An Evangelist from India recently came to our church to be a part of the baptism service of several youth in our assembly. The notes below are a summary of the sermon he did while with us for that ministry.
Habakkuk 2:4 - Behold the proud, His soul is not upright in him; But the just shall live by his faith.
This same verse is quoted three times in the New Testament. They are found in:
Romans 1:17 -For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”
The focus here is on justification
Galatians 3:11 -But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.”
The focus here is on faith as the first step for salvation
Hebrews 10:38 - Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”
The focus here is on living by faith
Christ took our sins on His body to give us His righteousness. And by believing, we are justified. Putting our trust in Christ shows our true faith.
There is only one way to salvation, through faith. Sacrifices in the Old Testament didn’t lead to salvation. It is saving faith that does that.
The Old Testament saints looked forward to the cross. Hebrews 11 shows many examples of how the Old Testament saints lived by faith. Here are a few:
(vs. 4) Abel demonstrated his faith through his fellowship, sacrifice, and worship.
(vs. 5) Enoch demonstrated his faith by his testimony
(vs. 7) Noah demonstrated his faith by his testimony
(vs. 8) Abraham demonstrated his faith by passing his tests and trials.
These Old Testament saints had daily, devoted, and living faith.
Where is our progressive faith? If you truly love the Lord, you must demonstrate it.
The greatest sin before God isn’t murder or adultery. It is the sin of unbelief.
The Book ofJames also gives many examples of faith by chapter. See below for a brief summary:
Faith is demonstrated by withstanding temptations and facing tests
Faith demonstrated through our works
Faith demonstrated through our words
Faith projected to the world
Faith projected in waiting for Christ’s Second Coming
