The Quest for Freedom: Part 4 - Faith

"Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep His commands."  Deuteronomy 7:9

     We are on a quest for freedom. Freedom from fears, doubts, sin, lies and any ungodly thing that bind us. Previously we looked at the amazing power of love and how it frees and empowers us through its security. As we continue our quest for freedom we turn now to faith. But in identifying how faith can help us achieve freedom we need to understand what faith is and what its role is. The Bible, in particular the New Testament, is filled with references to faith. It is through these scriptures that we’ll get a better view of the importance of faith.

What is faith?

Hebrews 11:1 says: “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Dictionaries echo that definition describing it as the firm belief in something for which there is no proof; belief without question.

Where does it come from and how does it grow?

“Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” Romans 10:17

Based on scripture we know the more we dig into the Word of God and the more we hear God’s message, the stronger our faith will become. I happen to believe, also, that a person’s faith will grow the more it’s put into practice.

How important is faith?

Throughout the gospels Jesus comments quite a bit on the faith of those around Him. On many occasions He made statements like “Your faith has saved you.”, “You have great faith.”, or to the negative: “You of little faith.” It’s as if faith acts almost like a barometer. It’s a measuring tool. It was one of the key things Jesus looked for in people. It is important! Here are some scriptures that give us proof of that.

In Mark 11:22 Jesus gave this direction: “Have faith in God.”

Hebrews 11:6 says “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

Romans 10:13-14 says “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How then can they call on the one they have not believed in?”

Romans 1:17 says those who live by faith are called righteous.

Romans 3:22 says: "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe."

What is the affect of faith in our lives?

The Bible shows us many examples of how faith affects our lives. Repeatedly we see that when Jesus encountered the sick and after He “saw their faith”, He healed them. It appears based on scripture that the amount of faith we have correlates to the amount of blessings we receive. In Matthew 9:29 Jesus says "According to your faith will it be done to you.” and conversely Matthew 13:58 says “And he (Jesus) did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.”

Having faith makes us stronger. We are not reliant on the visual for proof. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says: “We live by faith, not by sight.” When we encounter problems or satan’s deceptions we are able to deal with them in confidence.

If your faith is strong (meaning you are secure in what you know), then you are a stronger, more free individual. Doubt (a wavering belief) makes it easier for deception to find a place to settle in one’s mind. And deception ultimately leads to imprisonment. Think about something you know as a certainty (the color of the sky, your address, anything). You know without a doubt what is true. There is no wavering in your belief. If someone came up to you and tried to convince you otherwise, you would 1) either think they were crazy or 2) recognize their attempts to manipulate your understanding of what you believe. Having a strong faith will give us the ability to spot and fight the attacks of the Deceiver. I believe it is important to constantly work on building our faith. A weak faith can be damaged by life's circumstances (loss of a loved one, physical illness, financial problems, natural disasters, etc). A strong faith will get you through life's difficult times and keep you close to God.

How are we blessed by faith?

Acts 26:18 says that we are sanctified (made holy) by faith in Jesus.

In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. Ephesians 3:12

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On a side note – as I was working on this article I began writing down what my definition of faith in God was. And as I was writing, it occurred to me that I was writing a statement of faith. This surprised me. Not because of what I was writing but because, to my knowledge, I have never actually written a Statement of Faith. It may sound strange but there is something “freeing” and empowering in writing out my faith in God and verbalizing it. I have been learning lately about how our negative words can have a binding affect in our lives. Think, then, how much more powerful the positive declaration of our faith can be. At the top of this blog there is a tab I’ve created called “Statement of Faith”. I have put my statement there. I hope you’re encouraged to create your own statement.

The Quest For Freedom: Part 3 - Love

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.

But the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13

In our quest for freedom we look to Christ. When He died on the cross He released us from the bondage of sin. It's our acceptance of Him that ultimately sets us free. But being free and living free may not always be the same. So how do we live free? I think we start with love. When we love we emulate the very nature of God. God is love! Since God is all-powerful and God is love can we conclude that love is - well - if not all-powerful, then at least very, very powerful? Think about what love can do. Love draws people towards it. It connects people with a purpose. It motivates people to action. It lightens burdens. It heals people hearts. It takes away pain. It empathizes. It makes people feel safe. It gives people strength. It gives people hope. Do you see the similarities between love and God?

