The Companion of Faith - Part 1

Welcome to the intense podcast to tell Stanley for Thursday, April 28 things just go together.

For example, according to the Bible faith and works just go together.

Learn how they complement each other in part one of the companion of faith, the Christian life is what we have faith in God we have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ rib place of the Holy Spirit with faith in the word of God we trust this to be the word of God. Our whole life is a life of faith we talk about walking by faith, living by faith, dying by faith we pray to God in faith that he is listening that he cares is able to hear and answer our prayers so faith is become a very very vital part of all that we believe in all that we do and all that we are as a Christian is sometimes because we play such great emphasis on that part of our particular Christian life.

Sometimes it almost appears as if we neglect some of the very important part because you see, while faith is absolutely essential to everything we do. That is only part of the Christian life and oftentimes people can become very satisfied saying we do not trusted Jesus Christ as my Savior. I'm eternally secure and him and so that's that is an entirely different side of all of its wonderful to talk about in this message is this. I will talk about the companion of faith is something that goes along with their faith, something that we cannot afford to neglect in God's eyes, something that he holds us accountable for something we are responsible for someone in turn, if you will. The first Thessalonians animals a look if you will, in the first chapter wants to read these 10 verses because here is a good example of the relationship in the right relationship between our faith and how works and beginning in verse one, Paul says Paul and Sylvain's or Silas and Timothy to the church of the Thessalonians in God the father and the Lord Jesus Christ Grace to you and peace.

We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you never prayers wants this constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope and a Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and father knowing brethren beloved by God. His choice of you they were chosen by God for our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also empower and the Holy Spirit and with full conviction, just as you know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake, you also became imitators of us and of our Lord, having received the word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and I care for the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia care but also in every place. Your faith toward God has gone for so that we have no need this and he says the same thing we've heard all about but they themselves report about us what kind of reception we had with you and how you turned to God from idols to serve in living and true God, and to wait for his son from heaven who be raising the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues from wrath to come in the Thessalonians in place their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and had been rescued as it were.

Idol worship and as a result of that, they began to imitate the apostle Paul and his companions and sharing the gospel and is he says they receive that in much tribulation and then notice verse eight. If you will, he says, for the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia care but also in every place.

Your faith is gone for and so what Paul is saying here is, that is, God spoke to him and God spoke through him and it into their heart.

They began to share their faith and they became like a sounding board to all of the area, not just Macedonia but areas beyond Macedonia.

They became the voice of God as they began to share their faith and begin to express what Jesus Christ was doing within them. He says we have heard of your good works, nobody needs the tellers. He said we've heard of what's happening and what's happening is is since you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God. He says the word of the Lord has sounded for Jesus. You have been, a sounding board to all the area in which the Lord Jesus has allowed your voices to go for now.

They were beginning to share their faith and their works were being heard about all that part of their world.

God had done the miraculous work in their life and is a result their works were being shared. I think about this for moment when you trust in Jesus as your Savior and he began to live on the inside of you and he gave to every single one of us the responsibility of being a sounding board. The people around us, about who he is what he does, how to receive him as their personal savior. Think about this. It would be absolutely totally unthinkable and un-biblical unscriptural to think that Jesus Christ would live on the inside of you and me and be quiet about himself and doesn't even make sense. He came to live on the inside of his because he says the church is the body of Christ that is his hands, his arms, his feet his eyes, his heart, his ears. That's who we are we the sons and daughters of God.

We have become the body of Christ. He stated the father's right hand, and he is living on the inside of us in the presence of the Holy Spirit. So having given is the responsibility of sharing with the world who he is, why he got on the cross, his resurrection, his coming again. It would be absolutely unthinkable for Jesus to live on the inside of you and be quiet so therefore we too should be the sounding boards of the gospel of Jesus Christ in the office where you work in your home among your friends among your pleasures among your labors pieces sounding boards for the gospel of Jesus Christ. And so when Paul was saying that he was giving thanks to them. He was thanking God. He says continually because because, as a result of their faith. They were expressing and engaged in all kind of works that was bringing glory to God. That law was their motivation and their steadfastness was inspired by their hope in the Lord Jesus Christ of these were not just words. These are basic things that they could see these were things they were grateful for, grateful for their steadfastness, grateful for the motivation of love and grateful for their faith in the works.

