THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS FAITHFULNESS—GALATIANS 5:22-26; Deuteronomy 32:1-4; MATTHEW 25:14-30
Semper Fidelis is Latin for “Always faithful.” It is the motto of the City of Exeter in Devonshire, England, and is a testimony to the city’s loyalty to the British Monarchy. Queen Elizabeth I wrote a letter to “The Citizens of Exeter” in 1588 suggesting they adapt this motto because of their faithfulness in supporting the British fleet that had defeated the Spanish Armada [http://www.fact-index.com/s/se/semper_fidelis.html].
It has also been the motto of the United States Marine Corps since 1883, and it is the title of the official March of the Marine Corps composed by John Phillips Sousa in 1888 which we have just heard played by “The President’s Own” Marine Band. Sousa himself was the director of the Marine Band from 1880 to 1892 under Presidents Hayes, Garfield, Cleveland, and Harrison. His march is the only one authorized by Congress for a particular service [The Marine Corps Book of Lists, ISBN: 0938289896].
Christian Disciples are called by the Holy Spirit to be “always faithful,” and “Semper Fidelis” would be an excellent motto for us to adapt as well. “The Fruit of the Spirit Is Faithfulness.”
Faithfulness is an attribute or character trait that the Old Testament continually praises and the New Testament directs us as disciples to develop. Faithfulness is linked to faith, and indeed the two words are one and the same in New Testament Greek. To be faithful is to be trustworthy, dependable, and reliable. It conveys the idea of an unshakable loyalty to ones friends, group, country, or religious convictions.
Again as with all the other Fruit of the Spirit, faithfulness is rooted in the character and work of God Himself. He is always dependable in His relationship with us; He alone is the one we can be certain will never let us down or disappoint us. He is our “friend who sticks closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24). He is the One who promises us:
“Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you” [Hebrew 13:5, et. al.].
The Psalmist testifies to the faithfulness of God in Psalm 27:10:
“Though my father and mother forsake me,
the LORD will receive me.”
Like the Psalmist we too can always depend on His loyalty and faithfulness to us. We can count on Him to be with us always in every situation and circumstance we face, for Jesus makes that promise Himself in the Great Commission: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” [Matthew 28:20].
God is praised from Genesis through Revelation as the faithful God. Our Old Testament Lesson in Deuteronomy 32:4 affirms:
“He is the Rock, His works are perfect,
and all His ways are just.
A faithful God Who does no wrong,
Upright and just is He.”
God is faithful because He is our Rock, and “There is no Rock like our God.” God is faithful because His works alone are perfect, and He alone is just in all His ways. God is faithful because He alone does no wrong; and He alone is upright and just.
The Psalms constantly praise and testify to the faithfulness of God. God is always faithful in His relationship with us. Psalm 33:4-5 is a prime example:
“For the word of the LORD is right and true;
He is faithful in all He does.
The LORD loves righteousness and justice;
The earth is full of His unfailing love.”
God is “faithful in all He does; faithful in His righteousness and justice; faithful in His unfailing love.” One who is faithful is one upon whom we can depend. We can always depend upon God. He will never let His children down. His love never fails. He is faithful in His administration of justice.
We can depend upon Him to “make all things right.” Abraham was well aware of this Divine trait when he pleaded with God for mercy in dispensing His justice on Sodom and Gomorrah. We remember He asked the Lord a rhetorical question in Genesis 18:25, “Far be it from You to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from You! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” The answer is obvious. In this present age justice so often is blind, but the Judge of all the earth can always be depended upon to administer absolute justice for all.
God is dependable in keeping all His promises, especially concerning His plan of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. Hebrews 10:23 is a tremendous promise: “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.” The hope to which we hold fast is the promise and assurance of our salvation in Jesus which is clear in the context of this verse:
19”Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful”
[Hebrews 10:19-23].
God is faithful to forgive us by the blood of Jesus. We can confidently draw near to Him knowing our hearts have been cleansed from all guilt because He who promised it is faithful, dependable, and trustworthy to keep His Word. Again the Psalmist affirms in Psalm 145:13:
“The LORD is faithful to all His promises
and loving to all He has made.”
God is faithful. We can depend upon Him who has never broken a promise and never will.
