Despite of Differences,Come Unity in Jesus Christ!

Showing posts with label faith without good works is dead. Show all posts
Showing posts with label faith without good works is dead. Show all posts

A Letter of Encouragement

I am writing this as a letter to you personally, my dear brother and sister in Christ, so that if you become anxious of the future, or you need encouragement about what is ahead, you can read it and hopefully hear GOD speak to your HEART…For this is really His MESSAGE to ALL of US….




I am writing this because I want to remind you of the great future God has for you. I know this because He said so. He says you have not seen, nor heard, nor even imagined anything as great as what He has prepared for you (1 Corinthians 2:9) You have no idea how great your future is. He says that what He has for you is so great that if you truly understood it, you would feel “that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed” in you (Revelation 8:18). That means whatever you envision for your life right now is already too small.



Although God promises you a future full of hope and blessing, it’s not going to happen automatically. There are some things you have to do. One of them is PRAY about it (Jeremiah 29:11-13). Another is OBEY GOD. But don’t worry, God will help you with both of those of you ask Him. The Holy Spirit is God’s guarantee to you that He will help you do what you need to do and bring to pass everything He promised (Ephesians 1:13-14). Just know that every time you PRAY & OBEY, you are investing in your future.



Remember, my precious brother and sister in the Lord, that walking with God doesn’t mean that there won’t be obstacles. Satan will see to it that there are. While God has a plan for your future that is good, the devil has one too and it’s not good. But the devil’s plan for your life cannot succeed as long as you are WALKING with God, living in OBEDIENCE to His ways, standing strong in His WORD, and PRAYING without ceasing. God’s plan for your life won’t happen without a struggle, however, so don’t give up when times get tough. Just keep on doing what’s RIGHT and RESIST the temptation to quit. Ask God to give you the strength and endurance you need to do what you have to do.



Don’t judge your future by what you read in the newspaper or the words someone spoke over you one time. Your FUTURE is in God’s HANDS. The only thing that is important is what He says about it. He doesn’t want you to be concerned about your future anyway. He wants you to be concerned with Him, because He is your future. Don’t become discouraged if things don’t happen as fast as you would like them to. They never do. God wants you to learn PATIENCE. Our perspective is temporal. He is eternal. So don’t be concerned if you are not seeing all that you want in response to your prayers. You will. If you draw close to God and do what He asks you to do, if you worship Him in spirit and in truth, if you love others and give yourself to them, if you speak God’s Word in faith and pray, you will see God’s blessings poured out on your life. I believe that we are denied certain things for a time because God wants us to fervently pray and intercede for them. That’s because He wants to do something great in response to your prayers, something that can only be birthed in prayer. There may be things that won’t happen in your life unless you are praying long and fervently.



In the meantime I know that you want to do something significant for the Lord and move into new areas of service for Him. God is looking for men & women who will be committed to living for His way and stepping into the purposes He has for their lives. He wants man and woman who are willing to sacrifice themselves for His kingdom, who are willing to say, “Not my will, but Yours be done.” You are one of those men and women. I pray that you will be equipped and ready when God says, “Now is the time.” And the doors of opportunity open. Just keep doing what’s right and when you least expect it, you will get a CALL from God giving you your assignment.



Remember, God “is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us” (Ephesians 3:20). He has more for you than you can imagine. And now may “the God of hope fill you with all joy and each believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13). Stay focused on God, and He will keep you in perfect peace as He moves you into the future He has for you.



Faith vs Unbelief

Faith believes the Word of God; but unbelief questions it (Psa 106:24).




- Faith holds fast to a promise of God to help; but unbelief says, “How can these things be?” (Rom 4:19-21; 2 Kings 7:2; John 3:11,12).



- Faith will make you see love in the heart of Christ; but unbelief will imagine wrath in his heart (Matt 15:22,28; Num 13; 2 Chron 14:3).



- Faith will give comfort in the midst of fears; but unbelief causes fears in the midst of comfort (2 Chron 20:20,21; Matt 8:26; Luke 24:26,27).



