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Sunday 3/15/26
Title: The Faith the Just Live by
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Maintaining the Expectation of His return
In our series on faith, we have allowed the topic of hope to maintain center stage since it is in fact central to faith – both in practice and as a topic.
Faith’s role in our lives is to supply a strong, unyielding foundational support for hope.
Hope, as I have continued to press upon you, is what we can rightly expect from God.
This definition is very powerful in its simplicity. It will help keep you from the wrong pursuits, from incorrect beliefs and from the type of disappointments which can shipwreck your walk in Christ.
It was one of the key things missing in our understanding of faith many years ago.
Faith, meaning true biblical faith, is always God centered and God focused. It will always produce greater piety, purity and reverence – not less and a proper understanding of hope in relation to faith is central to this truth and experience.
Believe it or not it has been over a month since I have reviewed what we have thus fact learned about faith, so we will do it again now.
- Faith is the foundational support for what you CAN RIGHTLY expect from God.
- Faith is always IN God and not FOR a thing or outcome.
- Faith begins where God is revealed (not just where His will is known).
- Faith is always IN God as a person, not in what we know ABOUT His will.
- Faith is God focused not ME focused.
- Reverence for God is foundational to faith.
- Faith is NOT difficult or hard to come by.
- Faith isn’t conjured, it comes!
- Faith is automatic if your heart is open and unprotected.
- Faith’s motive is always pure.
- Faith ALWAYS bears fruit – has correlating action.
- Faith doesn’t need a shield, it IS one.
Now I am going to introduce another truth regarding faith today to add to our list of short statements about faith and that is faith comes from God.
It is very simple and it may seem to you that we have covered it, but not like I am presenting it before you now.
By this statement, I am saying that all trust in God, originates from Him as a source.
The scriptures tell us in Hebrews 12:2 that it is Jesus Who both authors and matures our faith.
Now I want to be careful since certain understandings of predestination can twist this in a direction I am not implying.
I am not saying by this that if you have faith it is because God predetermined that you must believe and therefore you do.
What I am saying is that faith comes from God as a source. He offers both the ability and the reason to believe – to EVERY single person who comes into the world. It is in that sense that I am saying God is the source of all faith.
If you as an individual, choose to believe, it is because you responded to the opportunity afforded to you by God.
The same holds true of your maturity in faith. Once you have placed your faith in God, He starts working within you influencing you towards His will and pleasure. If you, through sensitivity and surrender, respond to His inner working, your faith will mature by means of His influence over your growth.
That is what I mean when I say that Jesus is the author and the developer of your Faith.
Now on the website I will have a semi-thorough explanation of this because various translations render the verse in differing ways which can cause some confusion. But to keep our time here from getting bogged down I will just tell you that Hebrew 12:2 is saying that Jesus is the source of our faith and the One Who brings it to maturity.
The reason this fact about faith is so pivotal is because in practice, people attempt to use what I call assumed faith or buckshot faith.
That is where a person sees something they want. They may or may not bother to look for a scripture where God gave to someone what they are wanting.
If they just assume God will give it without consulting scripture and ask God for it – believing it will happen. THAT is buckshot faith.
If they DO consult the Bible and find God giving someone what they are wanting – they make the assumption that this scripture applies to them.
Then they convince themselves that it is theirs.
These are NOT examples of true faith. These are examples of people convincing themselves of something. There is a profound difference!
Faith always involves God revealing Himself to you in some way. As Creator, or Lord, or Savior, or provider, or healer…etc. Once God has sown the seed of revelation into your heart – how you cultivate it by treasuring, valuing and honoring the PERSON of that revelation will determine if it germinates and how it matures in your heart. It is from this truth or in view of this truth that Jesus taught the parable of the heart soils – which by His Own admission was the most important of all the parables!
By saying it this way I am making use of the words of Hebrews 12:2 as they appear in the NKJV of the bible, but what those words meant when penned in the Greek is a bit more tricky and are more than is ever captured in any word for word translation.
As much as I try to avoid too much detail in explaining what a passage means in its original context and language, there are times it is necessary and this is one of them. I feel you should know what decisions have been made FOR you that you didn’t even know were made for you.
Take a look at this verse with me in Hebrews 12:2. I’m going to read it from the NIV, the ESV and the Weymouth. The REASONS I am choosing these is because the NIV and ESV are by far the most popular and used translations in Christian circles world wide. My reason for using the Weymouth is because it sets before us another way in which this verse can be translated – in fact, in reference to our key words about faith it is the most literal.
- NIV – “fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”– Hebrew 12:2
- ESV – “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.”– Hebrew 12:2
- Weymouth – “simply fixing our gaze upon Jesus, our Prince Leader in the faith, who will also award us the prize. He, for the sake of the joy which lay before Him, patiently endured the cross, looking with contempt upon its shame, and afterwards seated Himself– where He still sits–at the right hand of the throne of God.” – Hebrew 12:2
So we have…
“of faith”
“our faith”
“the faith”
Which is accurate?
