1)
Now faith is the substance
of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
2)
For by it the elders
obtained a good report.
3)
Through faith we
understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which
are seen were not made of things which do appear.
4)
By faith Abel offered unto
God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he
was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.
5)
By faith Enoch was
translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had
translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he
pleased God
6)
But without faith it is impossible to please
him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he
is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently
seek him.
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understand that the knowledge of what God has done for us on
The
Lord is always attempting to teach us and get us to accept that everything in
salvation operates the same way. This is even apparent in the very plan of
salvation, in that we receive it through the infilling of the Holy Spirit. This
is, in itself, a mystery, for the infilling is not based upon, neither can it
be understood through knowledge, but it is accomplished in the individual
through the acceptance of what has already been done.
It
is never necessary that one understand how
something is done. We sometimes mistakenly believe that the human understanding
can be enlightened. Well, if we really are looking to see this, we will be
waiting a long time. Because of its very nature, it is impossible for the human
understanding to be enlightened of the things of God. Though through our own
experiences this can be proven time-and-time-again, man never seems to get far
from his belief that he actually "knows" something. As long as this
is true, he will try to direct his own life—and continually miss what is
"...prepared for those who love him".
Never
should anyone who is saved miss any of the "good things" that God has
prepared for His people. The mistake that too many of His "people"
make is in trying to find their own way to be assured of His blessings. No one
will ever be able to accomplish this outside of exercising faith in Him. The
bottom line: we must be willing to "put up" to be blessed.
As
opposed to being "a blessing," too many find blessings more like a
curse, for if one is really insincere to begin with, the granting of blessings
is designed to show just what sort of persons we are. The "wrong"
sort of person forgets the promises made to the Lord to get blessed. Therefore,
after receiving, he proceeds to live his life as before, no more committed or submitted.
Concerning
our own personal faith, many have adopted the phrase "I just don't have
that kind(of faith)". Basically, this is used in
hopes that it can be a covering for our laziness. You see, the reality of the
life of a successful saint is that: "Whatever God says, I accept."
It
will be "nigh unto impossible" for one who does not believe God to
ever be in a position to enjoy His blessings. The only way to receive them is to follow the instructions He gives to get blessed. Contrary to what many
believe, receiving from the Lord is not a matter of intelligence or
spirituality. IT IS SOLELY A MATTER OF ACCEPTING WHAT GOD HAS SAID!
Often
when one is resistant to doing things God's way, he tries very hard to change
His plan for his life. If he does decide to "go with the flow" the
attitude can be one of "I might as well do this if I can't do anything
else." Just because one does this does not mean that he is
believing.
Problems
abound in the lives of those chosen to serve Him, despite the fact that we have
been given an easy plan to be able to do whatever the Lord says is necessary.
The key ingredient of that plan is acceptance.
Learning this would not only advance us much more quickly, it would also save
us much time, money and heartaches, for acceptance also teaches one how to turn
things over to the Lord.
Another
of the "rewards" of belonging to the Lord is victory—and "victory is victory" and is not governed by
recurrent "symptoms" or anything else. Whether those symptoms be physical or mental, if we experience them, it simply
means that we need to line up the body with the Spirit. Then, we will see a
change.
The
Church must no longer accept defeat. The way "...to get the reward"
for which Christ died is to glorify Him for all
of His mighty acts! If we abound, we need to glorify Him! If we are abased, we
need to glorify Him! If we can see our "light at the end of the
tunnel," we need to glorify Him! If all we see is pitch blackness, we
still need to glorify Him, for even if it is dark, we know that He is Light!
If you have identified yourself with anything previously said, you need to begin to exercise faith. After all, aren't you tired of missing the reward for your labor?