- Faith will suck sweetness out of God’s rod; but unbelief can find no comfort in his greatest mercies (Psa 23:4; Num 21).



- Faith makes great burdens light; but unbelief makes light ones heavy (2 Cor 4:1; 14-18; Mal 1:12,13).



- Faith helps us when we are down; but unbelief throws us down when we are up (Micah 7:8-10; Heb 4:11).



- Faith brings us near to God when we are far from him; but unbelief puts us far from God when we are near to him (Heb 10:22; 3:12,13).



- Where faith reigns, it declares men to be the friends of God; but where unbelief reigns, it declares them to be his enemies (John 3:23; Heb 3:18; Rev 21:8).



- Faith puts a man under grace; but unbelief holds him under wrath (Rom 3:24-26; 14:6; Eph 2:8; John 3:36; 1 John 5:10; Heb 3:17; Mark 16:16).



- Faith purifies the heart; but unbelief keeps it polluted and impure (Acts 15:9; Titus 1:15,16).



- By faith, the righteousness of Christ is imputed to us; but by unbelief, we are shut up under the law to perish (Rom 4:23,24; 11:32; Gal 3:23).



- Faith makes our work acceptable to God through Christ; but work done in unbelief is sin. For without faith it is impossible to please him (Heb 11:4; Rom 14:23; Heb 6:6).



- Faith gives us peace and comfort in our souls; but unbelief works trouble and trial, like the restless waves of the sea (Rom 5:1; James 1:6).



- Faith makes us to see preciousness in Christ; but unbelief sees no form, beauty, or comeliness in him (1 Peter 2:7; Isa 53:2,3).



- By faith we have our life in Christ’s fullness; but by unbelief we starve and pine away (Gal 2:20).



- Faith gives us the victory over the law, sin, death, the devil, and all evils; but unbelief lays us obnoxious to them all (1 John 5:4,5; Luke 12:46).



- Faith will show us more excellence in things not seen, than in them that are; but unbelief sees more in things that are seen, than in things that will be hereafter;. (2 Cor 4:18; Heb 11:24-27; 1 Cor 15:32).



- Faith makes the ways of God pleasant and admirable; but unbelief makes them heavy and hard (Gal 5:6; 1 Cor 12:10,11; John 6:60; Psa 2:3).



- By faith Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob possessed the land of promise; but because of unbelief, neither Aaron, nor Moses, nor Miriam could get there (Heb 11:9; 3:19).



- By faith the children of Israel passed through the Red Sea; but by unbelief the generality of them perished in the wilderness (Heb 11:29; Jude 5).



- By faith Gideon did more with three hundred men, and a few empty pitchers, than all the twelve tribes could do, because they believed not God (Judg 7:16-22; Num 14:11,14).



- By faith Peter walked on the water; but by unbelief he began to sink (Matt 14:28-30).



- John Bunyan



Faith in People Fails but Faith in God Never Fails!


Faith is believing and trusting God and hoping for the evidence of things not seen. Faith in God gives us confidence, hope, peace and joy. God wants us to put our faith in action.

Many people believe God, but they do not trust enough to believe in Gods promises .They are often filled with worry, doubts and fear. Sometimes we all lack faith, during that time we need to read the word of God to boost our faith because faith comes by hearing the word of God again and again and Christ is the Author and Finisher of faith(Hebrews 12:2).

We need to have a “childlike faith”, “faith as a grain of mustard-seed” to move mountains, faith of the Canaanite woman.

Scripture Reference:

Hebrews 11:6:"But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."

Isaiah 40:31:Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary.

Deuteronomy 31:6:Be strong and courageous. Don't tremble! Don't be afraid of them! The LORD your God is the one who is going with you. He won't abandon you or leave you."

Joshua 1:5 :No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.

Proverbs 3:5: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

1 Peter 5:7:Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

Pslams 37:5:Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this.

Hebrews 11:1: Now faith is the substances of thing hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Matthew 9:29: Then He touched their eyes, saying, "It shall be done to you according to your faith."

