Real Faith
Psalm 9 and 10 are actually one long acrostic hymn. The letters of the Hebrew Alphabet in order (minus four) form this beautiful piece of literature.
Psalm 10:16–18 (ESV) The LORD is king forever and ever; the nations perish from his land. 17 O LORD, you hear the desire of the afflicted; you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear 18 to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed, so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more.
This 2 part hymn can sum up a great deal of our Christian experience. We believe God is good, is there and always reigns but we will experience long seasons when it doesn't feel that way. This is what it means to have faith.
Enduring faith is a sign that we belong to Him. When you can face the trials and troubles around you and still wait patiently for God's intervention knowing Who He is and what He will do, it's a testament to the Faith God has given you.
Those who give up, the cowardly, and the weak who forget God because life doesn't go as they planned will not stand in the days of testing and trouble.
But those who patiently hope in the Lord in spite of the circumstances leave a legacy of righteousness behind them. They are the ones saved and sealed in God, confident no matter what until the end.
Hebrews 3:14 (ESV) For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.
Faith isn't faith if it doesn't have to go through some fires, if it doesn't prove true and lasting when all evidence points to the contrary. If faith is the evidence of things unseen, then the things we see cannot determine how we live or react.
The faith God gives, the faith Christ forms in us is true and lasting faith worth more than anything.
1 Peter 1:6–7 (ESV) In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
- The first 12 verses proclaim confident faith in God. He is good and He reigns and He defends the Psalmist.
- The next 4 verses are a cry for help from God in the presence of his enemies.
- Verses 17-20 are confident expectation that God's action will be soon and swift.
- Psalm 10:1-11 decry the evil and violence of the wicked.
- Psalm 10:12-15 he prays earnestly for God's intervention.
- Psalm 10 ends with three verses of confident hope and enduring faith:
Psalm 10:16–18 (ESV) The LORD is king forever and ever; the nations perish from his land. 17 O LORD, you hear the desire of the afflicted; you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear 18 to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed, so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more.
This 2 part hymn can sum up a great deal of our Christian experience. We believe God is good, is there and always reigns but we will experience long seasons when it doesn't feel that way. This is what it means to have faith.
Enduring faith is a sign that we belong to Him. When you can face the trials and troubles around you and still wait patiently for God's intervention knowing Who He is and what He will do, it's a testament to the Faith God has given you.
Those who give up, the cowardly, and the weak who forget God because life doesn't go as they planned will not stand in the days of testing and trouble.
But those who patiently hope in the Lord in spite of the circumstances leave a legacy of righteousness behind them. They are the ones saved and sealed in God, confident no matter what until the end.
Hebrews 3:14 (ESV) For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.
Faith isn't faith if it doesn't have to go through some fires, if it doesn't prove true and lasting when all evidence points to the contrary. If faith is the evidence of things unseen, then the things we see cannot determine how we live or react.
The faith God gives, the faith Christ forms in us is true and lasting faith worth more than anything.
1 Peter 1:6–7 (ESV) In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
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