In this final episode on what the Bible says about various kinds of faith, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing active faith and what that entails. We discuss what Jesus said about active faith in the judgment scene recorded by Mathew in chapter 25. We move on to look at the reference to a dead faith that James makes in his extensive discussion of faith in his second chapter. He discusses the need for one's faith to be one that is working and vital. We look at what Jesus said about this in Matthew 25 again, in the judgment scene. Paul mentions an availing faith. We talk about what that means. Jesus had a discussion with Peter about his faith after Peter said he would never leave the Lord. Jesus told Peter that there would be a point very shortly that his faith would fail. We discuss this problem that so many saints have. We also note that Peter's faith later on became very strong. Faith is something that must be kept, even in times of aversity. Paul is the perfect example. Paul enjoins saints in two letters to keep the faith. We look at that guidance. Finally, it is possible to cast off one's faith. We talk about two situations that Paul records of this problem that some had. Our faith is essential to salvation. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our final episode of this important subject. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
In this final episode on what the Bible says about various kinds of faith, Arnie and Fred begin by discussing active faith and what that entails. We discuss what Jesus said about active faith in the judgment scene recorded by Mathew in chapter 25. We move on to look at the reference to a dead faith that James makes in his extensive discussion of faith in his second chapter. He discusses the need for one's faith to be one that is working and vital. We look at what Jesus said about this in Matthew 25 again, in the judgment scene. Paul mentions an availing faith. We talk about what that means. Jesus had a discussion with Peter about his faith after Peter said he would never leave the Lord. Jesus told Peter that there would be a point very shortly that his faith would fail. We discuss this problem that so many saints have. We also note that Peter's faith later on became very strong. Faith is something that must be kept, even in times of aversity. Paul is the perfect example. Paul enjoins saints in two letters to keep the faith. We look at that guidance. Finally, it is possible to cast off one's faith. We talk about two situations that Paul records of this problem that some had. Our faith is essential to salvation. Take about 30-minutes to listen in on our final episode of this important subject. Have your Bible handy so you can verify what we are saying. There is a transcript provided of this Buzzsprout episode for your convenience.
This is a presentation of the Woodland church of Christ meeting at 3370 Broad Street in Sumter, South Carolina. We meet for worship on Sunday at ten thirty am and five thirty pm. We meet for bible study at nine thirty am on Sunday, and seven pm on Wednesday. If you have questions or comments on this lesson, you may email them to Fred Gosnell at fgosnell@ftc-i.net Or to Arnie Granke. At agranke440718@twc.com.
Arnie:Good afternoon. This is Arnie Granke and Fred Gosnell, this is what does the Bible say? Fred and I are both members of a church of Christ at Woodland, and that's the church that sponsors this, this program, and we appreciate you listening. What we want to do is talk about Bible things. And, and certainly, if you have had the opportunity to add to those things, we hope that you take advantage of that, give us a holler on the phone or send us an email or whatever you whatever way you communicate, we would love to hear from you. And if you disagree with us, that's okay, too. We we'd be glad to hear from you on in that regard. as well. We can discuss passages of Scripture, we don't avoid discussions, and we don't get mad when people disagree with us. We just talk about it and talk about what we understand the Bible to say, and we hope that you, you will do the same thing. We've been we've been talking about various kinds of faiths. And there's great faith and there's small faith or strong faith, there is weak faith. And we've been discussing some of those. And whether faith is, how much faith is needed, whether it's needed in order to be a child of God and have the hope of eternal life. Whether you can get by with the very least that you want to have, and still be acceptable to God. And so we're we're talking about those those kinds of things. Fred, I see that on our list, we thought we would talk about active faith, there. Do you have a passage of scripture on that?
Fred Gosnell:Yes, Paul wrote to the Thessalonians in First Thessalonians chapter one, verses two through four. And he began there in verse two, he said, We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of God and our Father, knowing brother and beloved, your election by God. Of course, notice, notice the words there. He said, he remembered Without ceasing your work of faith. So faith has to be involved in some work. And then, and then he, he says, Your labor of love. There's some labor involved in this. So there are things that we must do if we are going to be faithful people. And Paul notes that specifically there, and then he, he, he writes to the Colossians, as well, in Colossians, chapter three verses 12 and 13. Notice, notice what he says, he says, Put on therefore as the elect of God, holy and beloved vows of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering, forbearing, one another, and forgiving one another, If any man have a quarrel against even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye., But but notice that they were to forbear one another. Well for to forbear one another. That's, that's an action that you have to take. That's the work. Then and he says, Forgiving one another. Well, to forgive someone, you have to take the action in order to do so. So there's some work involved in that. So we need to understand that faith has to be active and Arnie didn't Jesus talk about this in the final, judgment scene?
