Faith without work is dead.
The last post I wrote on Faith, I spoke on salvation i.e accepting Jesus as your Lord and savior. Salvation is very important to even have Faith. I will write further on the others in this post.
Firstly, it is important to remind ourselves about what Faith is. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11: 1).
Faith and Hope
These two are not the same things. Faith cannot be substituted for hope but they both need to be present for a proper effect to take place. Hope is about expecting something even though you may not see it now, you know it will happen sometime while faith talks about the now.
One needs to have something to hope for before the substance of faith can be put to work regarding that issue. Faith and hope are totally different. A number of people are yet to receive what God has for them because they are still hoping. To hope is an easy thing which everyone can do but to have faith in that hope by believing God has done it is what makes the difference. Subtle yet powerful.
People believing that God will heal them someday may remain there a very long time until the substance of faith is given to what they are hoping for. From the explanation given, it is safe to say that faith doesn’t work alone.
Possibly the reasons why people are not receiving things the way they should despite their faith being in place is because they are not adding the necessary ingredient needed for their faith to Work.
Apart from hope, other ingredients needed for Faith to work are Love, Work (the will of God), Patience.
Faith and Love
As much as Faith is a potent force that gets things in the spiritual manifest physically, Love is the foundation for everything functioning in the kingdom of God including Faith. Between Faith, Love, and Hope, love is said to be the greatest of them all. (1 Corinthians 13: 13) Faith is nothing without Love.
1 Corinthians 13: 1-3 gives a good picture of love. Verse 2 says (NIV); If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have faith that can move mountains but do not have Love, I am nothing.
This is how important love is and this may be another reason why people’s prayers are not answered despite their Faith. The summary of the Bible passage makes us understand that one cannot make Heaven without Love. No wonder Jesus said in Matthew 7: 23, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work in iniquity” despite the prophesying and mighty miracles they did.
One who loves God and Man does not have a heart for malice keeping or backbiting but has wonderful benefits that are seen in 1 Corinthians 2: 9- 10.
Faith and God’s will
For faith to actually produce results, the will of God must be known. It is when you ask anything according to His will that He will hear you ( 1 John 5: 14). God’s will is known in the Word of God. Some of these are healing, protection, the supplication of needs (which is different from wants) and many more.
There may be other specific things tailored to our individual needs that are not in the Word of God but have principles in the Word of God. In such cases we could ask God directly, He told us to bring our strong reasons with us ( Isaiah 1: 18). If He does approve then we can put out Faith to work but if He doesn’t, it’s for our own good because God doesn’t have anything to lose or gain. He still remains the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13: 8).
Faith with Works
There is no Faith that doesn’t give you something/work to do regarding that area. Even healing that looks too simple to be true, not only are you to stand strong in Faith but also act your healing out. The earlier you add act or work, the faster your miracle comes. For those unable to do things normally, with your faith intact start doing things you couldn’t do. E.g, those that couldn’t stand should make efforts to start.
Another area of Faith with works is the area of giving. Are you indebted or do you need a breakthrough in your finances? God has already promised to supply our NEEDS. Start paying your tithes, giving to the needy but it is also vital to know those who are truly in need rather than giving your precious pearls to swine and them coming back to bite you. In this generation, we really need the discernment of the spirit to give because some people are nothing but trouble.
What to do is in the Word of God all you need to do is located it and put it to work
Faith and Patience
Patience is another virtue needed in Faith. That you don’t see something happening immediately does not mean that it hasn’t already taken place. Someone would ask, “what do you do between the time you pray and await results?” Patience, praise and thanksgiving are what you do. This is the time to thank God for answering your prayer rather than getting agitated
Sometimes the situation might look like it is getting worse, don’t let that bother you. It’s the trick of the devil. When evil spirits are about to come out of a man, the manifestation is usually more. Just be calm and keep believing.
Sure you have enjoyed this post, stay tuned for the next post on Faith. To access the previous post on Faith check here. Join our Facebook community not to miss out on new posts and to get in touch, please fill the form below.
Stay Blessed.
Oluchi.
Leave a Reply