By Grace Through Faith

Superstar talk: Catch Joseph Prince's New Book. He's the real preacher, not like me, the ciplak one.

Many people struggles with the issue of faith, which is a non-issue to begin with. I blame the poor teachings throughout churches in Malaysia and the simple-minded Christians who attend them. What is a Christian if he goes to church week in and week out yet not seek His word to understand for the betterment of himself. As King Solomon put it, knowledge is good but wisdom is much better! Seek therefore wisdom and adore her for she shall give you long life and prosperity.


I want to momentarily stray from the text so that I may ask you to observe the fountainhead of our salvation, which is the grace of God. "By grace are ye saved" (Ephesians 2:8). Because God is gracious, therefore sinful men are forgiven, converted, purified and saved. It is not because of anything in them or that ever can be in them that they are saved. It is because of the boundless love, goodness, pity, compassion, mercy and grace of God. God is full of love, for "God is love" (1 John 4:8) God is full of goodness the very name "God" is short for "good".


I am very sure some of us have similar experience too. I too from day to day forgive those who sins against me for I am good. There is absolutely no other reason. Not one.


Remember this (the grace of God) that you may not fall into error by fixing your mind so much on faith which is the channel of salvation that you forget the grace which is the fountain and source of faith itself. Faith is the work of God's grace in us. We are saved through faith but salvation is by grace.


Faith must be true and sound. It must lead right up to God and come right down to ourselves so that it may become serviceable channel of mercy to our soul. Still, I remind you again that faith is only the channel or conductor, not the fountainhead. We must not look to it so much that we exalt it above the divine source of all blessing which lies in the grace of God. Never make a Christ out of your faith, nor think of it as if it were the independent source of our salvation. Our life is found in "looking unto Jesus" (Hebrews 12:2), not in looking to our own faith. By faith all things become possible to us. Yet the power is not in the faith but in the God in whom faith relies.


See then that the weakness of your faith will not destroy you. A trembling hand may receive a golden gift. The Lord's salvation can come to us though we have only faith as a grain of mustard seed. Great messages can be sent along slender wires. The peace-giving witness of the Holy Spirit can reach the heart by means of threadlike faith which seems unable to sustain its own weight.


Therefore, think more of Him to whom you look than faith itself, you must look away even from your own looking and see nothing but Jesus and the grace of God revealed in Him.


Having said that, and having you understand it. I am now able to share with you regarding "what is faith", "how may faith be illustrated" and "why are we saved by faith". But that I will discuss in my next series of teachings. See you then.