FAITH WORKS THROUGH LOVE

Why doesn't my faith seem to work all the time?  Perhaps there are not clear answers to prayer or things do not seem to be changed.   There are answers and changes in the Spirit, when it is by the Spirit and Christ-empowered.  Paul says, "neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything" (Gal. 5:6).  Circumcision has to do with the flesh.  When you sow to the flesh, you always get flesh by-products.  When you sow to the Spirit, you always get Spirit results (Gal. 6:8).  As a Christian, we cannot do or accomplish anything Spiritual by way of the flesh.  You cannot even in your own flesh, put to death your flesh. That is merely asceticism and wrong, but spiritualized flesh action. You cannot control your own flesh in or with your own flesh.  You are saved and Spirit birthed in Christ Jesus.  Christ already fully dealt with your flesh in Adam on the cross. When he was put to death, that old flesh nature was put to death.  Our trouble is that we don't have a Holy Spirit renewed mind to that great liberating truth.   We have to continually know and operate in the truth, that our old man was once then co-crucified with Christ (Rom. 6:6a). Paul said this is so that the body of sin might once then be rendered powerless, that we might no longer serve sin (Rom. 6:6b).  If my faith is operating out of my flesh as the source, you can expect that those things won't work.  Sometimes God may let flesh work for a season by His sovereign grace.  After a while He expects us to move to only Spirit.

Christ now lives in us as us (Gal. 2:20).  At salvation with the Spirit birthing, we received the divine nature (II Pet. 1:4), and the Spirit of Christ (Rom. 8:9).  Faith or faithfulness is one facet of the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22).  Christ manifests and expresses His nature, personality, and fruit in and through us as us.  We are the vessel or body of Christ (II Cor. 4:7; I Cor. 12:27).  Christ is the treasure or expression as us (II Cor. 4:7; Gal. 2:20).  We must have the mind Spirit transformed and renewed to move from faith to faith (Rom. 1:17).  These are level or degrees of faith.  We move from simple faith in the flesh, to flesh faith commingled with Spirit.  We ultimately need to move to the faith of the Son of God, where Christ in us is our 100% source of faith.  That is eternal faith from Christ – the eternal source.  Christ is the author and completer of faith (Hebr.  12:2).  Christ is the love of God put in us.  Again, love is a fruit of the Spirit of Christ in us (Gal. 5:22).   Christ is the eternal source of love.  When we let Christ – the eternal source, express His eternal faith by His eternal love, then eternal results are guaranteed.  Truly, His faith worketh through love in and through us! V

Written by Dwight Davis
Christ-Ministries