"BUT WITHOUT FAITH IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO [walk with God and] PLEASE HIM, for whoever comes [near] to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He rewards those who [earnestly and diligently] seek Him."
Hebrews 11:6 (AMP)
• Your inheritance in Christ has to be taken by FAITH.
- Christianity is all about Faith living:
"FOR in it the righteousness of God is revealed from FAITH to FAITH; as it is written, “THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH” (Romans 1:17 NKJV). - Whoever wants to walk with God, would do by FAITH. Faith pleases God, while unbelief displeases Him:
"BUT WITHOUT FAITH IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE HIM, FOR HE [she] who comes to God must believe that He is, AND THAT HE IS A REWARDER OF THOSE WHO DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM" (Hebrews 11:6 NKJV). - Without FAITH you cannot take, or possess, your land of inheritance:
"THESE PEOPLE ALL TRUSTED GOD and AS a result WON BATTLES, overthrew kingdoms, ruled their people well, AND RECEIVED WHAT GOD HAD PROMISED THEM; they were kept from harm in a den of lions" (Hebrews 11:33 TLB). - Without FAITH you cannot walk with God. The spies sent to Canaan Land for a feasibility study, did miss it. They were lacking in FAITH, they saw their inabilities, and did forget the God WHO had been with them.
THEY could not see God taking the land for them, except Joshua and Caleb (Numbers 13:25-33).
• All the promises of God, either big or small, could only come to fulfilment in your life through FAITH.
- Without FAITH, nothing can be accomplished in the Kingdom! Faith is the currency needed to live a fruitful and fulfilled Christian life. You cannot get whatever you need in the kingdom without FAITH.
- To excel in life, as a believer, is by FAITH! Faith is needed to excel in every field of endeavour. And Christian living is purely by FAITH:
"BUT he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not eat from FAITH; FOR WHATEVER IS NOT FROM FAITH IS SIN (Romans 14:23 NKJV). - Some are waiting for God to move in what they are expected to do. If God has instructed you on what to do, you would have to move. He would not move, you are the one to move and do what He said to do. You cannot overcome without Faith!
• Stretching of a believer's FAITH is done by God, permitting needs to arise in the life of such a person.
- A Believer's FAITH is stretched in the time of tribulations. God would not give all you need for your assignment, He expected you to get them through your FAITH.
- Caleb got his portion of inheritance, in the land of Canaan, through FAITH (Joshua 14:6,13,14).
- Those mentioned in Hebrews 11 as heroes, overcame, conquered, and were fulfilled by FAITH:
33 WHO THROUGH FAITH SUBDUED KINGDOMS, WORKED RIGHTEOUSNESS, OBTAINED PROMISES, STOPPED THE MOUTHS OF LIONS, 34 QUENCHED the violence of fire, ESCAPED the edge of the sword, out of weakness WERE MADE STRONG, became VALIANT IN BATTLE, TURNED TO FLIGHT the armies of the aliens" (Hebrews 11:33,34 NKJV).
• What is FAITH?
- Faith is an obedience to the instructions given you by God. When you do what God has told you to do, you are a man or woman of FAITH. It means you are walking by FAITH.
- You cannot become God's friend, confidant, like Abraham, without walking with Him by FAITH and obedience.
- NOTE:
- Faith works through obedience. When God speaks, you act, even when it looks impossible:
"BY FAITH ABRAHAM OBEYED when he was called to go out to THE PLACE which he would receive as an INHERITANCE. AND HE WENT OUT, NOT KNOWING WHERE HE WAS GOING" (Hebrews 11:8 NKJV).
- It is your obedience, taking a step on the instruction which God has given you, would make God to work on your behalf.
- You may not experience or see the integrity of the Word of God, and the faithfulness of God Himself; until you took a step on whatever He said to do.
- When God instructed you to do a particular thing, or go to a particular place; He would have gone ahead of you, to prepare the way for you:
"NO one will be able to stand against you, FOR THE LORD YOUR GOD WILL SEND FEAR AND DREAD AHEAD OF YOU WHEREVER YOU GO, just as he has promised" (Deuteronomy 11:25 the Living Bible).
