The FULL ASSURANCE of FAITH and HOPE

Acts 16:31 ”“
………Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved……

Heb. 10:19-23 ”“
Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with A SINCERE HEART IN FULL ASSURANCE OF FAITH, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us HOLD FAST the confession of OUR HOPE without wavering, for HE WHO PROMISED IS FAITHFUL;

Heb. 6:11-13 ”“
And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize THE FULL ASSURANCE OF HOPE until the end, so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who THROUGH FAITH AND PATIENCE INHERIT THE PROMISES.

Heb. 11:1 ”“
Now FAITH is the ASSURANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR, the conviction of things not seen.

Heb. 11:6 ”“
And without FAITH it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that HE IS and that HE IS a REWARDER of THOSE WHO SEEK HIM.

Heb. 10:38-39 ”“
But My righteous one shall LIVE BY FAITH;
And if he shrinks back,
My soul has no pleasure in him.
But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have FAITH to the preserving of the soul.

Note: Caps for emphasis.

Faith is not just mental assent to biblical truths.

Faith demands a faith LIFE.

Heb. 10:38-39 ”“
But My righteous one shall LIVE BY FAITH;

Hi Jade
Most people would probably agree.
So what is your main message behind this post, what are you trying to tell us ?
How does faith work out in your daily life ?

Markus

Hi Markus,

I have been so busy.

Good question.

Will reply soon.

(Note: All caps are just for emphasis)

There are just 2 ways of life --- a FALSE way and a TRUE way.

The FALSE way of life is to love the world and the things in the world and to live out of oneself and for oneself. It is the evil way, the way of death. It was the life Adam chose which brought death to all his descendants.

Jer. 2:13 ”“
For My people have committed two evils:
They have forsaken Me,
The fountain of living waters,
To hew for themselves cisterns,
Broken cisterns
That can hold no water.

Gen. 2:16-17 ”“
The Lord God commanded the man, saying, "From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely DIE.”

Gen. 3:6 ”“
When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.

Rom. 5:12 ”“
Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and DEATH through sin, and so DEATH spread to all men, because all sinned””

The TRUE way of life is NOT to love the world and the things of the world and to DENY ourselves and let CHRIST be ALL IN US.

Ps. 42:1-2 ”“
As the deer pants for the water brooks,
So my soul pants for You, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God;

Ps. 87:7 ”“
"All my springs are in you.”

The TRUE way of life is the exceedingly abundant life in Christ. It is the LIFE OF THE SON OF GOD in us. This is incredible salvation!

1 John 2:25 ”“
This is the promise which He Himself made to us: eternal life.

1 John 5:11-12 ”“
And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.

John 20:31 ”“
but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the SON OF GOD; and that believing you may have LIFE IN HIS NAME.

Rom. 5:18 ”“
So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of LIFE to all men.

John 10:10 ”“
I came that they may have LIFE, and have it abundantly.

Ps. 36:7-9 ”“
How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.
They drink their fill of the abundance of Your house;
And You give them to drink of the river of Your delights.
FOR WITH YOU IS THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE;
In Your light we see light.

The FALSE way of life is lived in rebellion against God.

Ps. 2:1-3 --
Why are the nations in an uproar
And the peoples devising a vain thing?
The kings of the earth take their stand
And the rulers take counsel together
Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying,
"Let us tear their fetters apart
And cast away their cords from us!”

The TRUE way of life rejoices in Christ’s bonds of love.

Hosea 11:4 ”“
I led them with cords of a man, with bonds of love,
And I became to them as one who lifts the yoke from their jaws;
And I bent down and fed them.

The FALSE way of life is lived by faith in ourselves and in the things of the world.

The TRUE way of life is lived by FAITH IN CHRIST (Acts 20:22) and puts NO CONFIDENCE IN FLESH. It is the Holy Spirit who gives Christ’s life to us. We must die to self-life (FALSE life) so that Christ’s life (TRUE life) can fill us.

Phil. 3:3 ”“
for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh,

2 Cor. 3:5 ”“
……our sufficiency is from God,

2 Cor. 12:9 ”“
And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

John 6:63 ”“
It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing………

Gal. 2:20 ”“
I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

The FALSE way of life is lived with the mind set on the flesh and is hostile toward God. This is the way of DEATH.

Rom. 8:7-8 --
For the mind set on the flesh is DEATH…………because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

The TRUE way of life is lived with the mind set on the Spirit and the INDWELLING Spirit gives LIFE.

Rom. 8:11 ”“
But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead DWELLS IN YOU, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give LIFE to your mortal bodies THROUGH HIS SPIRIT WHO DWELLS IN YOU.

Rom. 8:6 ”“
………the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,

The FALSE way of life is marked by the deeds of the flesh.

Gal. 5:19-21 ”“
Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these………

The TRUE way of life has the fruit of the Spirit.

Gal. 5:22 ”“
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

The TRUE way of life is a life that is moment by moment fully resting in Christ, totally dependent on Christ and continually receives life from Christ. Just as a branch is fully resting in the vine, totally dependent on the vine and continually receives life from the vine (John 15).

The TRUE way of life is the FAITH LIFE by which the righteous live. It is the life lived in the OBEDIENCE OF FAITH IN CHRIST (Rom. 1:5).

Isa. 30:15 ”“
In repentance and rest you will be saved,
In quietness and trust is your strength.

Do we lack faith?

Heb. 4:16 ”“
………let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Mark 9:24 ”“
"I do believe; help my unbelief.”

Matt. 7:7-11 ”“
Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!

Phil. 3:12-14 ”“
Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Interesting thoughts
On the surface they look ok but on the deepest level I'm not convinced.

