| A Church Known for Faith |
Pastor Steve Holt
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Mountain Springs Church
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| 10/21/2007 |
A Church Known for Faith
Introduction:
- Other than the Epistle to the Romans, no other book of the Bible exemplifies to us the sinfulness and depravity of our “human potential” and the greatness and power of “God’s potential.”
- The overarching theme of Romans is the righteousness that comes from God, not from ourselves.
- The Roman church is a healthy church whose faith is spoken of all over the Roman Empire.
Romans 1:8
- Here in this city of the Caesars, is a group of believers whose faith is making such an impact that it was touching the world.
- The New Testament only refers to one other instance of such a church, the church in Thessalonica.
- Let’s ask a few questions about our text:
- What was the nature of this faith?
- What makes the faith of a church great?
The Nature of our Faith
- “Faith” is a buzzword in the media today to describe anyone who believes in any kind of religion
- We have the “Faith section” in our newspapers, and this section is devoted to religion.
- Being a person of faith, in this context, can mean anything from believing in New Age Mysticism to having faith in Mother Earth.
- This is not the faith of the Bible. This is not the faith being spoken of in our passage.
- There are so many definitions for faith today, but I believe the Bible gives us the clearest definition in Hebrews.
Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
- Faith has a substantial hope in something in the future.
- Faith must be related to “seeing something with substance.”
- Faith is always visual—seeing and believing that God is going to act in the future.
- Faith is future based, looking to the future for something you are hoping for.
Hebrews 11:6
But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
- We cannot please God without faith. In other words, God is always pleased when we try to live by our faith and not just our sight.
- Faith is believing God, trusting God, standing on God, in contrast to believing and trusting in ourselves.
- Faith is not only “seeing the future” but it is believing that we will be rewarded for our faith.
- Donald Grey Barnhouse said, “Faith is a very simple thing. It is believing God’s Word and acting upon it.”
- This is quite simple, but profound.
- There is a popular view that faith has nothing to do with our down-to-earth lives.
- That is not the faith of the Bible. We are to earnestly believe that God is going to really reward us for our faith!
- It is believing God’s Word and acting upon it!
Rightly Placed Faith
· All of us have faith in something. Everyone has faith.
· Our faith must be rightly placed.
· Ex. If you drive down Academy south, you will encounter a bridge that carries you over the Fountain Creek. You know that the bridge is well built and strong, but it is not your faith that carries you over the bridge, it is the bridge that carries you over. You could come to the same bridge with the same faith on a stormy night when Fountain Creek is flooding and the foundations of the bridge are crumbling, but this time as you cross over, the bridge collapses. It was not your faith that made the bridge strong or weak.
· You must put your faith in something of substance, something that will not collapse under pressure.
· There are many counterfeits vying for your faith, but will they hold up under life’s pressures?
· True faith is a simple thing. Faith is believing God’s Word and acting upon it.
· Is your faith in the substance of God’s Word, the Bible? Can you trust the God of the Bible? I believe that you can.
· Ex. We act all the time on the word of other people for our faith. We fly on planes because we have faith in a man in a cockpit whom we have never met, never seen. We don’t know his character, his score in flying school, nor his ability to stay sober, but we place our faith in him.
· Ex. A man asks the woman he loves to marry him and she says, “Yes.” So the couple runs out and make extravagant new plans for their life based on one word!! “Yes.”
o They go out and buy an expensive ring
o Plan parties
o Plan a wedding service
o Use up all of their savings for the ceremony and honeymoon…based on one word, “Yes.”
o They change the rest of their future based on one word
- Faith is very similar: I’m a sinner in need of salvation and God gave me His Son, that if I will believe His Word, my entire life can be transformed.
- We are sinners, hopelessly in debt to God, and He comes and He announces that He has paid the debt on our behalf.
- His life is placed to my account. Where I had nothing in my favor, Christ communicated His credit of righteousness to my account. His life is deposited into my account.
- We have life because of Him!
- God says that He is satisfied with the death of His Son instead of my death.
2 Corinthians 1:20
For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.
- Trust God’s leading in your life!
- Listen to Him and find fulfillment through a life of faith that trusts in God’s promises and power!
What does Such a Church of Faith Look Like?
- The Roman church is called a church of great faith.
- So is the Thessalonian church.
- Our most specific description of a great church of faith is found in the description of the Thessalonian church.
- Let’s look at the only other church in the New Testament that is so applauded for her faith.
