living by faith. Section one, faith and the faith. We're going to distinguish between these two, because sometimes one term is used and sometimes another. If you're not clear about them, you'll get flubbed up. Number one, the faith is the truth which we believe. Faith means believing, but the faith is what we believe, the truth which we believe. And this includes, A, the doctrine of the Gospel of Christ. Acts twenty-four, twenty-four. It says Felix was willing to hear Paul concerning the faith which is in Christ. What he preached to him was the Gospel. and be the wider body of truth. Galatians one twenty three, for instance, it says that the people heard that Paul now preached the faith which he once destroyed. In Revelation two thirteen he commends it because they have not denied the faith. So this would be the wider body of truth. and see this is the truth which is held by all believers. Titus one four refers to, called Titus my own son, after the common faith, that is the faith that we all believe who are believers. James two and one says that we are not to hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ with respect to persons. this is the truth which is held by all believers. D. It is deserted by some man. First Timothy four one says that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith and second Timothy three eight speaks of them as being reprobate concerning the faith. Now number two faith is receiving and believing God's word. First Corinthians two, one to eight. And in this section, the Apostle Paul says that he determined to know nothing among the Corinthians except Jesus Christ and him crucified, but he said we do speak wisdom among those that are perfect or mature. So faith is receiving and believing God's word. A. In personal acceptance of Christ. John one and twelve. As many as received him. And then he says these are those who believe in his name. And B. In committing ourselves unto him. Second Timothy one and twelve. I know whom I have believed and am persuaded he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. Now, number three, by faith the believer walks in the Lord. Now, that word walk, we've been talking about quite a bit. Colossians two, verse six says, As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him. Now there is no other way to walk or to live pleasing to God except by faith. There's no other way to be saved. There's no other way to make progress. I was very foolish when I first began to study words of Scripture consistently, and I thought I could improve on them. When I read that passage in Second Corinthians five that says, we walk by faith not by sight i thought now let's should say we ought to walk by faith not by sight so suddenly i realized that if you don't walk by faith you aren't walking you're just stumbling around you're really not making any progress we make absolutely no progress unless we make it by faith now section two By faith we see God's plans. And there are three. One, His eternal purpose in the church. Eternal purpose is a quote from Ephesians three, one to twelve. His eternal purpose in the church. A, this is called the mystery. but is now revealed. There are several mysteries in the New Testament. The word mystery doesn't mean anything mysterious, but it means a truth which had not been known before, but is now revealed to us. And the Church is one of these mysteries. The Old Testament saints knew nothing about. That's why if you're going to study the Church, you don't want to turn to the Old Testament to find directions as to how the Church is to be carried on. If you do, you just get difficulty because the church is not revealed in the Old Testament. It plainly says that in Ephesians three. B, it is Jews and Gentiles brought together in one body. Now, it's no mystery that God would say Gentiles as well as Jews. He sent Jonah to a Gentile city and reached that whole city of Nineveh. And there are many examples of Gentiles being brought into blessing in the Old Testament. But for Jews and Gentiles to be brought into one body, this was the new truth, which was unknown in the Old Testament. And see, this one body shall be a bride for Christ. Ephesians five, twenty three. Now, if you understand God's plan and purpose in the church, you just take yourself and lost a lot of trouble. People, for instance, who are trying to convert the world or trying to make the world a wonderful place in which to live are missing the boat because that isn't what God is doing in the present time. He's going to do that in future days during the Kingdom Age, the millennial age. But right now, Our job is not to clean up the stream, but to catch fish out of it. Number two, his plan for restoring Israel. Romans, verse eleven, twenty-six says, and so all Israel shall be saved. Then he goes on to say there, not all Israel, but all Israel. And He tells us that it's going to happen by the deliverer, and that's another name for the Savior, turning the ungodly to righteousness. Now God's plan for restoring Israel, A, is under the Davidic covenant, that is the covenant made with David. Christ as king. Isaiah nine, six and seven. The government shall be upon his shoulders, upon his shoulder, and he shall set upon the thrones of David his father. Be a millennium of righteous peace on this earth. Revelation twenty. Some people object to the use of the word millennium because it isn't in the Bible, but six times in that chapter uses the expression a thousand years. That's the same thing. Millennium is just a Latin way of saying a thousand years a little quicker. There is going to be a thousand years reign of peace on this present earth. And see, under the new covenant, Israel converted. Jeremiah thirty-one, thirty-one to forty. He says their sins will be remembered no more. He says his laws will be written in their hearts. He says he's making a new covenant with them, and this is elucidated upon in the book of Hebrews, where he tells us that even we Gentiles are blessed under the terms of the new covenant. And Israel is going to be converted