Two Things Needed

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
Galatians 5:25

The two most important things in our Christian journey are the life of faith and the walk of faith. The person who grasps this is not far from being a master in experimental [experiential] theology, for they are vital points to a Christian. You will never find true faith unaccompanied by true godliness; on the other hand, you will never discover a truly holy life that does not have at its root a living faith relying upon the righteousness of Christ.

We must not fail to understand that we cannot seek the one without the other! There are some who cultivate faith and forget holiness; and so they claim they have the truth, the true orthodox faith, but fail to remember Jesus condemned the Pharisees for their belief in their own righteousness. It was not enough to hold to the truth in religiosity without the grace and mercy of God in practice!

There are others who believe that truth and faith aren’t possible. They hold to a religion of self whereby their version of faith is based on their own goodness, efforts, and merits. It is an error to hold to a self-styled form of godliness whereby we form our own system of life’s works based on our own presuppositions and not on the truth revealed in God’s word.

All of this leads to a simple truth revealed in scripture: We must have faith, for this is the foundation; we must have holiness of life, for this is the superstructure.

What use is the mere foundation of a building to a man on a stormy day? Can he hide in it? He needs a house to cover him as well as a foundation for that house. Even so, we need the superstructure of spiritual life if we want solidness in a culture of shifting sand.

Yet those who seek to be holy life without faith, are like the one who erects a house that has no foundation on a rock. Let faith and life be put together, and like the two supports of an archway, they will make our devotion endure. Lord, give us today life internally, and it will reveal itself externally to your glory.

-C.H. Spurgeon

Comments

Wednesday, Day 25: Christmas Eve - God Loves Us (So We Can Relax)

For Kids: There’s a lot of things we have to do each day. Get up from our sleep, Get dressed, Eat Breakfast, Get ready for School, Listen to the teacher, play with friends, eat our lunch, and after it’s all done, go back home. There’s time to play, Then we eat our supper… And eventually we have to get ready for bed and go to sleep! And then we do it all over again the next day. Sometimes there’s a vacation - like right now - and we get more time to play, to have fun and not have to do work at school. Our parents are good at helping us know what time it is and what we need to do next – even when we don’t want to move on to the next thing. God is also good at helping us know what time it is, and what is next. He doesn’t shout at us, or yell, or even scream…he does it peacefully, quietly. He wants us to understand that he does it, most of all, for us. Christmas can be quite busy and there’s lots of things going on at once…but let us not forg

The Tabernacle

The readings today are Exodus 36, 37, 38 I wanted to post some pictures of what these various parts of the Tabernacle looked like. It's not the easiest read in the world, but if you persevere through it, you can get a picture of all the different pieces that made up the tabernacle. It is a replica of the various parts of the Tabernacle in the Wilderness: First thing in the chapter listed is the outside of the tabernacle which consisted of curtains tied together and put on cross bars through loops. Next at the beginning of 37 is the table and lampstand: Also, the altar of incense: And, the altar for the burnt offering which was in the courtyard: Finally, the courtyard which made it all come together: Hope that helps with what it might have all looked like. Most importantly, this was their "place" of worship they were building. I hope you have a great day of worship. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

The difference between defending and explaining

The news of recent has focused the suffering of Christians in the middle east who have been martyred for their faith in Christ at the hands of Islamic Terrorists. Through the centuries many Christians have lost their lives as a result of their faith. For us, who live in America, there is little chance that we would have this happen here - but it's entirely possibly that terrorism will strike out at Christians sometime. But, for many Christians in the western world - especially here in the U.S. - being a Christians who believes God's word there is a form of persecution that is defined by words like "ostracized", "passed over", "ridiculed", and more. What do we do in the face of opposition to faith? When the Apostle Peter writes to the early believers who are undergoing great pressure, even persecution for their faith in Jesus, he gives them this charge. 1 Peter 3:8-18 8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly lov

Elliott's Muses

Search This Blog