Series: Living with the Reality of the Covid19-D Resurgence #6 How do we do that?
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel…for in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, ‘the righteous man shall LIVE BY FAITH.’”
Romans 1:16-17 (cf. Habakkuk 2:4)
Background
- This message is built on the foundation of a 12-part series on “Walking by Faith – Counting the Cost” last year (3-15-20 through 5-31-20) which was due to the 1st wave of the Corona virus.
- This message is the 6th in a new series that began 7-25-21 due to the 2nd wave of the Covid19-D variant which has so severely impacted our church. The first message was entitled “The Importance of Balance in the Christian Life” using the illustration of the “righteous balance” in Proverbs 16:11. This 6th message in this series returns to the crucial issue of balance in the Christian life and seeks to apply the principles learned to the present crisis facing our church and the nation. The title of this message is the same as the sermon on March 15, 2020, but we know so much more about what we are facing now than we did then.
Introduction: Where Are We and Where are We Going?
An objective analysis of the current impact of the Covid virus on our Church.
Outline
I. We “walk by faith” (2 Corinthians 5:5-10)
A. What does it mean to “walk by faith”? (vv.6-8)
B. The indications of a faith-walk: (1) desire to please God; (2) no fear of judgment
II. But we must also “count the cost” (Luke 14:26-29)
A. Following Christ as a disciple can be costly – and even painful (vv.26-27)
B. The Scripture analogy of building a tower without proper planning (vv.28-29)
Key Verse(s) *Walking by faith and using common sense not incompatible!
2 Corinthians 5:6-9 (NASB) *Courage- even faced with death- stems from walk of faith “Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight—
8 we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. 9 Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.”
Luke 14:26-29 (excerpts NASB) *Following Christ can be difficult – Be prepared! “…Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate [NKJV “count”] the cost to see if he has enough to complete it?
29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.”
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?” Romans 8:31 (NASB)
Reason cannot be allowed to CONTROL our faith— But reason can and should INFORM our faith!
“Walk by Faith—But Count the Cost” It’s NOT blind faith—But it IS a balancing act!
“For wisdom is protection just as money is protection, But the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the lives of its possessors.” Ecclesiastes 7:12 (NASB)
Key x-References – A strong and balanced faith applied in life through a wise walk
Galatians 2:20 (NASB) *A life of faith is a life “in Christ”! [~A.D. 50] “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”
Hebrews 10:38 (NASB) *One of the most-quoted OT verses in the NT [~A.D. 65] “But My righteous one shall LIVE BY FAITH; And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.” *See Habakkuk 2:4; also quoted in Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11
Deuteronomy 31:6 (NASB) *Believers are to be “strong and courageous” [~1410 B.C.] “Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.”
Joshua 1:7 (NASB) *It takes courage and strength to be obedient to God [~1400 B.C.] “Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go.”
Ephesians 6:10-12 *Our greatest battles are spiritual – We need HIS strength [~AD 61] “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
2 Timothy 2:1 (NASB) *Our strength stems from our salvation by GRACE! [~A.D. 66] “You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.”
Ephesians 5:15-17 (NASB) *Walking by faith requires true wisdom [~A.D. 61] “Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17 So then do not be foolish, but under- stand what the will of the Lord is.”
2 Timothy 1:6-9 (NASB) *We don’t have to fear suffering for the Gospel [~A.D. 66] “For this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline. 8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God, 9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus from all eternity…”
Galatians 5:25 (NASB) *Walking by faith is ultimately walking in the Spirit [~A.D. 50] “If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.”
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.”
Ephesians 6:10 (NASB)