What would your faith be like if you trusted in the fact of God’s word?
What would your faith be like if you trusted in the fact of God’s word . . . and not in your emotions . . . and not in your opinions . . . . and perhaps not even solely on what your Mama told you? You may not have thought much about it, but our emotions wage war against our faith and attempt to undermine it. This is not to say that all emotions are bad. There’s a place for joy and sadness, fear and anticipation, disappointment and surprise, as well as compassion and contentment. Would you agree it wouldn’t hurt most Christians to wear their faith with a little more “upbeat” showing?
Our faith journey involves a combination of the workings of our intellect, emotions and will. Christianity is not a blind leap of faith. To a seeking mind (intellect), scripture reveals a rational basis for inquiring about Christ and ultimately following Him. We are encouraged in 2 Cor. 5:7 as believers to “Live by faith, not by sight (circumstances). “ Seeking an emotional experience contradicts faith. Our assurance of a permanent relationship with God is based on acknowledging the authority of His word (intellect and will), not on our emotions. What would your relationship with God be like if you trusted in your emotions rather than the facts of God’s word?
There are countless occasions where our emotional response to circumstances can erode our confidence in God. Our will works through our entire faith journey starting with choosing to have an openness towards God and deciding to “check Him out.” Receiving Christ by faith is surely an act of the will and the starting point of our great adventure. From there our will is challenged for the duration of our lives with every decision we make, determining whether we think and do as we want or if we choose to conform our will to what God wants.
I can’t tell you the number of people I have engaged in conversation, professing Christians, who though they claim to have believed in Christ’s work on the cross on their behalf and received His “gift” of eternal life, are still insecure with respect to their relationship with Christ and their assurance of salvation. Perhaps you are one of these. Perhaps you just need refreshing. I want to offer you some reinforcing facts from the word of God, rational pledges by God Himself which hopefully will provide you an unmovable “default position” of faith and your assurance of God’s eternal love, acceptance and safekeeping. Write these on your minds and hearts. Memorize them so that you stand strong against life’s unfavorable circumstances and the lies of the enemy.
“And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (1 Jn. 5:11-12). “My sheep (believers) listen to my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can take them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” (John 10:27-29. “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom. 8: 38-39) Plant these truths deep in your mind and heart and I assure you that you will not easily be shaken. Occasionally you still will be shaken, but when you are, your “default position” will be that of faith and confidence in God. Think About It.