Faithfulness is a bit hard to nail down because it takes a few different forms for us. It can mean full of faith, trusting and believing in God. It can also be defined as being trustworthy, loyal, dependable, true to our word, and diligent to fulfill responsibilities.
We know that God is faithful. In Exodus 34:6, God describes himself to Moses in this way, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness…” What beautiful attributes he has. He is trustworthy and we can rely on him. He doesn’t lie and he keeps his promises to his people. He has our best interests at heart.
So what is faithfulness for us and how can the Spirit increase it in us?
It is living in confidence of God’s existence.
In Hebrews 11:1, Paul describes faith this way: “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
We believe in God, even though we have never seen him and even though it may sound absurd to some. We know in our heart that God exists even though we have never shaken his hand, bowed at his feet, or felt his arms providing comfort to us.
But it’s more than just a belief in God’s existence; it’s living by this belief.
Hebrews 11 is full of examples of people in the Bible who were faithful; these individuals acted by faith because God called them and they were confident in him. They obeyed because they knew that being in God’s will was the best place to be. They feared and respected him. Obedience to their calling was their way of showing their faithfulness, even when it resulted in persecution or pain.
Faithfulness is walking in step with the Spirit, in awe of God and confident of our eternity because of God’s faithfulness to us. We can have faith through tough times because we trust that God is working all things for our good, even when that seems to contradict what we are experiencing. Our ultimate reward will not be on this earth, but in heaven with our Father.
Faithfulness is living in confidence of God’s existence. How does the way you live profess your faith, or lack of it?
It increases when we grow in our understanding of God’s character.
It is impossible to love someone you don’t know. Sometimes children feel a tug in their heart for God and we celebrate when they profess their faith, become saved and are baptized. But accepting Christ isn’t the end of the story, whether you’re 8 or 88–it’s only the beginning.
Our faithfulness can only grow as we seek to know God more closely. Just as a friendship or relationship deepens with time spent together, our faith deepens through time spent with God. When we get to know him through his word, learn to discern the voice of the Spirit and truly understand the depth of sacrifice of the Son, we can’t help but fall more in love with our God who is so faithful, so kind and so loving toward us.
We absorb his characteristics when we understand him better, so to become more faithful, we must seek to know God better.
It is our defense against the enemy.
The armor of God is described in Ephesians 6. In verse 16, Paul says, “In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.”
A shield of faith.
Faith is how we guard ourselves against the flaming arrows of our enemy–fear, anxiety, worry, temptation, comparison, insecurity, addiction. What flaming arrows has the enemy shot at you?
Not only is faith our defense, but God also protects his faithful.
Proverbs 2:8 says, “for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones.”
1 Samuel 2:9 says, “He will guard the feet of his faithful servants, but the wicked will be silenced in the place of darkness.” Silenced in the place of darkness sounds truly terrifying to me. I would much rather be in the faithful servant category for eternity.
When we feel like we are under attack, we have a hope and a strategy: increase our faith by seeking God.
It is cultivated when we use our gifts to serve others.
God gives each of us incredible gifts and talents with which we are to use to bless others. He entrusts some with a beautiful voice, others with a heart to teach young children, and still others with a knack for growing crops or flowers. He delights in seeing us use our special gifts to serve others. We shine and glorify God when we use our gifts to serve our brothers and sisters. When we handle our spiritual gifts responsibly, we are showing faithfulness to God.
In Matthew 25, Jesus speaks about the parable of the bags of gold, or talents. In this story, Jesus tells of a master giving three of his servants bags of gold before going away on a trip. To the two who had “put the money to work,” the master replies, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” One of the servants buried his bag of gold out of fear, and the master rebuked him and made him give his bag of gold to one of the other servants.
I don’t know about you, but I long to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant…come and share your master’s happiness!” at the end of my life. Jesus teaches us that we must use our talents wisely.
1 Peter 4:10 tells us, “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.”
God is delighted when we are faithful with the gifts he gives us.
It is strengthened by being true to our word.
Faithfulness is also built in our character when we are reliable. When we say something and mean it. When we commit and follow through. When we are dependable to get the job done without reminders. When we keep our promises.
This is when we know God’s faithfulness has rubbed off on us, when we do these things. This is when others know they can trust us. They don’t have to question if what we say is really true or that it will happen. They can rely on us to be true to our word.
Have you ever been around someone who isn’t like this? It can be frustrating and disappointing–and sometimes heart breaking.
Our words and commitments matter, even when our feelings change or times get tough. Ecclesiates 5:5 says, “It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it.”
Being faithful has two sides.
The first side is to guard what we say, promise or commit to. When we overcommit or make a promise we don’t intend to keep even if things get tough, we make it harder on ourselves to be faithful. When we say untrue things, we are proving ourselves to be untrustworthy.
The second side is to follow through when we have spoken, promised or committed to doing something. If we follow through, we are strengthening our faithfulness. If and when we fail to follow through, it is important to acknowledge this discrepancy and ask for forgiveness from whoever relied on us to keep our word.
It is made complete when we obey God.
James 2:22 says, “You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.”
Believing in God is a right and necessary first step in having faith, but our faithfulness is made complete through our obedience to God’s will.
Think about someone who simply says they love you (and you believe they do), versus someone who says they love you and proves it daily with their selfless actions. In the first, there is love, but no richness of relationship or closeness; in the second, there is connection, reliance, comfort and trust.
Our love and faith is made complete when we keep God’s commands and follow his personal prompts in our lives.
Faithfulness has many facets, as you can see, but it really boils down to obedience to God. When we live in obedience to the one we love, respect and revere, we know him, trust him and follow where he leads. His path will never lead us to become unreliable or untrustworthy–that is our doing. His path is straight and righteous and leads to eternal life.
May we live by faith.
Ideas to practice faithfulness:
- Keep your word, even in the small things and even to your kids. If you promise to do something, make every effort to do it.
- Guard your words. Don’t say things you don’t mean or make promises you don’t intend to keep.
- If you have been untrustworthy, ask for forgiveness and repent.
- Let go of worrying about something you’ve been holding on to. Trust God with the outcome.
- Read Hebrews 11 and think about why these people were “heroes of faith.”
- Ask God to show you how you can become more faithful to him and to those who rely on you.
- Show loyalty by not speaking negative words about your loved ones.
- Show up on time.
- Get your work or chores done without having to be reminded.
Lord, thank you for being faithful to us. It is a comfort to know we can rely on you. We humbly ask you to help us to become more faithful, both to you and to others. Help us live in obedience to your commands and will. Let us be loyal, trustworthy and reliable, and let others find comfort in our faithfulness. Guide us to speak only truth and to act in truth according to our words. Amen.
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