Welcome to Leaving Laodicea

When we begin to seek God’s wisdom through a deep study of His Word, it’s good to remind ourselves of exactly what we are doing and how the Bible is unique from all other literature. It’s more than …

Before we actually begin to look at the Proverbs to glean the wisdom of God, we first need to remind ourselves what Bible study entails and how to mine the depths of God’s Word for the treasure often buried …

This past Sunday, we talked about how we as Christians and His church are to respond during the dark times we see encroaching all around. What are we to do? How are we to think and feel? What is God’s …

We have spent the last few sessions unpacking the three key truths that must be believed in order to receive the Higher Christian Life.  By now, these should be second nature to you.  But there are two aspects to these three truths. One, naturally, is the truths themselves.  And the other, of equal importance, is that these truths must be believed.  In a word, faith.  It is the fact you must believe by faith what these truths state.  This brings us to the topic for today, and that is faith.  Abundant faith, achieving faith, overcoming faith, non-wavering faith.  Faith.  So let’s begin with a simple question:  What are the unlimited possibilities of faith?

Let’s begin by looking at a few statements from Christ and see if we truly believe what they say.

But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” – Matthew 19:26.

Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes” – Mark 9:23.

Note, the Greek word translated “all” is pás and means “each, every, any, in totality, the whole, without exception.”  So, for us, all means all.  Literally.  And the second word to consider is dunatós which is translated as “possible” and means “to be able, to have strength, to be strong or powerful.”  This is a form of dúnamis which is primarily translated in the New Testament as power, notably “miraculous” power.  In essence, Jesus is saying with faith or to one who believes, all things, without exception, are possible, or have the power, strength, and ability to be done, even miraculously, in Christ.

Do you believe these words of Jesus?  I hope so.  For “without faith, it is impossible to please Him” (Heb. 11:6).

But there is something more here that needs to be understood about these promises.  The first statement is a blanket truth about God.  There is nothing impossible with Him, or all things are possible.  But with the second statement, there is a condition.  Jesus begins with a condition “if” and states, “If you can believe, (then) all things are possible to him (condition again) who believes” (Mark 9:23).  So faith or belief is the condition that opens up the floodgates of blessings from the Lord and is the key, not only to our salvation (Eph. 2:8-9), but also the Higher Christian Life.

And if that wasn’t enough, we find in Hebrews intimacy and becoming well-pleasing to the Lord is intricately tied to faith.  So much so, the Scripture says “without faith, it is impossible to please Him” (Heb. 11:6), which is the point of seeking the Higher Christian Life.

So if the words of Jesus are true and faith is the substance that brings blessings and intimacy with the Lord, then what are the possibilities in Him, by faith, in this life we now lead?  Or, is there anything God cannot do to those who believe?

We will close our study of the three key truths that must be believed to experience the Higher Christian Life by looking at one final example of how to commit yourself, in total dependence, to the Lord for safekeeping.  This is truth number three.  In essence, it is His job to “present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24), and not yours.  We must learn, by faith, to trust Him to complete what He has begun in our lives by His power and not struggle in our own.  And this is hard.  Why?  Because it requires faith and trust and dependence and all the things that war against the flesh and our pride and self-sufficiency.  Jesus summed up our struggle when He said to Peter, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Matt. 14:31).  Exactly.  What do you and I doubt?

I always find it amusing when we, as believers in Christ, trust Him without reservation regarding the things “in the sweet by and by” but struggle in the realities of the “here and now.”  We trust Him for our salvation, without wavering.  We trust Him in His promise to receive us “to Himself” so that “where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:3), no questions asked.  But we waffle in our faith when it comes to His promise to “keep you from stumbling and present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24).  Why is that?  Why are we so strong in our faith in the things we cannot see, like heaven, the Second Coming, and eternal life, but are “tossed to and fro and carried about” (Eph. 4:14) in the things we can see, like fear, insecurity, the lack of money, failing health, fractured relationships, and all that keeps us up at night?

Remember, we can forge through this life doing the things we hope please God in our own strength and end up fatigued, weary, and frustrated in the end.  Or, we can soar through this life on the “wings of eagles” (Isa. 40:31), allowing Christ to do through us the things that please God and end up exhilarated, overwhelmed with gratitude, and bearing so much spiritual fruit our branches literally touch the ground.  The choice is always ours.  And the end is always the same.  It’s how we get to the end (doing the things that please God) that matters.

Today, we will begin looking at the last of the three truths that must be believed in order to experience the Higher Christian Life.  These truths speak of the character of God and our need to let Him both make us holy and, as hard as it sometimes seems, keep us holy in His sight.  Remember, Jude 24 states, “He is able to keep you from stumbling”— so His ability is not in question.  And 1 Corinthians 1:30 further reveals that Jesus “became for us… sanctification.”  So He is what He desires us to be.  Seems simple enough.  But how does knowing what He can do (keep us from stumbling) and knowing what we have done (our sin and failure) reconcile with each other?  And how do these two statements about Christ relate to the importance of our dependence on Him?

Before we address this question, let’s begin with a quick review of what we already know (hopefully) about the three key truths and the Higher Christian Life.

One, you must believe God is able (He possesses the power and ability) to keep you from falling or faltering in your life of holiness.  You must settle it in your mind, once and for all, that “with God nothing will be impossible” (Luke 1:37).  And this is especially true of Him being able to “keep you from stumbling” (Jude 24).  Yes, even you.

Two, you must remove from your mind all doubt and fear that He is not willing to keep you from stumbling.  Of course He is willing.  That’s what a good God does.  He will not command you to “be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16) and then give you no means to obey His command.

And three, you must learn to commit yourself, in total dependence, to the Lord for safekeeping.  It is His job to “present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24), and not yours.  His job.  And He is not only willing to bring you across the finish line, but He is also able to carry you across the line if necessary.  So we must learn to trust Him to finish what He began in us, for His glory, no matter how we feel at the moment.  Remember, whatever the need, He can.  And even better, He will.

Now once that is settled in our mind, if we don’t stay focused on Him alone, the drudgery of the everlasting treadmill begins.

Let me explain.