Faith in action

Preamble

A Christian is saved by faith. Jesus says the one who believes in him, will not perish[1], and therefore will not suffer the fate of Hell. [2]

A believer in Jesus Christ will be with God for all eternity. However, from the time of being saved until the time we are called home to be in God’s presence, what does one do? We talk about a Christian living out their faith – what does this mean?

Today, the author of the church lectionary has drawn our attention to four bible passages that explores faith in action – which, Lord willing, I will use three.

Our life is one of going about God’s work as Jesus was going about his Father’s work.[3] We have been brought with a price, we are to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice, and as Paul says,

For you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
 (1 Corinthians 6:20)

So, looking at the passages provided to us, today I think three words will describe the sermon’s outline:

• Doing – faith is being up and doing
• Obeying – faith does what God asks
• Seeking – faith is finding God for ourselves

Faith will be up and doing: Hebrews 12:18-29

Introduction

When first read, this passage is difficult to understand; but in context much light can be shed.

F.F. Bruce, in his commentary on this particular section entitles this “Let Us, Then, Be Up and Doing.” On the other hand, Alistair Begg called his sermon on these verses: “The Essentials of Christian Maturity”. [4]

The background to this section is the Old Testament. Under God’s divine purpose, the Law was given Moses on Mount Sinai, under dark smoke and serious shaking of the mountain – a constant earth tremor for 40 days. This was a shadow of what was to come, to show all men how sinful sin is. God then ushered in something superior, the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Verse by verse

These verses set out that the grace of God has brought and is bringing believers to better things than those which characterize Judaism. Indeed, what characterises our everyday life now.

• They describe the believer’s position – where we are under the grace of God.
• The author contrasts where the Jews were and where they, as believers, now are.

The section actually starts back in verses 14 and 15: In verse 15 we see the phrase “look carefully” or “see to it” as found in the NIV, ESV etc.

In the Greek this is one word – in the sense of having oversight. Being in control – taking control of our minds and actions.

All believers must have spiritual oversight of each other and in particular of one’s self.

“See to it”

• The words are repeated in verse 25: “See to it”.
  • It’s like a parent telling their children the boundaries they have set and the tasks that need completing – saying; “see to it that you feed the dog”.
  • It’s the “see to it” for Christian life
• In Verse 18 we see: You [have] not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm”. It marks a negative place of terror.
• In Verse 22 we see: But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering. It marks a place of grace and peace – the everlasting gospel.

What does this mean?

• On one hand we see the picture of the giving of the Law found in Exodus and on the other we see the picture of Mount Zion, representing the coming of the Gospel.
• We have not come with legalism, but with faith, under the Law of Christ. Legalism is the Law of Moses – and the Old Testament clearly shows how humankind failed in every way to keep the law.
• If a believer returns to legalism it brings terror, death and condemnation.

You don’t have to earn your way to heaven

It is saying: “You don’t have to earn your way to heaven!” But a believer – a Christian desires to please God and does His works, rather than please self.

• Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave. He was wounded for our sin, and shed his shed blood to redeem each one of us so we can go to heaven on the strength of what Jesus Christ has done, if you believe.

The writer to the Hebrews is saying: don’t go back and live like your fathers, who were under the law, and failed dismally. They escaped Egypt and reached an unapproachable mountain – Mount Sinai, where the law was given.

• Remember back in Exodus God called Moses to the top of Mount Sinai. And Moses was instructed by God that if any one touched the mountain, they would die (Exodus 19:12, 13).
• Now by the grace of God, through the Lord Jesus Christ, we have arrived not at an unapproachable mountain, but the gates of an accessible eternal city: to God himself through Jesus Christ. He (and Apostle Paul also) is saying: “you are on a race, the finish line is near – keep going!”

In verse 25 again “See to it” – this time;

“See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If [the Jews] did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven?

• The Jews had the prophets – they refused to listen. Stephen in Acts says they killed or persecuted every prophet God sent (Acts 7:52), which Jesus had also stated (Luke 13:34).

And how does the word of God’s Son come to us from heaven?

• It comes to us by way of the book that he has left to us, the Bible.

And how does it come by way of the Bible?

