Active Faith!
Sunday, June 22, 2025
Sunday Message: Active Faith!
​​
1 John 5:1-5
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.
2This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands.
3In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,
4for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.
5Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
​
Faith is the avenue God uses to bring salvation to His people. God gives faith because of His grace and mercy, because He loves us.
​
Faith comes from God in the form of a gift. A gift is not earned and it is not given because the giver expects a gift in return, if that be the case, a gift would not be a gift.
​
The Bible emphasizes that faith is a gift because God deserves all of the glory for our salvation.
​
God wants Christians to understand they have done nothing to earn faith, it is only because of what Christ did on the cross that God gives anyone faith.
​
The Bible specifies the way, that God gives faith to people.
​
“Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ”.
​
It is the Word of God that produces faith.
​
Someone could receive faith while hearing the gospel preached, someone else by reading about Jesus in the Bible, especially by reading the Bible out-loud.
​
However, whenever, the true gospel of Jesus is communicated, there is potential for faith.
​
So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
​
Faith is given through the message about Jesus.
​
This is the means God has chosen.
​
For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith…1 John 5:4.
​
According to Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”. Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.
The Bible is replete with individuals who exercised an active faith in GOD.
​
By faith, GOD used Moses to send the plagues upon Egypt.
By faith GOD used Joshua to cause the sun to stand still.
By Hezekiah’s faith, God dispatched an angel and killed in one night 185,000 men in Sennacherib’s army.
By faith Elijah prayed and it did not rain for 3 ½ years, by faith he prayed and the rain fell.
By faith, the Hebrew boys were victorious in the fiery furnace.
Yes, if we want to see real power…
Yes, if we want to see mountain moving power…
Yes, if we want to see soul changing power…
Yes, if we want to see life changing power…
Then, as Christian Believers, we must demonstrate our obedience to GOD in living lives that are pleasing unto him.
Yes, an active faith can open doors that no man can shut, and shut some doors that no man can open.
Yes, an active faith results from humble submission to the mandates of GOD.
Paul says in Galatians 3:11, “for the just shall live by faith, ”meaning that we are to strive to live in accordance with the statues of almighty God.
Failure to live by faith is sin, Romans 14:23 teaches, “for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.”
As believers in Jesus Christ, we must have faith in the Word of God in order to live a victorious and effective Christian life.
It is also the knowledge of the Word of God that causes our faith to grow.
Romans 10:17 says, "Faith only comes through learning, the learning of the Word of God."
Faith is very important in the Christian life.
Without it you can never serve God, and you can't even please Him.
Per Romans 14:23, "Whatever is not of faith is sin" and according to Hebrews 11:6, "Without faith it is impossible to please God."
Therefore, let us, develop and strengthen our faith to become effective in prayer and in our service to the Lord, positioning ourselves, to be pleasing to God and to receive His choicest blessings.
​
Pastor Jeff