The Faith:

by Chamings, A. R. G. | Category: General | May 1950

"I have kept the faith." Such words, fitting epitaph to a life of devoted service to the Lord, were amongst the last left on record by the Holy Spirit through the pen of the Apostle of the Gentiles, Paul(1). As a result of his faithful ministration of the word of life (spoken and written) multitudes past, present and it may be yet future, turned from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God. And that which was to be Paul's portion as he finished the course~ven a crown of life-he earnestly desired for his children in the faith, to whom therefore he wrote, exhorting them, "Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong "(2).

What wa~s this of which he wrote-THE FAITH which Paul had so diligently guarded? Of faith he had written much-it was possessed by individuals who believing the gospel message were "born again," for "by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God "-so he had told the Christians of Ephesus who, before they received the gift, were dead through their trespasses and sins (2). It was not of such faith then that the Apostle wrote to Timothy when, as a prisoner "in a chain" having finished his course, he said," I have guarded the faith." Alas! that many another who had been brought to Christ by Paul and saved through simple faith in the mighty work at Calvary had, as we shall see, failed miserably in preserving inviolate the precious heritage of the faith entrusted to them.

In the prayer recorded in John 17., to His Father, the Lord had commended those disciples who had "kept Thy word." Many indeed had believed on Him, but a time came when many of His disciples found His words to be "hard sayings" instead of "words which were spirit and life," and John tells us they "went back and walked no more with Him." From Peter and those few who remained, to whom He sorrowfully queried, "Would ye also go

~ 2 Tiinothy 4.7. 2 1 Corinthians 16.18. 3 Ephes'ians 2.1, L

away? ", He received the answer which surely gladdened His heart "Lord, to whom shall we go Thou hast the words of eternal life" (4)~ And so they chose to follow Him and to keep His words and He their Lord and Master who had so guarded them now prays for them, and "for them also that believe in Me through their word that they may all be one" (5). This unity of men this fellowship~brought into being by Himself was, He knew full well, to be sorely tested The faith was, through' the ages, to suffer many vicissitudes.

The Person-so shortly to be the victim not merely of man's hate and hell's assault, but of the wrath of a righteous God-would, to the end of time, be the subject of such misrepresentation that few indeed in professing christendom would fully own His claims and authority. The Word, all that record given by God concerning His Son, the gospel of Christ, would itself also be obscured and divested of its power by that which exalted the traditions of men (of "the church") at the expense of God's word. And finally, that fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord would from its very inception, become the butt of the Adversary to the extent that, at the end of a comparatively brief life of service, he who had" kept the faith" had perforce, of one great country where the faith had been preached, to say "all that are in Asia turned away from me" The faith then centres on a Person having His word as the bond of association with those who are His disciples.

At the outset of the record in the Acts of that which followed the preaching of Peter we read that receiving his word men were baptized . . . and add'ed . . . and 'continued stedfastly in the Apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and the prayers (6). We read also that the three thousand of that day, later multiplied exceedingly and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith (7)' Here then was a transformation. Men to whom the law had hitherto meant everything, whose responsibility it was to obey the law and fulfil it now obeyed the faith Truly the law had been their tutor to bring 'to Christ those who "before the faith came, were kept in ward under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed" (8). At last, in the life-time of these priests, there was to be found on the earth "The faith once for all delivered unto the saints" (9). But newly revealed at Pentecost, it was henceforth, at first brightly but later oft-times fitfully, to be found illuming the earth through the saints and in this connexion the Lord's words, in Luke 18.8 R.V.M., present a challenge in our day and generation: "When the Son of man cometh, shall He find the faith on the earth?

John 6.80-68. 5 John17.6,21. Acts 2.41,42.

I Acts 6.7. 8 Galatians 3.28-25. 9 Jude 8.

Not for long did Satan allow the faith to flourish unhindered, or those who obeyed it to go unharassed. Saul of Tarsus "as touching the law, a Pharisee," was soon hard on the trail of" any that were of the Way," and as ringleader amongst those who made havoc of the church (i.e., in Jerusalem) he also, he says himself, "made havoc of the faith " (10). But God again made the wrath of man praise Him and by His quickening power Saul becomes a chosen vessel unto Him and a preacher of the faith of which he once made havoc. Saul-also called Paul-in speaking to the elders of Ephesus, at Miletus, speaks of that which he preached as "the whole counsel of God." His was no incomplete message. It required "repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ," it was the Gospel of the grace of God and embodied the "~preaching of the kingdom," but he was sadly aware that grievous wolves would enter in "not sparing the flock," and that from amongst themselves men would arise "speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples after them." (11)

Ths history of christendom shows how truly this came to pass. Every conceivable heresy having to do with the Person of the Lord and the authority of the Word, had within a hundred years affected the christian community and most of them still exist with their multitudes of adherents. In contrast the faith is seemingly the concern of so few, for, as at the beginning so now men must" contend earnestly for the faith." That it is not lightly to be had or held is shewn by such expressions as"all have not the faith" (12)

"try you? own selves, whether ye be in the faith" (12)

"till we all attain unto the unity of the faith " (14)

"striving for the faith of the Gospel " (15)

That many believers in the early days, as well as to-day, sadly failed in their apprehension of the faith is also clearly borne out by the solemn record of those who

"are weak in the faith " (18)

"fall away from the faith "(17)

"deny the faith " (18)

err concerning the faith '' (19)

"reprobate concerning the faith" (20).

From this dark picture we turn again to positive aspects of the precious heritage which is ours in the faith. Truly blessed are they who dwell in God's house-who are of" the household of the faith ~~(21) Do we realize that pre-eminently our responsibility, having worked that which is good toward all men, is toward this place? For here

10 Galatians 1.18-28. ~1 Acts 20.17-80. 12 2 Thessalonians 3.2. R.V.M.

13 2 Corinthians 13.5. 14 Ephes'ians 4.18. ~5 Philippians 1.27.

ie Romaus 14.1. A.V. 17 j Timothy 4.1. 18 ~ Timothy 5.8.

19 1 Timothy 8.21. 1. 2 Timothy 3.8. 21 Galatians 6.10.

"the mystery of the faith" (22) finds expression and "the words of the faith" (25) can be expounded, here also the gifts of the Spirit can lind their fullest manifestation according to the analogy of the faith (24). How needful therefore for each to examine himself to see "if perad~enture there shall be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief in falling away from the living God," even the God of "the House of God which is the church of the living God," the repository of the truth and of the mystery of the faith!

In the mercy of God the faith is its own buckler and with it we may light the good fight of the faith (25) for, with the shield of faith and therefore of the faith, we "shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil one" (26).

God grant that, as the day of our Lord's return approaches-how near it is indeed 1-we may avoid making "shipwreck concerning the faith" (27), but also, with our utmost endeavour, preaching the faith.

"I charge thee' 'says ~ to Timothy " preach the word... fullil thy ministry. Fon ~ already being offered, and the time of my departure is come I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness which'the Lord the righteous Judge, shall give to me at that day: an'd not only to m'e, but also to all them that have loved his appearing" (28).

Chamings, A. R. G. | May 1950
General