• It comes by way of the Spirit of God taking the Bible and saying to somebody as they listen to it preached, or as they read it for themselves, or as they discuss it with others, saying deep in an individual, “This book is true. You better do what it says. It is like no other book at all.”

Acceptable worship

The writer wraps this up:

Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.  (Hebrews 12:28-29)

The author showed that when the Law was given to Moses, there was a great shaking –

Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. (Exodus 19:18)

And you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven, wrapped in darkness, cloud, and gloom. (Deuteronomy 4:11)

In verse 26 we see there will again be a great shaking – in 70 AD after these words were written, there was an almighty shaking of Jerusalem – the inhabitants were either killed or dispersed across the word; to be regathered in 1948. This shaking brought to nought finally the Levitical system – the temple as Jesus predicted was totally destroyed. We now live solely in the day of grace.

In the past God shook the earth, in the future He will shake both the earth the heavens, as Haggai 2:6 states.

For thus says the LORD of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land.
(Haggai 2:6)

This looks forward to the day the Lord comes to judge the earth during the Great Tribulation, whose events are laid out in the book of Revelation.

In verse 27 again we see a contrast – the earth is shakeable, and it will be destroyed. But God’s kingdom program will be unshakeable. The Greek indicates the shaking had begun – the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD did not occur that year but started in 66 AD. This letter was written around this time.

A kingdom unshakeable

Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken (Hebrews 12:28a)

We believers are under the grace of God; our future with the Lord is unshakable. We can have absolute complete confidence in the blood of Christ (verse 24 - Christ’s blood is ‘better’ than that of the offerings made by Abel).

In terms of the Jews this letter was written, it is saying don’t go back to the Jewish system and to gentiles, don’t go back to our futile life: it’s about to be destroyed, but in stead

Thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, (Hebrews 12:28b)

Acceptable worship

Our response should be, because we have, without merit, been saved by grace, in verse 28: “See to it that you worship God acceptably.”

What does this mean? He is telling us we need to worship with reverence and with awe.

We tend to think about Sunday mornings when thinking about worship; but the Bible has a much bigger picture for believers to focus on – our entire life should be an act of worship.

I think we tend to focus on Sunday, because we forget that the word worship concerns showing someone’s worth – the worth of the individual, Jesus Christ, and worth of the work he did on the cross; redeeming us from hell.

It’s not a single act, or a repeated act, but an act of our entire lives.

This is not a simple ‘throwaway line’. It is not trivial; its reality.  We must not be superficial here. Our true worship must be offered without superficiality.

It’s not the style of worship: the point of worship is singular – to show God’s worth. Quoting Alistair Begg again: “We should all long for a genuine sense of awe when the people of God set about the business of declaring his glory. [5]

 Paul, in his letter to the Romans writing on what true worship is:

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual [intelligent, or reasonable service] worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:1-2)

Paul sets out a Christian’s responsibility using the positive and the negative; what to do and what not to do.

1. We appropriate through faith grace in order we may offer service
2. We worship in a well-pleasing way – in an acceptable way – in godly fear with reverence
3. We offer our bodies, in awe, with renewed minds – not full of old ways, or worldly ways.
4. We don’t follow the world – Satan is in charge and his objective is to draw Christians into the miry clay (bog), out of communion with God and fellow Christians.

Why – Verse 29 states if we don’t there is divine judgement.

God is a God of grace, but He is also a God of judgement to those that appropriate grace, which is through faith in His son, Jesus Christ.

In the case of these Hebrews, if these were to return to Judaism, which was no long acceptable – they would die a physical death in the 70 AD calamity. They would not lose their salvation but their lives.

What do we learn?

We as believers can draw comfort from these verses – because the old inferior system has been replaced with a superior and perfect system. This is an emphasis of the Book of Hebrews right from the beginning – Jesus Christ is superior to any other who went before him, and any who might attempt to come after him.  [6]

Getting on with it, means actioning our faith upon our entire life; our life is not to do as we please, but what God has prepared for us. It is our reasonable service

Have control over your own body

But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.
(1 Corinthians 9:27)

That each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor (1 Thessalonians 4:4)

We ask you, brothers and sisters not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter
(2 Thessalonians 2:1a-2)

Now to two examples of individuals who believed God and actioned their faith. One looks forward to a life in God’s honour, the other in arrears.

