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Obedient Faith

17 Jul

BlurI’ve been posting about the Holy Spirit as the one who nourishes our spirits. I talked about Jesus speaking to the crowd who had been miraculously fed by the loaves and fishes.

The Lord told them that He was the living bread from Heaven. They got offended at some of His words and many began to leave Him. As He was left alone with His disciples, they told Jesus that His teaching was hard for them to understand. So He said the following…

The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.
John 6:63

He explained to them that He wasn’t talking about His physical flesh. Christ was talking about His Spirit – the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit is sent from heaven He will give life.

At that point in history, Jesus fulfilled the role of the Holy Spirit to His disciples. That’s why He could tell them to believe His words and receive life – the living bread.

But understand; right now it’s the job of the Holy Spirit to give life. If I want this in my life I must feed on His word to me. Hearing and believing the Holy Spirit is the key to everything we need.

But the real question is; do you truly believe if you don’t obey?

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.
James 2:17-18

What kind of faith is James talking about here? Some ethereal faith, believing it will all turn out good in the end? Absolutely not!!

You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.
James 2:20-23

We must have faith in the instructions God gives us. How? By the Holy Spirit. Why did Abraham offer his son? Because God had said to do it

That’s righteousness – our spiritual food. Believing that what God speaks to you is the right thing to do. That’s the same spiritual food that Jesus ate. That’s the life that the Holy Spirit is offering to us right now. But in order to see this manifest, I must spend time with the Holy Spirit – the giver of life to the church.

Question: How have you been obedient to the Holy Spirit lately?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on July 17, 2015 in Faith, Prayer, Spiritual Walk

 

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The New Man

20 May

 

MirrorI’ve been posting about the teachings that Paul referred to in his letter to the Ephesian church.

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Ephesians 4:22-24

I’ve talked about the putting off of the old self and the renewal of the mind. The final piece that these early believers were taught was how to put on the new man that was created to be like God.

This process can take place slowly or quickly, depending upon our obedience and understanding. In looking at the modern church, it seems like this is the step that we know the least about. We definitely have very little experience with it.

But, before I get into the “how” of putting on the new man, I need to warn you. What I found in Scripture, as I studied it, totally changed my perception of how God works in us. As I got deeper and deeper into the Word, I found that my definition of the words I was reading was inadequate and, in some cases, inaccurate.

As we go along, I will have to redefine some words that the church has watered down over time. It wasn’t done maliciously, but it’s had a negative effect on us none the less. Please keep an open mind as you prayerfully take in what the Word of God teaches us.

Keep in mind that this is what the early believers were taught, at least under Paul’s ministry. Through prayer in the spirit, they overcame and put off the old man. They won the war against the flesh and its misdeeds.

Also through prayer in the spirit they were able to grasp and retain the mind of the Lord. It caused their minds to be renewed in the process. They no longer thought the way they used to.

Now there’s a need to put on the new man. The old is gone, but we must replace it with something better. God wants to give a new nature that’s been manufactured, fabricated, to be like God.

What’s the sign of this transformation? According to the Scripture, it’s true righteousness and holiness in the lives of those who accept it. I’m not talking about positional righteousness and holiness. As important as these are, they don’t always manifest in the lives of believers. They must be laid hold of by faith.

I’m talking about the actual, physical walk of righteousness. It’s living out the holiness that God has for us. When this happens, the world sees something different in us.

Unfortunately, based upon this definition of the new man, much of modern Christianity has missed it. What we have is a church that can’t get out of its own way. God’s people are too busy chasing after the world and its pleasures. All the while we’re confessing Scripture and believing for the blessing of God. Any talk of commitment or devotion to God is seen as condemnation and we avoid it.

The simple truth is that we’ll never be like Jesus until we put on this new man. The phrase put on literally means to sink into like a robe. We must be immersed in it.

The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.
Romans 13:12

It’s clear from this verse, and many others, that putting on the new man is a matter of our choice. It’s not automatic. Why would we be exhorted over and over again to do it if it would just happen by itself? It’s another step in our Christian growth.

For the next few posts I’m going to share what I learned as I looked deeply into the Scripture concerning this truth.

Question: How does the modern church compare to the life that Jesus Christ exemplified for us?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on May 20, 2015 in Power of God, Revival, Spiritual Walk, The Church

 

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Living the Truth

04 May

 

ButterflyGod wants us to understand that living for Him is not just a single decision, but an ongoing walk. Sometimes I think that the modern church has lost sight of the spiritual life that the early church walked in. It’s a principle that many believers in former generations understood. We need to relearn some of the truths that we’ve let slip over time.

