God and Faith that Saves

The Bible is full of heroes of faith in God who are not mentioned in Hebrews 11.  In some cases we are not even given their names, yet they remain worthy of our admiration and emulation.  The living God does wondrous things through people who trust and fear Him, and blessed are those who put their lives in His hands.

Jonathan and his young armour-bearer are a fine example of men who banded together in the fear of God.  They did not consider the "odds" of winning or defeat in battle; they were not buoyed by aspirations of fame nor hesitated at the potential personal cost.  1 Samuel 14:6-7 reads, "Then Jonathan said to the young man who bore his armor, "Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the LORD will work for us. For nothing restrains the LORD from saving by many or by few." ⁷ So his armorbearer said to him, "Do all that is in your heart. Go then; here I am with you, according to your heart."  Jonathan aimed to be more than a disruption to the encamped Philistines who oppressed Israel, for his aim was for God to save them and all Israel.  Nothing restrained God from saving by many or few, and the passage shows even two who trust Him is more than enough.

From a military standpoint, the Philistines had every advantage.  The Philistines were many, well-armed, had lookouts stationed, and held an elevated, fortified position.  Jonathan and the young man who held his armour were two men, and one had his hands full!  Jonathan looked at the situation, not with the eyes of a seasoned military veteran, but with the expectation God would save and with willingness to do his part.  The armour-bearer was pleased to follow Jonathan wherever he went, even if it meant clambering up a mountain and walking into an enemy encampment.  Instead of questioning or opposing Jonathan, the armour-bearer encouraged him to go for it--and he was all in with whatever Jonathan chose to do.

God won a notable victory that day by the hand of Jonathan and his young armour-bearer because they believed God was able to save, sought the LORD for the go-ahead, and boldly took action according to faith in Him.  They did not imagine themselves stronger, better equipped, or more skilled warriors than the Philistines who mocked them but believed their God would do a work to save.  The first half of 2 Chronicles 16:9, "For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him..."  By God's grace these men were enabled to do what their king and army was unable to do.  These men weren't looking to be heroes, but were willing to be nameless and shameless in their faith in their God who is unrestrained to save.  May each of God's people be numbered among those who believe nothing restrains God by saving by many or few and do all that He puts in our hearts.

God's Appointments

"But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. ⁹ For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁰ who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him. ¹¹ Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing."

1 Thessalonians 5:8-11

There are many kinds of appointments we have daily, and some of these are arranged and kept by us and others by God.  Yesterday I accompanied my parents to a doctor's appointment, the kind of appointment one would rather not have.  It would be wonderful if we never were sick and doctor's appointments were unnecessary, but having an appointment with a skilled physician is a blessing when you have cancer and want to be rid of it.

I was encouraged by this passage in 1 Thessalonians 5 that tells us that God has not appointed us to wrath but to obtain salvation through our LORD Jesus Christ.  We may forget we have an appointment and miss it, but God never forgets.  As children of God saved through the Gospel, we are not appointed to wrath.  The suffering and pains of this life are not retribution for our sins, for Jesus has provided atonement on the cross, forgiven us and imputed the righteousness of God to us.  In this world, however, we will suffer many trials and tribulations.  We can be sure every one of them is devoid of God's wrath that consumes and destroys, for He utilises trials to refine His beloved children to make us more like Him.

As certain as children of God are not appointed to wrath, He has appointed us to obtain salvation and to live together with Him.  He will not fail to keep these appointments!  Jesus died for us so we can always live with Him in fellowship as companions.  Whether we live in these bodies or after our mortal frame is laid to rest, Jesus has appointed us to life with Him.  Paul exhorted believers to comfort and edify one another with these words, for God has appointed comfort for those who mourn.  The one who mourns over their sin and repents is the one who will be forgiven and comforted, and this knowledge of God's divine appointments and plans for us strengthens us today.

By faith in Jesus we put on the breastplate of faith and love, and we don the helmet of the hope of salvation.  These, my brothers and sisters, will never disappoint.  When we are disappointed with situations in our lives, our hearts and minds are well-protected by faith and the love of God and hope of salvation.  No weapon fashioned against us shall prosper, for God has appointed us to live with Him now and forever.  Jesus is our life, and blessed is the one who is comforted and edified in Him.

Holding To God's Word

It is the revelation of God in His word that teaches us of His ways and thoughts that are higher than ours.  Great error is inevitable when we depart from the scripture and rely upon personal experience to determine what is doctrinally true.  Drifting into the fallacy of personal experience can be subtle, and even people who hold to the Bible being the word of God are not exempt from the resulting bias.  Better than limiting the way God can or will do something by our experience, we are wise to hold to God's word as truth and guidance for life.

