Read: Luke 18: 3-8 Faithful to the End“But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”
1Peter 5:10
God works in perfect timing to release to us what has been promised to us. He is never late or too early. Those who hope in His word will never be put to shame. God’s word to us causes us to hope. Hope causes us to pray and be expectant of the receiving of our request. We continue to hope for what we cannot see. Patience is set in motion as we continue to wait on the Lord. A time will come when the confession of the Word will build up faith in us. Faith is the believing that, what was promised us has been delivered.
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”. Heb.11:1 Faith gains for us a ‘good report’. Faith changes prayers into praise. With faith there is a confidence and assurance and receiving in the Spirit of what we cannot yet see manifest in the natural.
Not everything we have had faith for will be received by us in the natural in our life time. We read in Hebrews 11 of many who did not receive the promises but saw it afar off. They all had faith and patience continued her work in them.
“These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.” Heb.11:13. Even though they did not receive the promise they all died in faith.
In our parable today the widow’s persistence got her request from the judge. Persistence is good, and Jesus encourages us not to give up, however Jesus concluded that parable saying
“Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” God is more pleased in our belief of Him than our works for Him. The disciples once asked Jesus, What must we do to do the works of God, Jesus answered. “
This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent” John 6:29 God desires that we believe Him.
Why is faith so important to God?
“But without faith it is impossible to please him”.Heb.11:6 When we pray that we please God then He will answer by giving us opportunities to exercise faith. Don’t be disheartened that there are issues in your life which you have waited for a long time. That situation is your God given opportunity to exercise faith and your faith is well pleasing to Him. Nothing thrills Gods heart more than a person who chooses to believe.
During our time of waiting, patience is completing her work in us. Patience is perfecting us, completing us and causing us to be so satisfied that we lack in nothing.
“But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing” James 1:4 James says to count it all joy when our faith is being tested. We are to allow patience to complete her work. It is possible to insist on our way and receive what we want before its time. But we lose out on the full work of patience in us. A long awaited desire of your heart is fertile ground through which patience is doing a wonderful work in you. Through that process you are gaining Christ and knowing Him better. What could be more satisfying than gaining Christ? Paul the Apostle said,
“But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord:” In Christ we have gained everything for all things have been given to Him.
Gods design for us is not just the receiving of our requests but our perfection. He wants to give us the best in everything.
Jesus said, “I am come that you might have life and have it more abundantly”. There is something more precious than the receiving of the things of God and that is the person of God. There is no fullness and no completion apart from Him may we allow patience her full work in us to make us perfect and entire,lacking in nothing!. Amen.
“For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power”Col.2:9-10
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