10 01 07 Living Faith

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—
and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God…”
(Ephesians 2:8 NIV)

Faith, or pistis, in Greek, refers to a strong and welcome conviction or belief that Jesus is the Messiah, through whom we obtain eternal salvation in the kingdom of God; an assurance, belief, fidelity; from peitho (Greek) to listen to, obey, yield to, and comply with.

Martin Luther argued that it was faith alone (sola fide) that saved a man from his sin, based upon the Holy Scriptures. Salvation did not come from an organized denomination, an elected (or non-elected) official, or a certain price one could pay. In his day, this started a revolution, or should I say Reformation.

In fact, Luther stressed the following: Sola Scriptura - Scripture Alone; Solus Christus - Christ Alone; Sola Gratia - Grace Alone; Sola Fide - Faith Alone; Soli Deo Gloria - The Glory of God Alone.

He left no doubt as to his point of view concerning faith in Christ. Luther was not ashamed to let others know where he stood. In fact he posted them on the church doors form all to see and since the early form of the printing press had just been put into use in Germany, he was able to spread the news much quicker than before. Luther was not ashamed.


“Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back,
My soul has no pleasure in him."
(Hebrews 10:38 NKJV)

Paul was not one to be ashamed either. Once saved by faith, he now lived out his life on the line nearly every day for the sake of his faith. I sense he was absolutely appalled at those who professed faith in Christ, yet were hesitant to let it show. If we are to live by our faith, we are to be obedient to the things laid out in His Word. We are to be assured that what God says He will do. Living by faith requires obedience and loyalty in our everyday living, not just in words of a prayer or church attendance. Paul says he has no pleasure in a believer who timidity hesitates to avow what they believe or is unwilling to speak from fear. I may go further to ask the question, “How can you have faith if you live by it?” Faith in itself begs the definition of living it out!

This is our challenge: we must live out our faith with boldness and conviction. Faith in the living Savior is a LIVING FAITH! Five hundred years later, we’re still challenged to live by faith alone!