Faith does what God asks: example from Jeremiah 1:4-10

Jeremiah 1:4-10

4 Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations." 6 Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth." 7 But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a youth'; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the LORD." 9 Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the LORD said to me, "Behold, I have put my words in your mouth. 10 See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant."

Introduction

The book is about God’s sovereignty

Jeremiah is a book not often read: its purpose is to show YHWH – Jehovah, that is God, as sovereign – He is able to take nations down, and build nations up.

The books emphasis: there is none like YHWH – God Jehovah.

He is the God who creates history, indeed He controls history. We do find the Book of Jeremiah quoted in the New Testament – not often – three times in Matthew, the gospel written to Jews.

Who is Jeremiah?

We learn a little about Jeremiah in both this book and his Book of Lamentations – where he weeps over Jerusalem and in particular the temple which has been destroyed by Babylon.

His life consisted of prophesying for about 40 years during the dark period of the last five kings of Judah.

He was rejected by his family, arrested, beaten by officials, thrown into a smelly sewerage cistern to die, and publicly ridiculed by rival prophets who offered false messages of peace. [7]

The Book

Jeremiah is a book of prophecy showing

• God is omniscient [all truth] and
• He is omnipresent [in all places in time and place].

The verses before us today, like those found in Hebrews, are written to the individual, in this case Jeremiah and it is God saying – get and be doing my work, or put another way; “See to it”.

Verse by verse

Verse 4 and 5 sets the scene: YHWH is speaking directly to Jeremiah.

4 Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations."

Jeremiah is a believer – he has put is faith and trust in YHWH as God commanded. Jeremiah writes:[8]

“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.”  (Jeremiah 17:7)

God does not command Jeremiah in isolation – He contextualises what He wants of Jeremiah. We also are never left in the dark. The Bible clearly sets out our purpose in life, why we were born and where we will go when we die.

But be warned – do not make Scripture say what it doesn’t in order to do what you want to do. Paul warns:

… learn (from us) not to go beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up in favor of one against another. (1 Corinthians 4:6)

So verses 4 & 5 sets out God’s argument to Jeremiah to “get up and do God’s
work.” [9]

• Firstly he sets out the theological truth that God does not work in a timeframe – He knows all things past and present,
• He had work prepared for Jeremiah before he was born, indeed, God consecrated Jeremiah before he was born and
• Secondly God states that He, YHWH – the great I AM, has created Jeremiah to be His prophet – His spokesman.
• Jeremiah had a job to do.

Arno Gaebelein put it this way: “The sovereign, omniscient and omnipotent Lord speaks to and informs the young Jeremiah that He knew him, that his call was prenatal.” [10]

In verse 6 we see Jeremiah’s very human response. “Not me Lord”, rather like Moses who said a similar thing.[11]

In Hebrew it’s more like “Alas! Not me, Lord!”

Are we not we like this – always looking for an excuse to run from the things we should be doing.

We either think we are not good enough, or we just don’t have what it takes.

We see that this attitude not particularly enlightening in the face of God, who says He knows each of us before we were born; which means He knows our capabilities, our weaknesses, the resources we require. God’s data capturing and AI credentials are millions of times smarter than any social media company – and these are pretty good at guessing what would entice each of us to part with our money. How much more God, who knows our hearts. God knows us through and through! He is omniscient – all knowing!

And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
(Hebrews 4:13)

Jeremiah was not particularly taken with the job God had for him. “Alas”, a favourite word of Jeremiah’s; “Alas Lord, how can I speak; I am but a child?”[12]

• I wonder how often this is our excuse – “alas I cannot speak God’s things because…”
• In essence Jeremiah was indeed inexperienced; but God would provide him the means to learn.
• It shows the lack of faith in Jeremiah; Jeremiah had a choice, the same choice each of us have.

When we hear God’s voice – His truth written in His Bible - we will either move in that direction else we will wait and procrastinate. And procrastination is the evil that prevents a believer doing God’s work. We keep waiting for tomorrow, when we may hear the same truth again, but are less moved by it, to the point when we are not moved at all.

In the four following verses (7-10) God provides a rebuttal.  God did not debate, but simply overruled Jeremiah. God acts in love, but He is firm. God as a job to do, and he has chosen you to do it – get with it!