I like looking at church history. I read how those in the past lived for Christ. Sometimes the walk of these early Christians, and even my grandparents, amazes me. I see a walk of righteousness that we only dream about. It causes me to ask, why do we struggle with things that they overcame on a daily basis?

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Ephesians 4:22-24

I’ve come to the conclusion that we’ve lost something over time. In the above verse Paul said, “You were taught…” What was it that they were taught? I believe it was how to walk according to the Spirit.

It’s not something you just grow into. You don’t just wake up one day mature in the Lord. These are things that we need to be taught. More than that, we must accept, apply and perform them.

We sometimes get in trouble theologically because we rip things out of context. We apply things to our lives that are not for us or that we haven’t attained to yet. We need to know who this verse was written to.

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus…
Ephesians 1:1

Scripture wasn’t written in a vacuum.   There were things surrounding what was written. The letter to the Ephesian church was sent to a group of mature, faithful believers who were walking in the truths Paul was writing about. They understood these things – and I’m convinced that many of us in the modern church don’t.

Here’s what happens. We read the words in chapter 4, above, and we think that it’s true about us. We think that Paul is writing these words to us. No, on the contrary, he’s writing to a people who are living it; as an example to us.

If the things Paul wrote in that verse were true of us, then we would be experiencing it in our daily walk. Why then are we still corrupted by our deceitful desires? Why do so many in the church still have the same attitudes as the world? Why, in the church today, do we still not live like Jesus, with the same love and works that He operated in?

I believe it’s because we’ve lost some of the truth that these other generations possessed. There are three things in the above verses that need to be done. Paul said that they put off their old man, renewed their minds and put on the new man.

I’m convinced that these milestones are worked on after our initial salvation. Paul makes it clear that these were things that they were taught. Teaching requires time, and I don’t think it was time spent being taught before they received Christ.

This has been on my heart for a while now. I’m burdened not only for myself but for the church as a whole to experience this renewal. Because of that, I may be posting about this subject for longer than I normally take for a series. But I really think that it’s needed and relevant to the church today.

Question: What would the church look like if we were “like God in true righteousness and holiness”?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on May 4, 2015 in Revival, Spiritual Walk, The Church

 

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Healing 201 – Our Covenant of Healing

20 Apr

BreadI’ve been posting about the healing that Christ purchased on the cross for us. We saw that sickness is a part of the sin package and that our healing is a part of our righteousness. We will now turn to an incident in Jesus’ ministry.

This encounter was recorded in both Mark 7 and Matthew 15. These two sections together give us the whole picture.

Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession.”
Matthew 15:21-22

Here we see that a Canaanite woman had a daughter with a demon, manifesting in sickness. We know that she begged Jesus to do something about it.

He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.”
Matthew 15:26

In Jesus’ response, the Bible literally says it is not proper etiquette, not right in appearance to give her the children’s bread. Of course God never worried about surface appearances. Jesus had no problem eating with tax-collectors and prostitutes.

‘Yes, Lord,” she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
Matthew 15:27-28

We always use this for an example of supernatural healing, but there’s more going on than meets the eye. Some teachers look at this and say that the daughter was healed because the woman had great faith. So, therefore, it takes great faith for healing. NO!!!! We miss the whole point.

According to Jesus, healing is the children’s bread. In this response we can see God’s priority.

“First let the children eat all they want,” he told her, “for it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.”
Mark 7:27

Did you hear what the Lord said? First fill up the children with all they want to eat. In other words; first heal the church, then the world. So in this statement of Christ we see two kinds of healing.

The first is a covenant healing which is by right. I’m not trying to be arrogant when I say this. He calls us His children. Parents obligate themselves to feed their children. God decided to do it this way. It’s all a part of a normal faith relationship.

The other healing is for those outside the covenant, by special faith. This is because it originally takes faith to enter the covenant. A majority of Jesus’ ministry was covenant healing.

The sick person came to the Lord, He laid hands on them, and they left healed. There was no stirring up of their faith required – He just did it.

That’s because healing was a part of the covenant that God’s people had entered into. A quick search of the words heal and healing will show the many places that God promises to heal His people in the Old Covenant.

At this point, we have entered a Better Covenant. Through the blood of Christ we have the fulfillment and not just the shadow. How much more does the Lord desire to bring healing to those who are in Christ? In my next post I’ll take this a bit further.

As I’ve said before, the church needs a greater understanding of Jesus Christ the Healer.

