faith, a way of life

We now know that the justified must live by faith, this is the only way to please our Lord.  We know that a life of faith is not a complicated issue, it is a choice every man must make.  Some may ask this question: What’s in it for me?  I am not put off by this question, it is a fair and honest question that warrants an answer.
 
Hebrews 11:6 Without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.
 
If we don’t believe God there is no way to please Him.  If we believe God is who He says He is then believing Him should be easy.  But let’s take this a little farther, you must also believe He will reward you on account of the faith you have in Him.  If you believe He is the healer, He can heal your body.  He rewards those who believe and diligently seek Him by confirming the Word you believe.  God promised Israel He would deliver them from bondage and lead them to their own land flowing with milk and honey.  But Israel could not believe God and so all but two of them died in the wilderness, they never received the promise.
 
Hebrews 4:11 Let us labor therefore to enter into His rest, lest any man fall after the same  example of unbelief.
 
God has reserved a place for all of His people who commit to living by faith, it is called His REST.  A place of rest is where you no longer labor in the flesh to meet spiritual needs, but you use your faith.  Israel did not believe God despite all the demonstrations of His supernatural power.  He delivered Israel from the Egyptians, he drowned the Egyptians soldiers in the sea, He brought water out of a rock and provided manna every morning, but they could not believe that He could deliver them from all the “ites” that inhabited their land.  So, we must labor to avoid the same example of unbelief and miss out on all the great promises.
 
How do we overcome an evil heart of unbelief?
 
First of all we commit to hearing His Word and then we commit to believing it.  Anyone who is of a willing heart can do this, God is not a respector of persons, He is a respector of faith.  It will require a little work but the pay off will be well worth every second.  It’s like walking a mile in the morning, the first few steps are the hardest but it gets easier as you go.  If feels “right” in your spirit when faith comes in, your hope and confidence begins to swell.
 
Mathew 7:24 Whosoever hears these sayings of mine and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house on a rock.
 
The Word of God is referred to as a rock, when we build our lives on His Word we anchor our lives to Him.  The devil can come and huff and puff but he can’t blow our house down.  Can you now understand why the devil comes immediately to steal the Word out of our hearts?

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