Page 48 - TH200 Abundant Life A4 Final

Abundant Life in the Son: A Study of Salvation

faith won great victories. Others who stood the test kept their faith, and
in their martyr’s death were promoted
to a better life. Still others lived amid
cruel mocking and whipping, bonds and
The heat of fire imprisonment. They could have lived

strengthens normal lives, but they refused to
compromise with evil. These people
steel, and testing lived for something better and more

develops strength enduring than things of earth. God’s Old
Testament people looked by faith to the
and endurance coming of the Messiah. They died with

in Christians. undimmed vision. They now await the
appearing of Jesus, when together we
shall be perfected in His presence—our
salvation complete.

Peter said that the purpose of testing is to prove that our faith is
genuine (1Peter 1:6–7). James added that when faith succeeds in facing
trials, it produces the ability to endure (James 1:3).

God permits us to be tested so that we can learn to trust Him
completely in spite of our circumstances. As we learn to lean on Him
for our needs, our love for Him grows and our faith increases also.
Testing serves to make faith stronger and more enduring through each
experience of life. In this way, it becomes precious.

Sources of Faith
Saving faith has both a human and a divine side. From the divine
side, faith is the gift of God (Romans 12:3; 2 Peter 1:1). For example,
in John’s Gospel we read, “No one can come to me unless the Father
who sent me draws him” (John 6:44). In the work of conversion, the
gracious influence of the Holy Spirit is strongly implied, for He alone
can move one’s heart to repentance and toward God (Acts 3:19;
Philippians 2:12–13). In Hebrews we read that Jesus is “the author and
perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2). Moreover, the Holy Spirit works
in the body of Christ on special occasions as the gift of faith operates
(1 Corinthians 12:9). The Spirit produces fruit in our lives, one of which
is faith. Thus from the divine side, faith is God-given.

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