“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (KJV)
In this passage, faith is linked to “things hoped for” and “things not seen”. A dictionary definition of hope is that hope is “a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen”. Some dictionary synonyms of hope include: desire, wish, expectation, aim, plan, dream, etc. These are all activities of the mind. In other words, hope or desire or expectation or dream (not the dream in sleep, but wish) are all activities of the mind. It is with the mind that you imagine what has not happened and wish for it to happen. Meaning, the mind (or heart) is where faith is to be maintained.
How is faith to be maintained?
1 Timothy 6:12 and 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 give a clue. 1 Timothy 6:12 says: “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.”. The key phrase for our consideration is “fight the good fight of faith”. There is a fight of faith. It is the fight to maintain faith.
How is this fight fought? 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 says: “[4] (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) [5] Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”.
This passage tells us that for the good fight of faith (the fight to maintain faith), God has made available mighty weapons with which we can pull down strongholds, cast down imaginations, and take every thought captive to obey Christ. These mighty weapons are in the Word of God. It’s no wonder the Word of God is referred to as:
- A Sword, in Ephesians 6:17 and Hebrews 4:12
- A flaming hammer, in Jeremiah 23:29
- The power of God for salvation, in Romans 1:16
As such, in summary, the fight to maintain faith involves using the Word of God to cast down imaginations and thoughts in your mind that oppose the Word of God. Meaning, to grow in faith, you need to occupy your mind with the Word of God (resisting all contrary knowledge, imaginations, opinions and thoughts).
Prayer for today:
Lord Jesus, help me to uphold only the Word of God in my heart and mind. Let my imaginations and thoughts be based on Your truths and not any other information. Help me to grow in faith and maintain faith by diligently fighting the good fight of faith. Give me skill to make good use of scriptures as weapons of war to pull down strongholds of fear, to cast down doubtful imaginations, and to ensure that all thoughts in my mind are consistent with the truths of Your Word and nothing else.
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