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Content type: Sermon Poem / Prayer Service / Tribute Incomplete Biography
Body: Last week we learned about faith, the confident assurance in our Lord and Savior. The confident assurance that Jesus lived, died, and arose so that we can live. The confident assurance of His promises. The confident assurance of His FAITHFULNESS. Today I would like to speak on what it means to be faithful. Faithful followers of Jesus Christ. And the qualities, the responsibilities, and the promises that belong to the faithful Christian. Our text today is Ephesians 1 -1. “This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus. I am writing to God’s holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus.” Faith – “complete trust or confidence in someone or something.” Faithful – “remaining loyal and steadfast” Faithfulness – “the quality of being faithful” We as Christians are to be faithful followers of Christ Jesus. Faith means “to trust in, to have reliance on.” Faithful means “someone who can be trusted in or one who can be relied on.” Can you be described as faithful? Let’s look at faithfulness today. Faithfulness has nothing to do with earning salvation, because it is impossible to earn salvation. Salvation is not a reward for faithfulness. Salvation is a free gift to those who will freely receive it based on GOD’S faithfulness, not ours. But once you become a child of God, God wants you to be faithful. So, let’s talk about faithfulness in the lives of God’s people… I. FIRST, CONSIDER WHAT OUR FAITHFULNESS IS BASED ON. God’s expectation of our faithfulness is rooted in HIS faithfulness. God’s faithfulness is foundational to understanding His very nature. In fact, you cannot really come to a deep and abiding faith in God until you trust in His faithfulness. The Marine Corps has an interesting motto, Semper Fidelis. The short version is Semper Fi. Semper Fidelis are two Latin words which mean, “Always Faithful”—which is the code of conduct and character of those in the Marine Corps. Semper fidelis—always faithful—is the perfect description of our God. God is always faithful; He always keeps His Word; He always comes through for us; He never lets us down; He never fails to come through for us. He is semper fidelis—always faithful. This is repeatedly emphasized in the Old Testament: • In Psalms 36:5, David said, “Your unfailing love, O LORD, is as vast as the heavens; your FAITHFULNESS reaches beyond the clouds.” • Psalms 89:1 says, “I will sing of the LORD’s unfailing love forever! Young and old will hear of your FAITHFULNESS.” • Psalms 92:1-2 says, “It is good to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praises to the Most High. 2 It is good to proclaim your unfailing love in the morning, your FAITHFULNESS in the evening.” • Lamentations 3:22-23, which was the inspiration for the last hymn we sang this morning, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” It says, “The FAITHFUL love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. 23 Great is His FAITHFULNESS; His mercies begin afresh each morning.” O, what wonderful words! God’s faithfulness is also brought to our attention many times in the New Testament: • Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 1:9 – “God will do this, for He is FAITHFUL to do what He says’ and He has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” • In 1 Thessalonians 5:24, Paul says, “God will make this happen, for He who calls you is FAITHFUL.” OUR faithfulness to God is rooted in GOD’S faithfulness to us. II. THE RARITY OF FAITHFULNESS Proverbs 20:6 – “Most men will proclaim to everyone his own goodness: but a faithful man, who can find?” There are many people who can claim the name of Christian, but the Bible indicates that truly faithful people are difficult to find. In 1 Samuel 2:35 God said “…Then I will raise up a FAITHFUL priest who will serve me and do what I desire. I will establish his family, and they will be priests to my anointed kings forever.” God was looking for a priest who would rise above the mediocrity of that day and be FAITHFUL in all things. In Psalm 12:1 David lamented the lack of faithfulness in his own time. – He said, “Help, O LORD, for the godly are fast disappearing! The FAITHFUL have vanished from the earth!” Jesus and Paul both taught much about faithfulness, as we just saw, because there was a lack of faithfulness in their day. And you know today is no different… • People take on financial responsibilities and debts, but are not faithful to fulfill those responsibilities and pay those obligations. • People take vows of marriage before God to be true and faithful, and then break those vows by being unfaithful. • People take on the responsibilities of church membership by joining a church, but then become unfaithful and idle in their attendance to and service in their local church. Faithfulness is a rare thing, but it is greatly valued by God. III.THE IMPORTANCE OF FAITHFULNESS Though faithfulness is a rare thing in our day, it’s nevertheless required by God. In 1 Corinthians 4:2 Paul says, “Now, a person who is put in charge as manager must be FAITHFUL.” Any person who will be used by God must learn to be faithful. It’s interesting to look at the people whom PAUL praises in his letters. When mentioning them, he doesn’t commend their leadership skills, or their effectiveness, or their personality, or their wealth. Usually, it was their FAITHFULNESS that he pointed out…. • 1 Corinthians 4:17 – “That’s why I have sent Timothy, my beloved and FAITHFUL child in the Lord.” • Colossians 1:7 – “You learned the Good News from Epaphras, our beloved co-worker. He is Christ’s FAITHFUL servant...” • Colossians 4:7 – “Tychicus will give you a full report about how I am getting along. He is a beloved brother and FAITHFUL helper who serves with me in the Lord’s work.” • Colossians 4:9 – “I am also sending Onesimus, a FAITHFUL and beloved brother one of your own people.” PETER did the same thing in 1 Peter 5:12 when he refers to Silvanus as “a FAITHFUL brother” unto the believers in Greece. Do you see the importance the Bible places on faithfulness in the life of Christians? Why do these Bible writers place such emphasis on faithfulness of these servants of God? Why, because “…it is REQUIRED in