header

Real Faith – Igniting the Fire

Posted on: July 26th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs 5 Comments

Real faith, faith, greatness, great things happen, look to jesus, look unto me, victory, victorious living, living victoriously, how do i live victoriously, living a life of faith, life of faith, faithful life, faith is a gift, grace of god, God, Jesus, how do i grow in my faith, how does my faith grow, how do i grow my faith, Ephesians 2:8-9, Hebrews, the book of hebrews, Hebrews 12, Hebrews 12:1-2, essentials Christian, Christian living, sin, run, endurance, look to jesus, Hebrews 10-13, Faith is enough, Luke 17:5, increase our faith, apostles, Lord, the Lord, Luke 17:6, ESV Bible, ESV Study Bible, faith seed, Hebrews 12:2, Philippians 1:6, Jesus center of faith, Jesus center, Isaiah 45:22, faith is not passive, faith is active, faith is a verb, grace of God, Hebrews 4:7, choose faith, choose Jesus, choose God, by grace

We all want to live victoriously, and that is only possible by living a life of faith. 

As mentioned in my last post, faith comes only when given. Truth is: we cannot will ourselves into a place of faith.

Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Emphasis added). We are saved through our faith, but our faith is given to us by the grace of God.

How Does Faith Grow?

So how, then, do we grow in our faith?

We are told in Hebrews 12:1b-2:

…let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Now, that’s a mouthful. Do you realize that is one sentence? And this one sentence contains the essentials to our growth as Christ followers.

Lay aside every weight. 

Every sin. 

Run with endurance. 

And, most importantly, look to Jesus. 

That about covers it, folks. I believe this one passage holds the key to victorious living. Now, I don’t want to oversimplify things here. I know we are strengthened in our faith by many things, but I believe this passage in Hebrews lays out the essentials for us. And I am convinced that if we simply take time to meditate on Hebrews 12––or even Hebrews 10-13––we would start to get a lot of things right in our lives.

Faith is Enough

In Luke 17:5, “The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”

And do you want to know Jesus’ response? He said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you” (Luke 17:6).

At first hearing, Jesus’ response sounds like a riddle. He doesn’t seem to answer their request. But I think what Jesus’s getting at is that faith, in whatever amount, is enough.  I love what the ESV Study Bible says about this verse in it’s notes. It says, “even a very small amount of faith, if it is genuine trust in God, can lead to remarkable results. The issue is not the size of faith but its presence.”

When real faith is present, great things happen. [Tweet that] Once that faith seed is planted well, it is sure to grow. But Jesus is “the founder and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2). And we are told, “he who began a good work in [us] will bring it to completion” (Philippians 1:6), which tells us Jesus needs to be at the center of our faith. Jesus says, “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else” (Isaiah 45:22, KJV).

What Are We to Do?

Jesus is our answer to faith. He supplies it, and He grows it. But our faith was never intended to be passive. Grace is given to us––it is something that is always at our disposal––that we may use it to be participants in our faith.

So what is our part in all of this?

Once again, we are to lay aside every weight and sin. We are to run with endurance. And, most importantly, we are to look to Jesus. 

All of these commands require action. While it is true that we cannot will ourselves into a place of faith, we can choose––by the grace God has already extended to us––to act and intentionally draw near to the only true source of faith. So, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts” (Hebrews 4:7).

What specifically has helped you grow in your faith? Share in the comments by next Monday, and I just may include your insight as I continue this topic in next week’s post. 

5 Responses

  1. […] have much faith at all to live an impactful life. [Tweet that] And as I mentioned recently in Real Faith––Igniting the Fire, the presence of faith is what’s important. Once true faith and a genuine trust in Jesus is […]

  2. singing428 says:

    The single most important element which has helped me grow in my faith is staying in God’s Word. There is no possible way to completely love and trust him if we do not know him. It is essential. I also meditate on WHO he is by knowing his names as found in Scripture. My favorite is El Shaddai: All Sufficient God. I love that he so freely reveals who he is. He wants his chosen to know him. Prayer is also important. We talk to our human friends on a regular basis; either through calls, texts, or email. Why wouldn’t we do the same with God. If my prayer life is suffering, my faith does as well. God’s Word and Prayer are the two most important elements of growing in faith.

  3. Mark Allman says:

    Laurie,
    The following things help me in my faith;
    To renew my mind by exposing it to God’s word,
    To avoid the things I know I fall too,
    To take actions that shield me from darkness,
    To pursue Jesus,
    To read great challenging stuff by people like you,
    To read of stories about people who overcome hardship and heartache, (again like yours)
    To have others encourage me by recognition of what I do,
    To Pray.