Living faithfully

John Bunyan is his well-known volume Pilgrim’s Progress pictures the journey of believers from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City. The chief character called Christian has two main companions. First, there is Faithful who is martyred in the town of Vanity Fair. Second, there is Hopeful who then accompanies Christian until they cross the river of death together. Bunyan is not suggesting that a believer can be either Faithful or Hopeful. Rather he is pointing out that both descriptions should be true of all Christians, since death concludes the accounts of the witness of both Faithful and Hopeful.

The topic of faithfulness raises obvious questions: to whom are we to be faithful? To what are we to be faithful? Where are we to be faithful? How can we be faithful? How long are we to be faithful? We can give some answers to those questions and then we can consider some biblical examples of persons described as faithful.

To whom are we to be faithful?

The obvious answer is to God, but that is not the only answer. Regarding this latter point, we can observe that Daniel was faithful in his employment as he served in the pagan empire of Babylon, a fact recognised by his unbelieving colleagues. Another additional answer is that we are to be faithful to the church by engaging in what the Lord has instituted for his people. After all, the church is the visible expression of God’s kingdom.

Concerning faithfulness to God, we can think about how we can be faithful to each person of the Trinity, and do so by mentioning briefly some ways to be so. How would we show faithfulness to the heavenly Father? One obvious way of doing so is by remembering that believers are members of the family of God and that are its representatives wherever they are. As God’s children, we reveal faithfulness in our prayer lives, and we also reveal it by how we show brotherly love. 

How would we show faithfulness to the Son of God? By depending upon him for salvation and obeying his instructions for dedicated living for his glory. This is what it means to be a disciple of Jesus, not just in Bible times, but in all times. In the Gospels we read about unfaithful disciples, that is those who ceased to recognise Jesus as their Master and stopped identifying with him. Sadly, that kind of departure still happens.

How would we show faithfulness to the Holy Spirit? By refusing to engage in thoughts or actions that will grieve him and offend him. We know that he is working within his people for their spiritual growth, by developing within them the fruit of the Spirit, and faithfulness to him would cause us to work out what he has worked in us.

To what are we to be faithful?

Two areas of faithfulness can be mentioned here, although other areas could also be included. First, we are to be faithful to the gospel of Christ, to the various doctrines that are connected to it. Such faithfulness requires us to accept such doctrines as human depravity, divine love for sinners, the centrality of the sufferings of Jesus on the cross, the free offer of salvation, and the reality of heaven and hell. We should not be embarrassed by them, nor should we modify them when speaking with others.

Second, we are to be faithful to the teachings of the Bible because it is the inerrant Word of God. It speaks about many things which we are required to accept such as its description of the creation of the universe by God, the reality of the flood and Noah’s ark, and the privileged place of Israel among the nations, including the account of the plagues that occurred at the Exodus. We believe that the miracles which the Bible describes took place, and the prophecies that it contains were announced a long time before they actually were fulfilled. We are faithful to the biblical claim that the soul of a believer goes to heaven at the exact moment of his death and that his body is still united to Christ. We accept the Bible’s description of sin and also the actions that it says are expressions of sin.

Where are we to be faithful?

The obvious answer is that we are to be faithful to God everywhere. We can divide those locations in different ways: faithful to God in the church and outside the church; faithful to God in the family and in the community; faithful to God in our employment and our enjoyments. If we are not faithful in all, we are not really faithful at all. Being faithful in this way is very demanding, but it is also a call to consistency of life.

When are we to be faithful?

If the answer to ‘where’ is everywhere, the answer to when is ‘all the time’. Just as there is not a space where unfaithfulness is permitted, so there is not a moment when it should not be the case. Such a comment is a reminder that time is the only length of space where we can be faithful. And there is a lot of time in which to be faithful. We are to be faithful whatever our age, whether we are young, middle-aged or old. We are to be faithful in difficult times and in easy times, in times of spiritual declension and in times of revival.

How are we to be faithful?

The answer to this question can be given by thinking about our hearts and about our actions. Obviously, if our whole heart is not involved in what we are doing, we are not being faithful to God; real service of him cannot be given by a divided heart. Our actions of faithfulness will include our use of time because we have to redeem it continually, our use of talents because we have to utilise them correctly, and our use of our tongues because with them we must edify and help others as often as we can. Faithfulness includes what we think about as well as what we do and say.

