“…God has allotted to each a measure of faith.” (Rom. 12:3 NASB)

We need to be aware of what God has already provided so we don’t ask Him for what He has already given. Starting yesterday, and continuing over the next few days, I’m sharing some of them with you. Here is another one.

Faith!

God has given you faith. The Bible says,  “God has allotted to each person a measure of faith.”

You can’t please God without it

The Bible says, “Without faith it is impossible to please God”. (Heb. 11:6). But, the good news is that God gives you all the faith you need in order to please Him.

Your faith rests in the power of God

“That your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Cor. 2:5 ESV)

It doesn’t take much faith to accomplish big things

“Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matt. 17:20 NIV)

“And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.” (Matt. 31:21-22 ESV)

Fight the good fight of the faith

“Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” (1 Tim. 6:12 ESV)

Walk in faith

“For we walk by faith, not by sight.” (2. Cor. 5:7 ESV)

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people.” (Eph. 1:18 NIV) 

A revelation of what you already have will empower you and strengthen your faith!

Many are blind to what God has already provided for them in His Word. The Apostle Paul was aware of this problem and wrote the above passage about it. He prayed that believers would “open the eyes of their heart to the riches of His glorious inheritance”.

Don’t be ignorant! God has you completely covered! (Phil. 4:19)

If you aren’t knowledgeable about the things God has given you, you will be weak in faith and behave like you don’t have them. Sadly, many keep asking God for lots of things that He’s already freely given them. This is a lack of faith! Christians need to be aware of what God has already provided, thank Him for them, and then step out in faith to appropriate them. (Mark 11:24).

Over the next few days I will share some of them with you. Here is the first one:

God is ever-present with you!

He will never leave you!

This is huge! You don’t have to ask Him “to come" or “to go with you” or even “to come down” as often said by many. The fact is, God is always present! He never leaves you, ever! Knowing this important fact should be very encouraging and faith-building to you! Instead of asking God “to be present”, just thank Him for being present with you. Acknowledge His presence continually! 

“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me. If I say, "Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, And the light around me will be night," Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day Darkness and light are alike to You.” (Psalm 139:7-12 NASB)

“I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint.” (Heb. 31:25 NIV)

“The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul.” (Psalm 19:7 NIV)

 “Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.” (Prov. 3:7-8 ESV)

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” (Acts 3:19 NIV)

“You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance.” (Psalm 68:9 NIV)

And you can also refresh others

“A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.” (Prov. 11:29 NIV)

 “Put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Eph. 4:24 NIV)

 Two ways to be like God

1. True righteousness

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Cor. 5:21 NIV)

“I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” (Isaiah 61:10 NIV)

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” (Matt. 5:6 NIV)

2. Holiness

 “Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” (2 Cor. 7:1 NIV)

“Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” (Heb 12:14 NIV)

“But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15-16 NIV)

“For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love.” (2 Peter 1:5-7)

Seven things to add to your Faith

1. Goodness: “Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.” (Psalm 37:3 NIV)

2. Knowledge: “The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out.” (Prov. 18:15 NIV)

3. Self control: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” (Gal. 5:22:23 NASB)

4. Perseverance: “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12 NIV)

5. Godliness: “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.” (2 Peter 1:3 NIV)

6. Mutual affection: “Be devoted to each other with mutual affection. Excel at showing respect for each other. (Rom. 12:10 ISV)

7. Love: Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” (1 Cor. 14:4-7 NIV)

"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” (Psalm 23:6 ESV)

I heard someone say, “I have two Angels following me and I know both their names. One is called Goodness and the other is called Mercy.”

Verses about Goodness

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (Gal. 5:22-23 NIV)

“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Rom. 12:21 NIV)

“For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love.” (2 Peter 1:5-7)

Verses about mercy

“Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you, Lord, are good.” (Psalm 25:6-7 NIV)

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Peter 1:3 NIV)

“Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Heb. 4:16 NIV)

“But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy.” (Eph. 2:4 NIV)

“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:36 NIV)

Jesus replied, ‘You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.’” (Matt. 22:29 NIV)

"Jesus said you can avoid errors by knowing two things: The Scriptures and the Power of God.

1. THE SCRIPTURES: The Word of God of both Old and New Testaments.

It is able to make you wise

“And how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” (2 Tim. 3:15 NIV)

It is God-breathed and useful

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” (2 Tim. 3:16 NIV)

“But Scripture has locked up everything under the control of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.” (Gal. 3:22 NIV)

Jesus placed His seal of approval on the Scriptures

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Matt. 5:17 NIV)

2. THE POWER OF GOD: Jesus as the God-Man demonstrated both the intrinsic and derived aspects of power. He proclaimed his power and authority as derived from the Father (John 5:27; 17.2; 5:16-23) He also demonstrated that his power was derived from his authority as the Son of Man and that the two were an inseparable testimony to his divine nature (Matt. 9:6-7; Luke 4:36; 9:1)

Greatness of the power of God

“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves.” (3 Cor. 4:7 NASB)

Surpassing greatness of His power

“And what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.” (Eph. 1:19-21 NASB)

The gospel is the power of God

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (Rom. 2:16 NASB)

“For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Cor. 1:18 NASB)

God gives us power, love and self discipline

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.”

(2 Tim. 1:7 NLT)

 “But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” (Psalm 86:15 ESV)

Psalms 136 proclaims that “God’s steadfast love endures forever” 26 times!

His steadfast love never ceases

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lam. 22:23 ESV)

He faithfully keeps covenant and steadfast love

“Know therefore that the LORD your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations.” (Deut. 7:9 ESV)

“Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (1 Tim. 1:17 NIV)

According to this verse, He is:

• King: A person or thing that is more important than all others. Ruler, sovereign, monarch, crowned head, emperor, prince, potentate, lord.

• Eternal: lasting or existing forever; without end or beginning. Everlasting, never ending, endless, perpetual, undying, immortal, abiding, permanent, enduring, infinite, boundless, timeless.

• Immortal: living forever; never dying or decaying. Deathless, eternal, everlasting, never-ending, endless, lasting, ceaseless, imperishable, indestructible, inextinguishable, immutable, perpetual, permanent, unfading.
• The only God: No one or nothing more besides Him; solely, exclusively. Solitary, lone, unique, exclusive, just one.

And according to this verse He deserves…

• Honor: high respect; esteem. Distinction, recognition, privilege, glory, kudos, cachet, prestige, merit, credit, importance, illustriousness, notability, respect, esteem, approbation.
• Glory: high renown or honor won by notable achievements. Renown, fame, prestige, honor, distinction, eminence, acclaim, praise, celebrity, recognition, reputation.
• For ever and ever: For now and all time in the future: Continuing without stopping.  Continuous, forever, permanent.
•  Amen: to take care, to be faithful, reliable or established, or to believe someone or something. “The promises of God are Amen” i.e., they are all true and sure. (2 Cor. 1:20)

“You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being." (Rev. 4:11 NIV)