to help His children.  However, He expects us not to be like the horse that is ever hasty or the mule which is stubborn and may insist on its way.  Hence God expects us to seek guidance from Him with the assurance that He will provide it and to be patient.

Let the class discuss other examples of decisions we need clear guidance for.

 

  1. What is the right approach to solving our problems? Matthew 6:33-34; Hebrews 10:22-25, 35-39; Philippians 4:6-8

We must realize always that we have a loving caring, faithful, almighty, all powerful and all knowing Father who is ever willing to help us.

We must approach God with a sincere heart in full assurance of Faith.  We should make our requests known to God with thanksgiving.  Having made our requests known to Him, we must allow the peace of God to guard our hearts, refusing to give in to anxiety or fear while awaiting the answers to our prayers.  Furthermore “cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward”, Hebrews 10:35.

 

  1. What does living by faith have to do with our tongue? Deuteronomy 30:11-14; Numbers 14:6-9; Joshua 1:8; Isaiah 55:9-11; Romans 10:9-10; Matthew 17:20, 21:21

In the beginning God had a clear idea of what He wanted to make of the heavens and the earth, but it was only when He spoke that the power went forth to establish what He desired.  God’s word is an expression of His nature, His mind, His power and that is why it always achieves what it was declared to achieve.  Similarly, when we believe God’s word, we become the carriers of God’s power and when we speak it in faith, it produces the action God desires.  When do we need to express what we believe?

-At Salvation, Romans 10:9-10

“If you confess with your mouth ‘Jesus is Lord’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved”, Romans 10:9.  Note that just believing in our hearts is not adequate; the confession of the mouth gives expression to the belief in our hearts and produces the result which is Salvation.  Confession with the mouth without believing in our hearts similarly will produce no effect.

-In prayers, Daniel 9:4-19; Acts 4:24-30; Hebrews 4:14-16, 10:22

When we examine the Prayers of Daniel and the disciples in the scriptures, we sense the confidence they had on God’s character and power.  They also made God’s word the basis of their confidence in supplications. Similarly, we must express our faith in God in prayers and not our fears and doubts.

-In adverse circumstances, Daniel 3:16-18; Numbers 14:6-9

When we are under very trying conditions, we often give in to fear, anxiety and talk about our situation like hopeless orphans.  The Hebrew young men were threatened with death in a fiery furnace but rather than negotiate with the King or murmur against God, they expressed their faith in God’s ability to deliver them and His sovereignty to the king; this saved them.  Joshua and Caleb declared their faith in God’s ability to take Israel into the Promised Land and in the end only the two of them of that whole generation entered the Promised Land.

-Speaking to circumstances and situations, Matthew 17:20, 21:21; Mark 11:23

Jesus spoke to a fig tree and it died.  On another occasion, He spoke to the storms and they obeyed Him.  In the scriptures above He stated that with faith as small as a mustard seed we could speak to mountains and they will be removed.

 

  1. What are the rewards in living a life of faith?

The following are some of the rewards in living a life of faith.

  • We please God and receive his commendations, Hebrews 11:5-6.
  • We experience peace despite the trials and storms of life relying on God and not ourselves, Philippians 4:6-8.
  • We live beyond our limitations and shortcomings and daily experience God’s power and resources in our lives, Hebrews 11:11-12, 29-30.
  • Ultimately we will receive God’s eternal reward, Hebrews 11:39-40.

 

 

Daily Living Application:

We can only please God daily when we walk by faith.  Living a life of faith is a choice we must all make in all circumstances.  God desires that we live a life of faith always.

 

Memory Verse:

Hebrews 11:6b – “And without faith, it is impossible to please God.”