They were being shared around the world. I think about this should not every single Christian church. The known for being a propagator of the gospel. The people who make up that fellowship as sounding boards of the truth that transforms men's lives and absolutely makes it possible for them to become children of God, to live in this life of peace and joy and happiness amidst the tribulation. Trials of Onyx and Don go to heaven with great glory.

A church should be known as a propagator of the gospel and yet churches that are known for all different kind of things but that Thessalonian church. They were known for being heralds of the gospel proclaimers of the gospel, good deeds, everywhere you turn. So when we think about our faith.

For example, let's think about in this life and that is often times because of the emphasis we place on faith and is a very strong emphasis and his emphasis that is legitimate, we place a very strong emphasis on faith because we say we do not want anybody to be misled, misled into thinking that you can go to heaven and be accepted by God by doing good works, and so we place great emphasis on the back for by grace are ye saved through faith that not of yourselves, not of works lest any person should boast.

But we are his creation, created in Christ Jesus unto good works now, the result of our faith in Christ is good works, but it is not because of our good works that will save us, and we place a great emphasis there and so we called lots of scriptures and we every single Sunday point people to the cross because we know that the cross is the only way and the only means by which anybody will ever be able to get to heaven, so it's not works, and so we make no apology for saying the Bible says not by works of righteousness which we done.

I we say, but by the mercy of God, we will make it very clear that no matter how good and how Marlon had ethical a person is you don't get accepted by God for your good works, you may be a model person. Very applicable in many ways. The problem is this your morality, your good works. This your ethics. None of these deal with the real major problem that real major problem is the sin problem that we have a sinful fallen nature by works can correct that and cannot change that. So what we say is listen. Don't be misled by thinking that you're being good and doing good works that is good. From your perspective will get you to heaven because you haven't dealt with the major problem that separated you from God, which is sin, and the only way that can be dealt with is at the cross when Jesus Christ died he took your sin debt in full paid absolutely and fully. When you receive him as your personal savior.

This in your sin problem is dealt with your forgiven and cleansed.

Your name is written in the Lamb's book of life, you become a child of the living God. Now the problem is that many people stop with that and say well thank God I'm about to say.

Sit down and yet that is not what God says it all. So we place great emphasis on that and often times that emphasis is so strong. People sometimes think well you know now that I'm saved that's it. They do not realize they have an obligation obligation to serve the living God's want to take you through a number of scriptures I want us to read each one of the because I want you to see this, and fate has a companion and that companion is works.

That is when not to work to be saved. We can never work that hard that long that much, but because we are saved, we have a personal responsibility to be sounding boards of the truth to transform their life sounding boards of the gospel. Listen vessels of God to those of God. Channels of God, through whom he can express his goodness, through whom he can help those who are in need, through whom he can help those who pour through whom he can help those who are sick, through whom we can help those who discouraged and depressed. We are the body of Christ. He's left us here in order to live his life through us and to do through us.

For others, what he knows they need and he's chosen eyes as the vessels are in the and because you say you have positioned yourself to be a vessel and a channel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Someone you think about this in the light of that elicited this go through some scriptures wrote this first one.

I'm sure you know by heart. But maybe some people do not. So I don't miss anybody and if you turn Ephesians chapter 2 for a moment and listen to what he says as he explains salvation. Look how he follows that up like in verse eight he says, for by grace that's God's goodness and kindness toward without regard to our merit of what we deserve and so grace is God's unmerited love and forgiveness told us he says in verse eight for by grace you been say through faith and not not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. That's what salvation is the gift of God not as a result of work, so that no one may boast.

Listen God did not plan his salvation plan so that you and I can boast about anything.

It's grace. It's a gift. It's all a gift in the works. Then he says he's is not as a result of work so that anyone should boast that we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus that is born again through him for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we were walking, he says, was one of the things that God had in mind when he saved you and me was that you and I would become. What's this available living vessels filled with the Holy Spirit empowered by the Holy Spirit to be a sounding board for the gospel of Jesus Christ and vessels through whom Jesus Christ could serve other people.

He says we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, for the purpose of good works, so that good works engaging in good works. Listen is an obligation for some this is the expectation of Almighty God that you and I would live and listen have a lifestyle of good works, being sensitive to being willing to help.

