(Hearing + Belief) x Action = FAITH
By, Kyle W.
Hebrews 11:6, And without faith, it is impossible to please God…
PROGRAM OBSERVATIONS
After nearly eight-years with Mighty Oaks, I NEVER cease to be amazed at the Lord’s transformative work in the hearts and minds of those in attendance. In the approximate 96-hours we are together (Monday afternoon to Friday afternoon), it is nothing short of a miracle to witness the transformation of many who have been a “captive” (John 8:34), “prodigal son or daughter” (Luke 15:11-32), and/or a “lazy servant” (Matthew 25:24-30).
Just as the Lord receives the glory for His unseen work in the hearts and minds of those who attend, the glory also goes to Him for commissioning us as staff – former POW’s, strays, and freeloaders – to partner with Him in this effort of “Saving Lives, Restoring Families, and Changing Legacies!” We do this according to the direct teaching of the Scriptures, our Biblically influenced curriculum, employing Biblical counseling methods, asking strategic questions, doing a lot of listening, sharing our testimonies transparently, offering the occasional hug, and, of course, delivering metaphoric “pokes” oriented towards the mind and heart to awaken some from their spiritual slumber. For me, one of my favorite parts of being a Team Leader is watching this process unfold, where the supernatural (God’s unseen work) clashes with the natural (our very seen, non-salvific works). God could have chosen to do it all by Himself, but He didn’t. He invites us into this process with Him, not only here at Mighty Oaks but throughout the entirety of the Christian life. It’s a process we can better refer to as “faith in action.” If we only told them about God and didn’t model for them the tangible ways they are to connect with Him upon returning home, this process would be incomplete.
FAITH IN ACTION
Hebrews 11 gives us example after example of what “faith in action” looks like. While faith does begin by “hearing” (Romans 10:17), it must be converted into tangible, daily, practical response on the part of the believer to show that they do indeed “trust” and “follow” God. Essentially,
(Hearing + Belief) x Action = FAITH.
Examine for yourself the adjectives that follow the characters referenced in chapter 11, signifying their internal belief converted into external action:
Abel offered (v. 4)
Enoch…pleased God (vs. 5)
Noah…constructed (v. 7)
Abraham…obeyed (v. 8)…went (v. 9)…offered up (v. 17)
Issac invoked (v. 20)
Jacob…blessed (v. 21)
Joseph…gave directions (v. 22)
Moses…refused (v. 24)…considered (v. 26)…endured (v. 27)…kept (v. 28)
The people [Israelites]…crossed (v. 29)…encircled (v. 30)
Rahab…welcomed (v. 31)
If you keep reading, you’ll observe the entire closing eight verses (vv. 32-40) enhance this principle of “faith in action” to an even greater degree when recalling the lives of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jepthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets.
CONCLUSION
Without our intellectual faith being converted into actionable faith, it’s not really faith at all. James 2:14, 18 (ESV) emphasizes this according to two bold questions: (1) “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?” (2) “Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless?”
This concept is proven true in the lives of the alumni once the program concludes and they return to the circumstances and battles they were fighting before arriving to a session. If a person is continuing to walk out their faith and their relationship with God continues to grow (at whatever stage), it is often attributed to their frequent, external implementation of the 4-B’s (Be in the Word, Be in prayer, Be in church, Be in fellowship) in concert with the Holy Spirit’s internal work. If they are not just struggling (let’s be honest, every Christian struggles), but struggling and not growing in their faith through the struggle, the simplest litmus test is to ask them what their implementation of the 4-B’s looks like. Any sacrifice or incorrect use of one or more of these vital core pillars of the Christian life usually reveals the answer. Of course, this isn’t just true of the alumni, but is true of anyone who calls themselves a follower of Jesus. That’s why our Mighty Oaks leadership requires us as staff to give an account as to how we’re applying these actionable pillars to our own lives as well! How about for you, how is your faith being actioned?
Fantastic Adventures In Trusting Him
