HOW GOD REWARDS FAITH - PART 3

MONDAY 16 MAY 2022

The author of Hebrews listed the acts of ancient Biblical elders who obtained a good testimony by faith, giving extensive evidence of their righteous practices. In other words, their faith was rewarded by God in one way or the other. The clarity of understanding of their noble actions and the quality of sacrifices they made should always be a motivation in our Christian walk to commit ourselves to our walk of faith, despite diverse challenging encounters that may arise in life.

Reference: Hebrews 11:6 New International Version (NIV) "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."

A faithless person does not please God and its enough to establish a woeful ignorance about what displeases God by living without faith. As a Christian, the consequences of ignoring the life and actions of faith are dire, bearing in mind that in this Kingdom, we live and walk by faith, not by mere sensory perception (2 Corinthians 5:7 CEV). This is the reason the Hebrews' author made it clear that faith is an ultimate and perfect expression of God's will for His children.

According to the book of Hebrews, many of the biblical figures lived and demonstrated a radical and inspiring faith lifestyles, and through daring actions, they accomplished monumental feats as faith heroes. To mention but a few, an Old Testament figure such as Noah, acted in faith and godly fear, by believing in the unseen. Having been instructed by God on what to do, he took a bold step to prepare the ark that saved his household from impending calamity which eventually destroyed the world. For this reason, he became heir of the righteousness according to faith, which is a great reward.

The same chapter (Hebrews 11) listed few Judges, prophets and leaders as champions of faith, who subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouth of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, remained strong in unfavourable situations, prevailed in hard times, became valiant in battle, turned the armies of the aliens to flight and in the process, obtained great reward and testimony.

Beloved, what do these examples tell us? They imply that men and women of the Old engaged several battles in life and accomplished great exploits as a result of exercising an uncommon faith in God. So bold, faith action is not new under the sun; it didn't start with us, yet it is not an old-fashioned challenge. Therefore, we must firmly position ourselves in our walk of faith and remain faithful and obediently responsive to the Word of God, holding fast to the profession of our faith and acting correspondingly, especially in the midst of adversity, trials, crisis, opposition or whatever circumstances might occur. Yes, if it has to be so, endure discomfort for the sake of pleasing and honouring God, and regardless of the prevailing views and seemingly dominant philosophies of today's world. In another way, don't be more concerned about being disdained by others for obeying God than you are about pleasing and exercising faith in Him.

Godly faith is typified by toughened trust in God, and this trust is based on the knowledge of what God has said in His Word concerning us. As we take bold steps to act on what He has said, we establish unseen rewards, as our reality, thereby replacing any unsatisfactory or undesirable "seen" with what was never in existence. In a nutshell, godly faith result often starts by functioning with invisible and eternal perspective, and flows with the ability to faithfully withstand pressure and overcome negativity, as well as opposing forces and obstacles, in the face of adverse circumstances, thereby culminating in establishing the ultimate victory of Christ and a seen, notable reward of exploit, as the final outcome. Shalom!

Scripture Reading - 1 Corinthians 15:58; Colossians 3:23-24; 2 Corinthians 4:17-18; Hebrews 10:35.

Exuberant Declaration: I walk by faith and I function with eternal perspective in my day-to-day administration. My strong faith in the Lord is the firm pillar that holds everything pertaining my life together. Through the intelligence of undaunting faith, I establish a ripple effect of notable exploits and I obtain great and inspiring testimonies. Therefore I testify that I always have reward and series of victory attained as a result of faith-filled and faithful responses to God's Word. Hallelujah!