I have really enjoyed working with Pastor Al on the Reality Check series. I’m sure he would agree that preparing for and teaching the Reality Check points each week has been a challenging experience. We have had to pass our own lives through the very practical and blunt teachings of James to see how we measure up in the areas of problem solving, communicating well with others and dealing with favoritism. This week, I look at some tough questions in regards to our faith. James says “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such a faith save him? Faith is far more than the words we speak or the claims we make. Faith has a partner named deeds or actions. Our faith in Christ comes alive when we put into action what we believe. Below are just a few of the random notes/thoughts and articles I reviewed in prepping for this week. Also, if you missed any of the past Reality Check topics, simply click here to listen online. Have an extraordinary day!"Little Faith" or partial, inneffective faith as seen through Jesus' eyes:
2. Seen in fear—MATT. 8:26. He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.
3. Seen in doubt—MATT. 14:31. Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
4. Seen in wrong thinking—MATT. 16:8. Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, “You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread'
5. Seen in failure—MATT. 17:20. He replied, “Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Faith and reason, Christian Apologetics in a World Community: W. Dyrness
Faith is relying on what God has done rather than on one’s own efforts. In the Old Testament, faith is rarely mentioned. The word trust is used frequently, and verbs like believe and rely are used to express the right attitude to God. The classic example is Abraham, whose faith was reckoned as righteousness (Gen. 15:6). At the heart of the Christian message is the story of the cross: Christ’s dying to bring salvation. Faith is an attitude of trust in which a believer receives God’s good gift of salvation (Acts 16:30-31) and that awareness thereafter (Gal. 2:20; cf. Heb. 11:1).
Characteristics of Mature Faith: In a national study of Protestant churches done in 1990, Peter Benson and Carolyn Eklin surveyed hundreds of people and distilled seven characteristics of a mature faith. You may not agree with everything on their list, but it’s still instructive to look at their conclusions.
1. Trusts in God’s saving grace and believes firmly in the humanity and divinity of Jesus.
2. Experiences a sense of personal well-being, security, and peace.
3. Integrates faith and life, seeing work, family, social relationships, and political choices as part of one’s religious life.
4. Seeks spiritual growth through study, reflection, prayer, discussion with others.
5. Seeks to be part of a community of believers who give witness to their faith and support and nourish one another.
6. Holds life-affirming values, including commitment to racial and gender equality, affirmation of cultural diversity, and a personal sense of responsibility for the welfare of others.
7. Serves humanity, consistently and passionately, through acts of love and justice.
1. Trusts in God’s saving grace and believes firmly in the humanity and divinity of Jesus.
2. Experiences a sense of personal well-being, security, and peace.
3. Integrates faith and life, seeing work, family, social relationships, and political choices as part of one’s religious life.
4. Seeks spiritual growth through study, reflection, prayer, discussion with others.
5. Seeks to be part of a community of believers who give witness to their faith and support and nourish one another.
6. Holds life-affirming values, including commitment to racial and gender equality, affirmation of cultural diversity, and a personal sense of responsibility for the welfare of others.
7. Serves humanity, consistently and passionately, through acts of love and justice.
I would recommend you either believe God up to the hilt, or else not to believe at all. Believe this book of God, every letter of it, or else reject it. There is no logical standing place between the two. Be satisfied with nothing less than a faith that swims in the deeps of divine revelation; a faith that paddles about the edge of the water is poor faith at best. It is little better than a dry-land faith, and is not good for much. - C. H. Spurgeon
I am inwardly fashioned for faith, not for fear. Fear is not my native land; faith is. I am so made that worry and anxiety are sand in the machinery of life; faith is the oil. I live better by faith and confidence than by fear, doubt and anxiety. In anxiety and worry, my being is gasping for breath—these are not my native air. But in faith and confidence, I breathe freely—these are my native air. A John Hopkins University doctor says, “We do not know why it is that worriers die sooner than the non-worriers, but that is a fact.” But I, who am simple of mind, think I know; We are inwardly constructed in nerve and tissue, brain cell and soul, for faith and not for fear. God made us that way. To live by worry is to live against reality. - Dr. E. Stanley Jones
Two incredible charactors James uses to champion his illustration of faith and action working together:
- Rahab the Prostitute: The book of Joshua introduces us to one of the most amazing and thought provoking women of the Old Testament. Rahab, the prostitute earned unique praise for her faith, and a place in the lineage of Christ. Certainly the faith this one women revealed demonstrates the potential we all have; yet she also reminds us to not judge--how many of us would expect a great act of faith from a hooker? How many of us would not only have walked by her house, but crossed to the other-side of the street so as not to be contaminated. Yet, God blessed this women by putting her in the lineage of Christ. God's blessings come in surprising packages.
- Abraham: Abraham, is larger than life and lives to the ripe old age of 175. He leaves his father and journeys into the wilderness at God's request. God promises to make of Abraham "a great nation," but he has no son until he is a very old man. He travels from modern day Iraq, through Canaan, to Egypt and back to Canaan. His wife Sarah is so beautiful that twice he asks her to identify as his sister so that powerful men will not kill him to have her. As a result, she becomes the property of a pharaoh and a king, who pay Abraham richly to keep it secret that they were with a married woman. Lot was Abraham's nephew and so we get the shocking story of Sodom and Gomorrah. Sarah is apparently barren, so Abraham has a child, Ishmael, by her slave Hagar. Then when Sarah is a very old woman, she finally has a son. Jealous of Ishmael and his mother, Sarah orders Abraham to cast them out into the wilderness-the desert-where they nearly die. God saves them by revealing water and then promises to make a powerful nation of Ishmael. After his many years of wanting children, at God's demand, Abraham not only casts out Ishmael, but also agrees to offer his son Isaac as a burnt offering. Sarah dies at 127, and Abraham buys land for his wife and his eventual burial at Hebron. Abraham eventually remarries and, now a very old man, has six sons by his wife Keturah. But when he dies, he leaves everything he possesses to Isaac.
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