How did you reach this level of understanding and faith ?
What would you recommend to an unbeliever who wants to become a Christian and reach such faith ?

Just trying to make sense of it all

Markus

Markus

Interesting thoughts

It was not my intention to give just interesting thoughts.

I have given scripture for consideration.

All scripture is God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16).

It is scripture you must answer to.

…………I'm not convinced.

I will not try to convince anyone with words of human persuasion.

The Gospel itself is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.

I am just a voice crying in the wilderness:

Isa. 40:6-8 ”“
All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
When the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
Surely the people are grass.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.

Isa. 55

v.1 ”“
Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters;
And you who have no money come, buy and eat.
Come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without cost.

v.7 ”“
Let the wicked forsake his way
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
And let him return to the Lord,
And He will have compassion on him,
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.

v.10-13 ”“
"For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
And do not return there without watering the earth
And making it bear and sprout,
And furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;
It will not return to Me empty,
Without accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.
"For you will go out with joy
And be led forth with peace;
The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you,
And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.
"Instead of the thorn bush the cypress will come up,
And instead of the nettle the myrtle will come up,
And it will be a memorial to the Lord,
For an everlasting sign which will not be cut off.”

How did you reach this level of understanding and faith ?

James 1:2-4 ”“
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

It is hard to be joyful when trials come.

But this is true.

It is in the trials of life that we learn to trust in God alone and taste and know that God is good.

What would you recommend to an unbeliever who wants to become a Christian and reach such faith ?

I have no recommendation to make.

Our faith should not rest on the wisdom of man but on the power of God.

I will just bring the person to Christ and tell them to look to Jesus and have faith in Him.

We can tell people all about Jesus and all that the Bible says.

But only the Holy Spirit can make Christ real to us and in us.

Zech. 4:6 ”“
‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts.

---------

So, Markus, now I will ask you:

What is a Christian?
How does a person become a Christian?
What is the hope of a Christian?
How does a Christian live the Christian life?

I am interested to know what you believe.

"I am interested to know what you believe."
I will try and keep this short and simple

"There are just 2 ways of life --- a FALSE way and a TRUE way."

Paul wrote: "Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life." 1 Cor. 15:22 NLT
Paul talks about 2 different "positions"
If once we are "in Christ" we still need to learn how to live a new life in Him and trust and obey Him
And "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Prov 9:10

"What is a Christian" ?
Biblically speaking it is just a nickname which is now quite meaningless.
Matthew 28:19 "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. "
Believes should be "disciples" - "learners and followers" - learning to obey all the Lord commanded.

"What is the hope of a Christian?"
Colossians 1:27 To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

"How does a person become a Christian?"
Short answer: by hearing the Gospel - repenting and believing
But we know Paul's conversion was a bit different
He met the risen Lord an the way to Damascus
Afterwards he spent his life proclaiming the Gospel and defending it.
He warned the churches with tears about false Gospels and false bretheren.
He realised that Christ came to save sinners and that he was the worst of them.

We might hear variations of testimonies, important is if we see any evidence and fruit in a believer and what kind.

"In Christ alone my hope is found..."

Markus

Just to add a little bit to Markus’ reply:

A Christian is one who has entered into the new covenant of cleansing, new birth and indwelling Spirit. This is how we are justified and become spiritually "in Christ” and "Christ in us” by becoming "one spirit in the Lord…Union with Christ and His righteousness through faith. We are clothed "in Christ’s”righteousness and transformed by "Christ’s righteousness in us” This the hope of glory… glorification.

Titus. 3:4-7-

But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for us appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we did in righteousness, but in accordance with His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Spirit whom He richly poured out upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Generally, Christians haven’t been taught the true nature of what justifies.

Markus

"There are just 2 ways of life --- a FALSE way and a TRUE way."

Paul wrote: "Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life." 1 Cor. 15:22 NLT
Paul talks about 2 different "positions"

The two positions are (1) "IN Adam” and (2) "IN Christ”.

All of Adam’s descendants are "IN Adam” and have his life. They walk according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, and live in the lusts of the flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind (Eph. 2:2-3).

The whole world lies in the power of the evil one (1 John 5:19) who is the father of lies (John 8:44). Therefore, all of Adam’s descendants live a life which is a lie. It is a false life. It is death.

Jesus is the way, and the truth, and the life (John 14:6). Therefore, all believers "IN Christ” are in the truth and the life. They have the true life of the Son of God which is eternal life.

If once we are "in Christ" we still need to learn how to live a new life in Him and trust and obey Him

How do we do that?

Believes should be "disciples" - "learners and followers" - learning to obey all the Lord commanded.

The Lord Jesus said that His disciples are those who are abiding in Him and He in them and bearing much fruit as a result of this union and oneness.

John 15:5 ”“
I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

John 15:8 ”“
My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

John 17:22-23 ”“
The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one; I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.

"What is the hope of a Christian?"
Colossians 1:27 To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

What does "Christ in you, the hope of glory” mean to you?

"How does a person become a Christian?"
Short answer: by hearing the Gospel - repenting and believing
But we know Paul's conversion was a bit different
He met the risen Lord an the way to Damascus
Afterwards he spent his life proclaiming the Gospel and defending it.
He warned the churches with tears about false Gospels and false bretheren.
He realised that Christ came to save sinners and that he was the worst of them.

Paul said that we are Christians if we have the Spirit of Christ dwelling in us and the Spirit is giving the life of Christ, the life of the Son of God, to us.

Rom. 8:8-9 ”“
However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.

Rom. 8:11 -
But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

Also:

1 John 5:11-12 ”“
And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.

John 16:14 ”“
He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.