Matthew 21:22: If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

2Cor 5.7:"For we walk by faith, not by sight."

Romans 10:17:"Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God"

Hebrews 6:12:We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

James 1:6: But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubt is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.

1 Corinthians 16:13: Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.



Continue reading on Examiner.com: Faith in People Fails but Faith in God Never Fails! - Tampa Bay Christian Living
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Grace that teaches us to say no to ungodliness!

There are many Christians who take God's grace and subtly twist it, manipulating it, until finally it produces lasciviousness in God's people by preaching a false Christ, through a perverted concept of grace. (Jude 1-4). Satan persuades some Christians that they can still hold to God's truth while indulging a sin because Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.


“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:11-14).

Jesus called lasciviousness a sin of the heart, "that which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness" (Mark 7:20-22).

The writer of Hebrews urges us, "Let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear" (Hebrews 12:28).

God hates sin, judges sin & chastises the sinner. No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient, Eph 5:5-6. The false gospel of grace is empty words, purposed to deceive you - to convince you to do nothing, remaining in your sins, so your soul is destroyed. The workings of grace to teach us how to live are a process of repentance, the process produces purity, righteousness, and the fruit of the Spirit.

We all know Jesus Christ is so forgiving but after forgiveness he says, Sin no more. Repent or perish.

Jesus told Paul he sent him : "To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, release from sin's slavery, and an inheritance among those who are sanctified and purified by faith in Me."

What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Rom 6:15.

By grace, we are shown our sin by the Holy Spirit. We repent by denying ungodliness and lusts, to living soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world. If we are slaves to sin, he can't be our Lord. You cannot serve two masters. Mat 6:24,Luke 16:13

Some Christians might quote these verses”There is no one righteous, not even one; Romans 3:10

There is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. Romans 3:11

All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." Romans 3:12

We cannot obtain righteousness by following the Law. They were many righteous men and women in the Bible .Adam, Enoch, Abraham, Joseph, Jacob, Isacc, Rahab, Ruth, Debrorah,Noah  Miraim and many others were all found righteous before the Lord.But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. Rom 3:21

This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, Rom 3:22

So grace, is not a license to continue to sin. We are not condemned while we are waiting to be cleansed, but per Paul again, we have to continue to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. Philippians 2:12

True faith results in true works.Faith, grace, and good works are like a three legged stool. If any one is missing, the thing will not stand. God's grace in us, if we really have it through faith, will always result in good works. Believer dwells upon this grace of God in which he now stands, it will motivate him to do good works. Titus 2:11, 12.



Scripture says about Good works:

(Jude 1:4, 2 Timothy 3:5, Rom 3:8, Rom 6:1-15, Php 2:12-13, Eph 5:5-7, 1 , James 1:21-22, Eph 2:10, 1Pet 1:17, Eccl 9:1, Rom 2:6, 2Cor 11:15, Eccl 12:14, Rom 2:9-10, 1Jn 3:11-12, 1Cor 3:13-15, John 3:21, 1Thes 5:13, 2Tim 2:21, 1Tim 6:18, Tit 3:8, Tit 3:14, Tit 2:13-14, 2Cor 6:1,5, Col 1:10, Gal 6:2-5, John 5:29, 1John 2:29, Jam 4:17, Rev 2:4-5, Rev 3:1-2, 2Tim 4:14, 1Jn 3:18, Rev 2:19, Rev 14:13, Rev 2:2, Rev 20:12, Rev 2:23, Rev 22:12, 1John 2:17, Rev 2:26, Rev 3:8, James 2:14-26


By God's grace we are saved, forgiven, and our sentence of death is pardoned as we are washed clean of the stain of sin by the blood of Christ, whose sacrificed blood covers us in His righteousness when we put on the breastplate of righteousness, the righteousness of Christ. Those who are in Christ are dead to sin, under no circumstances they continue to live wickedly instead they have been raised to walk in newness and purity of life, lives of righteousness, morality and integrity.

http://www.hallvworthington.com/grace.html
http://www.bcbsr.com/topics/passions.html