PSALM 37:5-Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act.
THEME OF THE DAY: MOMENT-BY-MOMENT FAITH. When it comes to exercising faith, we do so in two ways. First, there is a single act of faith in the Lord Jesus leading to salvation. This is a once for all never to be repeated act on our part – Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1). This single act of faith grants us peace from God, peace with God, and will never change. We call this “justification” and it is forever ours. But there is more to exercising faith, much more. Not only are we justified by faith once, but we live by faith and that daily, even moment by moment. That is how we live the Christian life, and there are times, many times, it is hard.
In today’s scripture are two excellent instructions on how we live the Christian life by faith and that moment-by-moment. We need to remember this and especially when circumstances are trying, and the temptation high to become irritated not only in our difficult circumstances but at people. And irritation toward either will damage our testimony for the Lord Jesus.
The first act of moment-by-moment faith is committing all things to the Lord as they happen. We walk with the Lord throughout each day and that in the spirit of prayer. Don’t allow anything to escape sharing it with the Lord. Get into the habit of giving Him thanks for the many blessings in life as they unfold starting early in the morning. Watch a sunrise. Give Him thanks for His creativity and beauty in creation. Go for a walk. Thank Him for the ability to walk. Also don’t forget to exercise moment-by-moment faith in casting your burdens and anxieties upon Him. Don’t let them pile up and weigh you down. It is far easier to be ruled by anxiety, worry, and live fretting than to overcome these emotions and exercise moment-by-moment faith. Yet, we must. The Apostle Peter writes Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:6-7). He is not directing us to “give it to God” and move on. No, Peter is telling us we are to cast our anxieties on the Lord and continue to do so. The verb is continual. And the more we live this way, the greater our trust in the Lord becomes as we witness His faithfulness to carry our burdens and strengthen our weak hearts.
The other act of moment-by-moment faith is to maintain confidence in the Lord that He will be with us, and act on our behalf – trust in Him, and He will act. All through scripture, God reminds us of His faithfulness to keep His Word, and His timing is always perfect. The Apostle Paul provides a great example of confidence in the Lord and His faithfulness in extremely trying times –For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again (2 Corinthians 1:8-10). Notice what Paul does. He remembers God’s faithfulness in the past that fuels Paul’s faith in God in the present. And it shall be so for us.
The Christian life is a life of faith. It is both a one time and moment-by-moment exercise. As we practice the latter because of the former, we will grow closer to the Lord as we see His moment-by-moment grace through our moment-by-moment faith.
PRAYER: “Father, help me to not only trust You once and for all for my salvation but day-to-day living for You.”
QUOTE: “Faith is not only a decisive act once in the Lord Jesus for salvation but daily in trusting Him for our lives.”