Question: How do you see the New Covenant as being better than the Old?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on April 20, 2015 in Faith, Healing, The Church

 

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Healing 201 – Righteousness Brings Healing

17 Apr

BeamIn my last post I started talking about God’s provision to heal His people. But let’s take this a step further. I said that God wants to remove all sin; and sickness is a part of that package.

When God removes something, He always replaces it with something else. What’s the opposite of sin?

Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.
Romans 6:13

It’s clear from Scripture that the opposite of sin is righteousness. You can read all of Romans, chapters 5-6, and see how God replaced sin with His righteousness.

The fact is that I can’t be righteous on my own – it had to be a work of God’s power.

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
2 Corinthians 5:21

On the cross, Christ became sin so that we might become righteousness. This is a divine truth, but how does it apply to healing? If you can grasp this it will set you free.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.
1 Peter 2:24

This recaps everything that we’ve been saying. Sickness is a manifestation of the sin nature. In the same way that sickness is a part of the sin package, healing is a part of our righteousness.

But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.
Malachi 4:2

I’ve heard this verse preached in the past. Usually the preacher or teacher will transform the word sun into the word son and speak about the Son of God. Christ is the Healer, but there’s more to it than that.

In order to really lay hold of what the prophet is saying in this verse, we must understand the ancient Hebrew mindset. Think about what it looks like when the sun rises on a new day. Maybe there’s a small cloud or two in the sky.

As the light of the sun breaks forth you see the rays of light emanating from the sun and reaching to the earth. We call these the rays of the sun or sunbeams. The ancient Israelites didn’t use this terminology. They called these rays the wings of the sun.

The prophet Malachi saw a day when the Messiah would usher in God’s righteousness. He saw it rising like the sun in all of its glory. But he saw something else that should make us rejoice.

Emanating from that righteousness, like the rays of the sun, was healing for all who came into its light. What an incredible truth to lay hold of! Healing emanates from righteousness.

Just as sickness is a part of the sin package, healing is a part of the righteousness that Christ purchased for us. Healing is not something that God decides to do or not do on a case by case basis. It was provided once and for all at the cross.

The church needs a fresh revelation of Christ the Healer. When that happens, His righteousness will bring the healing we seek.

Question: What else has Christ provided through His righteousness?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on April 17, 2015 in Faith, Healing, Power of God, The Church

 

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Respond to the Call

11 Mar

 

PowerlessThis is my last post in the series about your callings in Christ. We need to be faithful to the whole calling that God has placed upon us.

It all comes down to a question of motivation. Are you out to please God and to fulfill His plan? If so, then you must seek the Lord as to where His agenda is to be fulfilled in your life.

I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles.
Isaiah 42:6

What we need to see is that responding to our personal call is not optional. It’s a part of God’s righteousness for our lives. Salvation is a package deal and calling is a large part of it. How can we ever expect to live satisfying and fulfilled lives if we never bother to find out the purpose for which we were created? If you want to walk in righteousness, then you must find and walk in your calling.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Romans 8:28-32

What a precious promise! God can and will use all things for our good, but there’s a condition. You must be called according to His purpose. Just knowing a piece and doing your own thing to fill in the gaps is not enough. The reason is clear – you’re not really called unless you’ve heard the call.

God has a calling for everyone, but unless His call reaches your spiritual ears, there’s no clear call upon your life. Without that clear call, you’re like a ship out on the raging ocean with no rudder. You’ll find yourself at the mercy of the wind and waves, instead of the supernatural guidance of the Lord.

The Apostle Peter wrote an excellent statement that should be our attitude concerning the call God has for each of us.

Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
II Peter 1:10-11

Finding our calling in the Lord should never just be an exercise in obedience, only done because God says that we should. On the contrary, there should be an eagerness and expectancy that comes from the knowledge that finding your calling is what you were born for. Every blessing that God has for you is wrapped up in your call. Every provision and resource Heaven offers is at your disposal in order to complete that which God has assigned you to do.

Make sure you also seek God for the method and the location where He wants you to fulfill your call. Only then will you have your election, your qualification for service, made sure. Spend the time in God’s presence that it requires, moving you forward into your destiny in Christ.

Question: How well do you understand what you’re called to do by the Lord?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on March 11, 2015 in Ministry, Spirit of Excellence, The Church

 

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The Spirit and the Bride

20 Feb

 

DoveIn my last post I showed that not all believers are residents of the New Jerusalem, and therefore, are not part of the Bride of Christ. The understanding of all this is found in the characteristics of the Bride.

