Thursday, August 21, 2008
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Faith that Makes a Difference
The book of Romans is one of the books of the Bible that has much to say about faith. It has impacted the likes of Martin Luther and John Wesley, to name just a few, and has made a huge impact on the church. It is also probably one of the writings that Peter was specifically referring to when he said that "Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand" (2 Peter 3:15-16). It is true, however, that gold only comes as we dig in and mine. Some times the best things demand some hard work and attention.
At the same time, there is a wonderful passage in the book of Romans, that has a great faith lesson, and seems oh, so simple. It is found in Romans 10, in a long discussion about faith and works and law and grace and the responses of Israel and the Gentiles.
"But what does it say? 'The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,' that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:8-9).
This is the word of faith that we are focusing on today in our faith forward challenge. And scripture says, Paul here quoting Deuteronomy 30:14, that the word of faith is near you. God has already put it in your heart. You just have to let it come from there to your mouth and out. And this "word of faith" has two powerful parts to it.
Jesus is Lord. That is the first part. And we are to confess that with our mouths. Say it. Right now. Out loud. "Jesus is Lord." The very fact that you could say those words already proves that the Holy Spirit of God is alive in you (see 1 Corinthians 12:3)! However, because this little phrase is so familiar and we are prone to say it without thinking about its reality, we fail to recognize the impact of those words. He is truly Lord of all! There is nothing greater. There is nothing more powerful. There is nothing that he cannot defeat and has not already triumphed over! There is nothing which we may be facing or nothing which we will encounter over which he cannot be and is not, in fact, already, Lord. Jesus is Lord. That is a powerful faith confession. Is there a particular thing or situation which is causing you trouble today? Say, Jesus is Lord over ________________. This is the word of faith. This is our powerful confession that brings salvation and deliverance.
If that were not enough, there is the second hit in this one-two-punch of faith. We not only are to confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord, we are to believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead. Would there be any problem more difficult to deal with than your own death? When you and I are dead, what can we do then? We will be the most powerless we have ever been to face life! Believe that God raised Jesus from the dead. In other words, he can do anything. He can do the impossible. He can do what we cannot, if we trust him. Believe. Whatever you and I are struggling with or facing right now might seem huge, but we have a God who can go so far as to breathe life into one who is dead. How does my thing look in comparison to that? If that doesn't encourage our faith, I don't know what will.
This is faith that can make a difference! If you confess with your mouth that "Jesus is Lord," and faith in your heart that God raised him from the dead, anything is possible. When we put these two things together and make it our confession of faith, we can and will be saved and delivered and rescued from everything and anything!
"As the Scripture says, 'Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame'." (Romans 10:11).
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