Today we continue our series entitled, “God Loves You”, under the overall theme for the year of, “Supernatural Manifestation.” I trust you have been enjoying this series. We have been looking at 1 John 4:16 and 17 for a while now. We have also looked at other scriptures with it. Today we will look at Galatians 5:6, with an emphasis on faith; faith which works by love.
The Apostle John said:
And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
(1 John 4:16, 17 KJV)
The Apostle Paul said:
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
(Gal 5:6 KJV)
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. How faith works (brief overview).
a) Faith is not about you telling God what to do, because believe me, you can’t. Faith is not you grabbing a scripture and declaring it over and over, commanding God to perform it in your life, as if God is your servant and He is at your beck-and-call. No, faith is about agreement with and submission to God’s will.
b) Living by faith is about dying to self daily, submitting your will to God’s will, accepting what He wants to do in/with/through you by His grace, and then seeking to pursue it by faith. This cannot be done with your head. You don’t die to self in your head. You die to self in your heart.
c) Faith is about receiving the revelation of God’s will for your life, accepting it, believing it in your heart, and then pursuing it with your actions, even when it makes no human sense. Living by faith is choosing to live by the reality God reveals to you in His Word and in your heart, even when it flies in the face of the reality you see with your physical eyes. This is choosing to live by faith and not by sight.
2. The connection between God’s love and your faith.
a) We are called and commanded to walk and live by faith. Faith works by love (Gal 5:6). This does not mean that your faith will work when you perfect your love walk (which is what I used to think). Because this would make the power of your faith contingent upon the holiness of your performance. Believe me, that would get you nowhere. You can’t earn God’s goodness. What Paul was actually teaching is that your faith will work when you are convinced God loves you!
b) Faith comes down to confidence in God and His Word. Living by faith means you are living your life based on what you read in the Bible and what God reveals to you by His Spirit. This is where love comes in. When you are convinced God loves you unconditionally, you can have confidence that He is going to do what He said He would do in your life. Because at that point, your confidence is not in your performance. Your confidence is in God’s dedication to you and the plans He made for you before the world began.
c) If you really want to live a life of faith, you must fully embrace the love of God in your heart!
d) Faith works by love. Faith works when you are convinced God loves you and that He wants to use you based solely on His grace and not your performance.
e) Jesus was so convinced that the Father loved Him, that He trusted the Father enough to say, “Not my will, but thy will be done.” With those words, Jesus died to self in His heart to the point where He willingly accepted the cross for us, trusting the Father’s plan, even though it was going to cost Him much natural pain. This is how we are supposed to live.
f) Do you trust God enough to put His will above your own? Are you so convinced of God’s love for you that you willingly accept His will and pursue it by faith, even when it goes against what you wanted to do? That, my friend, is living by faith.
g) When you are convinced God loves you with an unconditional love, and that He sees you the same as he sees His own Son (Jesus), you then have the faith to believe the invisible, pursue the impossible and attempt the supernatural. Not because you deserve it. But only because God loves you.
Closing Confession: Father, this is a year of Great Victory for me. The revelation of Your love for me is changing me from the inside-out. You love me just like You loved Jesus. You love me because You are so good, not because I am. I accept Your Love. I believe Your love. I embrace Your love. I am changed by Your love. I live my life by faith. My faith is rooted and grounded in the fact that You love me. Your unconditional love fuels my faith. Because I know You love me, I am able to believe the invisible, pursue the impossible and attempt the supernatural. As Jesus is, so am I, in this world! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