Arnie:Well, he did as as a matter of fact. Now understand that Matthew 24 and Matthew 25 go to, go together; 25 is, follows on without changing the subject, really, from Matthew 24, the destruction of of Jerusalem. And then in 25, Jesus gives three illustrations about that; two are, are parables, and another one's kind of a description of the judgement scene. And and in Matthew 25 and beginning in verse, verse 31, he said, When the Son of man shall come in all his, in his glory and all the holy angels with him; then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory, and before him shall be gathered all nations, and he shall separate them one from another as a shepherd, divideth his sheep from the goats. And he shall set the sheep on his right hand and the goats on the left. Then shall the king say unto those on his right hand, Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, For I was hungry, you gave me the meat, I was thirsty, and you gave me drink, I was a stranger, and you took Me in, naked, and you clothed me, I was sick, and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer saying, Lord, when saw we thee a hungred or, and fed thee? O thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in, or naked and clothed thee? Or when saw we the sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the king shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, in so much as you have done it unto the least of these, my brethren, you have done it unto me. We'll stop there at that point, because that's the part that agrees with the work that the saints have done, and and that they that they obeyed the Lord's will, in that in that regard. And so there's a favorable outcome that they receive as a as a result of having done his will here in this life.
Fred Gosnell:Yes. And of course, those passages tell us that one's faith must be active. Of course, then the other side of the coin is well, if if one's faith is not active, it's a dead faith, basically. And James talks about that. He talks about faith in James chapter two, verses 14 through 26 it's a long reading, but James deals with faith and whether it's a working faith or a nonworking faith and dead faith. So we begin in verse 14, James writes, he says, What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he has faith and have not works. Can that faith save him? If a brother or a sister be naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you say unto them depart in peace be ye warmed and filled. Notwithstanding, you give them not those things which are needful to the body? What doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works is dead, being alone? Yeah, man may say Thou has faith and I have works show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show you my faith by my works. Thou believest that there is one God. Thou doest well. The demons also believe and tremble. But wilt thou know O vain man that faith without works is dead, Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar. Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect. And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him, Lord, I'm sorry, lost my place, toward righteousness, and he was called the friend of God. You see, then how that by works a man and justified and not by faith only. Likewise, also was not Rahab, the harlot, justified by works when she had received the messengers and sent them out another way? Whereas the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. So it's obvious that we have to we have to have a working faith in order for us to to have a, one that's alive. So again, so long it's
Arnie:One that's acceptable before God
Fred Gosnell:And acceptable before God. So it's, it's necessary and Paul, Paul gives, or James gives all of the examples there from you know, from Abraham and what he did. God told him to offer his son and he did that he's his faith was working. Rahab was justified by her works when she received the messengers and she kept them from being killed and sent them on their way. So likewise, our faith has to be a working faith. If it's not then we are are involved in a dead faith.
Arnie:The interesting thing about that is that for centuries, there have been various denominations that have declared that that's all that's needed is faith. There's works. In fact, they'll even say that works will nullify the faith.
Fred Gosnell:I don't think so. Martin Luther, certainly was, was one back in the 1400s, that, that he said that, that the book of James was a was an epistle of straw. Because he he felt that James mixing work and faith together throughout the book, had had really shown it not to be something that God had had provided himself. That's just not that's just not the truth, as a matter of fact, and James
Arnie:I don't think so either. Verse 42, ForI was an hungred is making it clear and other places as well, that if the wor, and you gave me no meat, I was thirsty, and you gave me no the faith does not work, it's not acceptable. faith before God. And we were we were talking a minute ago, about a few drink. I was a stranger, and you took me not in; naked and you minutes ago about the judgment scene in Matthew chapter 25. clothed me not; sick and in prison, you visited me not. Then Well, we're back there again. Let's talk about the other half of of that. We looked at the ones that Jesus had said, Come shall they, also answer him saying, Lord, when saw we thee your blessed. Let's look at those that he says, Depart from an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or Me. Verse 41, He shall say unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, you cursed into everlasting fire, prepared for in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall He answer the devil and his angels. Maybe Jesus didn't know that Matthew's epistle of, Matthew's gospel was an epistle of straw, do you them saying, Verily I say unto you, in as much as you did it suppose, Fred? not to the one to the, to one of the least of these, you did it not to me. And these shall go away, Listen to this now, These shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous unto life eternal. So let's not fall into that trap of thinking that that works just nullify our our faith and are not acceptable before, before God. Faith must be vital. It must be perfected in in works. It's expressed in in action, not just thinking that that's probably right. I guess I'll go along with that. We'll put it into action. And then we'll know for sure whether, and God will know for sure whether or not you are a believer. It's true, both of the initial gospel obedience, if you haven't obeyed the gospel, and your lost you need to obey the gospel, and in a sense that that can be considered as a work. And then it's also something that's that's involves outward living afterward there, where we, where we live according to the things that Jesus taught, and people see our faith, rather than just hear us brag about it.