Love (God) changes our lives and the way we live them. Love empowers us. When we know that someone "has our back" or will never give up or abandon us, we live differently. We live free. We live more boldly because we feel safe. We may not always win our battles but at least we know we have someone continually by our side. We're never alone. That's the kind of freedom love brings to the table. And we can't get that freedom from anyone except Christ. Allowing God's love to take a hold of us - allowing it to transform our thoughts and our actions is a key step in breaking through the chains that bind us. When you obtain your freedom you become empowered. (If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:31)

We talk all the time about God's love. We certainly accept it mentally as fact but do we accept it emotionally. Do we fully understand the depth of God's love for us? (And when I say "us" I mean you and me individually. I don't mean "us" collectively.) Do I get how much He loves me? Do you get how much He loves you?

I was reading a commentary about God's love in dealing with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. When they sinned, God had every right to "zap" them out of existence. He could have started over with two new people. Or He could have exiled them and never spoke to them again. But this is not what God did. They were His creation - His children and He loved them. Even though their sin separated them (and us) from God, He never stopped wanting to reestablish a loving relationship with them. And He never stops wanting a relationship with us.

God's desire is for us to be with Him. That desire is clearly shown in John chapter 17 (one of my favorite passages). Jesus is praying in the garden of Gethsemane. He is about to be taken and crucified. Despite His anguish over what He knows is about to happen to Him, He doesn't pray only for Himself. He prays for the ones He is about to leave behind. First He prays for the disciples and then for us.

"My prayer is not for them alone (disciples). I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world." (vs 20-24)

Did you catch that? He wants us to be with Him where He is. There is something truly special about the fact that the Son of Man was praying for you and me (and still does). His love expressed through the pain of leaving us behind and the hope of seeing us again.

One of the most quoted verses in the Bible, of course, is John 3:16. "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only son." God does love the world but I believe His love goes deeper than that. I am utterly convinced the depth of God's love is so strong that even if I was the only sinner on earth to save, He would still allow His son to die for me. Not because I'm worthy but because He loves me that much. That's a love that should not be taken lightly. That's a love that empowers me to love more.

Never doubt God's love for you. Accept it. Run with it. Nurture it. And most importantly - share it! I don't believe God wants us to love simply because it feels nice or because it's the right thing to do. I believe He wants us to love others because it is the single most effective way to demonstrate to others who God is. How can you share God with someone if you don't know who He is? (Whoever does not love does not know God because God is love. 1 John 4:8) Loving freely will give you freedom in return.

The Quest for Freedom: Part 2 - Imprisonment

Breathing was difficult. There was an unusual thickness in the air that was closing in on me. There were, what seemed to be, invisible walls confining me. Circumstances in my life were weighing me down. The oppression was strong. I was very uncomfortable and in emotional and spiritual pain. I could see people walking around me in perfect freedom. I wanted to be where they were. But I was trapped. I couldn't get out of my prison. Or so I thought. Thankfully God's light could still penetrate the walls of my cell. I slowly began to see Truth once again. The fog was lifting. The truth: I was not trapped at all. I was free then and am free now, always and forever.

I walked into my prison on my own accord. I fell into one of satan's snares. With both feet caught, things began to blur. I couldn't see God clearly. I began to believe the lies spoken to me in my cell ("I belong here.", "This is my life now.", "There's no way out."). Maybe I'm the only one that's ever felt imprisoned---but I don't think I am. Maybe you have felt like you were trapped in a real-life nightmare or on a runaway train going the wrong direction. Maybe you've wanted to hit the power button and "reboot" or desperately call for a "do-over" so you could choose a different path. The feeling is oppressive, isn't it?

