FAITH PERFECT FOR SALVATION

MEMORY VERSE: Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Matthew 7:21

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalms 96-100, Proverbs 20

BIBLE STUDY: Romans 12:1-2

What is faith? Hebrew 11:1 says: “ Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” In other words, faith is a confident assurance, a well-grounded assurance that something we want and hope for is going to happen. It is a conviction of the reality of things hoped for, which we cannot yet see. To have faith in God means to completely trust in God. It means being absolutely convinced that God would do what He has promised to do. Faith must have a basis of which it must be firmly rooted and grounded. Our faith is grounded in the Gospel, we believe that the Gospel being preached to us is true, and the bible on which the Gospel was written must be true. We are absolutely convinced that Jesus died and rose again. His resurrection from the dead becomes a guarantee to us that we who put our faith and trust in Him will one day rise from the dead to ever live with Him.

There are things you need to know about faith. Firstly, faith becomes useless when it is without deeds (James 2:20). Secondly, faith alone is dead without works (James 2:17). Thirdly, faith can be perfected. James 2:22 says: “seest thou how faith wrought with works, and by works was faith made perfect?” A perfect faith is one, which results in a transformed life. For one’s faith to be perfect for salvation , one must do the will of God. Matthew 7:21 says: “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.”

To do the will of God, one must first discover God’s will. To discover God’s will, one must first present his body as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1). A sacrifice is something that is totally and absolutely given with nothing held back. To present your body as a living sacrifice means to put your body on God’s altar as a living sacrifice. From now on, you do not own your body. God owns it. You do not decide where you are going to go or what you are going to wear. They are now God’s decision. Your body becomes God’s personal property. The good news is that God accepts maintenance responsibility of what He owns. Secondly, one must not be conformed to this world (Romans 12:2). The phrase “conformed to this word” refers to anything pertaining to the habit, manner, dress, style of living, music, of this sinful world. Christians are to dress modestly which means not drawing attention to themselves. Modesty is rule of the Christian’s apparel and dress that does not draw attention to one sexually. Thirdly, one must be transformed. To transform something means to change it. We are to be transformed from living a life of seeking worldly pleasures and self-goals and desire to one of living for the Lord. For transformation to take place, our minds must be renewed. The old carnal mind is replaced with one that seeks the Lord and is able to understand God’s truth and apply it one’s life.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: God’s will is that we live today for Him, giving our lives sacrificially to Him.

PRAYER POINT: Father, help me to live my life daily for you.

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