stewards that they be found faithful. IV. FOURTH, CONSIDER NEXT WITH ME THE SIGNS OF FAITHFULNESS How do you recognize a faithful person? Interestingly, it was Jesus Himself who gave us three signs of a faithful person in Luke 16:10-12: • First, a faithful person is faithful in little things – Luke 16:10 – “If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones.” Are we being faithful in the little areas we have been given? Are we being faithful in the little areas, in the seemingly more insignificant areas of service where we serve, then we will be faithful in more important jobs later. Be faithful in the “little things.” • The second sign of a faithful person is that they are faithful in handling his or her money – Luke 16:11 – “And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven?” If a person is faithful with what God has entrusted in their care and stewardship, then they will probably be faithful in what we entrust to him or her. People who are good stewards who give to God through their church; who control spending on their “wants”; who think and evaluate and pray before making decisions about spending money on items they desire above their needs; who pay their bills promptly; and who stay out of unnecessary debt—these are signs of people who are faithful. • The third sign of a faithful person is that he is faithful with that which belongs to others. Luke 16:12 – Jesus say’s “And if you are not faithful with other people’s things, why should you be trusted with things of your own?” Someone borrowed a car while their car was in the shop. When they were finished with it, they gave it a car wash, vacuumed it thoroughly, filled it up with gas and checked and refilled the oil and other fluid levels. The next day the owner said that it was cleaner and in better shape than when he gave it to them. He said he would let them borrow it next time it needed to be cleaned and washed! A faithful man is faithful with other people’s belongings. V. NEXT, LET’S LOOK AT SOME WAYS WE SHOULD BE FAITHFUL. • Well, of course we need to be faithful in the three areas we just mentioned—in little things as well as big; in how we handle our money; and in how we treat other peoples’ things. • Second, we need to be faithful in our personal relationship with God. We need to be faithful in a daily time of Bible study and prayer. The faithfulness in our devotional life pays big dividends as we try to live for the Lord and please Him. God loves for us to meet with Him and seek Him, and He blesses us for it. • Third, we should be faithful in our families. > First, be faithful to your spouse. God’s intention is that we be a one-woman man and a one-man woman. The hurt, the sense of betrayal, the emotional damage that unfaithfulness causes in marriage causes scars that CAN be healed with God’s grace—but it takes a long, long time to heal. BE FAITHFUL! > Men, be faithful to lead your families spiritually. Faithfully lead your children by training them to do right. Faithfully lead them by setting the good example. Lead them by being faithful to church. > Husbands, be faithful to obey God’s instructions to love your wife as Christ loved the church and to honor her. > Wives, be faithful to honor and respect your husband and follow his spiritual lead, as God has commanded. > Children and teenagers, be faithful to show the proper respect and honor to your parents and obey them as God commands. • Fourth, you need to be faithful in your responsibilities to your local church. > Be faithful in church attendance – Hebrews 10:23-25 – “Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep His promise. 24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of His return is drawing near.” > Be faithful in your area of ministry. 1 Corinthians 15:58 – “So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless .” Do you serve the Lord in this meeting? Or some other area of ministry and serving? If so—be FAITHFUL to fulfill your duties- serve with a cheerful spirit; go the extra mile; do your best for Christ’s sake! And be faithful to give to God through your church. A church can only function when God’s people are FAITHFUL to support it through their tithes and offerings. VI. FINALLY, LET’S CONSIDER THE REWARDS OF FAITHFULNESS. The Bible abounds with promises of God’s blessings upon those who are faithful. Proverbs 28:20 says, “A faithful man shall abound with blessings…” I think we all want God’s blessings in our lives! But here it is—without faithfulness, you will never abound in those blessings. Abounding blessings are upon the faithful as a reward for your faithfulness. In Psalm 101:6 the psalmist says, “I will search for faithful people to be my companions…” Do you see it? God’s eye is on you in a special way when you are faithful. What does it mean to have God’s eye upon you? If God is omnipresent and omniscient, doesn’t God’s eye see everyone? Yes, of course. But you see, there is a difference between seeing someone and having one’s eye on someone. The difference can be illustrated like this: Suppose I’m in Wal-mart and I see you. I look at you and wave and then go on about my business. Perhaps I even stop to talk to you. When I get home, I say to my wife, “I saw so-and-so today.” That’s SEEING SOMEONE. Now, suppose on the other hand, I have a three-year-old and I take him with me to Wal-mart. While we are there, I’m constantly keeping my eye on him. I WATCH where he goes and what he does and I SUPERVISE him and I TALK TO him and am CAREFUL of his every action. That’s KEEPING MY EYE ON SOMEONE! When God’s eye is upon the faithful, it means that God gives His SPECIAL care and attention to them. I want that, don’t you? I WANT TO BE FAITHFUL! And I want YOU to be faithful. CONCLUSION God is looking for faithful people. God commands and rewards faithfulness. Are you a faithful person? Do you live up to the name of Faithful? May God help you to be faithful! Cane Creek Friends Meeting, Semper Fidelis, ALWAYS FAITHFUL, ALWAYS FAITHFUL!! Almighty God, Let this be our desire. Let this be our purpose. Let this be our future. Let this be us, FAITHFUL. Faithful to you, and in all that we do. Again, God help us to be FAITHFUL. In the name of Jesus Christ we pray, with confidence and expectation. Amen.
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