Established in the Faith

Established in the Faith

There is one thing that precedes the performing of great works in Jesus’ name, that precedes love and every single virtue: namely, faith. There is tremendous power in faith. The “elders” possessed this faith in great abundance, and they obtained a good testimony by it. Hebrews 11:2. Jesus began and finished His great work of salvation in faith. We shall be transformed by that same creative power of faith from being sinful and soulish to spiritual and perfect beings.

All things are possible by faith! Pray for whatever you desire! This is God’s urgent word to us. He spoke and it was; He commanded and it was there. He is the same today for every one who believes. A lesser faith cannot satisfy us. We must possess the faith that over­comes the world, that works through love, and obtains the promises. The “elders” obtained a good testimony by their faith, which resulted in their works!

Now we have come to a time in which there is little true and liv­ing faith coupled with good works. Instead of believing in God alone, people put their trust in visible things; but such faith does not obtain any promises. Hebrews 11:33. One has to be established in the faith, otherwise it is useless. The foundation for a strong faith is a pure heart and a constant spirit. Then it is possible to work righteousness, subdue kingdoms, and gain the victory over the enemy’s might. Then no satanic spirit or power can keep our spirit in bondage. Luke 10:19.

Faith needs to be united with prayer and prayer with faith. Both need to be employed in firm unity and endurance before results can be obtained and God’s blessing can be received. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours; he prayed that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. He prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth produced its fruit. James 5:17-18. Praying in faith is praying in full assurance. There was not a cloud to be seen when Elijah asked Ahab to go home, saying, “There is the sound of abundance of rain.” He had to pray seven times before there was a cloud as small as a mans hand. We have a long way to go until we are an Elijah in faith if—after having prayed two or three times about something—we give up altogether because we think it is useless. Instead of becoming weaker in faith every time the servant said, “There is nothing,” (1 King 18:43) his faith grew stronger and stronger, until there was a heavy rain in the end as a reward for the faith that had heard the sound of rain before he had even seen the clouds come.

Faith comes by hearing God’s word. By hearing it over and over again and by giving ourselves to the Word, faith will be implanted little by little in our consciousness, and once that foundation is laid, works will result from it. A blessed example of being established in the faith and confidence toward God is the story of Mordecai. He was in a hopeless and critical situation. Not only his own life, but the lives of his people in the mighty king’s realm, were doomed to destruction, because he had not obeyed the king’s command to bow and pay homage to Haman. Esther 3:1-6 and verse 11. Despite the seriousness of the situation, he did not make the slightest effort to bow and pay homage. Ch. 5:9. His faith in God’s help was so firm that, when the situation appeared to be most hopeless, he testified that they would all experience relief and deliverance. Ch. 4:14.

From a human point of view it was stubbornness and daring without parallel. It was a royal command, so why not bow to it even if it was not in his heart to do it? The rational and reasonable thing to do would have been for Mordecai to bow and pay homage, because the king had commanded it. This is how people reason it out, but that is not faith. We need to be particularly on guard when things come to a head so that we do not make a decision to avoid the sufferings, and thus end up in the flesh. Our spiritual nature develops and is strengthened by the faith in which we are thus established. God’s will, revealed to us in His Word, is to be the sole guideline for our faith, and not what our human reasoning can imagine or contrive. This story is evidence that God can help us even though the situation might appear to be ever so impossible. And if—as in this case—there may be rational grounds for not obeying God’s will, let us neverthe­less trust God entirely rather than anybody else’s opinion, for He does not fail.

When you are established in the faith you rely on the Word, even though the situation is critical. Moses did not fear the wrath of the king, for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. Psalm 121. The one who is established in the faith is full of peace, even though darkness reigns in the world and the nations fear and tremble. “My peace I give to you.” John 14:27. Oh, precious and priceless faith that is able to liberate us totally from the visible things and cause us to rely completely on God!

Humanly speaking, Nebuchadnezzar did not ask much from Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Daniel 3:15. Nevertheless, for them it was so important, that they would rather die than bow to the idol. It is necessary to be firmly established in the faith, as these three young men were, in order to overcome the spirit that works in the children of unbelief. We should be willing to die rather than gain the least advantage which would be to the detriment of the light and the faith God has given us. Blessed are those men of faith who stood firm in the faith and gave God the glory, no matter how critical the cir­cumstances were.

The fruit of being firmly established in the faith is that one is free from all cares, and at rest in all circumstances. “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5. He who makes flesh his strength, his heart departs from the Lord, but he who trusts in the Lord is like Mount Zion which cannot be moved. When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth? Will He find some who are firmly es­tablished in the faith; some who resist the spirit of the world, who like Elijah and the old heroes of faith obtained the promises and worked righteousness—full of faith and boldness, in faithfulness toward God?

By God’s grace we have been chosen to show the people the most excellent results of what faith in His word can accomplish. Let us therefore be immovable and become more and more established in the faith that has been delivered to us, so our lives can be filled with the prayer of faith and works of faith to the glory of God’s name and as a confirmation of His word.