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!”  And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
Revelation 22:17

This verse shows us the relationship between the Holy Spirit and the Bride of Christ. The first thing I notice is that the Bride is listening to the voice of the Spirit. Do all Christians listen to the Spirit of God? Absolutely not. But the Bride hears the voice of the Holy Spirit.

And more than that, the Bride speaks what the Holy Spirit is speaking. What I find amazing is that there’s no lag time. Their words are totally in sync with each other.

When the Spirit says, “Come,” the Bride is proclaiming the exact same thing. There’s a connection between the Spirit and the Bride.

He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.
James 1:18

Let’s talk for a moment about our spiritual birth. We know that we were given birth – born again – by the Word of God. Christ, Himself, is the Living Word. Obviously He’s the Father. But for a birth to occur there has to be a mother. Spiritually speaking, who’s our mother?

In his letter to the Galatians, Paul talks about the difference between self-righteousness and the salvation of God. As he explains this, he makes a surprising statement.

But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother.
Galatians 4:26

I’ll try to not be too graphic. We were given birth by the seed of the Word, planted in the Bride. These two must be combined for a birth to take place. The Spirit is calling, “Come!” The Bride is calling, “Come!” We have been given birth by the Holy Spirit and the Word operating through the Bride.

The Bride is made up of the overcomers in Christ. It’s the Bride that’s manifesting the Kingdom of God. That should make it abundantly clear to us that it’s the Bride that’s producing the fruit of the Kingdom. If you’re saved, it’s because the Bride of Christ declared the Word of God to you. That’s how you entered the Kingdom.

Then the choice is up to you. You can join the Bride or remain one of the attendants. But there’s one more characteristic of the Bride that’s important to us.

Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.
Revelation 19:7

The Bride prepares herself for the wedding day. Why? Because it’s important to her. She wants to give herself to the Groom. She wants to be pleasing to her husband. So she dresses up in the finest clothing available to her.

Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear. (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)
Revelation 19:8

It’s not her clothing. She could never present herself to her husband dressed in the filthy rags of her own righteousness. This wedding gown had to be given to her. It was a work of God. The bottom line is that even though she was given this treasure – she had to prepare herself by putting it on.

Question: What does it take for the church to make herself ready?

© Nick Zaccardi 2015

 
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Posted by on February 20, 2015 in Return of Christ, Revival, The Church

 

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Faith that Lasts

26 Dec

 

OilI’ve been posting about the parable of the Ten Virgins. For the last few articles I’ve talked about the light, the oil, and the lamp.

As you can see, everything in the Word of God supports the reality that the light is our righteousness that’s seen by the world. This light, then, is produced by the union of our faith – as the oil – working itself through the lamp of our love.

Armed with this understanding, we’re now prepared to truly grasp what Christ was getting at in the Parable of the Ten Virgins.

“The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.”
Matthew 25:3-5

The problem, then, was in the amount of faith that each virgin possessed.   This is what separates the wise from the foolish. What makes a Christian wise in the last days, is that they have the faith to see it through no matter what comes their way. This is what Jesus said on more than one occasion.

“All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”
Matthew 10:22

“Standing firm to the end” – this requires more faith than looking for an early escape. We need to be ready for the future as Christ described it.

We need to have faith working itself through love if we’re going to stand firm to the end. Since both of these spiritual commodities require knowledge of the Word of God, I must be careful who I allow to train me.

I want an oil supply that won’t give out in my time of need. When I’m going through the darkest times in my life is when I really need to walk in love and in faith. Then, when the world begins to see these qualities in my life, they’ll see a light burning in the darkness.

Anyone can walk in bitterness and defeat, doubting that they’ll ever make it through. It takes someone trained and walking in the Word of Truth to make it victoriously through the rough times.

That’s why it’s so important who you place yourself under, in submission to, as your pastor. The Bible is clear that the works you do (your light), are directly related to the training you received.

It was he [Christ] who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service…
Ephesians 4:11-12a

If the man of God that you place your trust in is not rightly dividing the Word of Truth, then your works will suffer. You won’t have the oil supply that you need to get you through the tough times. This is why it’s so important to know what Christ taught about His return. The last days will either be your greatest hour to shine or your darkest and most difficult failure.

Question: What does it take to increase your supply of faith?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on December 26, 2014 in Faith, Ministry, Return of Christ, The Church

 

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How Hot is Your Love Lamp?

