THE IMPORTANCE OF FAITH FOR EVERYDAY LIFE
OUTLINE
1.FAITH TO BE STRONG
2.FAITH TO PRAY
3.FAITH TO FORGIVE
4.FAITH TO LOVE
5.FAITH TO SUFFER
6.FAITH TO OBEY
7.FAITH TO PRAISE
THE MESSAGE
THE IMPORTANCE OF FAITH FOR EVERYDAY LIFE
1. FAITH TO BE STRONG
Faith gives us strength in difficult times . When we lose our faith and hope we become weak and unable to face the storms of life . Abraham was not weak in faith but instead he was strong in faith giving glory to God in absolute confidence that God as able to fulfill his promise even in a humanly impossible situation. Faith in God helps us to face our adversaries with boldness.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
Hebrews 10: 35-39
35 Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward.
36 For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:
37 “For yet a little while, And He who is coming will come and will not tarry.
38 Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”
39 But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul.
Romans 4 :17-21
17 (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did;
18 who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “So shall your descendants be.”
19 And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb.
20 He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God,
21 and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform
Isaiah 50: 7-10
7 “For the Lord God will help Me;Therefore I will not be disgraced;Therefore I have set My face like a flint,And I know that I will not be ashamed.
8 He is near who justifies Me;Who will contend with Me?Let us stand together.Who is My adversary?Let him come near Me.
9 Surely the Lord God will help Me;Who is he who will condemn Me?Indeed they will all grow old like a garment;The moth will eat them up.
10 “Who among you fears the Lord?Who obeys the voice of His Servant?Who walks in darkness
And has no light?Let him trust in the name of the Lord And rely upon his God.
Daniel 11 :32
32 Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits.
2.FAITH TO PRAY
Faith helps us to get answers to prayer. When we pray in faith expecting an answer from God , the Lord honours our faith and grants our petitions. Praying with doubt and unbelief is a hindrance to getting answers to our prayers. Faith is the evidence of things not seen. Therefore faith helps us to praise God even before we see the answer to our prayers and even before we see the fulfillment of the promise. We must come to God beleiving that He exists and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
Mark 11 : 24
24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
Hebrews 11 : 1, 6
1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
3.FAITH TO FORGIVE
Faith helps us to forgive those who have harmed us . Because we beleive that God is a righteous Judge we commit all our pain and sufferring to Him . He has said " Vengeance is mine , I will repay " . Therefore trusting in His justice we forgive our enemies and do good to those who have harmed us.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
Mark 11 : 25-26
25 “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.
26 But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”
Romans 12 : 19-21
19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
20 Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him;If he is thirsty, give him a drink;For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
I Peter 2 :21-23
21 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:
22 “Who committed no sin, Nor was deceit found in His mouth”;
23 who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;
Ephesians 4:30-32
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
4.FAITH TO LOVE
Faith helps us to love others even those who have harmed us . Because we are the children of our Heavenly Father we demonstrate His divine Love which is different from the love of this world . The world loves those who love them and hates those who hate them . But our faith in God make us to behave differently and show the qualities of our Heavenly Father .
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
Matthew 5 : 44-48
44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,
45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
47 And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so?
48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Luke 6: 27 -36
27 “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
28 bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.
29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either.
30 Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back.
31 And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.
32 “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.
33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.
34 And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back.
35 But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.
36 Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.
5.FAITH TO SUFFER
Faith helps us endure suffering . When we beleive that a great reward is waiting for us for all the suffering we face for the sake of Christ , we do not get discouraged easily . Jesus endured the cross because he focussed on the joy that was set before Him . He did not dwell on the humiliation and the shame that He was facing . We must meditate on the eternal reward and glory that is waiting for us . This faith will help us to face suffering .
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
Matthew 5 :10-12
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Hebrews 12 :2 - 4
2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
3 For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.
4 You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin.
Romans 8 : 17 - 18
17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Romans 8 : 35-39
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
36 As it is written:
“For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”
37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,
39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
6. FAITH TO OBEY
Faith helps us to obey God. Faith helped Noah to obey God and build an ark even when there was no outward sign of rain. Faith helped Abraham to obey God to sacrifice his son Isaac because he beleived that God could still fulfill His promise by raising Isaac from the dead. Faith helps us to overcome our doubt and reluctance and obey God implicitly.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
Hebrews 11 :7
7 By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.
Hebrews 11 : 17-19
17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,
18 of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,”
19 concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.
7.FAITH TO PRAISE
Faith helps us to praise God even in difficult circumstances. Paul and Silas praised God in prison and were delivered by a miracle. The Apostles praised God when they were beaten up by the authorities . Praise will bring deliverance and justice to us.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
Acts 16 :23 -26
23 And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely.
24 Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.
25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.
26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.
Acts 5 : 40-41
40 And they agreed with him, and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
41 So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.
Psalm 149: 1 - 9
1 Praise the Lord!
Sing to the Lord a new song,
And His praise in the assembly of saints.
2 Let Israel rejoice in their Maker;
Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.
3 Let them praise His name with the dance;
Let them sing praises to Him with the timbrel and harp.
4 For the Lord takes pleasure in His people;
He will beautify the humble with salvation.
5 Let the saints be joyful in glory;
Let them sing aloud on their beds.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth,
And a two-edged sword in their hand,
7 To execute vengeance on the nations,
And punishments on the peoples;
8 To bind their kings with chains,
And their nobles with fetters of iron;
9 To execute on them the written judgment—
This honor have all His saints.
Praise the Lord!
