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What is the quickest way to become unfaithful? Jesus stated that our living faithfully “until death” is a condition upon which He will give us“the crown of life” ( Rev. 2:10 ). Faithfulness does not just happen. It requires determination, commitment and dedication. The apostle Paul described himself as having devoted his life to Christ ( Gal. 2:20 ). He emphasized, “it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me;” . Later, he admonished, “ Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth” ( Col. 3:1-2 ). A mindset focused on faithfulness is fundamental to living faithfully before God.
Everybody wants to be happy. In fact, there may be more emphasis in our society right now than ever before onfinding happiness . There’s a lot of focus on finding a job that’ll make you happy. Some people move to different locations in the pursuit of happiness. Wives leave their husbands, and husbands leave their wives, because they’re just not happy. Teenagers are committing suicide at a staggering rate because they’re unhappy. Happiness seems to be elusive to many people. But a profound question should be, “Where do you look for happiness?”
Jesus said, “Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life”( Rev. 2:10 ). True faith is not just believing, it is belief put into action through obedience and continued, consistent dedication ( Jn. 14:15; Jas. 2:14-26 ). Inherent within the New Testament concept of saving faith is repentance ( Lk. 13:3; Acts 3:19 ), open confession of faith in Christ (Matt. 10:32; Rom. 10:9-10 ) and baptism into Christ ( Rom. 6:3; Gal. 3:27 ) for the remission of sins ( Acts 2:38; 22:16 ) in order to be saved (Mk. 16:15-16;1 Pet. 3:21 ). True faith is not a part of a faithful Christian’s life- it is his life! ( Gal. 2:20 ).
By this point in this series of articles and sermons on “Faith,” it should be apparent that true faith is not primarily subjective in nature. While emotion is a natural result, real faith, as taught in the New Testament, is not a feeling, a wild wish, unrealistic desire or hope, or simply blind belief. Faith, by definition, is based on “substance” and “evidence” (Heb. 11:1), strong terms denoting a position reached as a result of examining facts and proof.
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September 2022
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