Rom 1:17

"For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith" Rom 1:17

Every once in a while the children in any neighborhood would get into a name calling contest. Eventually, someone would issue a really bad epithet. Not having a stronger reply, the recipient would reply, "It takes one to know one!" Usually the argument would continue for a while longer to be ended when someone stomped off vowing never to play with the other "ever again!"

It seems that we would often double a comment to add emphasis. Paul does the same thing in today's verse. "The righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith." Similar to "it takes one to know one" only better. God can take a little bit of faith and increase it. Not only CAN He do it, He LONGS to do it. That is His greatest desire! "But where does that first bit of faith come from?"

Paul tells us in Ephesians that God gives us the first bit of faith - its His gift to us. (For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. [Eph 2:8 KJV]) You see, God does not want any of us to miss out on His glorious grace. He also is not willing for any of us to say we "earned" our way into Heaven. That's impossible. It just can't be done. When it comes to our salvation - our redemption - our adoption into God's family, we are totally dependent upon the Father to do it. Oh, we may try. But have any of us ever succeeded? No. We have all failed.

So, when all is said and done, we really do live by faith - not by our senses. And that faith is so unobtainable that we can only receive it by God planting it in our hearts. The next time you are tempted to say "I feel that . . .," STOP and think about what Pastor Edwin been saying and remember. We are a faith people. We know God well enough that we can recognize His voice as He speaks to our spirits. And, hearing God's voice, we act believing that God will direct our paths. Amen and Amen.