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No faith = no-gifts and no-thing [message #12]

Wed, 01 February 2006 05:33

william
Messages: 1462
Registered: January 2006

Senior Member
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Someone says:
"None of us have a right to say a person hasn't received something because he lacks faith. This seems to be making a judgement call on the person's faith?"

There's no judgement call at all... no one receives anything from God apart from faith, nothing. Salvation itself is totally dependent on faith. That's what the Bible teaches and has nothing to do with my opinion.

The bottom line is --no faith equals no gifts --or receiving anything else from God either. There is not a passage anywhere in the Bible that suggests that you can receive something from God if you don't believe God will give it to you or if you're not open to His gifts and promises.

And obviously I'm not talking about the fact that, in His mercy, He causes the rain to fall on the just and the unjust, etc., --I'm talking about His *promises* here as revealed in His Word.

It is impossible to be saved if you don't believe God will save you.

It is impossible to be healed if you don't believe God will heal you.

It is impossible to receive the Gifts of the Holy Spirit if you don't believe God will give them to you (or don't believe they are for today's Church).

You have to have faith --faith is the underlying substances of anything you receive from God. No faith equals no-thing!

(Heb 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."

(James 5:15) "And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven."

(James 1:6-8) " But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways."

(Heb 11:1) " Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

(Heb 10:22-23) let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful."

(Heb 10:38 ) "Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him."

(Heb 6:1-12) "And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope until the end, that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises."

(Heb 4:2) "For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it."

(Col 2:6-8) "As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ."

(Eph 3:12) "... in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him."

(Eph 3:17-20) "... that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height; to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us..."

(Gal 3:14)"... that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith."

(Gal 3:5-7) "Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?; just as Abraham "believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham."

(2 Cor 5:7 ) "For we walk by faith, not by sight."

(Rom 12:6 ) "Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith..."

(Rom 9:31-32) "... but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness. Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone."

(Rom 5:1-2) "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God."

(Rom 4:20-21) "He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform."

(Rom 1:16-17) "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."

(1 John 5:14-15) "Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him."

If, after reading the passages above, anyone can still belittle the fact that God *requires* faith before He pours forth His promises, then I think that I can firmly say that such a person does not understand the God of the Bible.

Let me clarify what I don't mean by the statement "No Faith=No Gifts"-- I do *not* mean that the reverse of this statement is true "no gifts=no faith". There are many reasons why a person might not have a particular gift that wouldn't be linked to a lack of faith. ... etc., etc.

Ok, that out of the way...

There seems to be a trend to pit the gifts against the fruit in many churches instead of promoting both as very important for the believer. I'm wondering whether or not this may be due to one's theological position regarding the gifts?

For example, if one's theological position is that the gifts (do I need to say that I'm referring to the *supernatural* gifts?) actually ceased in the first century, wouldn't a discussion concerning the present day relevance of those gifts likely be met with resistance?

Resistance is a natural occurrence whenever one's core beliefs are challenged and especially so when there is scant evidence that one's position is based upon biblical truth.

The argument goes something like this:

I don't speak in tongues.
My church doesn't speak in tongues.
The first century believers spoke in tongues.
The first century church spoke in tongues.
Therefore tongues ceased in the first century.

As you can see, the reasoning is seriously flawed --for it is based solely upon *personal experience* and not the Word of God.

Using the same standards I can make an equally valid argument this way:

I speak in tongues.
My church speaks in tongues.
The first century believers spoke in tongues.
The first century church spoke in tongues.
Therefore tongues are a valid part of the 20th century church.

Of course there are variations of both arguments:

I don't speak in tongues.
My church doesn't speak in tongues.
Tongues are of the devil.

and conversely...

I speak in tongues.
My church speaks in tongues.
Tongue speakers are saved.
Non-tongue speakers are not saved.

But obviously these argument won't take us very far, experiences (alone) are too subjective to base theological truth upon. We must base our theological positions on the unchanging Word of God and pray that our experiences will reflect the truths set forth therein.

What I want to see is the Biblical basis for one's beliefs and not merely one's denominational rhetoric.

moulder

[Updated on: Wed, 01 February 2006 05:43]

I want to believe!

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