What’s Your Faith Like?
“Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, -6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness,…” -2 Peter 1:5-6 (NASB)
As a Christian, these uncertain times we are living in can be troublesome, difficult, overwhelming and just downright scary but we are never alone and should never be without hope. If you find yourself reading this today and you are not a Christian, then I imagine you could be very scared or filled with doubt of what the future holds for you. Time for you to find Christ.
I came across a verse the other day in one of my studies that explains one of the attributes of a Christian life. It’s found in 2 Peter 1:5-9. I have included a few verses of this narrative above but please choose your favorite translation and read it on your own. It tells us how we should go about our faith in the Lord. And the word I zeroed in on was the word – “diligence”. Friends, we are to be diligent in the mechanics of our faith. So what does this mean?
In the Greek, the word diligence means to make haste, or do something with haste, with earnestness in accomplishing, promoting, or striving after anything. Webster Dictionary defines it as doing something with steady and energetic effort like scrubbing off unwanted paint. Folks, that means our faith means we must make effort to make it work. We MUST make a maximum effort to live out our Christian faith in Christ. We must honor the Lord with just that. Being a Christian takes dedicated work … daily. We must be constantly on guard from the attacks of the Devil and our defense in only found int he Lord and through the reading of His word we put on the armor of God.
Living for Christ – in other words, identifying as a Christian – means acting out our faith in absolutely everything we do, with no exceptions!
As Luke 13:24 (ESV) puts it:
“Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.“
Did you catch the operative word here? The word is “strive“. In the Greek it means – to contend with adversaries, fight, to endeavor with strenuous zeal, strive: to obtain something or to contend, struggle, with difficulties and dangers (Source: Blue Letter Bible). In other words, we have to put action to our faith. Not works unto salvation, mind you, but action!
Please make it a point today to start putting effort in your faith through adding virtue meaning a generous foundation of moral excellence, faith, belief, hope, trust, excelling in the knowledge of Almighty God. Praying with all haste, believing with no doubt, hoping with all expectation, trusting with sincere assurance in Christ our Lord and Savior.
“And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” -Phil 4:19 (NKJV)
In these trying times amidst the COVID virus pandemic, economic upheaval, extreme weather and food supply calamities, exercise your faith in confidence that the Lord, your Lord, my Lord, will supply our every need in Christ Jesus. This is putting action (or teeth) into your faith. Your faith will then hit the ground running with maximum effort! Run the race with endurance in faith looking to Jesus.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2- looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” -Heb 12:1-2 (ESV)
-BPWatcher, Internet Preacher and Bible Prophecy Watchman
GLORY TO GOD!