under the new covenant. And finally, D, the land shall be an everlasting possession. Genesis chapter one to eight. God promised to Abraham, I will give thee the land and unto thy seed for an everlasting possession. Now that's God's plan for restoring Israel. Now, number three, his plan for each believer's life. Psalm forty and verse seventeen says, Though I am poor and needy, yet the Lord thinketh upon me. The revised version says, The Lord has a plan for me. Isn't that nice? Though I am poor and needy, yet the Lord has a plan for me. A, this plan is for a goal and a hope. Jeremiah twenty-nine eleven. I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord. Or here again the revised version, I know the plans that I have plans for you, saith the Lord. Plans for good and not for evil. To give you a goal and a hope. how sad it is that we miss the plan that God has for us. I remember picking up a little poem about this, which has touched my heart a great deal. When I stand at the judgment seat of Christ, and He shows me His plan for me, the plan of my life as it might have been, had He had His way, and I see how I blocked Him here and checked Him there, and would not yield my will. Will there be grief in my Savior's eyes, grief though he loves me still? He would have me rich, and I stand there poor, stripped of all that is grace, while memory runs like a haunted thing down the paths that I cannot retrace. Then my desolate heart will well my break with the tears that I cannot shed. I shall cover my face with my empty hand. I shall bow my uncrowed head. Lord, of the years that are left to me, I give them to thy hand. Take me and break me and mold me to the pattern thou has planned. That would be a good prayer for all of us. God does have a plan. Now in subdivision B, in Romans A, he says all things work together for good. Or really, God works all things together for good to them that love Him. All things work together for good. That's in His plan. Now, if you for His plan, take your own plan, you can't be, you can't plan on this. And see, First Corinthians six says you are not your own. you are bought with a price. You cost the Lord a great deal. What a shame to spoil their life by taking it out of his hands. And D, he says that there is a way that he shall choose Psalm twenty-five and twelve. I hope it gives them time and thought to study these verses Because God has definitely told us that he does have a plan for each of our lives. E, in Ephesians two ten, he says, Unto good works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. So there are God ordained good works for each of us. I can't tell you what yours is. I'm trying to find out day by day what mine is. That's our responsibility. And if this is not necessarily, quote, full-time service, unquote. I think there's a great mistake made by many young Christians today who think that unless you're going into full-time service, you're perfectly free just to use your life any way you choose. Well, he says in First Corinthians seven and seven, one had his gift after this sort, and one after another. God's plan for you may include some full-time service, so-called, or it may include you're being a professional person, a teacher, a workman of some kinds, serving him right there where you are. Our business is to find out what his plan is. And it's only faith that can do that. See, if I don't trust God, I'm not going to be willing for him to plan. I'm going to want to keep the thing in my own hands. I'm going to want to do it my way. Now, section three, rebellion against God's plans. One, originally by Satan. A. Adam. That is, Satan led Adam into this same rebellion. By one man, sin entered into the world, Romans five said. And B, he led Israel into it also. Ezekiel two calls Israel the rebellious nation. Now this should be an example to us. We should be able to read the Old Testament history of Israel and see what amass they made of things. and avoid making the same mistake. Number two, the whole world is now in rebellion. Second Thessalonians two, seven, for the mystery of iniquity doth already work. Only he who now hinders will hinders. The whole world is now in rebellion. A, it is not subject. the law of God Romans eight and seven not subject that is unwilling to submit unwilling to give in and be in the bond of iniquity Acts eight twenty three he was referring to Simon in particular but this is true of every unconverted person Strangely enough, you know, people who are in the bond of iniquity think they're free. And this is what you see in the world today. People are talking about liberty, freedom. But the freedom they're talking about is the freedom to sin. And that's the word kind of slavery. Now, number three, even believers may rebel against God. A... by not yielding to the Lordship of Christ. Psalm thirteen, he said, You call me Master and Lord, and you say, Well, if I therefore your Lord and Master, they said Master and Lord, he said Lord and Master. It would be much easier for the Lord to teach you if you'll acknowledge his Lordship first. If he's your Lord, it would be easy for him to be your Master. That's the thought. and B, by not presenting his body. Romans six tells us that we ought to give each of our members, our faculties to him. And Romans twelve and one says, I beseech you and present your body. And C, by not seeking to please him, Colossians one ten I like the revised version Colossians one ten anticipating his pleasure that was C by not seeking to please him and D by any form of disobedience second Corinthians ten says it He wants to cast down imaginations and bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. So any form of disobedience is really rebellion against God's plan. I hope that hurts us a little bit, what it's intended to do. It hurts me as I think back how many times I have taken my own way and how fruitless it turned out to be. Section four, faith accepts God's plan. One, trusts God to choose the best. And here is a lovely verse I wish he would memorize. Psalm forty-seven four. He shall choose our