In the Old Testament, personal relationship with God showed
itself in separation, and this is symbolized in the life of Abraham by his
separation from his country and from his kith and kin. To day the separation is
more of a mental and moral separation from the way that those who are dearest
to us look at things, that is, if they have not a personal relationship with
God. Jesus Christ emphasized this (see Luke 14:26).
Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and
knows the One Who is leading. It is a life of Faith, not of intellect
and reason, but a life of knowing Who makes us "go." The root of
faith is the knowledge of a Person, and one of the biggest snares is the idea
that God is sure to lead us to success.
The final stage in the life of faith is attainment of
character. There are many passing transfigurations of character; when we pray
we feel the blessing of God enwrapping us and for the time being we are
changed, then we get back to the ordinary days and ways and the glory vanishes.
The life of faith is not a life of mounting up with wings, but a life of
walking and not fainting. It is not a question of sanctification; but of
something infinitely further on than sanctification, of faith that has been
tried and proved and has stood the test. Abraham is not a type of
sanctification, but a type of the life of faith, a tried faith built on a real
God. "Abraham believed God."
(Taken
from Oswald Chambers’ “My Utmost
For His Highest” March 19)
Faith in antagonism to common sense is fanaticism, and
common sense in antagonism to faith is rationalism. The life of faith brings
the two into a right relation. Common sense is not faith, and faith is not
common sense; they stand in the relation of the natural and the spiritual; of
impulse and inspiration. Nothing Jesus Christ ever said is common sense, it is
revelation sense, and it reaches the shores where common sense fails. Faith
must be tried before the reality of faith is actual. "We know that all
things work together for good," then no matter what happens, the alchemy
of God's providence transfigures the ideal faith into actual reality. Faith always
works on the personal line, the whole purpose of God being to see that the
ideal faith is made real in His children.
For every detail of the common-sense life, there is a
revelation fact of God whereby we can prove in practical experience what we believe
God to be. Faith is a tremendously active principle which always puts Jesus
Christ first - Lord, Thou hast said so and so (e.g., Matthew 6:33), it looks
mad, but I am going to venture on Thy word. To turn head faith into a personal
possession is a fight always, not sometimes. God brings us into circumstances
in order to educate our faith, because the nature of faith is to make its
object real. Until we know Jesus, God is a mere abstraction, we can not have
faith in Him; but immediately we hear Jesus say - "He that hath seen Me
hath seen the Father," we have something that is real, and faith is
boundless. Faith is the whole man rightly related to God by the power of the
Spirit of Jesus Christ.
(Taken
from Oswald Chambers’ “My Utmost
For His Highest” October 30)