THE GREAT BENEFITS OF FAITHFULNESS TO GOD
1.
FAITHFULNESS DEVELOPS STABILITY IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE DURING TIMES OF TRIBULATION.
( I Peter 5:10 ) But the God
of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after
that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle
you.
When you reflect
on the things that challenged your faith in the earliest days of your walk with
the Lord compared to what challenges it now, you can usually see growth. This
is because faithfulness is an exercise of faith—and faith is a muscle that grows
over time. Do you want more faith? Keep being faithful.
(Colossians 2:6–7) "As ye
have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and
built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding
therein with thanksgiving."
2.
FAITHFULNESS PROVES GOD’S PROTECTION FOR HIS SERVANTS IN TIMES OF TROUBLE
( Psalms 91:1-7 ) [1]He that
dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of
the Almighty.
[2]I will say of the LORD, He is my
refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
[3]Surely he shall deliver thee from
the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.
[4]He shall cover thee with his
feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield
and buckler.
[5]Thou shalt not be afraid for the
terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
[6]Nor for the pestilence that
walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
[7]A thousand shall fall at thy
side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.
When a Christian
continues forward despite opposition and setbacks, it sends a powerful message
to others that God is trustworthy and able to sustain those who follow Him.
Consider Paul,
Silas, and the Philippian jailer. The jailer didn’t ask, “What must I do to be
saved?” during Paul’s first days of ministry. It was only after he witnessed
their steadfastness and response to persecution that he sought spiritual help
(Acts 16:29-30) Then he
called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before
Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be
saved?
3.
FAITHFULNESS PROVIDES A CLEAR, GODLY CONSCIENCE TO HIS PEOPLE.
Even if your
service for the Lord doesn’t produce the visible results you desired, or if
circumstances differ from what you hoped, being faithful allows you to maintain
a clear conscience. You can rest knowing that God is working in ways you cannot
see.
(Acts 20:19-21 ) [19]Serving
the Lord with all humility of mind, and with many tears, and temptations, which
befell me by the lying in wait of the Jews:
[20]And how I kept back nothing that
was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly,
and from house to house,
[21]Testifying both to the Jews, and
also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus
Christ.
4.
FAITHFULNESS PRODUCES FRUIT IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE.
( Acts 6:4-7 ) [4]But we
will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.
[5]And the saying pleased the whole
multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost,
and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a
proselyte of Antioch:
[6]Whom they set before the
apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.
[7]And the word of God increased;
and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great
company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
No farmer quits
in disappointment because he doesn't see crops the day after planting. He knows
it takes time. Similarly, fruit in the Christian life—both the "Fruit of
the Spirit" and the "fruit of souls"—takes time to multiply.
Those who remain faithful will reap the benefit of seeing that growth.
(Galatians 6:9) "And
let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint
not."
5.
FAITHFULNESS BUILDS STRONG RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN
CHRISTIAN FAMILIES AND THE LOCAL CHURCH.
( Psalms 128:1-6 ) [1] Blessed
is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways.
[2]For thou shalt eat the labour of
thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.
[3]Thy wife shall be as a fruitful
vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about
thy table.
[4]Behold, that thus shall the man
be blessed that feareth the LORD.
[5]The LORD shall bless thee out of
Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.
[6]Yea, thou shalt see thy
children's children, and peace upon Israel.
Faithfulness also
builds bonds within the church. As you serve the Lord with the same people year
after year, the depth of your friendship and fellowship grows.
(Hebrews 10:25) "Not
forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but
exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day
approaching."
( Joshua 24:15 ) And if it
seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve;
whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the
flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and
my house, we will serve the LORD.
* God bless you
all always *
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