Fred Gosnell:Yes. And then Paul, also, he talks about a faith that he'scalled, he calls an availing faith. And in Galatians, chapter five verses one through six, and you, we'll see that this is also a faith that is, that is working. Paul begins Galatians five beginning verse one, he says, Standfast therefore in the liberty wherewith, Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I Paul say unto you that if you be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law, ye are fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything nor uncircumcision, but faith, which worketh by love. So, a faith that is availing is a faith that works by love. And again, you can't think that you're being faithful to God, if you're not doing what God says. Oof course, the problem the Galatians had there they had an individual that was trying to get them to go back under the law of Moses, and become circumcised after Moses law. And Paul says, No, you, Christ has become of no effect of you, if you are justified by the law. Of course, you couldn't be justified by the law because you had to obey it perfectly. If you made one mistake, sin one time, then you were condemned. But your faith has to be a faith that is availing, one that as he ends, the verse six, a faith which worketh by love.
Arnie:And and this is true for everyone, everywhere in, in the world, who who wants to be with the Lord after this life is over, has to have that faith and it has to be a a working faith. And and things that people sometimes associate with their faith and think that it makes a difference, what their race is, God doesn't care about your your race as far as being involved in, in faith. It doesn't matter what your nationality is, that doesn't change whether or not your faith is a valid faith, whether you work or not. Your gender men vers, versus women, one group doesn't have an advantage over the other, as far as God's concerned. Your civil status, whether you're married or single, whether you're slave or free, or whatever your circumstance is. The same rules apply to every to everyone. It has to be, we have to have faith, we have to obey the Lord. And that faith has to be a working faith. Doesn't matter if you're rich or poor. Your wealth doesn't make a difference. Doesn't matter what your parents religion was, Oh, my mom and dad was this religion or that religion. Well, maybe that's a good thing, I suppose if it's the faith of Christ, on the other hand, that doesn't, you don't earn points with the Lord, because your mom was, was a Christian or your dad was a Christian that's applicable to to each of us, that we have to be the one. That's the faith that avails.
Fred Gosnell:Yes. And of course, we get to the point where that one's faith can fail. We find Paul or Luke talking about that. And I guess it's Jesus is the one saying this, in Luke 22, 31 through 34. And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desire to have you that he may sift you as wheat. But I prayed for thee that thy faith fail, not and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethen. He said unto Him, Lord, I'm ready to go with thee both into prison and to death. And he said, I tell you, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day before that thou shall thrice deny that thou knowest me. And of course, we know that we know what happened there. Peter thought that he was going to be faithful to the Lord to the end, didn't matter what happened to him. And Jesus said, No, Peter, you're going to have a problem here. And of course he did. Jesus was taken to Pilate, and he was a being tried And Peter was away from him. And he was asked questions about, Aren't you one of those that were with him? No, not me. Peter says I wasn't with him. And he denied him three times, just as Jesus said he would. And before the cock crowed the third time. So Peter, Peter vacillated, he did exactly what the Lord said He was going to do. Sometimes he confessed the Lord boldly, which he did there with the Lord. But then denied him at other times when there were other people involved. Of course, faith of many, many of us many saints is fails in difficult times, and we just have to make sure that try not to let that happen. So like Peter, as Jesus said, When thou art converted, then strengthen thy brethren. So we have to make sure that we are fully converted to the Lord and we're, we're willing to stand up for him, speak for him, no matter who it is, no matter what we're involved in. But if we don't, then our faith will have failed because of our refusal to obey what the Lord says,
Arnie:Yeah. Let's not be real critical of, of Peter in in a way when we're looking at Peter, we're looking in the mirror. And we're seeing a person who's just like many of us, and in that particular moment, Peter was overcome with fear, I guess, and denied denied the Lord and and he became a whole lot stronger later, later on in in life. But at that particular point in in time, he he just didn't, just didn't have it. And like Peter, sometimes for for us some conversion is in in order. Let's talk about something that, that Paul writes to Timothy about in a second Timothy chapter four. And beginning in in verse six, he says, For I'm now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand, I have fought a good fight. I have finished the course I've kept the faith, henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous judge shall give me at that day. And not unto me only, but unto all them also that that love his appearing. Here, this was this was the kind of faith that that we need to have. It was a faith that, it was a kept faith, he did as he grew older, the faith didn't grow weaker, it just grew stronger. I suspect, Paul gave a lifetime of faithful service, even faithful in in adversity as as a matter of fact, and think of his of his faith as not only an enduring faith, but I think an increasing faithnas time went on.