Sometimes we make a choice and can immediately feel oppression set in. At other times the oppressive feeling sneaks into our lives gradually. One day we wake up to find ourselves in prison. There is no one to blame but ourselves. God doesn't put us there. He never intended for us to live in bondage. In fact, He secured our freedom through His Son. We can't really blame satan. Sure he tricks us and temps us but the truth is - he has no authority to keep us in bondage. We can choose freedom. The door isn't locked. Jesus has taken the key and thrown it away forever. Our imprisonment is a state of mind. So why do some of us spend so much time under the control of an unholy warden?

I think satan must marvel at our gullibility. I imagine him giving his minions a tour of his "lair". They come to a room full of Christians. One of his minions asks "What are those Christians doing here? I thought you didn't have the authority to keep them here." Satan answers, "I don't but it doesn't keep me from trying. I set traps to see what happens. They take the bait and end up here. This group has been here for five years and still hasn't figured out they can leave whenever they want. I tell them lies and belittle them so they don't have the courage to walk out. I can't keep them here but at least I've rendered them useless for awhile."
It's a little scary how easily we fall for the traps. My belief is that becoming aware of satan's tactics and the weapons he uses will make us better able to withstand them. Here are a few oppressive tactics I believe he uses:

SIN - this is probably the most obvious. In John 8:34 Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin." The more we submit to sin, the more trapped we become. Fortunately, grace and redemption are always available.

FEAR - I mentioned in Part 1 that fear can cause us to be paralyzed. Not being able to move forward means we're in prison. If we can't move, then we are not free. Fear can also cause us to run the other way. Although being "on the lamb" isn't a stationary prison, it's still a prison. There is freedom in doing the things we know we ought to do and doing what God has asked us to do.

GUILT - We can be so overcome with guilt for past sins, for life choices, for not being "good" or "deserving" enough that we let guilt keep us from being the free child God meant for us to be. Perfection is a prison. God has never asked us to be perfect. He wants our hearts not our qualifications.

PEOPLE - Sometimes we do things to please other people. This in itself isn't bad. But if we are trying to get the approval of man, it is. Sometimes we try to please people out of fear. We're afraid to disappoint them. We're afraid to make them angry. We can spend our lives falling into the prison of wanting man's approval or we can enjoy the freedom that comes with God's approval.

FINANCES - We can be so consumed by money (whether it's about getting it, keeping it or spending it) that we become imprisoned by it. It controls us. I think freedom comes from being able to truly say: "It's only money.".

EMOTIONS - Life has its fair share of ups and downs. And with the "downs" come feelings such as sadness, anger and depression. These are perfectly natural and expected. The problem is in letting the emotions overtake us. When that happens they keep us from feeling the freeing affects of love and from experiencing peace. What remains is an imprisonment of negative emotions. We have all seen people, for example, who are consumed with hate. Sadly, they've chosen to live in the oppressiveness of hate rather than the freedom of God's love.

In my medium-length life, I have felt the oppression from some of those traps. And undoubtedly will come across more on my journey. But if I can keep focused on God's truth, I realize I don't have to live my life in bondage. I hope to live my life knowing that satan has no power over me - no authority to hold me captive. I have been set free!