Biblical examples

Obviously, the theme of faithfulness is one that is demanding and sometimes it is easier to see the relevance of such a responsibility by considering how the idea is used of people mentioned in the Bible. So here is a list of such individuals whose faithfulness is located in a variety of circumstances and ways, some from the Old Testament and others from the New.

First, here is a reference that indicates a person can be faithful to God even when working in a demanding position in society. In Nehemiah 7:2, we are told this about a man called Hananiah: ‘I gave... Hananiah the governor of the castle charge over Jerusalem, for he was a more faithful and God-fearing man than many.’ Nehemiah needed someone he could trust in addition to his brother because they were attempting great things for God as far as Israel at that time was concerned. Hananiah had suitable talents, because he had previously been responsible for the peace of the city, but that was not why he was chosen for his new role. He was chosen because in addition to his talents he had the right characteristics of faithfulness and fear of God.

Second, Luke records the desire of a new Christian when he includes the request of Lydia to be of further use in the service of God. In Acts 16:14-15, he writes: One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshipper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.’ Lydia had been saved through hearing Paul speak at the riverside; then she made a public profession of her faith in Jesus by getting baptised, an action that was regarded as an expression of being faithful. But she wanted to develop her faithfulness, so she then offered her home as a place for the new church in Philippi to meet in. What led her to make that offer? She would not have had any examples to follow, although everyone now has her example to imitate. What made her desire to increase in faithfulness to Jesus was her gratitude for having been forgiven her sins by Jesus.

Third, a desire for ongoing faithfulness is an expression of dedication to intelligent obedience of the Lord. Listen to the statement recorded in Psalm 119:30: ‘I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I set your rules before me.’ The psalmist mentions the road on which a faithful person travels — it is a life of obedience to God’s commandments. He does not wish to be selective about which ones he will keep. They all were important for him. But he kept them before the eyes of his mind continually because he wanted to be faithful.

Fourth, living faithfully is a useful argument in prayer. No doubt we are aware of what King Hezekiah did when he was informed by Isaiah that he would soon die. He turned his face to the wall and prayed. In his prayer, he said: ‘Please, O LORD, remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight’ (Isa. 38:3). The Lord answered his prayer by giving him fifteen more years. Yet we should notice the argument Hezekiah used —his faithfulness. He could not have used if he had lived differently. And the Lord in this case heard the petition. This does not mean answers because of good works. But the answer is evidence that faithfulness pleases the Lord.

Fifth, faithfulness is a way to receive blessings from God. We are told in Proverbs 28:20: ‘A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.’ The author is contrasting two kinds of riches and how to get them, and mentions the one that is most desirable, which is to abound in divine blessings. But they are given to faithful persons, not because their works have inbuilt efficacy, but because they please God.

Sixth, a faithful person will know divine protection and preservation in life. ‘Love the LORD, all you his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful but abundantly repays  the one who acts in pride’ (Ps. 31:23). Of course, this is not an absolute statement in the sense that some believers will not undergo loss. But in the main, those who are faithful to God are preserved by him, often in unexpected and unforeseen ways.

Seventh, even when permanent protection is not their experience, they still know divine help in their situations. We can see this in the promise made by Jesus to the church in Smyrna: ‘Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life’ (Rev. 2:10). His call to them to show faithfulness was going to be very costly for them in the sense that they would be martyred. But their faithfulness would lead to a great reward from him — the crown of life.

Eighth, and following on from the previous point, all who are faithful in this life will receive a great reward from Jesus: ‘His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master’ (Matt. 25:21). Who can say how great the reward will be that they will receive! Great terms are used to describe this exceeding great reward, such as them becoming kings, sharing glory, receiving honour, discovering satisfaction and many more descriptions. But it will be something incredible to hear Jesus say to his faithful disciples, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.’

One final point. To describe people as faithful is not to say something unusual about them. We can see this from the way that Paul describes the believers living in Ephesus and in Colosse. He says of those in Ephesus, ‘Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus’ (Eph 1:1), and he says something similar at the start of Colossians (1:2). His description indicates that a saint, a sanctified person, will be a faithful person. Paul does not suggest that one could be saintly without being faithful. Rather the two descriptions go together. A saintly person will be a faithful person and a faithful person will be devoted to God.

This is not surprising at all. It is what would be expected of anyone who grasps the wonder of salvation. What other response can be given to the One who was prepared to go to the cross in order to deliver his people from their sins? What other response can come from someone who understands what it means to be a disciple of Jesus? In what other way can a person live who aims to be a blessing in the church of Jesus? Faithfulness says a great deal about us. Its absence also says a great deal, and is a word we should attend to.