Recently I read a book by an author I respect who holds the Bible in high esteem.  While there were times he referenced scripture to explain doctrines, his positions were greatly weakened by straw man arguments and the fallacy of personal experience.  Because he had not seen someone who could heal "on command," he dismissed the possibility anyone could be given gifts of healing today.  I am not convinced anyone gifted by God to heal did so "on command" of anyone other than God, for that would reduce this divine act to a party trick.  Just because we are given spiritual gifts according to the will of the Holy Spirit, there is an appropriate time and occasion to use them as led by Him.  Initially when Jesus was approached by a woman who begged Him to cast a demon out of her daughter, Jesus did not do so.  In response to her persistence and faith He ultimately did as she asked, and her daughter was made whole that very hour.

The author went on to say if the gifts of healing were truly in operation today, the hospitals would be empty because those who could heal would empty them.  Again, there is no scriptural precedent in the Gospels or the book of Acts (or anywhere else in the Bible) to support such a claim.  In John 5 Jesus went to the pool of Bethsaida where there were many sick and infirm people, and we read of Him choosing to heal one man.  He may have healed more than one person on the day, but the scripture remains silent on this.  What I love about that passage is Jesus went the man and knew He had suffered his condition for a long time.  The man hoped his healing would occur by his entering the pool first after it had been stirred, and Jesus chose to heal the man by grace--for he did not even ask.

The author went into detail about the trickery and fakery in some evangelical circles where charlatans deceive people to believe divine healing has taken place.  Does the existence of liars and deceivers prevent God from continuing to divinely heal people according to His will?  Those phonies are not gifted by God to heal, but it does not follow that no one today has been given gifts to heal by God's grace.  What is much more likely is that people doubt God's will to heal, do not really believe God can or will heal them.  The words of Jesus when He described how prophets were not accepted in their own country can serve as a rebuke to people in the church who doubt God heals people today in Luke 4:27:  "And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."  Naaman came from Syria to be healed by Elisha the prophet of God and went home whole, yet there were many lepers in Israel when the prophet Elisha was given power from God to heal.

Can this also be true concerning people in the church today?  The man on the street may be more receptive to divine healing than the genuine Christian in church who believes gifts of healing are no more!  In both the Old and New Testament we see the power of God on display to heal, save, make whole and bring peace to the hearts and lives of people, and we need Him as much today as ever.  Since God is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8), let us believe He will continue to do His miraculous wonders in the time and way He sees fit.

Appreciating the Church

It is easy to take things for granted because we become quickly accustomed to life as things are.  For this reason we likely do not appreciate all God has provided for us by His grace.  Take the church, for instance.  We can appreciate and value the church as a gathering of God's people to worship Him, study His word and serve one another.  But we may not realise God has joined us together as one in His own Body of which He is our Head.  We might focus on what we can contribute to the fellowship of the saints, but we are also blessed by how all contribute to our good as well.

This dynamic played out in the early church when Timothy was sent to establish and comfort the church in Thessalonica as the people were going through tribulation and affliction.  Paul was concerned the people might have fallen prey to lies of Satan and abandon their faith because of their troubling circumstances.  Paul shared in 1 Thessalonians 3:6-8:  "But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and brought us good news of your faith and love, and that you always have good remembrance of us, greatly desiring to see us, as we also to see you--⁷ therefore, brethren, in all our affliction and distress we were comforted concerning you by your faith. ⁸ For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord."  When Paul and the brethren received a good report of the people's faith, love and fond memory of them, they were comforted.  The ones seeking to instruct were informed; those who sought to encourage fellow believers were themselves encouraged and comforted.

It is amazing how God connects and unites individual believers in one body, the church.  Isn't it true that when we prepare to teach we are the ones taught?  And even after the message in discussion with other Christians there is much spiritual truth to glean and gladly receive we had not laboured for.  The one who seeks to help others are greatly helped according to God's grace.  Paul and his fellow Christians who were in affliction and distress were comforted by the faith of those in Thessalonica--ironically people they desired to establish and comfort in faith.  Sometimes the very thing we wish to supply to others is also what we need ourselves, though we do not always recognise it.  The minister may not realise how much he needs ministry--not as an outlet to use God's gifts to edify others--but to be edified and encouraged by the gifts of others.  We are blessed with capacity to grow in our appreciation of God for His grace and goodness towards us by simply being in Christ in faith and following Him obediently.