FAITH EXPLAINED

The Bible says: “And My righteous ones will live by faith.” Hebrews 10:38 NLT

Living by faith means to obey God’s will and not cherry picking only what we want as many preachers falsely teach, “name it and claim it.”

That is why it says that, “We are confident that He hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases Him.  And since we know He hears us when we make our requests, we also know that He will give us what we ask for.” 1. John 5:14-15 NLT

In other words, God will give us anything He wants and not what we want! When God says it, we can have faith that it will happen! Therefore, to live by faith means having faith in what God wants, no matter how impossible it might seem. If God says it, you can have faith for it, confess it boldly, because IT WILL HAPPEN!

This is the way Jesus taught His disciples: “Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.” Mark 11:22-24 NLT

Because, “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.” Hebrews 11:1 NLT

For example, the scriptures say: “It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going. And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith.”Hebrews 11:8-9 NLT

And,

“It was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him. Abraham, who had received God’s promises, was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, even though God had told him, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.” Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead.” Hebrews 11:17-19 NLT

Abraham exercised his faith by obediently doing what God told him! We can read in the book of James how it is further explained, when it says,

“Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God. So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.” James 2:21-24 NLT

Faith has always been about pleasing God and was never meant to please ourselves, giving us what we desire. Faith is about believing what God says and acting upon it! You need to remember that, “God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.” Philippians 2:13 NLT

So, you see, it is always about Him! It is for this very reason that the Bible says,

“It is impossible to please God without faith.” Hebrews 11:6 NLT

And therefore,

“Faith without works is dead.” James 2:26 NKJV

GOD DOES NOT GIVE WHAT YOU DESIRE, BUT WHAT HE DESIRES!

Scores of Christians falsely believe that God gives them all the desires of their hearts. They base this on the Old Testament passage in Psalms where it says, “Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires.” Psalm 37:4 NLT

But to shed more light on the above verse, the Bible says in the New Testament: “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.” Philippians 2:13 NLT

In other words, it is God who is working in you to give you the desire that is “His Desire” and the power to do what He wants. So, it is never about what you want, but what He predestined for you to accomplish for His glory’s sake! His desire becomes your desire, and that’s why you will always have the power - meaning His favor and blessing - to do whatever He desires for your life!

We can now also understand when David writes to, “Commit everything you do to the Lord.
Trust Him, and He will help you.” Psalm 37:5 NLT. This means, our desire must align with God’s desire, not the other way around!

That is why it also says, “And we are confident that He hears us whenever we ask for anything that PLEASES HIM! And since we know He hears us when we make our requests, we also know that He will give us what we ask for.” 1. John 5:14-15 NLT

To sum it up:

God only does and gives us what He desires for us, only that what pleases Him! 

Even Jesus Christ, our great example, prayed before He was about to be crucified, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from Me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” Matthew 26:39 NLT. He did what the Father wanted!

DREAMING BIG? | Edwin Christiaan

 

Nowhere in the Bible does it say, that we are supposed to “dream big” for God and demand of Him to use us big league in the area of leading others. Why? Because those God has chosen to be His children, He works in them, giving them the desire and the power to do WHAT PLEASES HIM! (See Philippians 2:13)

Yes! God works in His children, transforming them by changing the way they think and in doing so, they learn to know His will, which is good and pleasing and perfect! (See Romans 12:2) 

God’s children then become like His Son, Jesus Christ, who did not come to this earth to be served, but to serve others! (See Romans 8:29, Matthews 20:28)

As Jesus taught His disciples: “Whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else.” Mark 9:35 NLT

And, “Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant!” Mark 10:43 NLT

PLEASE! YOU NEED TO KNOW… | By Edwin Christiaan

That when God has chosen you to be His child, He will be working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him! (See Philippians 2:13)

Then you will only be asking for things what pleases God!

You will know that He hears you when you make your requests, because He will give you what you ask for, which will be what He desires for you! (See 1. John 5:14-15)

That’s why Jesus said; “You didn’t choose Me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using My name!” John 15:16 NLT