THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

As Christians, what is the basis of our understanding? Why are we still holding on to God? What keeps our hopes alive? What is the assuranve we have of an expected end? What do you do to the many 'why's' you can't answer. We cannot deny that the perfect answer is FAITH.

The Christian life is to be lived by faith. It is by faith that we enter into the Christian life, and it is by faith that we live it out. When we begin the Christian life by coming to Christ for forgiveness of sin, we understand that what we seek cannot be obtained by any other means than by faith. We cannot work our way to heaven, because nothing we could ever do would be sufficient. Those who believe they can attain eternal life by keeping rules and regulations—a list of do’s and don’ts—deny what the Bible clearly teaches. “But that no one is justified by the Law in the sight of God is clear, for, ‘The just shall live by faith’" (Galatians 3:11). The Pharisees of Jesus’ day rejected Christ because He told them this very truth, that all their righteous deeds were worthless and that only faith in their Messiah would save them.

We understand that what we seek cannot be obtained except by FAITH. James 2:26 says For as the body without the Spirit is dead, so faith without work is dead also. So part of our Christian life is sincerely working out our salvation with fear and trembling, diligently studying the word of God accompanied by Prayer, having an intimate fellowship with the Father, by so doing, we become more grounded in Faith.

As Christians, we are supposed to live in the consciousness that we are dead to self(fleshy works and list of the flesh) and alive in Christ Jesus. Having the understanding that all that Christ have acquired alongside his resurrection is now freely given to us. Paul told the Galatians, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). Being crucified with Christ means that we consider our old nature as having been nailed to the cross and we choose to live in the new nature, which is Christ’s (2 Corinthians 5:17). He who loved us and died for us now lives in us, and the life we live is by faith in Him. Living the Christian life means sacrificing our own desires, ambitions, and glories and replacing them with those of Christ. We can only do this by His power through the faith that He gives us by His grace. Part of the Christian life is praying to that end.

So the Christian life is one lived by faith in the God who saved us, empowers us, seals us for heaven, and by whose power we are kept forever. The day-to-day life of faith is one that grows and strengthens as we seek God in His Word and through prayer and as we unite with other Christians whose goal of Christlikeness is similar to our own.