24 Dec

Fire DangerI’ve been talking about the parable of the Ten Virgins as told by Jesus in Matthew, chapter 21. We now understand the illustration of the light, the lamp, and the oil as our righteousness produced by our faith expressing itself through love.

There’s one more thing I want to look at before we move on. There are two verses that I believe will be the icing on the cake for this parable.

If faith and love are the oil and the lamp, then there should be a teaching in Scripture that shows the condition of these spiritual commodities in the last days. After all, Jesus said that half of the Christians’ lamps would be going out just before He returns. Let’s see if that’s a clearly taught truth that can be found in the Word apart from a parable.

We’ve already looked at the point in His ministry where Jesus taught His disciples that they must continue in prayer and never give up. He highlighted this concept by the use of a parable – the parable of the widow and the unjust judge in Luke chapter 18. As He is finishing this teaching, the Lord makes the following remark.

“And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
Luke 18:7-8

What an interesting thing for Christ to say. He asks us, when He returns, will He even find faith at all on the earth? If faith is the oil that fuels our lamps, then this is in direct line with what He’s saying in the parable of the ten virgins.

Faith, the oil, will be used up in many people’s lives. According to the Lord, many will be without faith in the last days. Don’t let this happen to you. Do what it takes to have that extra supply. I’ll tell you what this requires in a later post of this series.

What about love? How did Jesus describe the condition of love in the last days? I believe that the words that Jesus uses will surprise you, now that you understand the meaning of the light, the lamp, and the oil.

“Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.”
Matthew 24:12-13

Could He have made it any clearer? What a description of love in the last days, especially knowing that it’s the lamp that shines our light to the world. Notice that Jesus doesn’t say that that there will be no love in the last days.

He teaches that there will be a form of love, but that it will be cold and lifeless. There’s one thing we know about an oil lamp. When it’s lit and burning, it’s hot. The only way for our love to grow cold is for the fuel to run out.

If we allow our faith to disappear, then the fire of our lamps will go out. We’ll still have the lamp – our love – but it will be a cold and useless love. We’ll be incapable of loving someone into the Kingdom of God. Without our lamps burning, we will not be able to serve God in a way that’s pleasing to Him.

Question: How is a lack of faith and love evident in the church today?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on December 24, 2014 in Faith, Ministry, Return of Christ, The Church

 

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The True Expression of Faith

22 Dec

lampI’ve been taking an in-depth look at the parable of the Ten Virgins of Matthew, chapter 21. In my last post we concluded that the combination of faith and love was needed to produce righteousness in our lives. Could this be what we are looking for to explain the mystery of the oil and the lamps producing light?

Today I want to look closely at these concepts, to see if they’re what Jesus is talking about. The first question we must ask ourselves is, are they both non-optional in the forming of the light of our righteousness?

First we’ll look at faith. We know, from Hebrews 11:6, that without faith it is impossible to please God. The verse doesn’t say that it’s difficult to serve God without faith. It says that no matter what you do, how much love is in your heart, or how often you go to church, it’s impossible for your works to count for anything in the kingdom of God apart from faith. Working for God absolutely requires faith.

The second commodity necessary for the light to appear is love. Without love our faith will be of no value. The clear teaching of Scripture in I Corinthians 13:2 says if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

I can have faith in God for incredible miracles and yet still not be able to please Him, if I don’t walk in love. Again, the Scripture makes it clear that love is a non-optional requirement to serve the Lord.

Knowing this, I’m now in a position to understand how faith and love work together in my life. They’re not independent. I can’t use one without the other and expect my works to be pleasing in the sight of God.

So, we can see that these two spiritual concepts pass the first test. What about the next test? How do faith and love relate to each other? Remember, the oil must work through the wick of the lamp in order to produce light.

It takes a lamp for the oil to express its true nature. Light is revealed when the oil expresses itself through the lamp. Does this parallel the scriptural description of faith and love?

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
Galatians 5:6

It’s clear from this verse that all the outward trappings that man looks at are not worth a thing in God’s estimation. If we’re to please God, then our works must be a matter of faith expressing itself through love. Just like the light of a lamp is the oil working itself through the lamp, the light of our righteous works by faith working through love.

I believe that in this parable, the lamp is our love and the oil is our faith. Both are needed to produce the kind of light that will draw men and women to Christ for salvation. Love must be the medium through which the true character of my faith is revealed. It’s only as I have my lamp burning, my faith expressing itself through my love, that my works are acceptable before God.

Question: How does your faith express itself through your love in a practical way?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on December 22, 2014 in Faith, Return of Christ, The Church

 

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