1 Corinthians 7:22 - For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord's freedman.

The Quest For Freedom: Part 1 - Fear

From the time we are born we grab onto fear naturally. It is instinctive. And it yields a tremendous amount of power. Even at an early age fear becomes a key component in our decision making process. On one hand we might think there is such a thing as a "healthy dose of fear". It's that "healthy dose" which we think keeps us out of trouble. Parents like the idea of a "healthy dose" when children are young because children don't yet have the knowledge and wisdom to effectively make good decisions. Fear of punishment, for example, often comes in handy. But we all grow up eventually. And with that growth we learn - we gain knowledge and wisdom. The use of fear in our decision making process should be replaced with Godly wisdom, knowledge and a little bit of common sense. Fear is a negative motivator. Better we should base our decisions on positive motivators (God, hope, love, trust, faith) and rely less on fear.
Fear comes as a wild and vicious attack on our attempts to live a peaceful life. It is a very useful and cunning tool for the evil one. Fear can attack through things like self-confidence (fear of not being able to do something), self-worth (fear of not being good enough), relationships (fear of disappointing others, making others angry, rejection, or punishment), finances (fear of not having enough money or fear of letting it go), or simply in the fear of the unknown. In my life, I have felt the attack of fear come in a number of these different forms. Maybe you have felt fear attack you in some of these ways as well. Or maybe you've seen it in others. Ironically, sometimes it's easier to see fear's hold on other people before we notice its hold on ourselves.
When I began looking at fear to see the affect it has on our lives, I came up with three main affects. It either paralyzes us, make us run the other way (becoming disobedient), or it imprisons us. The idea that fear paralyzes struck me first because that's the affect it usually has on me. How many times have I come to a fork in the road and stopped dead in my tracks? I don't want to go to the left because that path doesn't really appeal to me. I like the paths straight ahead and to the right but each one seems risky and full of uncertainties. I don't move in any direction because something holds me back. Excuses! And what ultimately drives excuses? Fear! I go nowhere and fear has done its job. (Or shall I say the evil one has accomplished his mission.)
In the Bible I found another, more detrimental, affect that fear can have. It relates to how we respond to God and His promptings. Has God ever asked you to go down a path you were afraid to go down? What was your reaction? Did you follow in love and obedience or did fear make you run the other way (acting in disobedience)? Running and disobedience are reactions based on fear not reactions based on love and trust. Allowing fear to control our decisions has a detrimental affect on our relationship with God. There are consequences to putting our own fears above God's plan. Jonah feared the people of Nineveh more than he trusted in God and landed in the belly of a big fish. I believe God wants to trust our willingness to serve Him. But how can He do that if every time something comes up we side with fear?
Fear also imprisons us. The more we allow it to control our lives and the decisions we make, the less we are able to enjoy the freedom that God intended for us. There is much more on the topic of imprisonment I will dig into in Part 2 of this series. But for now I think it's helpful to recognize that we all have fear. How we allow fear to affect our lives can be a determining factor in what kind of life we live. God doesn't want us to be controlled by fear but rather controlled by love, faith and trust. In Genesis, God reassured Abram with this promise: "I am your shield. Your very great reward.". Removing fear and replacing it with God's promise (that He is our shield - our very great reward) could have a dramatic affect and fundamentally change how we live our lives. We could become more than conquerors.
Proverbs 29:25 - Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.
Romans 8:15 - For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship.
1 John 4:18 - There is no fear in love. Perfect love casts out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

Upcoming and "Just A Thought"

Hi there -

To my friends, family and supporters. I have not updated this blog as often as I'd like but I wanted to let you know that I am working on a series entitled "The Quest For Freedom" (and no - it's not political). I am hoping to have the first article done shortly. I could have thrown something out there on the web but I wanted to take my time and give the series an appropriate effort. The series will deal with the topics of fear, imprisonment, love, faith, trust and, of course, freedom. My hope is always that God will work in me and through me as I continue the journey of "Building My Faith". I hope to be a blessing to you as well.

In the meantime - I thought I'd toss in a new blog segment called "Just A Thought". Here is one I had recently:

I was imagining what it would be like in Heaven when we encountered fellow Christians that we didn't particularly like. It's easy to assume we don't have to worry about seeing our non-Christian enemies in Heaven. We won't have to play nice-nice with them. But what about our Christian brothers and sisters? It's probably safe to say that most of us - if not all of us have had torn relationships with fellow Christians. We may not like them but that doesn't mean they're not going to walk through those pearly gates. How are we going to act when we see them at the big Heavenly Praise Fest? What's our attitude going to be like? Imagine walking along the streets paved with gold when you see him or her down the way talking to others. Will you continue walking filled with love? Or will you say to yourself "Ugh! I do not want to talk to that person." and then turn and walk away (trying to find an alternate route to the Praise Fest). Funny thing is - I get the feeling there isn't room in Heaven for that kind of "attitude." Imagine what Heaven would be like if half of us didn't want to stand next to the other half. It's not really the place written about in the Bible, is it? It's not really "Heaven". I'm thinking I'd better make sure my attitudes down here are good 'cause I'm not sure I'll be able to get through the gates clinging to them.

That's my thought. See you next time!