Law of Faith
     1.   immutable, does not change
     2.   inviolable, cannot be violated
     3.   universal, applies equally to everyone

Mk 10:15 “I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little
child will never enter it.”
     1.   Strong & emphatic!
               a.   We must accept the kingdom in simple acceptance and trust, eager to learn
          about it and put it into practice
               b.   Anyone not doing this “will never enter it.”
               c.   We’re talking about accepting kingdom in faith
     2.   Today, examine the Law of Faith, a major kingdom principle.

Heb 11:1 “faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
     1.   faith is to be our motivation: Hab 2:4, “the righteous [one] will live by his faith.”
     2.   Definition (noun):
               a.   firm persuasion, a conviction based upon what you hear; trust; reliance
               b.   conduct motivated by such persuasion
     3.   Definition (verb):
               a.   passive form, as a characteristic: to be faithful, trustworthy, reliable.
               b.   active form: to believe, trust, rely; English doesn’t have word for active form of
          faith, translate “to believe” or “to have faith”; more accurate: “to use faith”

Disciples, little faith
     1.   Mt 17:19-20, Jesus tells disciples they couldn’t cast out the demon because of their
     “little faith,” then states if their faith were as a mustard seed, nothing would be
     impossible. Interesting!
               a.   Jesus had sent them out earlier in pairs and they had cast out demons and healed
          the sick.
               b.   Now nine of them can’t handle just one. Why not?
               c.   Were they confident in their own ability, instead of having God’s faith?
     2.   Reference to “faith as small as a mustard seed” (NIV)
               a.   translators inserted idea, “as small as”
               b.   text reads: “faith as a mustard seed”
               c.   characteristic of mustard seed, based on Mt 13:31-32: begins as smallest seed,
          but grows into largest plant; i.e., it starts out insignificantly small, but it grows!
               d.   Jesus used mustard seed, not as measure of size, but as image of potential
          growth. He wasn’t stating that even the smallest amount of faith would be
          sufficient, because he had rebuked disciples for having little faith.
               e.   Rewording Mt 17:20 — “I tell you the truth, if you have faith that grows like a
          mustard tree, even if it begins insignificantly small, you can say to this
          mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be
          impossible for you.”

Mt 21:21-22 (landmark verse on faith), “Jesus replied, ‘I tell you the truth, if you have faith
and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to
this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. If you believe, you will
receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
     1.   Powerful!
               a.   Lots of people have claimed this verse, many have fallen into confusion when it
          didn’t “work” for them.
               b.   I think it’s because they don’t understand faith.
     2.   Greek words
               a.   v 21, we just read, “if you have faith” is noun form; “if you possess faith.”
               b.   v 22, “if you believe” is verb form; “if you use your faith”
     3.   Why does this seem to work for some people or in some situations, but not others?
     Why do most Christians claim to have faith but seldom see any results?
               a.   Factors that sometimes prevent spiritual laws from producing what we expect
          (discussed last week). How might these affect use of Law of Faith?
                         i.   Outside influences; kingdom is real, but not yet universal
                         ii.  Our expectations; based on our desires & perspective
                         iii. Timing
                         iv.  Supersession
               b.   Another factor in this case: related to translation of scripture. Mk 11:22 (Marks’
          version of Mt 21:21-22 just discussed) “‘Have faith in God,’ Jesus answered.”
               c.   Grammar lesson
                         i.   Greek text reads, exete pistin theou.
                         ii.  exete means “have,” is imperative or instruction
                         iii. pistin means “faith”
                         iv.  theou means “God”
                         v.   In many foreign languages, such as Greek, word being used as a
               modifier follows the word it modifies. “Look at the sky blue.”
                         vi.  Example: v 23, diakrithe en te kardia autou means “doubts in the heart
               [of] him” or “doubts in his heart.”
                         vii. v 22, exete pistin theou means “have faith [of] God” or “have God’s
               faith” or “have faith from God”
                              viii.     Most Bible translations I’ve seen translate this verse “have faith in God,”
                    but original language says “have God’s faith”
                         ix.  Why? Maybe because it didn’t make sense to translators? Or maybe
               translators chose conservative wording when there was great potential
               for controversy; translators tend to be very conservative.
                         x.   Having God’s faith is radical concept, but in reality all faith comes from
               him, so having him impart his faith to us shouldn’t be radical concept.
                         xi.  Mk 11:22, withered fig tree: “Have [the] faith of God” or “Have the
               faith that comes from God” [read vs 20-24]
                                   (1)  Where does this faith originate?
                                   (2)  Who is to possess it and use it?
                                   (3)  Is any hesitancy or restriction implied on God’s part?
                                   (4)  How does this compare with “mustard seed faith”?
               d.   So what’s the difference between faith in God and faith of God?
                         i.   Faith in God is your confidence in God. Your faith can make mistakes
               and it can fail.
                         ii.  But when you have received God’s faith [faith from God] in a particular
               situation, you know his faith is never misdirected, you know its timing is
               always right, you know it’s always productive.
                         iii. So when you have God’s faith for something, you can reject every doubt.
                         iv.  Faith of God is absolute trust and confidence that comes from God, that
               he will do what he has said. It is faith coming from God’s Spirit within
               us.

