By Faith, Yes, But What Is My Part?

Joey’s Story – A Letter to All Seekers of God

Fictional First-Person Narrative

To All Those Loved by the Lord:

Dear Loved Ones,

My name is Joey and I have a story to tell. I was living my life without God and came to realize that I was making a real mess of it. I thought I had it all together and was living the life everyone wanted. I was successful in business and my social life was, shall I say, in high gear. But I found that the way I was living my life had led me into deep sin and depression.

One day, while flipping through the channels on my television, I came across a program where a man was talking about the Lord. He spoke of the Lord like someone who knew the Lord and His ways. I couldn’t pull myself away from listening. The man said that all of us have sinned and needed forgiveness. He went on to tell of the great sacrifice Jesus made at the Cross. He said that by that sacrifice we are forgiven of our sins and that He offers us “newness of life.” He said we need only repent of our sins and the way we have been living our lives and that the Lord would save us. I prayed the “Sinner’s Prayer” with him and knew I had been saved by the God Who loved me and died on the Cross so that I might be forgiven. I felt great joy. Let me share the following scripture regarding Salvation:

“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1).

I was so happy that I had heard the Gospel and had accepted the Lord as my Lord and Savior. I wanted to please Him in all that I did. The joy of the Lord was my constant companion for the first several weeks until I failed the Lord one day. I was devastated! How could I do this after all the Lord had done for me? After berating myself for the failure; I determined that this could not happen again and I wanted to do everything I could to make sure it did not.

I was reluctant to share my failures with others in the church not knowing how my sharing them would be received by them. It seemed like all the sermons I heard, and all the books I read, pointed toward the Christian disciplines like reading the Bible more, fasting, praying more, and generally just trying harder. They all said this would bring me victory. I was already trying hard to follow the Lord, but I took this advice and set up a regimen that would surely give me the victory I sought. Well, it did not. I found myself failing the Lord again! What could I do? I had tried my hardest to follow the Lord and it resulted in failure?

I knew that there was an older man in my building who was a Christian. The man had a peace about him that I had never seen on anyone. I worked up the courage to approach him. He was so kind. I found myself confessing my failures to him. He just smiled at me and said that he could see how much I loved the Lord by what I had shared with Him. This took me back some as I had related the failures I was so ashamed of – I had let the Lord down.

The man explained to me that just as we cannot save ourselves; We cannot live this Christian life in our own strength. He said the Christian disciplines like praying, reading the Bible, and going to church are important, but they will not give us victory over the sin in our lives. He said it took the Lord going to the Cross to pay the sin debt. He said that Jesus defeated sin at the cross, but that we cannot gain victory over sin in our lives by self-effort. He explained that we are to place our faith in Christ Crucified daily and the Holy Spirit will work mightily in our lives to bring us the victory we seek. The man said that when we come to the Lord in salvation we have peace with God. He said that when the object of our faith remains in the Cross (Christ Crucified) we have the Peace of God as the Holy Spirit leads our way and makes us more in Christ’s image. The following verse speaks of the Peace of God in our lives:

“And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7).

From that time forward I have made Jesus and His great sacrifice on the Cross the object of my faith daily. I now walk in the peace that the Lord intended that we all experience in our lives. I know the Holy Spirit is working in my life to make me more Christ-like. I seek the Lord in prayer and Bible reading every day, but my faith is not in these. My faith is in the One that loved me and proved it by dying on the Cross so that my sins might be forgiven and that I might walk in “newness of life” by the power of the Holy Spirit. We have Peace with God and the Peace of God. By faith, we travel this road of life and are kept by His power. How great is our God!

I’ll close my letter with a verse of scripture that is a Law of God and shows us how the Holy Spirit works through Christ’s work at Calvary to bring us victory over the sin in our lives.

For the Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the Law of Sin and Death” (Romans 8:2).

Yours in Christ,

Your Fellow Traveler

Always Remember,

God Loves You!

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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2024