What does your faith look like? I know what mine looks like, and I'm weary of seeing it and using it as a safety net to fall back on because I didn't allow faith to lead and direct my actions going into a situation.
Lately I have been pondering passages of Scripture like "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophecy in Your name and in Your name drive out demons and in Your name perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Depart from Me, you evildoers!'" (Matthew 7:21-23)
I remember the words of James when he says "What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them 'Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,' but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." (James 2:14-16)
When I examine myself and look at my thoughts, private actions, and motivations, do I measure up? I may be able to keep those things private and locked away from the view of others, but not from God. Not from the King of Truth.
It is not enough that I own a multitude of Bibles and concordances and "Christian Living" books. It is not enough that I call myself a Christian and wear Jesus T-shirts. It is not enough that I play Christian radio stations and buy Christian CDs. It is not enough that I attend church and associate myself with other Christians. It is not even enough that I teach others on Sunday mornings and help out with the Youth Group on Wednesday nights.
It is not enough to create the perfect Christian image and hope that because I look like a Christian, I will secure salvation. Such a display looks genuine on the outside, but inside it is hollow. And the inside is what Christ is focused on.
It is easy to skim over the hard verses in Scripture that confront my passivity and call me to action. It is simple to think back on a prayer prayed years back and feel secure in that, instead of allowing faith to grow me and lead me forward in the way I ought to go.
Faith is our part of salvation. God offers us something we cannot gain in our own power and we respond with faith that He is who He says He is and that He has done what He says He has done.
However, faith is also the fruit, or the proof of our salvation. If we are not responding to life with a trust towards God, then do we have faith? And if we lack faith, are we actually saved?
The Bible doesn't say "Have faith that you're saved and you shall be saved." It says "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).
True belief dictates action. If I truly believe that a chair will hold me up, then I will not hesitate to sit in it. If I truly believe that Jesus is King, the Author of my life, and the Provider of my salvation, then my lifestyle will show that.
More than just my lifestyle, my private actions, and the reflections of my heart will show that.
I can evaluate myself more honestly, and more truly than the people around me. And when I examine the deep parts of my heart, those parts that nobody else sees, I can see a lack of faith in some of those places.
To be content with an image of Christianity is to play with fire. If you are comfortable with a passive faith, perhaps you never had faith at all. Not a saving faith, anyway.
I have felt a burning conviction in my heart to let my faith burn hot in the areas of my life that I am comfortable being passive in. It is dangerous and foolish to be comfortable with bad habits and thoughts that distance me from God. It is dangerous and foolish to be content outside of intimacy with Christ.
I know better. And my faith will not allow me to feel good about keeping those parts of my life holed up and away from God any longer.
This faith issue that I have been wrestling with for the past few weeks is a serious issue that demands your attention. The condition of your soul is not something to put off being honest about.
In your heart and before God, can you say with truthfulness and complete honesty that you have a saving faith? Outward actions are meaningless if you lack a heart that has been redeemed by God. And a heart redeemed by God can only be shown through godly action. Without one, the other collapses.
It is too easy and far too acceptable in our culture to play some fake Jesus game and wear a hollow Christian image and think that is enough. But if that is as far as you go, you may be one of those false disciples to whom Jesus says "Depart from me, I never knew you."
Do not settle! Are you chasing and pursuing Christ in your innermost thoughts as well as your public actions? Be willing to ask yourself those tough questions, and be held accountable. I beg this of you.
If I have stepped on toes, I do not apologize. I had to stomp all over my own for quite some time before posting this. I would rather make someone, or several someones uncomfortable than remain silent about something that matters more than anything else I can think of.
Are you saved? That is not something anyone can answer for you. It is a conversation you must have with God. It is a serious question and it demands an answer. Do not ignore this. But once you have answered, examine your lifestyle and your private thoughts and actions. Do they affirm your answer or do they contradict what you say?
I had a faith that was comfortable being put on display around people who would respect it and identify with it. But in the privacy of my deepest thoughts, where was that faith? It was behind a locked door, that's where. And after sitting there long enough, its heat and passion began to burn through the door of my flesh. The Spirit of God is a raging fire that cannot be contained. If you try to resist it and lock it away, it will come for you. It will smoke you out and you will never be rid of the conviction and the guilt until you yield to it and turn your heart's loyalty back to its King.
However, if you think you have resisted the Spirit of God and don't feel the heat of conviction, you probably never had the Holy Spirit to begin with. Or you're in denial about your guilt.
Once more, I will beg. Because this is worthy of my begging. What is the condition of your faith? The truth of this question makes all the difference. Ask yourself these hard questions. You could have everything to gain. You could have everything to lose. I pray you find the answers and act on what you find as I have. God is gracious in His gift of salvation. But we are not promised tomorrow.