- Communion, intimacy with God, builds and strengthen your FAITH.
(a) The growth of your FAITH would be retarded if your communion or fellowship with God is weak or inactive. THUS, you may find it difficult to walk by FAITH.
(b) Your love for God must be deep, and you must be able the hear Him, obey, or do, whatever He may have instructed you to do.
IF your love for God is not absolute, or complete, you may find it difficult to obey Him, in some of the things He would ask you to do.
LOVE for Him causes you to put your life at risk, on the line, for sacrifice (Acts 15:26; 1 Corinthians 30:31; 2 Corinthians 11:26).
(c) The reverential fear of God would move you to do, when He instructed you on whatever to do—because you would not want to grief Him (Matthew 22:37).
(d) The fact that you know God would chastise or discipline you as a son or daughter whom He loves, If you disobeyed Him; should be a reason to do promptly whatever He may have commanded or instructed you to do (Numbers 14:22,23; Hebrews 12:5,6).
• Willingness to obey any instruction given you by God, through the Holy Spirit on the inside of you, causes your FAITH to be active, strong, and increase.
- If you failed to do what He had earlier instructed, do not expect another instruction. Hence, your progress is halted!
- God will not stop you, but you can stop yourself through disobedience, delayed obedience, and faithlessness:
18 AND to whom was God speaking when he took an oath that they would never enter his rest? Wasn’t it the people who disobeyed him? 19 SO WE SEE THAT BECAUSE OF THEIR UNBELIEF THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO ENTER HIS REST" (Hebrews 3:18,19 NLT). - Learn to obey God promptly, whenever He calls:
(i) Do not allow some people to kill your God-given vision (1 Timothy 6:20,21).
(ii) Do not let your portion of the inheritance be given to another person, because of fear and unbelief (Hebrews 3:16-19).
(iii) know that greater is He in you, than he in the world:
"YOU are of God, little children, and have overcome them, BECAUSE HE WHO IS IN YOU IS GREATER THAN HE WHO IS IN THE WORLD" (1 John 4:4 NKJV).
(iv) You would have to put away grasshopper mentality, and know that you are able to take or possess whatever God says is yours (Numbers 13:33).
GOD knows what He has deposited in you; the potential, the ability in you, thus, He is asking you to take a step now and do the needful.
(v) Do not give a place to any sense of inadequacy; complaints, murmurs, or being absconded, when an assignment is given you by God:
"FOR GOD HAS NOT GIVEN US A SPIRIT OF FEAR, BUT of POWER and of LOVE and of a SOUND MIND" (2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV).
READ: Romans 8:15
• When you walk with God by FAITH and take seriously the responsibility given to you:
(i) You will grow to maturity, become strong in the things of the Kingdom.
(ii) You become an encouragement to others. Your FAITH and demeanor in the things of God, would strengthen others, and spur them to also work for God and His Kingdom.
(iii) You experience increase in spiritual blessings, and subsequently an increase in the material blessings as well.
(iv) You experience favour in whatever you do.
• Admonition.
- It would take a step of FAITH on your part, for you to move from the level you are to a higher level in whatever field of endeavour.
- God may ask you to enlarge your Tent, expand what you are doing, or upgrade your knowledge for an expansion; but If you failed to do, you have already place a limit on your progress (Isaiah 54:2,3).
- If God instructed you to sow a particular seed, give an amount of money; but you looked at your income and you did not, you have already placed a limit on your lifting by such an act (1 Kings 17:10-16; 2 Corinthians 9:10-13; Hebrews 13:16).
- Faith is obedience to God's instructions (Hebrews 11:17). And until you begin to obey God to the letter, you may not experience outstanding results in your Christian walk.
• You will not fail in Jesus' name.
- If you are sick in your body, receive your healing now in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.
- The hold of the devil is broken completely in Jesus' name.
Peace!