Well the Greek phrase is τῆς πίστεως (tes pisteos), which means “of the faith“
But while this is literal, it is not what the author was conveying to the Jews reading the letter when it was written and read. The entire thought begins back in chapter 10 verses 35-39. That context is talking about not forsaking the faith AND not forsaking your personal faith in Jesus. Then in Chapter 11 the author defines faith, explains that personal faith caused those who have gone before us to obtain a good and living testimony – to be examples of lives lived by faith in God. Then in Chapter 12 we are encouraged again to not draw back from faith but to endure just as these people did. Then in verse 2 we are told our primary example of faith we are to look to is Jesus Himself.
So while the words in verse to, isolated from the greater context, do say “the faith” and are true, the entire topic and encouragement has been to individual believers to not grow faint and draw back from trust in Christ and thus from THE faith. The notions of patient endurance, drawing back, discouragement, each person obtaining a good testimony and living witness all point to the faith of the individual in person of God and by extension THE faith. So both are true, but one more clearly conveys the overall meaning.
Therefore, while Jesus IS the architect of THE FAITH (the doctrines and truths of scripture which reveal God and man’s ability to be in right standing with Him) it is directly focused upon Jesus’ authoring and maturing faith in the heart of the individual.
Jesus is set forth as the “Author” and “Finisher“: The Greek words archēgos(author/pioneer) and teleiōtēs(finisher/perfecter) strongly imply an active, ongoing role in an individual’s life journey of ongoing trust (faith) in God. Translators often substitute the word “our” in place of “the” to explicitly connect the faith being pioneered as the faith of the individual Christian reading the letter.
So taken all together a “technical” interpretation would yield “the faith”, but since the NewTestament traditionally uses the words “the faith” as a synonym for the total Christian belief system – in this specific passage, context suggests the internal, active faith of a Christian.
Translators see this as a “faith” that is, in essence, “ours” because its source and maturer is Jesus Himself!
The word “author” as used in the NKJV is the Greek word archēgósand means originator, founder, leader, chief so it carries two primary meanings. Jesus is set forth here as being both the founder and first cause of faith.
Jesus Christ is here called archēgós, the originator of faith. This may mean that Jesus is the One Who initiates or authors faith in the souls of men.
The next word is “finisher” or “maturer” of our faith. Now it is important to understand that the words “our faith” is really
This is important because it brings a very relevant example of God’s personal involvement in the development of our hearts into the New Testament from the Old Testament.
A very precious truth about God is revealed in the Old Testament which I always treasure and it offers a perfect segway into our re-examining both 1 Peter 1 and James 1.
Psalm 33:14-22, “(14) The LORD looks down from heaven; He sees all the children of man; (14) from where He sits enthroned He looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth, (15) He Who fashions the hearts of them all and observes all their deeds.
(16) The king is not saved by his great army;
a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
(17) The war horse is a false hope for salvation, and by its great might it cannot rescue.”
These are all words associated with God’s work in our lives – be they spiritual deliverance, or salvation of our souls or physical rescue.
These all come from God – Who fashions the heart and watches our deeds.
“(18) Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him,
on those who hope in His steadfast love, (19) that He may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.”
“(20) Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield.
(21) For our heart is glad in Him, BECAUSE we trust in His holy name.”
Our gladness comes from our trust in His person.
“(22) Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in You.”
These verses are a blueprint if you will of both the development of faith and a life of faith.
The final verse is a prayer of faith and that faith began with the God Who alone possess the power and authority to fashion the hearts of man!
So this points to Jesus as the source of our faith which places a firm foundation under all the “little bricks of hope” which together make up the grand structure of our BIG HOPE – Christ in us!
And Christ in us has three very specific manifestations – our spirits in the New Birth, our souls as we work out Christ’s likeness through faith and suffering and finally that of our bodies!
I have taught you that our faith in Christ does not end at the cross, but only begins there!
The Just did not just believe the day they came to Christ, but the just LIVE by faith in Christ!
ALL three of these salvations – spirit, soul & body require Faith… both active and ongoing!
Meaning all three require the supernatural intervention of God, revealing Himself to us and fashioning our hearts individually.
This is not a once and done salvation. God will not be mocked! He has invited us into a union – a relationship of intimacy where we can and must come to know Him and be known by Him.
It is a journey which MUST eclipse all other earthly interests!
In SO many ways, this is the primary story John Bunyan was revealing in his book. It was appropriately named The Pilgrim’s Progress. It is my opinion his story only fell short by making heaven (or the Celestial city) appear as the goal, rather than on knowing and being known by Christ.
His story however, accurately captures the journey of the soul from earthly distractions to heavenly communion. A journey in which “Christian’s” earthly interests are systematically “eclipsed” by their singular focus on their life of faith and salvation in Christ.
