Category: Saved and Commended

Let’s read aloud the following scripture and ask the Lord for his anointing to move forward in what he has called us to do:

Philippians 3:7-11 NIV
⁷ But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸ What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ ⁹ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. ¹⁰ I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹ and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.

Hebrews 10:37-39 NIV
³⁷ For, “In just a little while,
    he who is coming will come
    and will not delay.”
³⁸ And, “But my righteous one will live by faith.
    And I take no pleasure
    in the one who shrinks back.”
³⁹ But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, there is nothing greater than knowing you, where we don’t shrink back but increase in faith with your presence. May our churches live by faith to accomplish the will and work that you specifically set aside for us in our cities. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Let’s sing “Knowing You (All I Once Held Dear)” based on Philippians 3 by Graham Hendrick (click here).

– CHH

Romans 1:17 NIV/NASB
For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

The gospel reveals the righteousness of God – Jesus, the Son of God, became a human being and lived the righteous life that was fully faithful to God the Father and to us; in other words, he loved God and others. From the faith of Jesus to our saving faith, God has made us righteous in his sight. And, as his saved and righteous ones, we are those who will live by faith. What an incredible privilege! From faith to faith by faith, we are becoming and living like Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. As Athanasius said, “He became what we are that we might become what he is.”

To live by faith in God is the most exciting, most rewarding, and most fulfilling life. It’s supernatural because we’re drawing closer to the Lord and saying we can’t do this on our own and need him. Faith pushes us to supernaturally live the new creation and put ourselves on the line for God to faithfully catch us. It might be daunting or uncomfortable at times, but faith opens us to see and embrace the new.

Prayer: Father, thank you for this “from faith to faith by faith” that we can step into every day. Help us to live out your salvation by faithfully following you into the new for all areas (thoughts, relationships, schools/work, and ministries). In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Let’s worship with “God Is For Us” by North Point Worship as we consider all that he has done and all that is to come (click here).

– CHH

Hebrews 11:1-2, 4-5, 39-40; 12:1-2 NIV
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.
 … By faith [Abel] was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings.
 … For before [Enoch] was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God.
 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
… And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

When you read the whole chapter of Hebrews 11, there’s a list of people who were commended for their faith – they believed God and accomplished what God had in mind for their lives. They each had their own faith response to God for various situations, and no person repeated what was done before.

It might be hard for us to believe that we have something better as it says at the end, but the encouragement is that we have a greater certainty of faith because of Jesus through the Spirit. Rather than thinking if we can do this, let us consider how we can do this for his glory.

Prayer: God, help me by your Spirit to live with a faith that achieves your purpose and is commended by you. By faith, may I (… fill in the blank…) according to your will and plan. In Jesus’s name I pray, amen.

– CHH

Romans 4:20-25 NLT
²⁰ Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. ²¹ He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. ²² And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. ²³ And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded ²⁴ for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. ²⁵ He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.

“Luther insisted, in a similar way, that faith in God’s forgiveness and grace in Jesus Christ form true faith. He also insisted that this experience of grace through faith will overflow into a life of good deeds toward one’s neighbor. Faith flows into faithfulness as naturally as spring water flows into a streambed. There is no dichotomy between the water and the stream.” (J. Brucker. The NIV Application Commentary)

Faith in Christ is trusting what Jesus has done for us instead of ourselves. Scripture is clear that Abraham was not made right with God by what he did but by believing in God… and Abraham lived by that faith. The starting point for all that we do as God’s chosen people is God’s saving grace in his faithfulness to us, which we respond to with saving faith.

Let’s proclaim, praise, and pray Romans 4:25 afresh over our lives and worship with “Lamb of God” by Matt Redman (click here).

– CHH

Habakkuk 2:4 ESV
Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.

“Habakkuk emphasizes what a righteous or just person is not before he declares what he is. A righteous person is not ‘puffed up’ or ‘lifted up’ in his own conceits. Far from relying on himself or his personal resources to obtain or maintain his style of life, he trusts solely in the Living God. The contrast could not be sharper: the wicked rely on their might (1:11) and their savage plundering of others (1:16–17) to provide for themselves the good life, but such reliance results in a life that is crooked or curved, not ‘upright’ (2:4a). Real living can only come from the hand of God, who gives daily to all who trust and believe in Him. Life apart from God—the only One who is able to grant it—proceeds to wither, shrivel, shrink, dry up, and eventually, ends.” (Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., The Preacher’s Commentary: Habakkuk)

Thanks be to God that we no longer have to live crooked or spiritually out-of-shape. We get to live by faith in the Lord who is faithful, so that we experience his righteousness making things right in every way.

Prayer: Jesus, thank you that I don’t have to be puffed up with my own thoughts and ways, but instead I can be filled with your grace and truth. Help me to live rightly by faith in you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Let’s praise the Lord who stays the same with “Yesterday, Today, and Forever” by Passion (click here).

– CHH