Inside Out Faith

Inside Out Faith

Inside out faith

Do you have Jesus in your heart? Good for you. But do you have inside out faith? Does your faith get an outside expression too? Does the workings of Jesus in your heart get you also work out your faith?

These are fundamental questions. When our faith becomes an inside out faith, we are truly experiencing the joy of salvation. Sure, we are saved only by grace through faith in Jesus. But that is not the end of it. We are also called to abide in Christ. And when Jesus lives in us, we are enabled to both to will and to work for God’s good pleasure. We are empowered by the Holy Spirit to live out and work out our faith.

Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (Phil.2:12-13, NRSV, emphasis added,*)

This does not mean that we could ever earn our salvation. Only God works salvation in and saves us. But only we can work salvation out. Working out our own salvation means we put our faith in practice. We don’t keep our faith inside of us. We pull our faith from inside out and live it out. All this because God is working in us.

When we truly work out our salvation, we learn to know our faith inside out. This inside out faith empowers us to humbly serve others. This inside out faith equips us to endure anything. This inside out faith enables us to truly enjoy living with God. We find meaning, purpose, and peace. We enjoy hope, love, and joy. We are home in God.

 

Gracious God,
You have planned everything so beautifully.
Enable us to have inside out faith,
empower us to live and work out our faith.
Show us how you want us to serve you.
Thank you for having a perfect plan
for all of us.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Q4U: Do you have an inside out faith? How does it impact your life?

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you live and work out your inside out faith?

* [As you might have noticed, I enjoy reading the Bible in different translations and love comparing them. I have started linking the Bible verses to Biblegateway.com so you can easily read (and compare) them in the different versions I’ve used while preparing each post.]

Image courtesy of Kendall Conner, design Mari-Anna Stålnacke. Linking up today with Unite the Bloggersphere, Three Word Wednesday and #tellhisstory.

4 thoughts on “Inside Out Faith

  1. “We don’t keep our faith inside of us. We pull our faith from inside out and live it out.” A post that leaves me reflecting on how I know it’s still easier for me to keep my faith on the inside. I’m comfortable sharing in my blog space but outside of my blog and other Christians, it can still feel uncomfortable. I’m reminded as I write of how God doesn’t call the equipped, He equips those who He calls. There are many thought-provoking posts today for Three Word Wednesday. 🙂 Thanks for sharing, Mari-Anna. Blessings.

  2. I love this phrase: Inside Out Faith. Encouraging, convicting, and thought-provoking post! I’m glad I stopped by!

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