Operate Faith with Love
(Galatians 5:6 NKJV) “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor un-circumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.”
Faith is simply trust in another—especially in their words, their promises to you, and that they will act in love towards you at all times. It is absolute belief in another’s covenant of fidelity with you, and that they will not break their commitment to keep their side of your agreements.
For example, in marriage we trust that our partner will stay true to us. A child may simply believe that a parent will fulfill his or her promises to them, and people entering a contract do it in good faith that the other party will keep their word—especially when it is put in writing for clarification and signed for unalterable commitment.
God is completely trustworthy, and he has clarified and confirmed his intentions, promises, and covenant obligations to us by putting them in writing. His word is written, ratified, and settled forever; he will never alter, violate, or fail to fulfill it:
(Psalm 119:89 NKJV) Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven.
(Jeremiah 1:12 ESV) Then the LORD said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.”
(Isaiah 55:11 NLT) “It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.”
We can trust God via his written word and what he promises us by his Spirit.
Faith is relational; trusting someone is an act of love:
(1 Corinthians 13:7 TLB) If you love someone, you will be loyal to him no matter what the cost. You will always believe in him, always expect the best of him …
“Love … will … always believe in him.” You cannot truly love someone without believing in him or her. Conversely, a person you do not trust will not feel loved by you.
God wants our faith. When we trust him completely to fulfill his word, to keep his part of our agreements, and to uphold his covenantal arrangements with us, he feels loved; this pleases him:
(Hebrews 11:6 NLT) And it is impossible to please God without faith. …
To feel our love for him and to see our level of heartfelt trust in him, God listens very closely to our words and watches our every action. Faith and love are operations of the heart, and he knows that our words emanate from what we most treasure there:
(Luke 6:45 NKJV) “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”
Obviously, our hearts are the center of our love; and in particular, our love for God. This is obviously why our words and actions are crucial in our relationship with our maker; they reveal the true state of our hearts:
(Matthew 12:36-37 NKJV) “But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. {37} For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”
Can I encourage you today? Always remember that faith and love are inseparably linked; they are like two sides of the same coin. In truth, love does not exist without trust. Therefore, we are wise to monitor our own words; when we hear ourselves saying anything that doesn’t reflect pure faith in God, let’s realize that this emanated from infidelity in our hearts. That is, it shows an impurity in our love for God. This, therefore, shows us that we need to change our heart and thinking about God, his word, and our true state—change our perception of reality to line up with what God says. To show pure love to him, we may need to purify our hearts and cleanse our hands (representing our actions):
(James 4:8 NLT) Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world.
If you discover this in you, change quickly. Dig out the roc