God is faithful to give us victory over temptation. What does I Corinthians 10:13 promise us? “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to us all. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” We can depend upon God to make a way out, or a way for us to escape, to overcome every temptation we face. We can depend upon Him to set the limits on just how far Satan can go in tempting us, for the LORD will not allow the devil to push us beyond our breaking point. We can depend upon His promise that every temptation we face is common to all humanity, not unique to us.
God is faithful to forgive us. Never forget and always stand on the promise of I John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” “God said it, in His Word, that ‘If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.’ I believe that promise in my heart, because He is dependable and trustworthy, and that settles all doubts forever.”
Faithfulness is rooted in God; but, since the “Fruit of the Spirit Is Faithfulness,” He expects all disciples through the work of the Holy Spirit to develop this same character trait in our own, personal Christian walk. We are called to be faithful ministers and servants of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul often commends His coworkers for their faithfulness in serving the Lord. In I Corinthians 4:17 he informs the Corinthian Church he is sending Timothy to minister among them because “he is faithful in the Lord.” He sends Tychicus [“Tich—ih—cus”] to serve in ministry at Ephesus because “he is a dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord” [Ephesians 6:21], and again he sends him to Colosse because “he is a dear brother, a faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord” [Colossians 4:7].
Paul says this in I Corinthians 4:1-2, “This then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.” Paul does not say that only he and the other apostles have been “entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed.” He is affirming that God has entrusted all believers in Jesus Christ with this same ministry, and those whom God has given that trust “must prove faithful.” What he means is that God depends upon each one of us to use the spiritual gifts the Holy Spirit has given us in the ministry of service to others. “The Fruit of the Spirit is Faithfulness means we all are called to ministry as agents of the Holy Spirit in serving others.
Father Thomas Keating, Trappist monk, in his book FRUITS AND GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT says, “[Faithfulness] is the daily oblation of ourselves and all our actions to God out of compassion for others, especially in service of their concrete needs. It serves God without dwelling on what God or others will do for us, and perseveres in giving without thinking of any return. Our normal need for affirmation is coming from a new place: the growing conviction of being loved by God that greatly reduces the desire for human approval” [--Thomas Keating, FRUITS AND GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT (New York: Lantern Books), p. 20].
Finally, faithfulness on the part of the Christian disciple means loyal and firm commitment to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and His Kingdom. Because I know “He will never leave me nor forsake me,” I must never leave nor forsake Him.” Faithfulness means loyalty and commitment to Jesus Christ even to the point of death. The same promise Jesus made to the Church at Smyrna in Revelation 2:10 is for us as well, “Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.”
“Semper Fidelis, Always Faithful,” the motto of Exeter, England, and the United States Marine Corps. Did you know that there is also an official “Marine’s Prayer?” It is a humble petition for the power to life a life of faithfulness. With a few adjustments, it would be an appropriate prayer for all of us as we yield ourselves to the Holy Spirit’s control to use as agents of ministry to others. I close this morning with “The Marine’s Prayer”:
“Almighty Father, whose command is over all and
whose love never fails, make me aware of Thy presence
and obedient to Thy will, Keep me true to my best self,
guarding me against dishonesty in purpose and deed and
helping me to live so that I can face my fellow Marines, my
loved ones, and You without shame or fear. Protect my family.
“Give me the will to do the work of a Marine [“of Your
Kingdom] and to accept my share of responsibilities with vigor
And to accept my share of responsibilities with vigor and
Enthusiasm. Grant me the courage to be proficient in my
Daily performance. Keep me loyal and faithful to my superiors
And to the duties my Country and the Marine Corps have
Entrusted to me [loyal and faithful to you and to the ministries
To which you have called me]. Help me to wear my uniform
With dignity, and let it remind me daily of the traditions which I must uphold.
“If I am inclined to doubt, steady my faith; if I am
tempted, make me strong to resist; if I should miss the mark,
give me courage to try again.
“Guide me with the light of truth and grant me wisdom
by which I may understand the answer to my prayer”
[--The Marine’s Prayer (except from Warrior Culture of the
U. S. Marines, copyright 2001 Marion F. Sturkey)].
“SEMPER FIDELIS! AMEN!”
