“Do Not Throw Away Your Confidence!”

“Do Not Throw Away Your Confidence!”(Heb.10:32-39).
“Remember those early days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For just in a little while, ‘He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him.’ But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.”
“Life is not a bed of roses.” Even if it were, roses grow on thorny shrubs. To harvest the roses you risk being pierced by the thorns.
The race is not always for the swiftest, because hasty climbers may have sudden falls.
The race of salvation is for those who persist to the finish line. It is not about reaching first; it is about reaching the winning point.
We all begin with enthusiasm, but along the way discouragement and discontent may set in and retard our progress.
Yes, even the race of faith has its down moments, when we feel like giving up. It is only during the tough moments that the tough are known because they get going. “Tough times never lasts, but tough people do.”
You see, many an army have been destroyed because on the eve of victory they say down to rest, and while resting they were overpowered! That is why we must never give up in this race of faith.
Today’s text as cited above up to chapter 12:3 is an exposition of Habbakuk 2:3-4: “For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. See, he is puffed up; his desires are not upright – but the righteous will live by his faith” This became the rallying cry of Protestant Reformation. It is quoted in different ways by New Testament authors.
The bottom line of it all, “In the light of God’s revelation about how he is working, his people have to live by faith – trusting in the sovereign God.”
We are saved by grace through faith, and should live by faith in patient hope.
Faith propels us to keep on keeping on, for “we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.”
So therefore my friend, no matter what, keep trusting, keep believing and keep waiting in patient hope! Faith does not disappoint.
Weekend prayer: Holy Spirit increase in me spiritual resilience. Amen!
Have a blessed weekend! Peace be with you!
Rev Babila Fochang.