Here’s how to use the Law of Faith
     1.   You must have a clear objective.
               a.   Wait until you have a specific desired result, rather than simply wanting things
          to be different than they are.
               b.   What is God’s objective in the matter?
                         i.   The more you cultivate your relationship with God and strengthen your
               spirit, the more likely you are to know God’s objective.
                         ii.  My opinion: because we are God’s ambassadors/representatives on earth,
               acting in his behalf, using his resources to conduct his business, we are
               not at liberty to choose an objective on our own and expect God to
               “come through” for us.
     2.   Wait for assurance from God; usually is peace in spirit, or absolute conviction that the
     desired result has been achieved (God’s faith).
     3.   Respond to the expected result by proceeding as if the results will occur, or by speaking
     the results into existence. This is faithfulness, acting on what you believe.

Secular Applications
     1.   How do unbelievers use Law of Faith?

Two related laws: Laws of Faith and Action (Faithfulness, Obedience, Results)
     1.   Faith is not something to be possessed; rather, something to be used. Its existence
     demands a response to produce results. Faith alone produces nothing.
     2.   God’s faith always produces results in the circumstances if we act on it.
               a.   God has chosen to work through cooperative people.
               b.   We are his agents/reps on earth; he works through us.
               c.   “Thy kingdom come, they will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” What is our
          role?
     3.   Our faith (whether originates with us or God) always motivates us to respond
               a.   In Greek language and NT, is no distinction between “faith” as a belief and
          actions prompted by belief.
               b.   Exactly same Greek word (pistis) is translated “faith” and “faithfulness.”
               c.   Concept: whatever you believe will dictate your actions.
               d.   Verb form of faith implies using your faith to produce results, being faithful, or
          acting on your belief.
     4.   Greek word pistis means faith or faithfulness.
               a.   In Lk 16:10-12, translated as “trusted, trustworthy.”
               b.   Substitute words: “Whoever can be faithful (trusted) with very little can also be
          faithful (trusted) with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also
          be dishonest with much. So if you have not been faithful in handling worldly
          wealth, who will trust you (have faith in you) with true riches? And if you have
          not been faithful with someone else’s property, who will give you property of
          your own?”
                         i.   Notice: money is test of our trustworthiness or faithfulness.
                         ii.  This verse says if we don’t use our money wisely, can’t expect God to
               give us things of real value. Important point in materialistic culture!
                         iii. In parables, Jesus said the unfaithful servants were stripped of position
               and responsibility, then kicked out of household; they were defenseless,
               unable to provide for themselves. I doubt that God will kick you out of
               the kingdom for unfaithfulness (it’s a sin, like all others), but parables
               show how important faith/faithfulness is to God.
               c.   Faith requires response/action
               d.   Jas 2:14 “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no
          deeds? Can such faith save him?”
                         i.   A probing question.
                         ii.  Point: a viable faith will produce deeds; works, action, response.
                         iii. v 17 “In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action,
               is dead.”
                         iv.  v 18 “Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith
               by what I do.”
                         v.   If you believe something, you will act on it. If you do not act on it, you
               really do not believe.
               e.   faith & action
                         i.   Faith without obedience (action) produces nothing worthwhile; “dead.”
                         ii.  Obedience without faith produces resentment and hopelessness.

