ENDURING FAITH
By W. G. Guy
How do you react when going through trials, situations and circumstances that cause suffering; whether physical, emotional, financial or otherwise? We all face them, and some much more than others. How about when the Lord has showed you or told you something that He has planned for you, but it hasn’t happened yet; even for a long time. Will your faith endure?
Your faith will be tested: why, because true believers in Jesus Christ have an enemy that hates your faith in Jesus and His Word and seeks to destroy it. The devil hates those who have been reborn with the Spirit of Christ and remade in the image and likeness of God. Since this rebirth is by faith and it is that faith that the devil tries to destroy.
John 10:10 – The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Why does the devil hate your faith in Jesus and His Word. Because it was Jesus using the Word that defeated Satan’s attempt to corrupt Jesus. Jesus quoted scripture to overthrow Satan’s tempting, (Luke 4:1-13).
The Bible gives a historical record of a particular person whom God showed things that concerned his future; but all of his experiences went totally contrary to what God showed him. Yet through all his opposing trials, he remained faithful, as well as being honorable in all he did; as he held fast to what God promised. This is the testimony of Joseph, the son of Jacob, (found in Genesis 37 and 41).
Joseph was seventeen years old (Genesis 37:2) when God gave him a prophetic dream. Telling his dream caused huge problems for him as he was put down for having such a dream. Things went from bad to worse for him from that point on, and it wasn’t until he was thirty years old (Genesis 41:46) that the prophetic dream began to be fulfilled when Joseph became second in command to the Pharaoh of Egypt.
What was it that Joseph experienced during those thirteen years before his prophetic dream was fulfilled? Trials and tribulation which he had to endure; such trials and tribulations that most of us never have faced. Hated and rejected by his own brothers; sold into slavery; falsely accused of sexual assault; and finally imprisoned as a criminal. In all these things Joseph remained faithful to God and his calling; being honorable without murmuring, complaining or questioning what God promised him.
Scripture explains that all of his hostile experiences were a test of his faithfulness to what God showed him and called him to be.
Psalms 105:17-19 – He (God) sent a man before them (Jacobs’s family) even Joseph, who was sold for a servant: whose feet they hurt with fetters: he was laid in irons: until the time that his word came (dream fulfilled): the word of the LORD tried him.
Finally, Joseph knew he was exactly where God wanted him to be: it was the fulfilment of that prophetic dream. Joseph was not seeking retribution on his brothers for what they did to him because he understood that it was God’s plan that was fulfilled in him coming to the position he was now in.
Genesis 50:18-20 – And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants. And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
Holding fast to any promise of God, in spite of the trying opposition, is the test of faithfulness. Faith will be tested to see of what sort it is: strong or weak. Some may have to endure severe opposition, like Joseph, before they realize the fulfillment of the Word of God to them.
Revelation 2:10 – Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
Faith needs to be tested and proven: it is considered as gold tried in the fire:
Revelation 3:18 – I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich (in faith); and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed (in righteousness), and that the shame of thy (carnal) nakedness do not appear;
We are not to fear such trials because God is faithful to see us through. God is faithful, as it is written:
Deuteronomy 31:6 & 8 – Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them (that oppose you): for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. …. And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.
Remember, these verses were under the terms of the Old Covenant; but now we are under the better New Covenant in which God is our Heavenly Father: and we know how great a father’s love is for his children.
Deuteronomy 7:9 – Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;
God made a covenant promise to His children and it is recorded in:
Psalm 23 – The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, thou I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surly goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Faith is the same as trust, and we are to place our trust in Him in all of our circumstances; and He will protect, provide and lead us through the trials: because He is faithful who promised!
Proverbs 3:5-6 – Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. (Because most likely you won’t be able to figure out what is happening.) In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.
Yes, this does mean that waiting and enduring will most likely be involved in your circumstances. But God even helps you with that.
Isaiah 40:29-31 – He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Note that Sarah and Abraham waited twenty five years for their Word to be fulfilled; the birth of their son Isaac.
Hebrews 11:11 – Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.
The word “faith” comes from the Greek word pistos which means trust, confidence and assurance. However, what many fail to recognize is that there is another meaning in pistos, and that meaning is “fidelity” or faithfulness. Faithfulness is part of faith!
How long have you been waiting for the promise of God to you? How are you doing in your life’s trials during this time of waiting? Remain faithful to the promise and the calling: He shall see you through, because He has a plan and a purpose for you.
Romans 8:28 – And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
The attacks of the enemy against your faith are spiritual warfare which we are all engaged in, and which many do not even realize.
Ephesians 6:10-12 – Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Keep your guard up and your armor on. The full armor of God is the Word of God, which is the Sword of the Spirit. Your faith has an enemy that wants to destroy your faith. Therefore you need to fight the good fight of FAITH in order to endure!
