Perseverance

Day 1

Perseverance

–noun
1. steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc., esp. in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement.
2. Theology. continuance in a state of grace to the end, leading to eternal salvation. The steadfast effort to follow God's commands and to do His work. Enduring hardships with patience.

James 2:14 - 26

Faith and Deeds

14What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? 15Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. 16If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? 17In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
18But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.
19You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
20You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless[a]? 21Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,"[b] and he was called God's friend. 24You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.
25In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? 26As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

Dear Lord, I ask that you let my words be few this week. I ask that you speak to us all about perseverance and how to run the race, fight the fight, finish well. I know so many people who need encouragement in their lives right now. Please continue to use me to teach your word. Please help me with this devotional this week so that I can teach only your word. Thank you for what I already learned in preparing the devotional.

Day 2

Breaking it down.

When someone claims to have faith, what he or she may have is intellectual assent - agreement with a set of Christian teachings- which may result in incomplete faith.

Then there are those with true faith, which transforms our conduct as well as our thoughts.

If our life remains unchanged, we don't truly believe the truths we claim to believe.

Let me make one thing clear, we cannot earn our salvation by serving and obeying God. Such actions show that our commitment to God is real. Deeds of loving service are not a substitute for, but rather a verification of, our faith in Christ. We will not be saved by our deeds.

True faith always results in a changed life and good deeds. We must make a commitment of our whole self to God.

We are not justified by what we do in any way. Faith brings us salvation; active obedience demonstrates that our faith is genuine.

John 2:14What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? 15Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. 16If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? 17In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. 18But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. 19You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. 20You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless[a]? 21Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,"[b] and he was called God's friend. 24You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.

Day 3

First, I need you to watch a clip from Youtube.com. We may be beat down, but God will not let us be destroyed. I know that I have felt this way before, so here is a good visual.

If this link does not work, please let me know. It is powerful. You will need sound on for this.

Rahab lived in Jericho, a city the Israelites conquered as they entered the Promise Land (Joshua 2). When Israel's spies came to the city she hid them and helped them escape. In this way she demonstrated faith in God's purpose for Israel. As a result, she and her family were saved when the city was destroyed. Hebrews 11:31 lists Rahab among the hero's of faith.

25In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? 26As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

In what ways has perseverance been evident in your life? Do you pick and choose your actions by faith, or by convenience? Are you a hero of faith? What do you need to do different in your life?

Do you agree with what I have taught already? Why or why not?

Would you say that you have intellectual assent (agreement of Christian teachings) or true faith (faith with action)? Have you ever considered this question in your life? Is it tough sometimes to take action instead of just agree with what you have heard?

Do you endure hardships with patience? or fold under pressure? Have you noticed that your character has not changed in the circumstances where you folded? What would have happened if you would have been patient in that area? how will you act the next time you are faced with a hardship or circumstance that requires action?

Dwelling on the past and the things that have stopped you from being in relationship with God, will only hold you back from having the character that God wants you to have. Can you take a moment to release all those past failures that you may have and choose to be made right with God, move forward and endure whatever it is that he has in store for you from this day forward?

Dear Lord, I recognize that this is a huge subject for many of us. And to raise the question that we may just be agreeing with what we have been taught and not actually having enough faith to act on what we believe, may be too much for some of us to grasp. I understand that our character is sharpened by our trials, so Lord, I ask that you help us when we are struggling. Some of us may be paralyzed with our failures, fears. Please remove that from our spirits, cleanse us with a new breath of life, with a new vision. We love you Lord, help us to answer the difficult questions, the call on our lives and the unsettled urge to do something other than just believe in you.

Day 4

The New Testament says faith alone can save, but it makes it equally clear that perseverance in doing good works is the greatest indication that an individuals faith is genuine. Perseverance springs from a faithful trust that God has been steadfast toward His people. Through persevering in God's work, Christians prove their deep appreciation for God's saving grace.

1 Corinthians 15:57-58

57But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Because of the resurrection, nothing we do is useless. Sometimes we become apathetic about serving the Lord because we don't see any results. Knowing that Christ has won the ultimate victory should affect the way we live right now. Don't let discouragement over an apparent lack of results keep you from doing the work of the Lord enthusiastically as you have opportunity to do so.

We can expect to become closer to God. We will learn that we can persevere primarily because God is intimately related to us. Even if we do not know what to do in our lives, the Spirit will teach us and guide us. So the nudging in your Spirit is a good indication that you need to act.

Romans 8:25-27

25But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
26In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 27And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.

Day 5

As a result of perseverance, we can expect to build up strength in our characters as well as the strength of the church, becoming a unit of the whole body of Christ in our community.

Romans 5:3 Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4perseverance, character; and character, hope.

Have you ever heard the saying that we will become but until then we must overcome?

We will experience difficulties that help us grow. We rejoice in suffering, not because we like pain or deny its tragedy, but because we know God is using life's difficulties and Satan's attack to build our character. It deepens our faith in God and gives us great confidence about our future. You probably find your patience tested in some way every day. Thank God for those opportunities to grow and deal with them in his strength, which is far greater than your own.

We will find hardships in every area of our lives. Marriage, parenting, friendships, teams, workplace and even in the church. If we cut off relationship in these areas because of pressure, our character may never be sharpened or strengthened. I know that I have been strengthened through each of the above areas by not folding under the pressure. I also know that there have been times that I have had to re-visit hardships for lack of proper response. I acted on my own without asking God to lead and guide me. If there is an area in your life that seems to continue to give you hardship, is it possible that you haven't pressed on and been patient enough to see the fruit of your patience and perseverance?

Lord, I trust that this devotional will start to move some of us out of a place we have been dwelling in too long. Will you stir up in our hearts a new passion, a new spirit of perseverance. Give us a faith, even as small as a mustard seed, to push on and endure the hardship so that we can have victory once and for all in that area. I pray this with all my heart, Amen.