Being a vessel of Almighty God will is like another passage let's go to Titus and there's a whole bunch of verses that look in Titus first and second Timothy Titus before you get to Hebrews there. Listen what he says beginning in this second chapter and verse seven Titus chapter 2 verse seven he says in all things, show yourself to be an example of good deeds with purity in doctrine and dignified sounding speech which is beyond approach so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing that is ever he says listen when you and I are good examples in good deeds. Good examples of our Lord Jesus Christ sound the now doctrinaire faith. He's, you know what happens. We put to shame. Those are enemies of the Christ, and so he says we have a responsibility look, if you will. In that same second chapter the 14th verse he says, speaking of Christ Jesus, who gave himself for us to redeem ours. Now watch this from every lawless deed and permit lifestyle and to purify for himself a people for his own possession, zealous for good. The when he saved us with that either. We repented of our sin and we took an about-face instead of listen living out a life of lawless deeds now we live out a life of godly deeds, good deeds in the third chapter verse one. Remind them to be subject to rulers to authorities to be obedient to be ready for every good deed. He says be ready for you every good deed. There is no way that a believer can disengage themselves, disconnect themselves from the principles of Scripture that say what you trusted Jesus Christ as your personal savior. We, as it were, become sounding boards of the gospel. We become vessels and channels through whom God intends to reach a Don lost, hopeless, helpless, blind, simple, wicked, vile world and at the same time become the healing listen the healing elements and lives of people who both physically and emotionally sick where it that's what the bleep is about in life. While faith is important.

Works on expression of our pain and James that you show me your faith and I'll show you my faith with my works because, listen, the true, genuine faith, the quality of faith that pleases God is the quality of faith and listen begins to express itself in the lives of other people. Can you imagine what would happen if every church member in this city and your city wherever you live.

If you went to work tomorrow morning and you recognize I'm a sounding board for the gospel of Jesus Christ. That doesn't mean you walk and grabs him by the neck chicken salad I will judge about Jesus but it means that you walk in sensitive to the opportunity you walk in knowing that you have the privilege of impacting somebody's life that very day and you see what we don't realize is we don't realize that we are sending out messages continually with you sitting in your office or whether you or whatever you may be doing you sending out messages all the time you talk to somebody you send them a message with your eyes a message with your countenance a message with your gestures a message with your boys you sending them a message by your your emotions with sending message.

Why not send the message that makes the difference. That is, look for every single opportunity to get God in on the conversation, listen you have to shake the bobbin somebody space you have to have a Bible you know what, in your countenance in your eyes, they can tell when you're compassionate or not they can tell whether you care or not they can tell by your tone of voice with you are approving or whether you are disapproving with your encouraging or discouraging they can tell by the warmth of your handshake. They can tell listen when somebody finds himself in a situation and they need some physical help they need some material help they need someone to be there. They can tell whether there's something different about us or not. He says about this showman know that you are my disciples, that you have love one to another log cannot keep itself to itself.

He saved as to live his life through us not just to live his life in those would live his life in us and through us that you and I may bear fruit.

What is he say he says on the value of the branch. He says this app that runs the bonbons of the branch the second the bond listen runs in the branch and produces a grapes and silk branches don't produce grapes branches where grapes is a step in the bond that produces it. You and I don't produce fruit.

It is Christ living in the Holy Spirit in those whose producing the fruit. He's the one who speaks there was an Paul was saying these people, he said. He said when we came to you, we can you not a word only, but also in power in the Holy Spirit with full conviction.

He said it was God speaking through him, and he began to speak to them and what happens they began to be like a sounding board for the people in that area of who Jesus Christ is, that he had redeemed them and rescued them from idolatry. Now they had genuine hope not based on some God who could not speak God, who could not see God, who could not feel God who could not touch.

Now they were in touch with the living God, and there was sounding it bold everywhere. You know sometimes I think that so many of us who live in this area and people who live around lots of churches we have the truth of the gospel and every church ought to be no but being a church that is sounding for the truth of the gospel to as much of the world as God will allow them to do it and we are graced by Almighty God to have the awesome privilege of sharing the gospel with the entire world. It is our responsibility.

We are accountable to Almighty God. The sound for the truth but sounding it in word is not sufficient in our good deeds every single days relate to one of the people who lost and people who say he says we are his body and so we look at all these verses and we can keep going with some more than Hebrews and so more. We have enough verses in Titus alone to make us realize we are obligated under obligation to God, to be listen as a lifestyle of those who giving themselves a way to the glory of Almighty. Thank you for listening to the companion and faith. We would also like to invite you to join in celebrating 45 years of God's faithfulness in text.org/45 years to learn more after the presentation of intense ministry in Atlanta, Georgia