- We see the same wording by Paul, but he provides greater detail to his meaning when he writes to the Thessalonian church.
1 Thessalonians 1:2-8
Vs. 2-5
- A church of great faith is a church known for grounding in the Word and powerful works of the Holy Spirit.
- Such a church is not just speaking about the power of God, but the manifest presence and power of God is active.
- This is not just a Word church, but a “Word accompanied with the Spirit church!”
- The Holy Spirit is not just a doctrine but is the power of God moving, acting, and changing lives.
- A church of the Word and Spirit is a church that is guided and empowered by God’s Word and enflamed by the Spirit.
o Ex. There are some churches that are enamored by the Spirit’s power, like a fireworks show, like a Roman Candle fireworks show on the Fourth of July.
o Ex. Some churches have built a wonderful fireplace but have never lit the flame.
o Ex. A church of faith is a church who uses fire to light a fireplace built on God’s Word, and that fire warms the whole house for generations.
- A church of faith is built on and centered in God’s Word.
- Faith comes from God’s Word and is built from God’s Word.
- The Holy Spirit enflames the Word of God, and the Word becomes living and active in the lives of the members.
- One writer explains, “The Lord has never promised to bless oratory, though he sometimes uses it. The Lord has never promised to bless music, though it may gush forth from the pressure of true blessing. But he has promised to bless His Word. If we cleave to the Word there must be blessing.”
Vs. 6-7
· A church of great faith is a church of joy in adversity.
· The Thessalonian church was persecuted by the authorities from the day it was planted.
· The initial incident is recorded in Acts 17 in which the whole town came out and attacked Jason and dragged him out of his home.
· The persecution continued for years to come and the church was stronger because of it.
· Someone has said, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.”
· We see great faith churches in China today, in Burma, in Iraq, all over the Middle East, in Malasia and Indonesia.
· Wherever the church is under persecution, we find great believers with great faith who form great faith churches!
· Have you ever had your faith under fire? Have you ever been on trial for your faith? Have you ever suffered ridicule for your faith?
· This is really when we find out what our faith is made of, when we are persecuted for our love for Jesus.
Vs. 8-9
- A church of great faith is a church that is constantly giving faith away to the lost.
- The churches in Thessalonica and Rome were evangelistic churches.
- At the core of the church is Christ. He is the cornerstone; He is the purpose; He is the Anchor; He is the Foundation.
- Jesus is proclaimed as the Way, the Truth, and the Life in all that the church does.
- A church of faith is a church that has faith for sinners to get saved.
- All the programs and ministry are pointing people to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
- Ex. The past several weeks have been so exciting: over 30 children in AWANA, and around 50 people in our weekend services have given their hearts to the Lord.
- Ex. I am so proud of a young boy, Dillon Walsh, who has led three of his friends to the Lord. Dillon is 12 years old, and he has learned to use his lunch break to share with his friends.
- Dillon’s faith has been made fun of because his faith is known in his school.
- A church of faith is a church of evangelism that hasn’t lost focus on the primary purpose of changing lives through Jesus Christ.
Faith and Doubts
- Faith is built upon the written Word of God and centered upon the Living Word and enflamed by the Holy Spirit.
- Faith is simple. It is believing God’s Word and then acting upon it with our very lives.
- Faith looks at Christ and He produces life and righteousness; doubt tries to produce our own righteousness.
- Doubt looks at the obstacles; faith studies God’s Word.
- Doubt will call attention to the desert of sin; faith calls attention to the streams of God’s love and grace.
- Doubt will focus on past failures; faith hopes in a better future being worked out by a sovereign God.
- Doubt becomes hopeless and full of anxiety; faith believes that if we will persevere in our faith, we will be rewarded by God.
- Ex. Many years ago there were two men in a boat who found themselves headed down the river toward Niagara falls. People on the shore saw them and could do little to help. At last, however, a man threw a rope out and one of the men decided to grasp the rope. The other man decided to jump for a log that was floating nearby. It was a fatal mistake. The one man was drawn to shore by the rope’s connection to the people, and the other man was swept away in the current of the river, and he perished in the falls. Faith is the vital connection we can have with Christ; He holds the rope, the rope is His Word, it is as we cling to His Word that we are saved and delivered in this life!
This sermon was produced at Mountain Springs Church in Colorado Springs, with Senior Pastor Steve Holt. www.mountainsprings.org
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