Wednesday, December 15, 2010

2 Thessalonians 1

verse 11 in Amplified:  With this in view we constantly pray for you, that our God may deem and count you worthy of [your] calling and [His] every gracious purpose of goodness, and with power may complete in [your] every particular work of faith (faith which is that leaning of the whole human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness).

Message:  we pray for you all the time—pray that our God will make you fit for what he's called you to be, pray that he'll fill your good ideas and acts of faith with his own energy so that it all amounts to something.

HCSB:  And in view of this, we always pray for you that our God will consider you worthy of His calling, and will, by His power, fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith,

NLT:  So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to enable you to live a life worthy of his call. May he give you the power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do.

YLT:  for which also we do pray always for you, that our God may count you worthy of the calling, and may fulfill all the good pleasure of goodness, and the work of the faith in power,

My faith is going to prompt  me to do things...good things which are God's gracious purpose of goodness, (I love the freedom from reading that faith directs by prompting and not an info-mercial as I get far more promptings than billboards).  God must supply the power/energy to complete every particular work that follows faith .  But the creative ideas and the fuel for the tasks are in the framework of living up to the responsibility I have in Him.  He's called me worthy through salvation and to a worthy work - His Kingdom purpose.  In order for the work to amount to something and fulfill all the good pleasure of goodness, it must stem from faith which is from God. 

So, the righteous will live by faith and our work is produced by faith.  Faith and actions work together and faith is made complete by the work and faith is the victory.  So, from a little neural-nudging to a triumphant procession, it all originates and is empowered from God.  Full-Sponsor.  Dear Heavenly Prompter, I receive Your gift of faith, work and promptings for Your glory-sake.  Help me be still so that I may be inspired by faith to do that which You have prepared for me and to receive Your enabling power to complete my day's assignment.  Help me to live by faith - graciously, joyfully, lovingly and powerfully.  To the praise of Your Great Name.

Galatians 3:11... because “the righteous will live by faith.”
1 Thessalonians 1:3 We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith,
James 2: 21 Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did
1John 5: 4For all that has been begotten of God gets the victory over the world; and this is the victory which has gotten the victory over the world, our faith.

I love Lori's remark that "By (His) power, I sit down..."  Sometimes that is the greatest act of faith in my day, that I can "sit down at His feet" and receive.  And this is certainly one of those days.  Please pray for me.

No comments:

Post a Comment