17b ..."The righteous shall live by faith."
What does living by faith mean? As a Christian, we need to surrender each day to God. We need to trust Him in all circumstances, the ones that seem like everyday routine, and the ones that come without warning that seem stressful or burdensome. Living by faith does not mean we know the answers. It means we might not be able to see the other side. It might mean we are without answers for some time. It does not mean trying to figure it out on our own. It does not mean taking control of the circumstance and trying to get out of it as quickly as possible. It does not mean knowing every detail and what the future holds. It means being okay with where you are, and knowing that God, who loves you, is in control. It means giving up complete control and trusting Him with the outcome. It means seeking God and His peace and wisdom during the time of uncertainty. It means surrendering our fear of not knowing and allow Him to dress us in peace.
This can be a very difficult thing to do. We as humans, (a.k.a. control freaks) want to know what, where, when, why, and how. Faith is believing God will reveal those things to you in His timing, if He so chooses to tell you. Living by faith is our attitude and depth of our faith all the time, not just deciding here and there to have faith. We live everyday, therefore we must include faith as part of our being.
Faith does not come easy. In fact, as you face circumstances, and trust God, faith grows in us. The next time we are faced with a challenge or uncertainty, we can have more faith because we know how God orchestrated the last circumstance. Sometimes, it takes us trying to control things in our own strength too many times, that in desperation, hopelessness and weakness, we finally give up- and allow God to do what He wanted to do all along. That's not the fun road- don't take it if you can help it. Trust God first, above all else. We can't do it on our own. We need God. Don't make the mistakes I have made on behalf of my stubbornness and pride. Be humble, trust God in ALL circumstances and live by faith.
19-24 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely,his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
Pretty much, God made it obvious to people who He is and how amazing He is- just look at the things in the world that He made! But instead of worshipping the God of the universe, they chose to worship the created things rather than the Creator.
I still don't fathom how anyone can believe that we came from algae, when you take a look at the complex designs God made in everything. My husband is bird and butterfly watcher. It is amazing that one bird has legs for this reason, colors for that reason, spots for another reason. The blueprint of all things are purposeful- not arbitrary. The way a baby is formed in a mothers womb and then delivered- that is a miracle! It was designed perfectly. There is nothing that was created that was by mistake, or thrown together obscurely. Everything was divinely, in order, the way God intended.
The last part of the passage says, "they exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator..." I want to highlight that verse. As believers, we sometimes idolize (worship) the things God created rather than Him who created them. I will give our children as a harsh example. Sometimes we idolize our children and place them above our worship of God. Other examples include: money, time, spouses, nature, hobbies, our pets....to name a few. Let us make sure that our worship is solely in the One who created- the One who made the entire universe and its order, the one we can have complete faith, trust and hope in, the One who loves us more than we can apprehend. Amen.
~Leanne~
What does living by faith mean? As a Christian, we need to surrender each day to God. We need to trust Him in all circumstances, the ones that seem like everyday routine, and the ones that come without warning that seem stressful or burdensome. Living by faith does not mean we know the answers. It means we might not be able to see the other side. It might mean we are without answers for some time. It does not mean trying to figure it out on our own. It does not mean taking control of the circumstance and trying to get out of it as quickly as possible. It does not mean knowing every detail and what the future holds. It means being okay with where you are, and knowing that God, who loves you, is in control. It means giving up complete control and trusting Him with the outcome. It means seeking God and His peace and wisdom during the time of uncertainty. It means surrendering our fear of not knowing and allow Him to dress us in peace.
This can be a very difficult thing to do. We as humans, (a.k.a. control freaks) want to know what, where, when, why, and how. Faith is believing God will reveal those things to you in His timing, if He so chooses to tell you. Living by faith is our attitude and depth of our faith all the time, not just deciding here and there to have faith. We live everyday, therefore we must include faith as part of our being.
Faith does not come easy. In fact, as you face circumstances, and trust God, faith grows in us. The next time we are faced with a challenge or uncertainty, we can have more faith because we know how God orchestrated the last circumstance. Sometimes, it takes us trying to control things in our own strength too many times, that in desperation, hopelessness and weakness, we finally give up- and allow God to do what He wanted to do all along. That's not the fun road- don't take it if you can help it. Trust God first, above all else. We can't do it on our own. We need God. Don't make the mistakes I have made on behalf of my stubbornness and pride. Be humble, trust God in ALL circumstances and live by faith.
19-24 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely,his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
Pretty much, God made it obvious to people who He is and how amazing He is- just look at the things in the world that He made! But instead of worshipping the God of the universe, they chose to worship the created things rather than the Creator.
I still don't fathom how anyone can believe that we came from algae, when you take a look at the complex designs God made in everything. My husband is bird and butterfly watcher. It is amazing that one bird has legs for this reason, colors for that reason, spots for another reason. The blueprint of all things are purposeful- not arbitrary. The way a baby is formed in a mothers womb and then delivered- that is a miracle! It was designed perfectly. There is nothing that was created that was by mistake, or thrown together obscurely. Everything was divinely, in order, the way God intended.
The last part of the passage says, "they exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator..." I want to highlight that verse. As believers, we sometimes idolize (worship) the things God created rather than Him who created them. I will give our children as a harsh example. Sometimes we idolize our children and place them above our worship of God. Other examples include: money, time, spouses, nature, hobbies, our pets....to name a few. Let us make sure that our worship is solely in the One who created- the One who made the entire universe and its order, the one we can have complete faith, trust and hope in, the One who loves us more than we can apprehend. Amen.
~Leanne~
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