Faith, part 2

When I think back to some of the wonderful saints whose funerals I have been to, and or have been a part of, the only thing that matters is that they all made it to heaven. It doesn’t matter in the least how wealthy they were in life, it doesn’t matter in the least how much they were able to travel during this life, it doesn’t matter in the least how good looking they were (which is a big relief for most of us): when you pass from this life to the eternal, all that will matter is that you will be in the presence of the One who died for you. His presence will heal everything. 

We will finally relate firsthand to what Paul meant, when he said in the book of Philippians, “I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish in order that I may gain Christ” (3:7). Paul wanted nothing more than to be found in Christ, not having a righteousness of his own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Jesus - the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith. He wanted to know Jesus and the power of His resurrection. 

I believe, Paul’s great faith was based on who he understood Jesus to be and the reward waiting for him at the end of his life. One of the verses I read and meditated on, this past week is from 2 Timothy 4:7-8 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; 8 in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day.” Paul understood what his future held for him, and it allowed him to endure everything this life was handing out to him. We have an eternity to look forward to that will surpass even the greatest of persecutions and trials we may be facing today.

Understand that the Righteous Judge is going to award us: If we endure our trials and not lose our faith we will be rewarded. That’s why Paul said in 2 Timothy 4:5 “… keep your head in all situations, endure hardship.” Keep your head – keep focused – don’t get all crazy about what life is handing you because this life is not going to last forever. 
 

Numbers 23:19 “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it?” “Nor a son of man,” means God is not a frail mortal. Some might say, “But Jesus was a man.” That’s true but He was fully man and fully God at the same time. In that sense, He greatly differs from you and me. We have to get this into our thinking. God is not a man. He is not like man in his fallen state. A state where we all too often lie and create false images, and because we are prone to do that, it can cause us to question the promises of God. The verse emphatically states that God cannot lie. He is not like us. 

We look at certain men or women and we call them people of character, therefore we feel we can trust them. If a man of character tells us something we feel we can trust him, but there is always the possibility that he may not be able to live up to his words. What God has said He will do, He will do!

God has more than a strong character. It’s deeper than that, it’s that God cannot lie. It is not possible for Him to lie because that would be indicative of the fallen nature of man. There is no sin in God’s realm subsequently there is no possibility of a lie, which is why the idea of ever needing to repent does not exist in His thinking. 
 

Lying and repenting are things we have to deal with as men under the curse. Our fallen world is filled with deception and sin therefore when we hear something we wonder if that person is really telling the truth or not, because they could be lying. But not so with God, He cannot lie. God has promised eternal life for those who love Him and profess Him as Lord. Our purpose in life therefore is to get men to believe the Word of God. The only thing more important than our own salvation is the salvation of our loved ones and friends. It’s been asked, “What could be more important than going to heaven?” The answer is; going to heaven knowing that your loved ones will be following you there. 
 

That brings us to the next point. Paul said, his purpose was to help build the faith in those who were chosen by God so that they could come into the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness. In other words, our objective is to help people secure, or recognize truth which tends toward piety. It’s not just the general acquisition of knowledge; you can get general knowledge in any school. It’s knowledge which promotes godliness. The truth Paul was appointed to secure, was not scientific, historical, or political truth: it was that which would lead people to a holy life, and to prepare them for a holy heaven.

Continued tomorrow