the faith-rest technique

If you missed it last Wednesday night, here's my outline!

INTRODUCTION

• One of the consistent features of the Christian Life is TESTING.
• We face daily disasters, small and great, which are brought on us suddenly by NATURE, by the IGNORANCE or DELIBERATE actions of other people, or even by our own MISTAKES and SINS.
• As Christians, we are given the privilege to always depend upon God's IMMEDIATE and CONSTANT provision for us in our time of testing.
• God knows all about our tests before they occur and has made provisions in advance to MEET or NEEDS (Eph 1:3-4)
• Whether the test is small or great, it is ALLOWED by God to measure our faith and our application of the things He has provided for us in this life. (1 Pet 1:7; 5:6-7)

DEFINITION

• Faith-Rest: The process of UNDERSTANDING, BELIEVEING, and APPLYING the doctrines and promises of God's Word in times of testing in the Christian life.
• the term "faith-rest", and its definition, is taken from the Scriptures in Hebrews 4:1-2.
• Faith-Rest is designed to be used by the Christian throughout his lifetime, on a daily basis, as a TECHNIQUE for maintaining peace and spiritual balance during difficulties, problems, or disasters in life.
• Faith-Rest is one of the Christian's most important resource in making rapid progress toward Christian maturity and the production of divine good in the Christian life.

TWO REASONS WHY WE FAIL ENTER GOD'S REST (HEBREWS 3)

• There are two common reasons why Christians fail to grow and prosper in the Christian life, and fail to profit from all the blessings, promises, and logistical provisions which God has put in place.
1. LACK OF KNOWLEDGE OF GOD'S PLAN (Hebrews 3:10)
2. DISOBEDIENCE & UNBELIEF (Hebrews 3:18-19)
• Christians who don't know what the Word of God says will NEVER know the promises of God of the PROVISIONS He has made for testing.
• The extent of a believer's spiritual maturity becomes obvious in hard times.
• All Christians look and behave about the same in good times. But when testing comes, those who have actually failed to grow in Christ fall away, and fall back into patterns of worry, blaming others, and trying to solve their own problems by worldly means.

 Examples:
    - Abraham, who first distrusted, then believed (Gen 15)
    - The bitter water test at Marah (Exo 15)
    - The No-Food & the First No-Water test at Meribah (Exo 16, 17)
    - The "Giant" Test (Num 13, 14)
    - the Second No-Water Test (Num 20)

• Sometimes, complacency after a spiritual victory makes us vulnerable. We have to remember that Satan keeps charging; and he is especially skilled at counterpunching, at exploiting any temporary weakness.
• WORRY is Satan's chief weapon.

HOW SHOULD WE RESPOND TO TESTINGS?

1. 1 Peter 5:8-9
2. Genesis 15:1
3. Deuteronomy 31:6-8
4. Isaiah 41:10-13

RECOGNIZING THE AUTHOR OF THESE PROMISES

• Who is the one making these promises? ALMIGHTY GOD
• Every promise of God is backed up by His perfect character.

1. SOVEREIGNTY: God in His ultimate authority, designed Faith-Rest as part of His plan for mankind.
2. RIGHTEOUSNESS: God is perfect goodness, so any trial will be good for us.
3. JUSTICE: Guarantees that His plan for us is fair, that we will always be treated justly.
4. LOVE: We know that every situation in life is governed by God's love for us.
5. ETERNAL LIFE: God is eternal and we have everlasting life with Him through Christ's work on the cross.
6. OMNISCIENCE: God knows about my trials or sufferings even before they happen; and He has already planned what to do about our testings.
7. OMNIPRESENCE: God is always present and able to help.
8. OMNIPOTENCE: God is all-powerful, so He always has the capacity to carry out His promises and to provide help in time of need.
9. IMMUTABLITY: God never changes in His attitude toward us, and all of His characteristics remain the same, forever.
10. TRUTH: God never lies; therefore what He has promised, He will perform.

HOW TO APPLY FAITH-REST

• The objective of Bible teaching is the PRESENTATION of Bible doctrine which the Christian can use in his daily life.
• There must also be continuous REPETITION of important principles and reinforcement in learning how various Bible principles interrelate.
• By FAITH you apply doctrine logically from the resources in your soul, meanwhile you are RESTING in the promises of the Word of God.

STEPS IN THE FAITH REST TECHNIQUE

• Before you can avail of this technique, you should have a foundation of the salvation doctrine in your soul. The acceptance of Jesus Christ as y our personal Savior is needed before the application of this doctrine, or any doctrine as well. 

1. REBOUND (1 John 1:9)
2. CLAIM PROMISES (Rom 10:17)
3. APPLY DOCTRINE (1 Cor 10:13)
4. REACH DOCTRINAL CONCLUSIONS (Rom 8:28-31)

CONSISTENT application of the Faith-Rest technique can result to a grace-filled Christian way of life.