Law of Action
     1.   Intuitively obvious, stated in physics in several forms
               a.   Every action produces a result; cause & effect
               b.   For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction
               c.   Force produces movement
               d.   Intervention produces change
     2.   Law of Action, same characteristics of all laws
               a.   immutable, does not change
               b.   inviolable, cannot be violated
               c.   universal, applies equally to everyone
     3.   Works exactly the same way in spiritual realm; already alluded to it.
               a.   When we act spiritually — act in faith, speak with authority, and so on —
          spiritual results occur
               b.   every action produces a result
                         i.   always result we expect? no
                         ii.  can your action be negated/offset by opposing action? yes
     4.   The spiritual Law of Action is a separate law, but strongly tied to Law of Faith
               a.   Effective action is motivated by faith
               b.   Viable faith causes action; faith alone produces nothing; action required
               c.   Combination known as faithfulness; faith plus consistent action based on that
          faith
     5.   Faithfulness is like motivation; always results in action.
               a.   Analogy: if you see task that needs to be done, think you can do it successfully
          and result will be worthwhile, you have psychological/emotional energy to do it.
               b.   You devote yourself to the task until you produce the desired result.
               c.   Very similar to spiritual Law of Action. True faith will always cause you to act
          and action produces result.
     6.   Other authors give different titles to this law
               a.   Law of Perseverance
                         i.   Lk 18:1-8, parable of persistent widow
                         ii.  [audience read] v 1: “Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that
               they should always pray and not give up.”
                         iii. Law of Action sometimes requires persistence/perseverance, but always
               produces results
               b.   Law of Obedience [audience read]
                         i.   2 Jn 6, what is love? obeying God’s commands
                         ii.  1 Jn 5:2-4 obedience is evidence of what? our faith and love for God.
               obedience implies action.
                         iii. 1 Jn 2:3-6 obedience is evidence of what? relationship
               c.   Law of Faithfulness, Law of Results
               d.   Common element is action

     7.   Relevant verses [class reads, then answers questions]
               a.   Mt 7:16-20 “By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from
          thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit,
          but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree
          cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and
          thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.”
                         i.   what does it say? can recognize person’s true nature (what they really
               believe) by their fruit (what they do/produce)
                         ii.  how does this apply to Law of Action? “fruit” is what we do; what we
               do is evidence of our true nature.
                         iii. what response does this require from you?
                                   (1)  examine your fruit, what you do
                                   (2)  make appropriate changes
               b.   1 Jn 2:29 “If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does
          what is right has been born of him.”
                         i.   what does it say? everyone born of God does what is right
                         ii.  how does this apply to Law of Action? “does” requires action; action of
               anyone born of God produces what is right
                         iii. what response does this require from you? do what is right
                         iv.  what is standard for what is right? Bible, Jesus
               c.   1 Jn 3:7 “Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who does what is
          right is righteous, just as he is righteous.”
                         i.   v 10 “This is how we know who the children of God are and who the
               children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a
               child of God; neither is anyone who does not love his brother.”
                         ii.  what does it say? he who does what is right is righteous, is child of God
                         iii. how does this apply to Law of Action?
                         iv.  what response does this require from you? As child of God, act
               righteously.
               d.   1 Jn 3:18 “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions
          and in truth.”
                         i.   what does it say? our actions are expressions of our love
                         ii.  what response does this require from you?
                                   (1)  evaluate your actions as evidence of love
                                   (2)  make sure your actions back up what you say (integrity)
               e.   2 Jn 9 “Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ
          does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and
          the Son.”
                         i.   what does it say? anyone who has God: continues in the teaching of
               Christ
                         ii.  how does this apply to Law of Action? “continues”: actions influenced
                         iii. what response does this require from you? your actions must conform to
               Christ’s teaching
               f.   3 Jn 11 “Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who
          does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen
          God.”
                         i.   what does it say? anyone who does what is good is from God
                         ii.  how does this apply to Law of Action? actions that produce good are
               evidence of relationship with God
                         iii. what response does this require from you? do what is good (quality of
               excellence, esp. moral excellence)
               g.   Verses from First, Second, Third John
                         i.   what is Apostle John renowned for? love
                         ii.  consider how forcefully John writes about action
                         iii. what does this say about relationship between love and action?

Secular applications
     1.   In what ways do unbelievers use Law of Action?
               a.   use it all the time to initiate desired change; they know results don’t come from
          good intentions alone; must make them happen by acting on what you believe.