ENDURING FAITH
By W. G. Guy
How do you react when going through trials, situations and circumstances that cause suffering; whether physical, emotional, financial or otherwise? We all face them, and some much more than others. How about when the Lord has showed you or told you something that He has planned for you, but it hasn’t happened yet; even for a long time. Will your faith endure?
Your faith will be tested: why, because true believers in Jesus Christ have an enemy that hates your faith in Jesus and His Word and seeks to destroy it. The devil hates those who have been reborn with the Spirit of Christ and remade in the image and likeness of God. Since this rebirth is by faith and it is that faith that the devil tries to destroy.
John 10:10 – The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Why does the devil hate your faith in Jesus and His Word. Because it was Jesus using the Word that defeated Satan’s attempt to corrupt Jesus. Jesus quoted scripture to overthrow Satan’s tempting, (Luke 4:1-13).
The Bible gives a historical record of a particular person whom God showed things that concerned his future; but all of his experiences went totally contrary to what God showed him. Yet through all his opposing trials, he remained faithful, as well as being honorable in all he did; as he held fast to what God promised. This is the testimony of Joseph, the son of Jacob, (found in Genesis 37 and 41).
Joseph was seventeen years old (Genesis 37:2) when God gave him a prophetic dream. Telling his dream caused huge problems for him as he was put down for having such a dream. Things went from bad to worse for him from that point on, and it wasn’t until he was thirty years old (Genesis 41:46) that the prophetic dream began to be fulfilled when Joseph became second in command to the Pharaoh of Egypt.
What was it that Joseph experienced during those thirteen years before his prophetic dream was fulfilled? Trials and tribulation which he had to endure; such trials and tribulations that most of us never have faced. Hated and rejected by his own brothers; sold into slavery; falsely accused of sexual assault; and finally imprisoned as a criminal. In all these things Joseph remained faithful to God and his calling; being honorable without murmuring, complaining or questioning what God promised him.
Scripture explains that all of his hostile experiences were a test of his faithfulness to what God showed him and called him to be.
Psalms 105:17-19 – He (God) sent a man before them (Jacobs’s family) even Joseph, who was sold for a servant: whose feet they hurt with fetters: he was laid in irons: until the time that his word came (dream fulfilled): the word of the LORD tried him.
Finally, Joseph knew he was exactly where God wanted him to be: it was the fulfilment of that prophetic dream. Joseph was not seeking retribution on his brothers for what they did to him because he understood that it was God’s plan that was fulfilled in him coming to the position he was now in.
Genesis 50:18-20 – And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants. And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
Holding fast to any promise of God, in spite of the trying opposition, is the test of faithfulness. Faith will be tested to see of what sort it is: strong or weak. Some may have to endure severe opposition, like Joseph, before they realize the fulfillment of the Word of God to them.
Revelation 2:10 – Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
Faith needs to be tested and proven: it is considered as gold tried in the fire:
Revelation 3:18 – I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich (in faith); and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed (in righteousness), and that the shame of thy (carnal) nakedness do not appear;
We are not to fear such trials because God is faithful to see us through. God is faithful, as it is written:
Deuteronomy 31:6 & 8 – Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them (that oppose you): for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. …. And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.
Remember, these verses were under the terms of the Old Covenant; but now we are under the better New Covenant in which God is our Heavenly Father: and we know how great a father’s love is for his children.
Deuteronomy 7:9 – Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;
God made a covenant promise to His children and it is recorded in:
Psalm 23 – The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, thou I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surly goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
Faith is the same as trust, and we are to place our trust in Him in all of our circumstances; and He will protect, provide and lead us through the trials: because He is faithful who promised!
Proverbs 3:5-6 – Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. (Because most likely you won’t be able to figure out what is happening.) In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.
Yes, this does mean that waiting and enduring will most likely be involved in your circumstances. But God even helps you with that.
Isaiah 40:29-31 – He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Note that Sarah and Abraham waited twenty five years for their Word to be fulfilled; the birth of their son Isaac.
Hebrews 11:11 – Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.
The word “faith” comes from the Greek word pistos which means trust, confidence and assurance. However, what many fail to recognize is that there is another meaning in pistos, and that meaning is “fidelity” or faithfulness. Faithfulness is part of faith!
How long have you been waiting for the promise of God to you? How are you doing in your life’s trials during this time of waiting? Remain faithful to the promise and the calling: He shall see you through, because He has a plan and a purpose for you.
Romans 8:28 – And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
The attacks of the enemy against your faith are spiritual warfare which we are all engaged in, and which many do not even realize.
Ephesians 6:10-12 – Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Keep your guard up and your armor on. The full armor of God is the Word of God, which is the Sword of the Spirit. Your faith has an enemy that wants to destroy your faith. Therefore you need to fight the good fight of FAITH in order to endure!
