We gain salvation by grace through faith. What does this foundation give us after conversion? This daily devotional reviews the goals of salvation and ways we are transformed through growth.
Devotions in the Self-Discipline Review series
All year, we’ve been looking at self-discipline. We looked at self-discipline as the operational plan for self-control because it talked about improvement.
We are reviewing everything and hopefully putting all of the building blocks together. What I am doing is going through all of the devotions for the year and pulling out the nuggets.
I am formatting this as a glossary page. If I already have one, I will combine them later.
Our foundation is built on the blessings of faith, hope, peace, joy, comfort, and glory. It is only through Jesus’ love that we have hope (How Do We Know We Have Eternal Hope?).
It is logical that we would have a weak faith at conversion. We take the faith we have at conversion and grow it (What Does Sanctification Have to Do with Purity?; Staying Strong in God during Hard Times to Build Hope).
Faith after Salvation
New Believer
Confession with our mouth is one thing. Baptism is confession with the rest of us. This is how we articulate our faith for others to see (Is Baptism a Part of Salvation?).
God does love us before we put our faith and trust in Him — but He loves us so much more so afterwards. Think of God loving us. Individually. As a nation. As a world (How Did Moses Say Goodbye?).
God reveals Himself more fully to us after we make a profession of faith. God reveals the meat of His Word only to His children (Learning about Jesus from the Holy Spirit).
When we have the faith that God has forgiven us and provided us with salvation, we can trust that God has carried through with his promises (The Promise of God’s Forgiveness).
We can see God now — through faith (Discerning between the Seen and Unseen Worlds to Secure Eternity).
Salvation’s Goal
Growing into a mature faith should be a goal of all of us. It takes self-discipline to reach it (Are Disciples to be Docile?).
Once we do admit our sins, believe that Jesus is our Savior, and confess God as Sovereign Lord, we do have to demonstrate that commitment by obeying Him. Our faith has to grow (Faith as a Virtue).
Once we have faith in our Sovereign God, we grow to love Him (Love and Obedience: The Last Two Steps in Salvation).
It is ABCD, not just ABC. Faith in God has to change us to be more like God. On the flip side, it isn’t just D. We have to ABCD, or D is just acts and could have nothing to do with God (Faith of the Unseen).
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to
live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
Embryo stage — milk baby. Grow — being sanctified. Mature faith — steak adult (What Does Charity Mean?).
Faith can be a gift — but it is what we do with the gift. We have a duty to grow it. If faith doesn’t grow, it dies (Faith as a Virtue).
Faith is a choice. We do have to work to grow our faith (Faith as a Virtue).
See Also
Growing and Transforming
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We do have to make an effort to grow our faith. We have to diligently work to make sure we are following God’s plan for our lives (Evidence of Election).
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We build our character as we mature our faith (What Does Charity Mean?).
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We can’t make a profession of faith and not let it change us. We don’t get peace if we do that (What Is Peace?).
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God knows where He needs us to work. We have to put our faith and trust in Him. We need to grow closer to Him so that we can perform the tasks to which we are called. We do that by seeking Him (What Is Evangelism?).
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Our faith is growing. No, we may not see it growing deeper on a day-by-day basis. We will when God pulls out one of those tests that He puts us through. Then we can see how our faith has grown (What Is the Relationship between Righteousness and Sanctification?).
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Our faith is strong because it is rooted and grounded in the Savior. Though it is rooted on the unseen, we see the Savior with the eyes of our hearts (Applying the Spiritual World to Everyday Life).
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When we have heart faith, we have a closer relationship with God. That is because the communication is there (What is Hope in God to a Disciple of Christ?).
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While we are enduring, we see how God loves us. We see His hand guiding us and providing for us. That builds our faith. That is from where the views and principles come (Staying Strong in God during Hard Times to Build Hope).
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The only way this transformation works is if the Holy Spirit shows us what needs to be changed, gives us the desire for the change, and helps us accomplish the achievement of purity. This is all contingent on faith (Applying the Spiritual World to Everyday Life).
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We need to choose God and strive to imitate Him. We need to grow in the stableness that He provides. That grows our faith, which leads to godliness (What Is Truth?).
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Waiting for God’s timing through faith renews us (Isaiah’s Message on Renewal).
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Faith grows faith (Applying the Spiritual World to Everyday Life).
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We can put our faith and trust in God because He is dependable (Isaiah’s Message on Our Call).
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We have to make sure we remain loyal and faithful. We do that by keeping our heart right. When we need corrected, we need to learn from it (Spiritual Wisdom Leads to Righteousness).
