#FAITH LIFESTYLE - Part 1 Text: Romans 1:17

TOYE OGUNGBE·WEDNESDAY, JULY 26, 2017·

The just shall live by faith! I have come across this scripture 4 times: in Habakkuk 2:4, Romans 1:17, Hebrews 10:38 and Galatians 3:11. This is the way God expects His children: the righteous, the just to live successfully as “kingdom of God citizens” on earth.

Recently, I travelled to Venice, Italy. Whilst there, I took a trip from Mogliano Veneto to Venice St Lucia by train. I found out that when a train ticket is purchased it must be validated before boarding the train. This is done by inserting the ticket into a machine at the station of departure, which punctures and prints on the ticket. Otherwise, as soon as you board the train you must locate the conductor and present your ticket. If the conductor gets to you first and your ticket has not been validated you are liable to a fine of 30 Euros!

This rule does not apply in the United Kingdom where I live. When travelling by National Rail in the UK, you purchase your ticket, board the train, sit comfortably and wait for the inspector to ask for your ticket. Although at some stations where gates are installed, you will need your ticket to open the gate at the departure and arrival points. What I am driving at is that rules and regulations for successful living differ from nation to nation. In God’s kingdom to which we belong, the key law to living successfully is FAITH. The just shall live by faith.

Romans 1:17 states: “For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith”. What is the righteousness of God? God’s rightness in a man’s spirit, soul and body. To be made righteous means we have been justified by God. We have been discharged and acquitted from eternal damnation. We have taken on God’s nature. And by faith alone is this nature revealed. What is faith? Total confidence in God’s faithfulness. So as we live by faith we allow God nature to be revealed in us. The just, the righteous shall live by total confidence in God’s faithfulness!