We are called to live our daily lives by faith. It is the essence of Christian living. We can’t please God without faith (Hebrews 11:6). But many believers don’t think much about their faith in God when all is well in their life. Faith to them is like a spiritual spare tire. They only take it seriously when an emergency comes.
Though that’s the wrong mindset, it is true that our faith matters the most when trouble comes in our life.
Just before Jesus was apprehended to be crucified, He said to Peter; “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat” (Luke 22:31, KJV). The word that renders “desired” in this verse means to request or demand. So, Satan requested to have Peter so he could sift him as wheat. When wheat is sifted, the grain is thrown into the air and agitated so the sieve can remove the chaff from among the wheat.
But note what Jesus said He did to thwart Satan’s plan: “I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not” (verse 32). Jesus knew the enemy’s will with respect to Peter. But He did not intervene directly to protect Peter. Instead, Jesus prayed that Peter’s faith would last so he could endure the test. The point is that if we can keep our faith in God intact, we can endure anything.
Jesus knew Peter was about to be tested. He knew this is the time when one’s faith matters the most. So, Jesus prayed that Peter’s faith would not fail him during the test.
Overcoming the Enemy by Faith
The enemy wants to do the same thing to us that he wanted to do to Peter. He wants to stir things up in our life. He wants to toss us to and fro and agitate us to the intent that we might abandon our faith in God. The devil knows that once we cast off our faith in God we are finished. That’s why we must give due attention to our faith.
In his letter to the church at Ephesus, Paul reminds us that we do not wrestle with flesh and blood (Ephesians 6:12). Though we can’t see him, the devil is our adversary. Let us remain focused on where the real battle is. Moreover, Paul refers to our faith as the shield that can “quench all the fiery darts of the wicked” (verse 16, KJV). That means no matter what the devil brings against us, we can withstand and overcome his assaults through our faith in God and Christ.
That’s why we must not treat our faith as we do a spare tire. We must cultivate our faith even when all is well. A smart army does not wait until the battle comes to prepare for battle. It prepares for battle in the time of peace so when the battle comes it is ready.
We must do the same with our faith. Our faith matters the most when tests and challenges come in our life. But if we neglect our faith when all is well, it can’t serve us well when trouble comes.
Copyright © 2023 by Frank King. All rights reserved.