FAITHFULNESS

REVIEW:
We have been in a sermon series called “Cultivate” where we’ve been talking about the fruit of the Spirit—the qualities of God that the Holy Spirit produces in your life to make you more like Jesus.

• Definitions of cultivate:1
o prepare and use (land) for crops or gardening
o try to acquire or develop (a quality, sentiment, or skill)
o apply oneself to improving or developing (one’s mind or manners)
• When you give your life to Jesus, a couple things happen:
o You are justified, which is “being declared and made righteous in the sight of God.”
o You receive God the Holy Spirit into your life.
• The Holy Spirit then begins a process in your life called Sanctification, which means to be set apart for God’s use. Plainly put, the Holy Spirit is making you less and less like your sinful self and more and more like Jesus.

Galatians 5:16-25 (NLT)

• Today we will be talking about faithfulness.

WHAT DOES FAITHFUL MEAN TO US, AND TO GOD?
• When you give your life to Jesus, you are publically professing your faith in Jesus, and you are also committing to be faithful to following Jesus, faithful to being changed by Jesus, and faithful to being on mission with Jesus.
• You are promising God, and all those around you that you will remain faithful to living the rest of your life for Jesus, and that you won’t give up.
• The word faithfulness in the Greek language (the language this text was written in) is “pistas” and means belief, trust, confidence or fidelity (faithfulness to a person, cause, or belief, demonstrated by continuing loyalty and support).2
• Faithfulness is key to living this life for Jesus and developing the fruit of the Spirit. Without faithfulness, you will constantly give in to the temptations of the enemy when he tells you to give up. (See Galatians 6:9)

FAITHFULNESS LEADS TO FRUITFULNESS.
• Faithfulness is a quality that the Holy Spirit wants to cultivate in us so we can become more like Jesus.
• It isn’t just a quality of God—God is faithful. It isn’t just something He does. It is who He is. He can’t help but be faithful. (See 2 Timothy 2:13)
• To look at the fruit of faithfulness, we start by looking at the faithfulness of God because it is God’s faithfulness that gives me faith, and it is God’s faithfulness that helps me be faithful.

GOD IS FAITHFUL REGARDLESS OF OUR CIRCUMSTANCES.
• Why is God faithful? Why can we say with certainty He is faithful?

GOD CALLS US TO BE FAITHFUL TO HIM.

Hebrews 10:23 (NIV) Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
• Again, when we surrender our lives to Jesus, we are not just simply saying, “I believe in God.” We are saying, “I am committing to being faithful to following Him, being changed by Him, and being on mission with Him.”

GOD CALLS US TO BE FAITHFUL TO OTHERS.

Colossians 3:13 (NIV) Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

Ephesians 4:2 (NIV) Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.

• Keith says this a lot: “The reason why we have to bear with each other is because we are unbearable.”
• If I am faithful to you and you are faithful to me, then we will be able to work through those times when we offend, frustrate, or sin against each other.
• Faithfulness is not, “You messed up, so I am done with you.”
• Faithfulness is working through hard times and being willing to forgive just as God forgave us.
• Faithfulness to each other means doing exactly what you are doing right now: meeting together so we can encourage one another, pray for one another, and motivate one another to acts of love and good works. (See Hebrews 10:24-25)

GOD CALLS US TO BE FAITHFUL TO OURSELVES.

Philippians 1:6 (NLT) And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.

• All of us are works in progress. We all have areas that God is still working to make us more like Him.
• It is tempting to just give up and believe the lie that I will never be the person God wants me to be.
• Or… I can keep going, I can keep pressing forward, I can keep trusting that God is at work in my life and is making me more like Jesus.
• There is a song we sing called “Way Maker,” and part of the song says this: “Even when I don’t see it, you’re working. Even when I don’t feel it, you’re working. You never stop; you never stop working.”
• What area of your life do you need to exercise faithfulness in?
o Have you strayed away from God? Have you given up on someone? Have you given up on yourself?
• The good news is you can start being faithful today. You can start being faithful right now!

1 John 1:9 (NIV) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

QUESTIONS TO REFLECT AND DISCUSS:
Passages to consider: Proverbs 3:3; Psalm 1:3; 3 John 1:3; Matthew 23:23
Icebreaker: What is something you do consistently? Do you have a morning or night routine? Do you have a rhythm for your favorite hobby or sports team?

1. Something was significant in the sermon to you; share what that might be.
2. Read a passage used in the sermon. What is it saying about faithfulness and God’s heart?
3. What is important about faithfulness? A) Where have you experienced faithfulness? B) What can make trusting and faithfulness challenging?
4. What impact would letting the Spirit cultivate faithfulness in your life have on your thoughts and actions? A) What relationships and situations might be affected? (Is there another fruit that God is asking you to pursue being cultivated in your life?)
5. Read Hebrews 11:1-3,6 & 12:1-3. How do you fix your eyes on Jesus? A) What do you need to throw off or get untangled from?
6. What are you doing differently because of this sermon series on Cultivate?

Try it! Read Hebrews 11.

Passages to prepare for next week, Cultivate! Week 9, Gentleness
This week, read: Proverbs 15:1; Proverbs 25:15; Isaiah 40