1. Jeremiah had been saved by grace to do God’s work.
   
   In the same way we have been saved for God’s good work.
   Ephesians says we have been saved by the grace of God for his workmanship[13], or put another way we have been saved to: do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do.[14]
2. God peers into Jeremiah’s heart and sees fear; but Jehovah encourages Jeremiah saying; “Look here, I am in control”. God says three things:
   1. Jeremiah, you will go where I send you (verse 7a)
   2. Jeremiah, you will say the things I tell you to say (verse 7b)
   3. Jeremiah, don’t be afraid because I will be with you (verse 8)

We learn from this God provides the security for His messagers, He also provides the words.

What do we learn?

The lesson we take from this is the practice of faith requires obedience.

Faith does what God asks.

Just as Noah obeyed God and built an ark in face of public humiliation – they all laughed at him because flooding was totally unknown – Jeremiah as a young teenager (or man)[15] goes out and serves God in humble obedience for 40 years, but sees the fruit of his labours turned into dust with the total destruction of the Temple and surrounding city.

The bit I found the hardest is to accept all resourcing will come from God but this might be revealed up front. But Our Lord does not leave us high and dry, but this does not mean the job will be simple or easy.

Judah (the tribe who Jesus came from), to whom Jeremiah prophesied hated him; and did the exact opposite of what God commended. The result was the destruction of the Temple & Jerusalem.

We may need to call upon all our intellect, our physical and mental energy and indeed our wisdom. Yes we have been saved from the wrath of God, but we have been saved into God’s good works. And He will go with us each set of the way.

The starting point for every Christian is the bible – it is the instruction book. We cannot hope to preach the gospel if we have not read the Bible, meditated on it and learnt from it. This requires

1. Being in God’s word
2. Being in God’s communion, which is what prayer does

The rest of the book speaks of Jeremiah actioning his faith; obeying God’s command. In verse 9 and 10 we see the final commissioning of Jeremiah to go and speak to the evil and wicked leaders of Judah. [16]

Faith is finding God for ourselves: Psalm 71:1-6

Psalm 71:1-6

1 In you, O LORD, do I take refuge; let me never be put to shame! 2 In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me, and save me! 3 Be to me a rock of refuge, to which I may continually come; you have given the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. 4 Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel man. 5 For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O LORD, from my youth. 6 Upon you I have leaned from before my birth; you are he who took me from my mother's womb. My praise is continually of you.

Introduction

AW Tozer writes: “God is not looking for carbon copies of Abraham to believe Him and obey Him in this twenty [first] century. He is not looking for carbon copies of Enoch or Noah or Moses or David. God is looking for persons exactly like you and me.” [17]

We learn from reading the Bible that God blesses and uses each individual, individually.

He knows each of us by name; Jesus died for each one of us, personally. He did this because we are not clones of one another, but rather in the diversity of His creation we are all unique. This is implies were all have unique purposes for God – we are not all Rabab, or Esther or Martha or Philip or Barnabas.

AW Tozer warns his readers that if we trying copying someone else; some influencer [he didn’t use this word, but its applicable today] or some guru, we end up copying their eccentricities or bad behaviours, not their spirituality.

Faith came to our heart, as it did to the wonderful faithful I have just mentioned, yet they were all flawed people.

And upon that faith we build our confidence in God individually; we find God for ourselves and the purposes He has for us as an individual. David was one such person

Verse by verse

Charles Haddon Spurgeon writes in summary of this psalm: We have here the prayer of an aged believer, who in confidence of faith, strengthened by a long and remarkable experience, pleads against his enemies, and asks further blessings for himself. Anticipating a gracious reply, he promises to magnify the Lord exceedingly.[18]

David learnt the hard way – he was persecuted by the king of Israel as a teenager, who later became his father-in-law, then by enemies of the state, and finally by his own family, yet he can say, “my praise is continually of you, God my Saviour”.

Our focus today is on practical faith – here we see the psalmist cry out in confidence to his Lord, that he puts his entire trust in YHWH (Jehovah), and has done so since he was a boy (v 5).

For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O LORD, from my youth.

Our faith needs to one of action: Biblical action

The prophet Jeremiah could not wander off and politically interfere with the Kingdom of Judah without God’s say so. He was not on social media trying to influence Judah – but rather he spoke the words that God gave him.

