Faith Life 15 (FAITH PLEASES GOD 2)

 GRACE ABOUNDS ONLINE BIBLE STUDY

THEME: FAITH LIFE OF CHRISTIAN BELIEVERS (Part 15)

TOPIC: FAITH PLEASES GOD 2

SPEAKER: Peter Ayoola Fakeye (PAF)

We'll see here the testimony of God Himself to Enoch that he pleased Him. It wasn't just a man that said that he pleased God, but God himself told him. Also, Moses was the one that wrote Genesis 5 (with the inspiration of God) where the account of Enoch is. This means that God also told Moses that this man 'Enoch' pleased Him and He told him to record it for our admonishing, that until now, we are still learning of his faith life, after thousands of years ago.

Brethren! God want to set you apart to be a transformation to this world, but He sets apart those who please him. So, the question is "what pleases God?" What pleases God is faith in Christ and what He's done. When you see a man that puts his faith in what CHRIST has done for him, God is so pleased to set him apart and set him forth to be a vessel of impact in his generation and even beyond. Faith in the person of Christ is what pleases God

Hebrew 11:5-6

After that the Bible has recorded that Enoch pleased God in verse 5, we'll see in the next verse how He could do that, and the Bible tells us that without Faith, there is no how Enoch could have pleased God. Whatever we are doing outside Faith in Jesus, can't please God. In fact the Bible says in Romans 14:23 that, "whatever is not of faith is sin." This means that whenever we are operating outside of faith in Christ and what He is has done, then we have fallen short of God's grace. Sin is just fallen short of God's grace. We just need to repent, and start putting our trust and confidence in what Christ has done.

The Bible tells us how to engage faith, thereby pleasing God. "He that comes to God must believe that HE IS and that He is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him." It's very important to note the phrase "He is" in the above text, because in the Kingdom 'believing is seeing' and not the other way around. Whenever you try to verify that God is actually what the Bible says He is by your situation, then you will be moving out of faith into unbelief. For example, as christian believers, We must believe that God is the healer, and His healing power is flowing inside of you irrespective of what your situation is telling you.

Mark 11:24

Jesus himself made a statement when the disciple were marveled by the fact that the tree dried up the same day Jesus cursed it. Of course, it is something marvelous because a tree doesn''t just die like that, and paradventure it die, it can't just dry up at the same time. Therefore, relating with it logically, you would have every reason to wonder and marvel. So, Jesus told us how He operated faith; it is that you need to believe that God has already moved and acted promptly to your request, and you shall have them'. Though, "you shall have them" is in the future tense. But your believing that God has done must be in the present tense. What I just want to emphasize is believing does not start when you start having whatever you pray for, but believing is seeing in the Christian Faith. The bottom line is that we must believe in the active presence and power of God. Therefore, take the pressure off yourself because Christ has borne all of the pressure, instead, start putting faith in the one that has the print of our victory in His hand. Sometimes, there can distance between when God move and the manifestation in the physical world, and there are some factors behind it which we can't be able to consider in this article, but one thing I want you to know is that God has never been late before. He has never left your request untreated when you have asked in faith. If we can understand this truth, it will shape how you approach God. The prayer we will be praying will not be a kind of prayer to twist God's hand, or bombard heaven (as some people says) and getting ourselves into trying to manipulate God which is definitely not possible. Brethren! God can not be manipulated, He only act on our demand if we have acted in faith based on what CHRIST has done. But when we think we can woo him with our prayers, then we have get outside of faith into unbelief. Faith is seeing God's present with you and instantly acting in what you have placed demand upon by faith.

Now, the question is "am I saying that  we should not pray again once we have asked and we have not yet seen the manifestation?" No! That's not what I am saying. But the motivation has to be different from using our prayers with an intention to manipulate God to answer our request, rather, our prayers now is to get us stay in Faith that God has already acted on our behalf. The Reason we have not been seeing solution to different issues of our lives is because we have been fighting the wrong battle, because we have thought that God is the problem; that He is the one that have withholden His hand from reaching to us, and so many believers will be praying with a mind of persuading and convincing Him, and getting into legalism so that He can change His mind to answer their prayers. But I want to assure you that God has never been your problem, rather in Christ, you have all the solution to your problem. This is the reason we need to continue in prayer, so that we can stay in this truth that God has already acted promptly to our request.

The Bible also tells that Faith is knowing that God is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him. That 'diligently seeking' means that you are seeking God by faith through His Son, Jesus. That's how to diligently seek God. It is to know and believe that because of CHRIST and what He has done, I will get to receive whatever I am asking. HALLELUJAH!

Grace Abounds.