While the story follows a linear path, it acts as a deep allegory of the Christian life, demonstrating that true faith is not a once and done proposition, but requires continual communion with God. Never ending hope supported by trust in His willingness, purpose and desires to form Christ in us which calls us out of our complacent comfort zones into a life of daily renouncing worldly focuses and desires.
This can only be accomplished by the inward work of the Holy Spirit and that requires our looking to Jesus in trust to accomplish in and through us, what we cannot do for ourselves.
Galatians 2:20-21, “(20) I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself for me.
(21) I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing!“
We are living in an age of lazy, complacent religious repackaged as Christianity – and nothing could be further from the truth. This religious substitution is deadly and dangerous!
Don’t let the repetition of these words numb you to the urgency they should evoke in your heart.
Paul says so very clearly to the carnal church of Corinth,
“(9) Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, (10) nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. (11) And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. (12) All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. (13) Foods for the stomach and the stomach for foods, but God will destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. (14) And God both raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by His power.” – 1 Cor. 6:9-14
There is an ongoing, intimate exchange between us and our Maker which not only began the work in us, but continues it until the end.
The deception in the modern church is that we can somehow begin our journey in Christ giving Him all attention in the initial act of salvation and afterwards place the rest of our lives in Him on autopilot expecting Him to do all the work without our involvement.
THAT is not relationship, that is lazy, self-absorbed living being passed off as faith.
Please hear me – this is a relationship – a REAL relationship!
That phrase is not just a catchy modernism to dissuade the world’s repugnance at religion as applying to Christianity. It really is a relationship which is inherently bidirectional!
There is a genuine, daily need to seek God’s face.
- A genuine daily need to long for greater intimacy with Him.
- A genuine daily need to require Christ to be revealed to us.
- A genuine daily need to maintain an expectancy in Him through relational trust to infuse that image of Christ we’ve seen into our very nature until we become like Him.
Just like David said, I will be satisfied when I awake in His likeness!
But what did the whole quote say – what was that psalm even about?
Let’s read it – Psalm 17 and let David be our teacher today as we seek to better understand faith and the role we play in our journey of faith!
“(1) A Prayer of David.
Hear a just cause, O LORD, Attend to my cry; Give ear to my prayer which is not from deceitful lips.”
First I want you to see that this is communion. This is David talking with God – not about trivial matters but issues of the salvation of the soul!
How many of you have had people speak evil of you? How many of us have desired to take our vindication into our own hands and prove our integrity and honor?
If you know what it is like to be slandered. To be picked apart and belittled either by those you wish thought better of you or before those with whom you were once held in high regard. If you know what that is like, then you know the inner burning at the injustice of it all and the soul’s desire to set the record straight and come to your own defense.
In fact, for some of us, the only reason we didn’t do so was because it would make us look desperate and as if we were attempting to justify ourselves which always makes a person look suspicious. So you just had to quietly stand by while your character is picked over like yesterday’s leftovers.
David understood this type of projected shame – but he valued God’s view of him more than man’s – Listen to his response!
“(2) Let my vindication come from Your presence; Let Your eyes look on the things that are upright.
(3) You have tested my heart; You have visited me in the night; You have tried me and have found nothing; I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.”
I will NOT run to my own rescue – I will rely upon You! Notice that to defend himself was seen by David as transgressing with his mouth.
Like Jesus never coming to His Own defense but like a sheep before its shearers is quiet so Jesus did not open His mouth!
Then David cries out to God to help him live by his convictions rather than to act as men of the flesh.
“(4) Concerning the works of men, By the word of Your lips, I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer.
(5) Uphold my steps in Your paths, That my footsteps may not slip.
(6) I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God; Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.
(7) Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand, O You who save those who trust in You From those who rise up against them.
(8) Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of Your wings, (9) From the wicked who oppress me, From my deadly enemies who surround me. (10) They have closed up their fat hearts; With their mouths they speak proudly.
(11) They have now surrounded us in our steps; They have set their eyes, crouching down to the earth, (12) As a lion is eager to tear his prey, And like a young lion lurking in secret places.
(13) Arise, O LORD, Confront him, cast him down; Deliver my life from the wicked with Your sword, (14) With Your hand from men, O LORD,”
Now don’t miss the description of these worldly men and the things they seek, as compared to the Hope David possessed.
“From men of the world who have their portion in this life, And whose belly You fill with Your hidden treasure. They are satisfied with children, And leave the rest of their possession for their babes.
(15) As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.” – Psalm 17:1-15
THAT is faith! That is a clear depiction of The Pilgrims Progress – in progress!
Notice what ultimately set his compass for his desires was the person of God. God’s praise, God’s esteem, God’s approval.
You know one thing every Christian has to face at some point in their journey – if they really are on the Christian journey – is their desire for the acceptance and approval of man. Be certain, that at some point, you will have to make the decision to forsake your need, desire and pursuit of that and it will most commonly occur in the form of a social death of some sort.
Blessings!
Blessings!