inheritance for us. It goes on to say, because he loved us. He shall choose our inheritance for us. A little boy went with his father into the grocery, and he was looking longingly at the peanuts, and the grocery man said, go ahead and take a handful. The boy didn't. Finally the grocerman took a handful and gave them to him. He got outside. His father said, why did you take a handful? He was holding his two hands out. He said, he had bigger hands. He's taking a handful. He wouldn't have gotten nearly as much as when the grocerman gave him a handful. I think the application is obvious. Now, if you're going to trust God to choose the best, as number one states, A, it must be in every area. In every area. It won't do to say you're going to let God choose how you serve him, but you're not going to let God choose your wife. It won't do to say you're going to let God choose your wife, but you're not going to let him choose what school to go to. In every area. and be without understanding. If you've insist on understanding everything that God asks you to do, that is not faith. I think this is one of the biggest handicaps to walking by faith. We want to understand it. We want to see it all the way through. If it... makes sense to us. We'll accept it. That isn't faith. Faith is accepting God's plan for us, God's way for us, without understanding. And number two, it trusts God to provide daily needs. Matthew six and eleven give us this day our daily bread. This means, A, no worry. B, no scheming. You remember old Jacob, don't you? Spent his whole lifetime and then found out at the last that God was really taking care of him. Your schemes didn't amount to anything. And C, cease from man, Isaiah, two twenty-two says, cease from man whose breath is in his nostrils. That is, stop looking to man for help. When somebody decides to go into some kind of Christian work, right away he wants to find a rich man that he can get a tap on. Or figure out some kind of a scheme for raising money. And D, be content. Hebrews verse thirteen, be content with such things as you have, because he has said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. You don't need nearly as much as you want. It's one of the lessons that faith has to learn. And number three, faith learns the will of God. A, His precepts. That is specific statements. And B, His principles. Sometimes if we can't find a verse that says that you should do this or that very plainly, then we think there is no guidance in the Bible. There are certain principles in the Bible which ought to govern our lives. If you learn to look for these, you'll get a great deal of guidance about the will of God. And see, pray for wisdom, and expect God to give it. James one, five to seven. If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who give it to all men liberally, and I pray that not, and which have they given it. But he says, let him ask in faith, not wavering. Expect God to give you the wisdom when you need it. Now, don't expect him to give it to you too much ahead of time. If you don't need wisdom until next week, he's going to give it to you this week. Because that is faith, you see. Be willing to trust God about... next week, when next week come. And D, to patiently wait for a word from the Lord. Psalm thirty-seven, five and seven. Wait, I say, on the Lord. This is our big problem, isn't it? We're going to like to wait. We want the answers right now. We want God to show us exactly what we're to do from now on until He takes us home. Don't tell me you don't have that problem. I know what's inside of your heart, because I know what's inside of mine. Now, Section Four, or rather, Subdivision Four, faith diligently does what He has led to do. Ecclesiastes nine and ten. Whatsoever thine hand finds to do, do it with thy might. Now the reason I've put this in here is because sometimes we say, well, I know the Lord has told me to do this, but I want to know, well, if you do what he's told you to do, then you'd know about the next step. It's like the guidance of the footland that we were talking about. Thy word is a lamp to my feet, my light to my path. One step at a time. If he's given you something to do, do that. And do it hardly and do it well. And then he'll tell you something else. I've given you a couple of examples. A. Abraham's servant in Genesis chapter four said, I being in the way, the Lord led me. If he'd sat his home, the Lord couldn't have led him. How would he have found the girl for Isaac? How would he have found Rebecca if he'd stayed at home? He had to go to the country where Abraham told him that she would be found first. That may be why some of you fellows haven't found the girl. You're not looking the right place. You've got to look among Christians and not among non-Christians. You've got to look among spiritual ones and not among unspiritual ones. And B, in Isaiah thirty, he says, this is the way walk ye in it. Now, he says that you will hear a voice when you turn to the right hand or to the left, saying, this is the way walk ye in it. Remember this, if God is going to guide you, it's very much like a ship or a car. You've got a steering wheel, you've got a tiller, you've got a helm. You can sit in that car and twist that wheel all you want to, and you'll never make a turn until you get the motor started. And even if you're headed in the wrong direction, if you get your engine revved up, then you can use the thing to turn it around. Even if a boat is headed in the wrong way, get power up, get steam up. And then the guide can turn the captain can turn the boat where it belongs. And many times we're sitting waiting for guidance, but we're not doing anything. If you get started, God can guide you in the right direction. He can turn you if you're willing to be turned. Now, this, I believe, is what is meant by living by faith. You can see that there isn't an area of our lives that doesn't touch. And you can see that we've got to be sensitive to God's guidance. We've got to be familiar with his word. We've got to be willing for him to choose.