Fred Gosnell:Yes. And of course, Paul also wanted saints to keep the faith. That would be specifically as he said in First Corinthians 16, 13, and 14 He, we begin there in verse 13. Paul writes and says, Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong, and all your things be done with, with charity. So keep the faith. Consider, well, we can consider that it's a spiritual battle that we're involved in. And we have to make sure that we don't let Satan get advantage of us and we don't keep the faith as as we are told to do so.
Arnie:We certainly need to defend the faith, by the things that we think and say and and do. Looking Fred, at first Thessalonians chapter five. And Paul beginning in verse six says, Therefore, let us not sleep as do others, but let us watch and, and be sober. Get my page turned here. For they that sleep sleep in the night; they that be drunken, are drunken in the night. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and of love and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. And Paul uses military terminology there he he associates faith with with a spiritual warfare. Not actually going out and violently dealing with with adversaries but dealing with them through God's word and, and and it is a contend, continual battle there. We need to consider the the work that we do and the hardships that we face as being, as you said, a spiritual battle. And there's a promise that's made for those who are faithful and who who keep the faith and and stand up for the faith throughout the remainder of their life. Writing to Smyrna, John, Pet Jesus commanded John to write, beginning in verse 10. Fear none of those things which thou shall suffer, Behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that you may be tried, that you may have tribulation 10 days, Be thou faithful unto death. And I will give thee a crown of of life. And by the way, what he uses there, Speaking of the devil, if you use the numbering system for the Greek words, it would be number 1228, diadolos, and it's it signifies or dict denotes the accuser, that Satan is the accuser. And it's the correct word for Devil. Sometimes you see the word demon appearing in in the scriptures, and it may actually be Diablos. And it's the devil. Other times, demons are spoken of as the devil. So just be very careful as you're studying that you understand that Diablos deals with an individual, an evil individual, it's the devil.
Fred Gosnell:Yes. So that brings us to what we will call a cast off faith. And Paul deals with that when he writes to Timothy, First Timothy five, nine through 15. And he's he's going to talk about some young widows here and, and he's going to note that sometimes their their interests end up being focused more on things of this life rather than spiritual things. So we begin in verse nine, Paul says, Let not the widow be taken into the number under threescore years old, having been the wife of one man, well reported of good works, if she have brought up children, she have a lodged strangers, if she have washed the saints feet, she have relieved of the afflicted, if she have diligently followed every good work. Of course, this is this is a widow that that has no one. No family member to take care of her. She's, she's a Christian. But Paul says, she has to be a certain age in order for her to be supported by the by the assembly, by the church. But then he in verse 11, he deals with the younger women, or younger widows, he says, But the younger widows refuse, for when they have begun to grow lustful against Christ, they will marry, having damnation or judgment, because they have cast off, notice they have cast off their first faith. And also they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house and not only idle, but gossips also, ald busy bodies, speaking things which they ought not, I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary, there's there's diabolos there, to speak reproachfully, for some are already turned aside after Satan. And then there's Satan as the one that is getting people to do that by tempting them in various ways. So the younger, the younger widows, their interests, again, are more in the things of this life. And when that happens, they have cast off their first faith, as as Paul says, and what they really they need to do is they need to marry and as he says, bear children, guide the house, and then don't give Satan an occasion to accuse them or speak reproachfully.
Arnie:Sometimes, in writings in the Scripture, there may be an answer to a question that had been asked perhaps, perhaps Timothy had asked Paul, some questions about these, these things. And he doesn't always mention regarding the matter that you asked about, because others are going to be reading the the same epistles and I suspect that these were questions there. What do we do about this, with these widows, these younger widows that may have needs and so forth, and Paul appears to be answering that. Paul says to Timothy, a kind of a sad story about a man, a brother named Dimas, in second Timothy four, beginning and in verse nine, Do diligence to come shortly to me, for Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this province, pleasant world, present world and is departed unto Thessalonica, Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Take Mark and bring him with thee for he is profitable to me for the ministry. And Tychicus I have sent to to Ephesus. So a number of individuals had left. Most of them apparently on work that Paul had sent them to, to do. The sad part is with Demas. He abandoned. Paul. The word for forsake means to abandon. He left Paul. Why? Because he loved the present world. And that's a tragic thing. He apparently had sacrificed his faith, for the comforts of this world, Let's not fall into, into that trap there. We need to stay focused on spiritual things. The allurements of the world can draw us away, and it happened so many times. And the result could be that even though we once had been an individual of faith, we nevertheless are lost. So faith is essential to salvation, but not all faiths save, neither does faith alone, save, only active, working vital, obedient faith is pleasing to God and produces eternal life. So let's ask ourselves, which kind of faith is ours? What kind of faith is yours? We hope that you can answer that is that it's the faith that will lead you into eternal life. Thank you for listening. We hope that you have a good week. We look forward to being with you again next Lord's Day.