The Fruit of the Spirit (7) Faithfulness
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February 28, 2010 |
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 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." (Galatians 5:22-23)
The Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary defines the word 'faithfulness' is 'the quality of being steadfast in affection or allegiance, or firm in adherence to promises or in observance of duty'. Even in the world, faithful people are valued highly for being trustworthy. Those who are spiritually faithful are treasures in the kingdom of God and they give out a fragrant aroma.
Then, what kind of faithfulness is the true faithfulness that is recognized by God?
First, it is to do more than what is entrusted to us.
When workers are paid for their work, we don't say they are faithful when they fulfill their duties. We can say they did their job. But, they did only what they are paid to do, so we cannot say they are faithful. Those who bear the fruit of faithfulness fulfill their duty having the desire coming from the heart. They fulfill it with all their heart, mind, and soul and do it without sparing either their time or money. They will do more than what they are responsible for doing.
For example, in the case of Moses, he put up his life when he prayed to save the sons of Israel who had committed sins. In fulfilling his duty to bring out the Israelites from Egypt, he had the heart of God and guided the people with all his love and effort when he fulfilled his duty. That is why, when the people committed sins, he felt as if it were his own fault, and he wanted to take the responsibility for it.
It is the same with the apostle Paul. He confessed in Romans 9:3, "For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh." Likewise, those who are faithful will not just think, "I've done enough," but they will work overflowingly with all their heart.
Second, the kind of faithfulness recognized by God is to be faithful in the truth.
Suppose somebody joined a gang and dedicated his life to the boss of the gang. Will God say he is faithful? Of course not! God can recognize our faithfulness only when we are faithful in goodness and truth. The most important thing to be faithful in the truth is the circumcision of the heart. Revelation 2:10 says, "Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life." Here, to be faithful until death does not just mean we have to work hard and faithfully until our physical death. It means we try to accomplish the word of God in the 66 books of the Bible with all our life. As Paul said, "I die daily," we have to put our flesh to death completely and become sanctified. This is spiritual faithfulness.
Of course, it doesn't mean we cannot assume any duties before we become completely sanctified. It means whatever duty we are carrying on right now, we have to do it along with accomplishing holiness. If we cast away sins and fulfill our duties with a sanctified heart, we can bear much greater fruit than when we fulfill them with fleshly mind.
Third, the kind of faithfulness recognized by God is to work according to the master's will.
In the church, we have to work according to the heart and will of God. Even though we are very diligent in our duty, we cannot satisfy the desire of the heart of the master if we just do what we want.
In the Bible we read about a person named Joab, who was a relative and the general of the army of David. Joab was with David through all the dangers while David was being chased by King Saul. He had wisdom and he was valiant. He managed the things that David wanted to be done. He served David so very well this way, but David was not very comfortable with him. Joab did not hesitate to act insolently before David when he wanted to achieve his goal. When it was beneficial for himself, he disobeyed David. Finally, Joab rebelled against King Solomon, David's son, and was put to death.
When we do God's work, rather than how hard we do the work, the more important thing is whether we are following the will of God. When we work in the church, we should also follow our leaders before we follow our own ideas.
Fourth, the kind of faithfulness that God wants is faithfulness in all God's house.
In Numbers 12:7, God says about Moses, "He is faithful in all My household." 'To be faithful in all God's household' means to be faithful in all aspects related with the person. Not only in the church, but in places of work and school, every of us has our duties. In all these aspects, we have to fulfill our duties as the members.
To the extent that we cast off flesh and change into spirit, it is not something difficult to be faithful in all God's house. Even though we invest just a little time, we can surely reap the fruit if we sow in spirit. Also, those who have changed into spirit do not follow their own benefit and comfort but think about the other's benefit and view things from the standpoint of others first. Thus, such people will take care of all their duties even if they must sacrifice themselves. Likewise, we can be faithful in all God's household and have peace with everybody to the extent that we have goodness.
In doing so, I pray in the name of the Lord that you will become workers who are like pillars of the kingdom of God and I pray for you to enjoy the honor of ministering before God.
To read this message in more detail, visit our website (www. manmin. org) and click on 'sermon'.
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