The Way of Faith

The week before I got married I got on the phone with a man of God.

As he prayed for me he quoted from the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 6and from verses 30 to 33.

Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Then he said to me, “My son! Don’t forget these words of life”

For the last thirty-five years this particular part of Scripture has been my compass through the storms of life.

I have learned a few precious lessons along the way…

Here are three of them.

Many times, we do not give the kingdom of God priority because we are accustomed to seeking the world’s way first. But when we become genuinely born-again, we must break the habit of relying on the world’s way of doing things. In other words, we must train ourselves to turn to the Word of God first in every situation we face.

We must become confident in the fact that God’s way is always the best way.

So how can this be possible? The world we live in is totally opposite to what God says!

So here is lesson number one:

The world’s systems are constantly failing, whether it is men, machines or methods. But, everything in the kingdom of God starts with the Word.

If you feel the kingdom is not working for you, build your confidence by meditating on the Word.

Be sure you are giving God’s Word first place in your life.

Be sure you are not allowing unbelief to consume you; deal with any doubt you have concerning the Word

Be sure the Word is growing like a seed in your heart.

Here is the second lesson I learned:

Plant and protect what God says deep in your heart.

Planting the Word in your heart can be compared to a person planting seeds in the ground.

Plant the Word in your heart by saying it. Speak it to your heart constantly.

Protect it by rejecting any suggestion or thought that opposes God’s Word.

To receive the promises in the Word, take ownership of them by faith. Faith is the law of the kingdom and the decree of the King! Jesus never changes His Word that is why the Scriptures are trustworthier than the words of any man!

Finally:

To succeed in the kingdom of God, we must simply do the following:

We must give the kingdom (God’s way of doing things) priority in our lives.

We must go directly to the Word of God first whenever we face an issue or a problem.

We must receive the Word by taking ownership of what the Word promises.

Men who wrote the Bible were inspired by the Holy Spirit and wrote under the power of God. No wonder Hebrews 11 says…Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for; being the proof of things [we] do not see. In other words, faith is the evidence of the things we cannot see in this physical world. Because faith comes by hearing and hearing the Word of God.

Therefore, faith and the Word are one. We cannot separate one from the other.

Let people go any which way they desire.

I’ve gone the way of faith! It has kept me the last thirty-five years!