So, here’s the thing: We are a people called by God to live in a way that pleases Him. We have been made righteous by the finished work of Jesus yet we are still here on earth to live for God through everything we experience either personally or by proxy (hello, empathy). Life itself is tough. Salvation doesn’t change that. It may even add to it depending on where you live, work or find yourself per time. What then do we do? Enter Living by Faith.
You see, living by faith is what happens because we have accepted Christ and therefore continuously decide to live for Him. Do we stumble sometimes? Yes. However, with the right perspective, you will agree with me that it is because we accept that we in fact live by faith that we get up and keep going regardless of how many times we stumble. In fact, to stumble means to “trip or momentarily lose one’s balance; almost fall.” Stumbling is a sign that we’re moving forward, because realistically, you cannot stand on a spot and stumble. Even if we fall, “the righteous falls seven times and gets back up.”
Living by faith is living a life that pleases God. It is truly accepting God’s integrity and constancy which allows us to know and feel that we’re secure in Him and by extension called by Him to live for Him. The whole essence of us living is to glorify God and as empowered by His Spirit, be useful to our environment, nation, cultural context, and whatever describes where we find ourselves. Faith among other definitions is a belief in God’s word(s) being true in themselves. “Thus says The Lord ‘’ is what we stand on, ride on, and fix our gaze upon. We walk by faith and not by sight. Faith is seeing as God sees, speaking as God speaks, doing as God does. Faith is aligning with God.
There’s a common view of living by faith that although true is incomplete. This view focuses more on favourable aspects but, we forget that in what is now popularly called “the honour roll of faith”, there were people listed that because they lived by faith, they were
“tortured, refused to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection, faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were put to death by stoning; they were sawn in two; they were killed by the sword…” (Hebrews 11: 35b-37c)
This area is mostly skimmed past because it doesn’t seem to fit well with what we have generally accepted to be what living by faith is. But, we must realise that what we’ve been called to do may require that we refuse things that may be beneficial to us. Some of our heroes of faith refused things because they saw something bigger in the future. This call — to live by faith — is a call that requires that we remember that this is a marathon and not a sprint. The Apostle James tells us that as we walk in faith, our faith will be tested and this testing will produce perseverance. Through this perseverance, we will continue to exercise this muscle that is living by faith, we will become mature, we will become complete and we will lack nothing (James 1:2–4). This is a wise saying to set before our eyes, and meditate on constantly so that we may not be discouraged!
A popular warning comes in the book of Proverbs:
Trust in the Lord and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him and he will direct your path. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord, and shun evil. (Proverbs 3:5–7)
In conclusion, to expand on one of Dr. R. Alan Culpepper’s observations on this subject, to live by faith is a determination to do God’s will courageously and with an indescribable persistence. The writer of Hebrews 6:12 directs our faith toward a spirit of patience, a heart full of wisdom, the hope of inheritance and the fulfilment of God’s promises.
Ojodale is a young Christian man who lives in Lagos but is really not of Lagos. Weaving faith and life in Lagos is an ongoing experience for him. Though difficult, it has been rewarding. He writes on topics dear to him on Medium and occasionally for City Church.