See Also
Our Call to Faith
As disciples, we have to constantly put our faith and trust in God (What Is Religious Freedom?).
When we are anxious, we don’t put faith and trust in God (What Else Is Spiritual Freedom?).
Because we have faith, we seek God (Belief: The First Step to Salvation).
Remembering is supposed to help us be faithful (The Rewards of Faithfulness).
We also must be faithful. We need to be committed to whatever God calls us to do. We can’t hold out until a better — or easier — mission is given to us. We have to complete the tasks He assigns (Expectations of a Steward).
Submitting
God will always let us come to Him when we are hurting and upset. He can stand the tears. He is big enough to be asked why. When we are bullied or feel like we have been dealt an unfair hand, God lets us question. As long as we question in faith. As long as we acknowledge He is Lord of Armies. Our attitude has to be right. We have to approach Him as Sovereign God (The Hopeful Family).
We are putting our faith and trust in the God Who made us. We are letting Him take control (Rewards for Focusing on God).
God is a hands-on God. He doesn’t want us to make a profession of faith and never contact Him again. He wants us to be firmly on the Sanctification Road. He wants us to let Him provide for us (Old Testament Reasons for Judgment).
No, God doesn’t want us to do — and think that we’ve done it on our own. He wants us to put our faith and trust in Him (Are We Proactive or Reactive?).
God lets us ask — when we ask in faith and submission. It is when we as in anger or disbelief that God does not like us questioning Him (Faithful and Unfaithful Stewards).
Being Obedient
Faithful servants are obedient (Faithful and Unfaithful Stewards).
We have to let God’s Word — His laws and commandments — change our character. We have to let them help us to imitate Him. That means we have to believe what we are reading. We have to really dive into the Bible. It has to increase our faith (What Is Obedience?).
God does test us to get us to prove our faith (Does God Tempt Us?).
God’s faithful and effective care and guidance will be present with those who care for the physical and spiritual needs of others (How Are Disciples Merciful?).
Part of God’s armor which we are to put on is the shoes of preparation. Preparation gives us peace and contentment that only faith in Jesus can bring. We can’t wait until the trial shows up to start reading our Bible and praying to God (How Are Disciples Peacemakers?).
Once we get in the middle of a trial, we need to fall back on those instructions so we remain faithful to God (Who Is the Holy Spirit?).
We build that faith by spending time with God in prayer. To comprehend, we have to have knowledge. To have knowledge, we have to seek God – hear His Word, read it, study it, meditate on it, and memorize it. All through that, we need to be in prayer, asking God to provide the meaning (How Can We Heal This Land?).
Doing God’s Will
We are supposed to respond in faith and do God’s Will. In other words, hearing alone is not good enough. We have to put into practice what God is telling us. This is one way we worship God (What Is Obedience?).
Is God going to be okay if we lead in faith but veer off before we turn our lives over to Him? Oh, no, no, no, no. He is not going to accept that (Temperance as a Virtue).
We have to keep keeping on until God calls time on whatever we are facing. We can’t give up. We can’t lose faith in Him (Patience as a Virtue).
God calls us to be worker bees. We each have our part to do. No, works aren’t needed for salvation. Works are needed for obedience after salvation. But still, faith is the defining factor (What Is Diligence?).
We have to be faithful and do what God is calling us to do (How Does Boldness Help Consistency?).
True, Matthew 25: 31-46 says there has to be evidence of faith. We have to be careful and not think those acts justify us. Belief gets us salvation. Faith produces works that are the result of our obedience. In turn, those works show our faith to others (How the Righteousness of God Filters to Us).
It is only through faith that disciples attempt to imitate Jesus and exhibit true compassion, pity, and love (What Is Expected of Disciples?).
We need to grow in faith and knowledge so we can witness (Is Election Really Mercy?).
We may be the stewards and not the owners, but we are called to be faithful in whatever duties God gives us (A Steward Gone Bad).
Faith to Withstand Sin
How is belief in philosophy and human opinions and speculations going to take us captive? It will make us sin. Our faith will decrease. We will stop seeking God. We will rely on ourselves and other humans to explain things and tell us how to think, feel, and react (What Is Spiritual Discernment?).
Faith gives us peace and hope because it takes away the censure that we have for our sins. When we ask God to forgive us, He does (What is Hope in God to a Disciple of Christ?).
We will face persecution if the worldview people see evidence of our faith in God. Luckily, we won’t be fighting the persecution alone (How Do Disciples Escape Persecution?).
Father God. It isn’t enough just to know You. We must be living for You — imitating You. Help us to grow our faith so that our character reflects You. Amen.
What do you think?
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