Faith Life 23 (THE FAITH EXERCISE)

GRACE ABOUNDS ONLINE BIBLE STUDY

THEME: FAITH LIFE OF CHRISTIAN BELIEVERS (Part 23)

TOPIC: THE FAITH EXERCISE

SPEAKER: Peter Ayoola Fakeye (PAF)

Hebrews 11:9

It is imperative that, when a person comes in contact with God through Christ, there is a response. And the response is FAITH. He cannot continue with his life as before the encounter.

The Bible (from the text) makes us understand that, “by faith, Abraham dwelt in the land God has promised him as a stranger.” Yet he lived confidently and in quiet expectation that the land would at some period become the possession of his posterity. It was a strong instance of faith that he cherished throughout his lifetime on earth even when he was a stranger in that same land. Abraham never own a land except the piece he bought for his wife burial ground. The Bible says He lived in tents just like a nomad, such that he and his family lived from hut to hut and tent to tent (Genesis 12:6,8; 13:8; 22:19) . To me, this is a FAITH EXERCISE! Just imagine God promised you that you will inherit an entire nation, yet you don't have a piece of land in that same place after living for many years. This was Abraham situation yet he stayed in faith in what God has promised and rely absolutely on Him.

I envisaged the following two things would have happened if Abraham did not stay with God in faith and full confidence in what God has promised him.

1. He would have called God a liar and as a result he would have gone back to where he came from.

2. Or he would have become so impatient and as a result he could start fighting for himself, trying to claim this promise by his effort.

Actually these are two remarkable situations a man that is not operating with faith in what Christ has done can find himself.

1. Compromise.

Compromise is just falling short of God's grace and then as a result, a man start working and acting contrary to what God has said about him. No wonder we see ourselves back into what we have been delivered from such as sickness, depression, failure, sin, disobedience, fear and the likes. Brothers and sister, faith is a lifelong exercise! And when we shift our focus from what Christ has done, then we have compromised. Dear believer, your stand is Christ and His victory! But you need to fight to remain there because the devil will come with all his suggestions and try to intimidate you with his evil work. That’s why you need to be focus on the life you already have in Christ. 

Abraham didn't compromise, instead his mind was so relaxed on God. He could see his sufficiency in nothing else than God. You need to know that your sufficiency is not in your certificate or any qualifications. This is why after many people have gotten different awards and received different accolades, yet they still feel unsatisfied. This is because you can only experience sufficiency and contentment in CHRIST. Brethren, let's start celebrating CHRIST! Many believers have been celebrating mediocrity all along, so we’ve relied upon technology, money, fame, personality, etc. These all may not be bad in themselves, but the devil paints them to us as the essence of life, thereby we get distracted.

The Bible made us understand that Abraham lived in tents. He didn't live as though everything ends in this earthly life but He lived as stranger. This contradicts how some believers live, because they live as though everything ends here. They run up and down together with the world forgetting purpose and destiny. Many believers have prioritized making money and having fame above God's program and agenda for their lives. They live as though this is their permanent abode. Therefore, they accumulate things for themselves, and they don’t consider to touch lives and add value to humanity. Dear believer, if you are in this type of situation, I want you to know that God is not condemning you. He loves you and that's why He is refocusing you back to himself. He wants us to enjoy the package He has for us; which is His very life.

In all sincerity, at one point or the other, we all have compromised having known what it means to compromise. But God is bringing our focus to Himself and our true state in Christ Jesus. Just allow the Holy Spirit to impact you with His life. Let Him start influencing your thoughts, actions and reactions with the life of Christ! There is nothing the life of Christ has not overcome. This is the life we have now because of we believe in Christ and what He has done on our behalf. Therefore, we are not supposed to struggle just as the world does. You need to understand that you have the power of God; you have the Holy Spirit. Hallelujah!

2. Now, to the second thing which is likely to have happened to Abraham if he had not stayed in faith is that he would have fought his way to possess the land by self-effort.

Self-effort is not just a religious term, but self-effort is ignoring the influence of the Holy Spirit in anything we engage in. Although Abraham had already gotten to Cannan, yet he did not try to occupy it with his effort. He wasn’t strategising with his own ability, instead he relied on God’s influence. Dear believer, what you need in life is the influence of the Holy Spirit! A life that will be focused on what God has called him into is a life that will be dependent on the power of the Holy Spirit.

Faith in CHRIST will remain a lifetime engagement if we remain focus on the life of Christ we have received. Abraham could engage faith throughout his lifetime because he focused on God's promise, which was a shadow of God's life we have received!

Stay blessed!