“By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God.” (Hebrews 11:5 NKJV)
Many heretical teachings are spreading like wildfire across the churches today. One such teaching is presenting faith as a mere presumption, wishful thinking, the almighty force that can compel God to act, or the almighty formula for solving any life problem.
The concept of faith as the “almighty force” that can move, motivate, compel, or manipulate God to give or do anything you wish or want is absurd and unbiblical.
Many believers today are frustrated and depressed in a bid to use their faith to compel, persuade, manipulate, or control God to grant their wishes, desires, and prayers or to carry out their commands.
A proper spiritual understanding of faith and how it works is crucial to your Christian life, for a call to be a Christian is essentially a call to walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7).
The Christian life, race, or journey starts with faith in the provision of God’s grace, and only by faith in God’s grace can it be successfully finished or completed (Eph. 2:8, Col. 2:6). It is impossible to live a victorious, overcoming, triumphant, or prosperous life in this evil world without a true and living faith in God (1 John 5:4-5).
Moreover, the Scripture warns that whatever does not proceed from faith is a sin in the sight of God (Rom. 14:23). So, any believer who is not living and walking by faith is simply living and walking in sin. It is a life of faith in the finished work of Christ that pleases God (Heb. 11:6).
Without a living and dynamic faith, you cannot appropriate, possess, or enjoy all your inheritance or blessing in Christ. Therefore, it is crucial for you as a believer to understand what true, living, and dynamic biblical faith is and how it works.
Contrary to the widespread but false and unscriptural teachings about faith in the Church today, faith is not seeing what is not real, it is not speaking what is not true, and it is not seeking, claiming, or possessing what does not exist.
True faith is not seeking or striving to motivate, compel, manipulate, persuade or impress God by your prolonged fasting and prayer, good works or performance to promise you what He has not promised you before in His Word, or to give you what He has not given you in Christ, or to do for you what He has not done for you before in and through Christ Jesus.
Instead, true, living, and dynamic biblical faith is simply appropriating, receiving, and possessing what God has already given to you in Christ and done for you through Christ.
True faith is not striving or seeking to move God by any means; instead, it is you moving to say what God has already said about you and your situation and to receive what God has already given you in Christ and done for you through Christ.
True faith is not laboring through fasting, corporate prayer, a prayer of agreement, tithing, offering, or sowing all kinds of “prophetic seeds” to appease God as though He is angry or to motivate God as though He is lazy or reluctant to save, heal, deliver, and bless His children, or to perform miracles.
When you say, give, or do anything with the intent or motive to appease, persuade, motivate, compel, or manipulate God to provide you with something or to do something for you, you are no longer operating in true faith in the finished work of Christ, but in your imperfect works (Gal. 5:1-4).
Sadly, many preachers today call undiscerning believers to move or motivate God to act according to their wishes or desires by giving generous offerings, praying, or fasting for some days in specific ways or at certain sacred places.
True and biblical faith is not trying to motivate or persuade God to respond promptly and positively to you through good works. Instead, true faith is you responding promptly and positively to God—to what God has already said, given, and done for you in Christ and through Christ.
True faith is your positive response to God’s Word. It is your positive response to the finished work of Jesus Christ for your salvation, healing, deliverance, victory, fruitfulness, success, breakthrough, or prosperity in life.
You are not operating in the proper and biblical faith when you are still seeking to appease, impress, persuade, or motivate God by your self-righteousness, performance, or good works to bless, heal, deliver, or prosper you.
Seeking to motivate God to bless you by your performance or good works shows that you don’t believe God’s Word that He has already blessed you with everything in Christ through the finished work of Christ (1 Cor. 3:21-23, Eph. 1:3, 2 Pet. 1:3).
Faith does not push, force, or motivate God to do anything for you that He has not already done by grace. Faith takes hold of, receives, and appropriates what God by grace has already done, given, or provided for you in Christ and through Christ.
God’s grace has made salvation and all its benefits accessible to all men. There is nothing good that Christ’s atoning sacrifice or finished work of redemption has not provided and made available to all men.
Scripture amply affirms this truth.
“His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence.” (2 Pet. 1:3 RSV).
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.” (Eph. 1:3 RSV).
“He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (Rom. 8:32 NKJV).
Faith is believing, speaking, and acting according to the truths of God’s Word. Faith is you seeing and receiving what God has already given in Christ and done for you through the finished work of Christ.
Faith is not you seeking to push, motivate, compel, or force God by any means to give or do anything for you on account of your self-righteousness or holiness; instead, it is you believing that God has already given you everything on account of the finished work of Christ.
Beloved, if you have a true and living faith, you will rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, and continue steadfastly in prayer, giving glory to God, “and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.” (Rom. 4:21 NKJV).
But how does true faith operate?
Find out in the following piece!
Prayer:
Dear Holy Spirit, teach and help me live and walk daily by the true and biblical faith, in Jesus’ name. Amen.