- 176. Live by Faith
Galatians 3:11 But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith.
The promise is that we shall live by faith. Paul quotes this Gospel promise from Habakkuk several times. Martin Luther discovered the truth of Justification by Faith Alone in this promise. Both Paul and Luther contrasted Law and Faith. Justification comes from faith completely and not from the Law at all. No matter how much we know and believe this true promise, we are still tempted to think that there must be something I can do to make my salvation effective, that somehow I can influence God to work on my behalf, and I think He will answer my prayers better when I am good or at least promise to be good. This is false thinking, for the Word must be believed as it is written: I am just by faith alone, and being just I live my life by faith. My focus is on Christ 100% and not on my attempts to live a good life. The Law cannot make me a better person; only the Gospel can do that.
“Living” by faith, on the one hand, means that we have the assurance of eternal life, and we know that we will not die but live forever with God. “Living” by faith, on the other hand, means living right now on the earth by faith, not by sight, guiding our life and making choices according to what we believe and not by what we see. What we see can deceive us (though it looks true), while the Word of God speaks truth and it will never deceive us. Life according to faith will never go astray; we go astray and can get lost when we live only by what we can see and experience. True living is Life Indeed, the abundant life given by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Being really alive depends upon turning to God’s Word and promises regularly. This implies turning away from my own self, my own opinions, my experiences, my own ideas, my own strength and effort. Living by faith may be the most difficult spiritual thing to do; in fact, it is impossible for humans to live that way; thus the Lord must live for us. It is even more difficult in our day when science discovers more and more answers to life’s problems. Our God is not a “God of the gaps,” meaning that we turn to God for the things we don’t understand; it means that if we understand it we control it and don’t need God for those things. But the truth is that we need God for everything in life, both for the things that we know and the things that we don’t know. Living by faith fills every moment with God’s presence, His love and care, His wisdom and guidance, His provision and protection.God guarantees that living by faith makes life better. We must hear the Gospel again and again until it drowns out the deceptive words of the devil, the world, and our own sinful flesh. Only the Gospel has the power to strengthen our faith. Don’t respond to the Gospel by saying, “Oh, I know that,” but say, “Wow, I need that.” Then we will live by faith, according to the promise.