Here the psalmist has confidence in his God – the wherewithal to carry out God’s kingdom work was in God’s hands. This takes practical faith. David learnt what God could do for him.

This means our faith must be in the here and now; yes we believed in Jesus – that may be some time ago, but do we believe and partake in the endless stream of living water the Jesus provides, that nourishes us - the living water of grace, mercy, and peace. [19]

Faith cannot interrogate other sources: it is solely in Christ. Our faith is personal, and our faith deals with God and only God.

And importantly this psalm shows that any fear we have is done away with prayer.

• The psalmist argues in prayer that because God is just, He is able to deliver us righteousness (v2)

In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me, and save me!

• We also have confidence in God, because of His word and promise. Verse 3 appeals to the word of God – His commandments. These are perfect and point the way. The Bible provides instruction for doctrine/teaching, for reproof/rebuking, for correction, for instruction/training in righteousness. [20]
• We can appeal to God because of His power – in verse 3 we see God as our rock – it is steadfast, not movable; everlasting.

Be to me a rock of refuge, to which I may continually come; you have given the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress.

It is interesting to note, yet again, and like God’s word in Jeremiah 1, God considers a human to be human from conception – verse 6. It is not when the Psalmist became something or did something that God will uphold him – but right from the very start.

By You I have been upheld from birth; You are He who took me out of my mother's womb. My praise shall be continually of You.
Psalm 71:6

What do we learn?

Some may not have known God from birth, and are still young in their faith – but we too can say “You Jehovah are my trust from my youth”. David in his old age could recollect on his youth and have confidence in God; he had found God as an individual and he learnt that Jehovah would not forsake him. We likewise.

Summary

We have been saved by faith, now we are being sanctified by the Holy Spirit to be made more like Christ. So where to now?

We should be

• Obeying God because faith does what God asks
• Seeking out God because faith is finding God for ourselves
• Doing what God wants of us, because faith is being up and doing

Or more poignantly, as Apostle Paul wrote:

I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. (Romans 6:19)

Notes

Saved by Faith

We do not assimilate the precious gift of God by osmosis; God does not impose redemption on any person, but rather a person must decide whether Jesus is the Son of God, and believe. Of course we have the Holy Spirit that convict’s a person of sin (John 3:18), but humans have the right and ability to reject this conviction. Their fate then is their own hands.

The word faith is used 243 time in the New Testament- usually translated faith.   There is another Greek word that means ‘to believe’ – it is used some 246 times. In some cases in some translations the word is translated commit or committed or intrusted.  There is one other Greek word that has to do with faith – meaning “to cause belief in a thing” – sometimes translated persuade or persuaded used 50 times. Thus we can conclude that believing, trusting and having faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is a rather important fact. However, once we believe, we must ask, then what?

Faith is an action of the heart and mouth, plus the mouth and heart as Paul points out in Romans.

Faith is a verb – it require energy to transact. The Bible characterises the action using a metaphor – the heart and the mouth working in unison. To ensure we understand this Paul uses the phrase heart and mouth, and its converse, mouth and heart. The mouth is where the truth is – the word.

But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it. (Deuteronomy 30:14)

Our mouth states what our heart believes – thus requiring both to be operational.[21] Does this mean we have to shout it from the mountain tops or even to ourselves? No. It is a metaphor - but it does mean our brain must be engaged, and we must deliberately assimilate the knowledge that Christ is God’s son. [22]

I don’t speak of repentance here, because our focus is on, that happens after believing, except to say, repentance is a literal turning around. We all were once running from God – a believer has repented – turning and around, enabled by the Holy Spirit, and faces God.

Giving up greed, or drink etc. will not save as – but these actions might come as we are sanctified – which is a technical term meaning we are becoming more like Christ Jesus.

The word faith[23] is used 243 time in the New Testament- usually translated faith. [24] There is another Greek word that means ‘to believe’[25] – it is used some 246 times. In some cases in some translations the word is translated commit or committed or intrusted.  There is one other Greek word that has to do with faith – meaning “to cause belief in a thing”[26] – sometimes translated persuade or persuaded[27] used 50 times. Thus we can conclude that believing, trusting and having faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is a rather important fact. However, once we believe, we must ask, then what?