Bible Verse #15: STAYING FAITHFUL TO GOD – Importance & Benefits - Inspirational Bible Verses of the Day

“When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully…” Genesis 17:1

O that we may walk before God as God requires of us!

Many ask, “How should the believer walk with or before God?”

We may say many things in answer to this question, but the above-cited Bible verse gives a very simple answer – a believer should walk before God faithfully.

If you really want to walk with God better, and were wondering how you could do it, then right here is the solution to your wondering; all you need to do is to walk with Him faithfully.

After examining how you have walked with God till now, you will surely identify some areas, a handful or numerous of them, in which you have deviated from the faithfulness that’s required of you. Correct each one of them today, right now, because the next minute is not guaranteed to you.

But what’s the definition of faithful? English is a second language for me, so I need to check the definitions of some English words now and then.

An online check for the definition of ‘faithful’ returned the following: “remaining loyal and steadfast.” Glory to God!

Just to be certain, I decided to look up the definitions of loyal and steadfast.

I found out that the word loyal means “showing firm and constant allegiance.” This is getting more interesting.

I also found that the word steadfast means “the quality of being resolutely or dutifully firm and unwavering.”

These definitions got me thinking. They are simply profound, given the topic.

From the above-cited definitions, I itemize below the words that describe how we should walk before God. If you understand the words, it means you know how to proceed in your walk with the Father; but of course, the choice remains yours as to how you would proceed to conduct your life.

Listen to the words:

·       loyally;

·       unwavering;

·       with firmness;

·       with constant allegiance;

·       steadfastly;

·       dutifully;

·       resolutely.

Granted some of the words could be duplicated but itemizing them all is most likely to give you the picture that I want you to see.

If only we could attain this status before God and maintain it going forward, our lives would surely never remain the same!

Note carefully the following verse: “Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” Genesis 17:2

We are in the season of grace. I however want you to know that grace does not absolve us of our obligation to act right before God. Grace should actually encourage us to always align our conduct with the will of God. Sometimes we misconstrue grace, leading us into living lesser lives than we ought to before God. God told Abraham to walk faithfully before Him, “then [He] will make His covenant between [Him] and [Abraham] and will greatly increase [Abraham’s] numbers.

If you are faithful before God, He will give you a new name, a name that you may not use in this life, but a heavenly name by which the Father will call you. The new name means that God sees you in a new light, He can trust you, He can depend on you, He can confide in you, and He respects you because of your faithfulness.

“No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham …” Genesis 17:5

I think that if God decides to use somebody, He would have first conducted a careful assessment of the being. Normally, God chooses somebody He trusts will always follow through with His will or instructions in every situation. And this is independent of how the person would have walked before God before, as long as the person gets to the required turning point in his/her life.

“On that very day, Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him.” Genesis 17:23

Circumcision is not the message here. What I want you to see in this verse is that Abraham did exactly as God had commanded him, thereby demonstrating his faithfulness.

How should we walk before God? Faithfully.

Quite a lesson it is for us believers.

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Bible Verse #14: GOD, WHERE ARE YOU? - Short Bible Verses for Encouragement

She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” Genesis 16:13

It seems every Christian gets to this point at least once in their lifetime, the point at which they wonder whether God is still with them.

“God, where are you?” the believer whispers. “God, why have you left me alone?” others hazard to conclude.

This teaching is meant to motivate you and also strengthen you so that you will face difficulties with faith and courage.

It is usually when one goes through difficult times that one wonders if God is still with them.

Consider Hagar. She had fled home because she had been mistreated by Sarai. Evidently, Hagar was in the wrong for despising Sarai, the hand that had fed her, but that’s beside the point.

After fleeing from Sarai, Hagar went into the desert, a place of extreme difficulty. I don’t think Hagar knew where she was headed. I don’t think she had any specific destination in mind; she was just escaping mistreatment.

You can appreciate the situation Hagar was in at the time. In describing the gravity of Hagar’s circumstances, the Bible says she was in misery (Genesis 16:11).

It usually is in such situations of need that one wonders whether God is still with them. “God, where are you when I need you the most?” Hagar must surely have queried in her heart.

Now to the encouraging part: “The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.” Genesis 16:7

A spring is “a source of water” (Wikipedia). Imagine finding this in the desert, probably the hottest of places!

The above-cited verse is truly inspiring. I take two lessons from it:

The first lesson is that God sees you even when dark clouds obstruct your own vision. You don’t seem to see Him. You think He has abandoned or disowned you. Yet you are never out of His sight!

Consider Hagar. In her predicament, and probably not expecting any help, expecting to perish, the Bible says, “The angel of the LORD found (her)…”

The angel of the LORD found Hagar only because the eye of the LORD had been on her all the time; God never looked aside, even for a second.

If God’s eye can be on a sparrow always, how could it not be on you too?

The second lesson is that in every situation, whatever your surroundings, there is always a spring nearby. Hagar was in the desert, a very difficult environment, and yet there before her, was a spring, probably the source of the most needed provision in such high temperatures!

Whatever your surroundings, and whatever your circumstances, there is always a spring (of water) nearby. You will never die of thirst. Know this.

So, never lose your focus. Your gaze should always be on Christ, and not on your challenges, for Christ is the spring that can cool down your difficult circumstances! He alone can quench your thirst and pull you out of that crater.

Saying this is one thing; practicing it in real-life situations is another. But that is exactly what we are encouraged to do, to walk the talk, even though it may be extremely difficult at times. For what would we benefit from acting contrary to this encouragement?

It is what you believe that would either sustain or break you in difficult times and situations.

She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” Genesis 16:13

Beautiful.

Please consider taking this teaching to heart.

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