Location Location Location
Hebrews 11:6
But without faith it
is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must
believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently
seek Him.
The Golden Rule of real estate is location,
location, location. Property located in
a good neighborhood is most desirable and has the greatest value and demands
the highest price. Even though
residences in other areas may be more beautiful and have larger yards, they
simply can't demand the same high prices as a residence located in a better
neighborhood.
Homes located
near shopping and near schools are the best to find and bring the highest
prices. If you live outside the city, you
have to fight traffic every morning on the way to the office; then you have to
do it all over again every night on the way home. Living near where everything is makes it much
easier and more convenient.
In this verse in
Hebrews, the word translated "without" comes from the Greek
word which means to be outside of something, such as someone who
lives outside the city. The word brings
me to make a comparison, for example, in the house or out of the
house, in the city or out of the city. The word tells that someone is in a specific
place.
Here the word
is used to describe faith. This is
saying that someone can live a life outside of faith. This
means faith must be a real place that has boundaries. Just as you can live in a good
neighborhood or not, you can live in faith or outside of
faith. Needless to say God wants you to
be located at the address of faith because this is the location He deems the
most valuable and profitable for your life.
The part of this
verse that troubles me the most is that if you are living outside of faith, you
will find it is impossible to please God.
Impossible – something you simply cannot do.
Are you living in obedience to His Word and to the understanding
He has given you? That is where He wants
you to live and where you will be able to grow and be able to influence the
world around you. If you move out of
that location in your life called faith, you are moving to cheaper territory
that God doesn't value as highly. You
will find yourself in a place in your life where you will experience the
hardships and inconveniences brought on by poor choices and unbelief.
The entire
eleventh chapter of Hebrews is about men and women who lived "in" faith.
They each received a word from God and they worked towards fulfilling that
goal. Sometimes they strayed from that
location of faith but the successful ones always went back home to God and
picked up their lives and went on to victory.
Their lives impacted their world and they pleased God.
The devil will
try to tempt you from being faithful. He'll
throw situations at you to make you take your eyes off Jesus and to fill you
with worry and fear. If you fall for
these temptations, it won't be long before your bags will be packed and you'll
be moving to a less desirable address.
Be careful not to move out of your faith location to a new place in the
world. These are bad neighborhoods and
you will not be happy living there.
Refuse to allow
the devil to persuade you to fix your eyes on circumstances. Don't take the enemy's path that leads away from
faith. Remember that God is a "rewarder."
for those who continually live at the address of faith - those who refuse to be
moved by circumstances and reject any temptations around them. Don’t surrender to doubt; just hang onto God
and believe His Word. This verse tells
of those who diligently seek him. It
takes diligence to stay in faith. Living
"in" faith isn’t a side issue in life; it has to be a priority in
life.
Stephen Cram October 14, 2012 Colossians 2:8
Beware lest anyone cheat you through
philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to
the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. Colossians
2:8
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