Thoughts on Authentic Faith
This weekend’s message at Christ Community was one I thought important to deal with especially in the book of Acts. While several people spoke to me about the sermon, finding it helpful. I sensed in a few comments the thought that this was a “hard truth”. One said that this was something they were “really going to think about”. Now, if you are reading and didn’t hear the message it was titled: “The Mysteries of Authentic Faith”. The thing we looked at is the fact that while there are many miracles in Acts there are also many occasions where God does not intervene in miraculous ways, and sometimes doesn’t seem, at least to us, to intervene at all. Sometimes miracles happen and angels appear and guidance is given. On other occasions good people, suffer, get thrown in prison, seem weak in the face of their enemies and struggle to make the right decisions. There is no clear pattern just the promise of God’s presence and care. So the main idea of the message was that sometimes the ways of God are mysteriously unpredictable but authentic faith rejoices in God in spite of the mysteries.
Someone (who encouraged me to post this) said they thought many people might think this was a very different or even an “odd” sermon. Their idea was that although the point was biblical it was very different from the way most people at least in Daytona, are used to thinking. Is it possible that there is a perspective of faith that is absolutely biblical but so foreign to the thinking of people today? If so why is that? What do you think? Here are a couple of passages from the last part of the sermon:
The apostles did not see the details of their lives as a litmus test for the love of God. They did not see the presence of the miraculous, or deliverance from suffering, or constant guidance as test of the love of God. They saw these things, or the absence of them, as test of their faith in the God who had more than proven his love and shown that he cared in Jesus and the whole story of the gospel. They surrendered their expectations, trusted his promises and rejoiced in his love.
Paul, who lived the experience of Acts, later revealed his way of thinking and his source of strength.
Roman 8:35-36:Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
Those are the difficulties. They are not minimized. But look at the faith with which they are faced:
Roman 8:37-39, No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Paul doesn’t do what we modern people too often do. He does not say, “When trouble hardship or other difficulties and mysteries come, we call into question the love of God”. No! He says, when these things come we look at Christ and the gospel and we draw strength for the struggle from our convictions about the love of God in Christ.
I think it was from N.T. Wright that I got the idea that in Acts 5 Gamaliel raised a question and left it open ended: “These Christians; is God for them or against them?” But for the apostles this was one issue that was not a mystery. It had been decided through the death and resurrection of Jesus. God is for us as His people! Whatever mysteries there may be along the way that isn’t one of them. Even when that’s all you know it is a lot.
Larry is the senior pastor at 
Hi Larry
Thanks so much for stopping by my blog. It is great to meet you–and wonderful to hear of the ways in which you are using and plan to use THE JESUS STORYBOOK BIBLE. Particularly exciting to hear that you plan to use it in your preaching class.
I will be interested to hear how it goes. And thank you for your encouraging words, Larry.
My best to you
Sally
sallylloyd-jones.com
“I think all the struggles or imperfections of the church must have been foreseen by the Lord who ordained the church. Just as the church has to accept imperfect people so also imperfect people have to accept an imperfect church.” That’s a different perspective for me, a good one. Thanks for your thoughts. If I could, I’d love to ask you about this post and the nature of your faith. The concept of God’s love being the music that you dance to is pretty central to your faith. How did you get there? What is the basis for your perspective on God and His love? How do you know how God feels about you specifically? How do you know that He’s for you, Larry Kirk? Why do you think that a circumstance, like a car accident, would be a loving act of discipline rather than an angry act of retaliation? The death of Christ proves that God chose to provide the means of redemption for the world. He loves His children. I know that. If I never sinned against Him, I think I’d feel a lot more secure in my relationship with Him. I know He hates sin. He must respond with more than just patience, love and tenderness. That just seems like a pretty weak and unrealistic image of God. Besides, there are plenty of stories in the Bible where He retaliated against sin with punishment out of righteous anger, right? John 16:27 says, “No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.” Please tell me if I’m missing the context of that verse. If not, then what about when doubts or struggles enter the heart and mind of a saint? I guess my question comes down to the foundation/reason for God’s love. When I say it like that, I know that His love surely couldn’t be based on our actions. Yet, I still struggle with understanding the concept of sinner & saint in relationship with God.
I’ll answer how I got there some other day — if by that you mean my personal story of discovering the gospel. However you asked,How do you know how God feels about you specifically? How do you know that He’s for you, Larry Kirk? The answer is only through faith in Christ. Romans 8:1 says: Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, Later in the same chapter Paul builds on this and says: Roman 8:29-32 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. 31 What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Notice verse 31 says: “if God is for us who can be against us.” This is why, a few verses later in verse 37 we read, No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. Through faith in Christ we are given the assurance that God loves us and is for us.
You ask: Why do you think that a circumstance, like a car accident, would be a loving act of discipline rather than an angry act of retaliation? The best answer for that is to look again at the verses above from Romans 8 and then add in Hebrews 12:5-10 also: And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, 6 because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.” 7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? 8 If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! 10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.
You said: I know that. If I never sinned against Him, I think I’d feel a lot more secure in my relationship with Him. The truth is if you never sinned you would actually be less secure than you are now if Christ is your Savior. Because like Adam and Eve you would be vulnerable to falling and losing your relationship. If you are in Christ there is no condemnation and as Romans 8 says, all those he has called and justified will be glorified, so you are truly safe and secure in Him in a way that is more safe and secure than if you had never sinned but also far more humbling. Better a sinner saved by Christ than a perfect person who simply hasn’t yet fallen!
You mentioned this: I know He hates sin. He must respond with more than just patience, love and tenderness. That just seems like a pretty weak and unrealistic image of God. He does respond with more than just patience, love and tenderness. He poured out his wrath on Christ on the cross! That was the cup about which Jesus asked, “Let this cup pass from me”. He drank it all and said, “It is finished.” We deserved the wrath but he took the wrath for us, paying for our sin and then rising again as our Lord and Savior. If we do not receive him as our Savior then we will face the wrath of God. If we are in Christ we can never experience God’s wrath because God’s wrath is judicial and righteous and Christ has already died in our place for our sins. God may discipline us in love but we will never, ever taste God’s wrath if Jesus is our Savior. That the power and beauty of what it means for Him to be our Savior. That’s the music of the gospel.