Firm in Faith

“If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.”—Isaiah 7:9

Faith in Christ is the foundation of the Christian life. Without faith, we cannot stand. Our passage for today was written to the southern kingdom of Judah during an extremely tumultuous time. The northern kingdom of Israel was about ready to fall, and if things didn’t turn around, then the southern kingdom of Judah would also fall. Isaiah wanted them to understand that they had to stand firm in faith, because if they didn’t then they would falter everywhere else.

One of the biggest dangers to the Christian life is compartmentalization. Compartmentalization is when we attempt to separate different parts of our life. But our faith cannot be compartmentalized. To compartmentalize our faith is to deny what it really is—a connection to the Sovereign God of the universe.

Compartmentalized Christians are men and women who attempt to be Christians only on Sunday mornings or at holiday times such as Christmas or Easter. They rationalize that they are doing well by giving only that much, as if God were a stray dog to whom they can give scraps. We must remind ourselves that although Dog and God share the same three letters, that is where the comparison ends. God cannot be controlled nor pacified. He is the Sovereign Ruler of the universe and He wants everything because He deserves it.

The Bible knows nothing of a Christian faith that is Sunday only, no more than a small child is only a child one day a week. We are God’s children all the time, and if He is our parent and we are His children, then we are His children all the time. And because we are His children, His authority should be seen in everything that we do and say—our entire lives are organized under His Lordship.

Faith, by its nature, is transformative—it does something. It is passive in the sense that it is a gift, but it is active in that it connects us to God. It is an act whereby we believe something. Imagine a water skier being pulled by a boat around a lake. Faith is the gift that keeps us connected to the boat. We don’t do the pulling—the boat does. We hold on to the line that connects to the boat and are led to wherever the boat driver wants us to go. We don’t choose how the boat is to move, or what type of water the driver goes through. As Christians, we go wherever He directs us, learning how to hold on, to go through the waves and wake. One thing is certain, however; we don’t just stay put in the water—we are moving.

As Christians, we are holding on to the line that connects us to God whereby He enables us to ski across the waters of life. But we must hold on firmly, making every effort to stand firm and not let go. God wants us to be firm in our faith, placing it under the authority of His Word, ordering our lives to the truths therein. When we encounter falsehood with family, friends, or coworkers, we refuse to participate, but instead stand for the truth. We don’t attempt to explain our faith away or circumvent its authority, but lovingly, safely, and compassionately stand for and in Him who is the truth, who was given so that we, by our faith in Him, may be set free. Amen.