YOUR PARTNERSHIP WITH FAITH
By R. Herbert
You know you need faith, but does faith need you? In asking this, I mean are there times when faith should be augmented by what we can accomplish through our own power and by our own work? And please realize that we are not talking about justification here – just everyday life. Let me explain. Throughout our present era many very sincere people have caused themselves – and others – unnecessary hardship through not understanding the principle of trusting God and at the same time doing what we can do ourselves.
Many Christians have believed that in any problematic situation we should trust entirely in God’s help and wait patiently for that help to materialize. As a result, in extreme situations some have even felt that seeking medical or other help is to lack faith, but is that what the Word of God shows to be the case?
This article looks at some examples from the lives of faithful servants of God – all drawn from times of danger or need – that show clear partnership with faith.
Hezekiah and the Assyrian Threat
Hezekiah was one of ancient Judah’s few righteous kings who ruled in a time of international unrest. Around 700 BC when a vulnerable Jerusalem was threatened by the burgeoning Assyrian war-machine, Hezekiah took action. Second Chronicles tells the story:
“After all that Hezekiah had so faithfully done, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah. He laid siege to the fortified cities, thinking to conquer them for himself. When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that he intended to wage war against Jerusalem, he consulted with his officials and military staff about blocking off the water from the springs outside the city, and they helped him … Then he worked hard repairing all the broken sections of the wall and building towers on it. He built another wall outside that one and reinforced the terraces of the City of David. He also made large numbers of weapons and shields” (2 Chronicles 32:1-5).
These preparations for war were extensive, and some of them have been confirmed archaeologically, but looking to what he could do physically was not all Hezekiah did. Second Chronicles tells us he encouraged the people of Jerusalem with these words of faith:
“ ‘Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.’ And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said” (2 Chronicles 32:7-8).
When an Assyrian siege of Jerusalem looked inevitable:
“King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz cried out in prayer to heaven about this. And the Lord sent an angel, who annihilated all the fighting men and the commanders and officers in the camp of the Assyrian king. So he withdrew to his own land in disgrace… So the Lord saved Hezekiah and the people of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib king of Assyria and from the hand of all others” (2 Chronicles 32:20-22).
God worked a great miracle to protect Jerusalem under Hezekiah, but the Bible makes it clear that the king did everything within his own power to help the situation, as well as calling to God in faith for the additional help that was clearly needed.
Nehemiah and Jerusalem’s Walls
Now jump forward some two hundred and fifty years to the life of another man of God, Nehemiah. After the time of Hezekiah, Judah’s sins led to her eventual conquering and the captivity of her people by the Babylonians. When God made a way for the Jews to return to Jerusalem from their Babylonian captivity, they faced a great problem. The kings and governors of the areas surrounding Jerusalem resisted the Jews’ return and their attempts to rebuild the protective walls of Jerusalem. Plots against the Jews grew and the situation looked dire indeed. But notice the reaction of Nehemiah and the individuals of faith at that time. First, they called to God for help (Nehemiah 4:4-5), then they immediately set about doing what they could to help themselves:
“So we rebuilt the wall … for the people worked with all their heart” (Nehemiah 4:6).
After praying for God’s help, Nehemiah and his fellow Jews clearly worked as hard as they could in doing what they themselves could do. The situation is summed up perfectly in one illuminating verse of Nehemiah’s account regarding the response of these righteous individuals to the impending threat:
“… we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat” (Nehemiah 4:9).
God honored the faith of these people in asking for His help – along with doing what they could do themselves – and He saved Jerusalem from what could have been the end of its reestablishment.
The Miracles of Jesus
Finally, jump forward some four hundred and fifty more years to Judah in the time of Jesus. Here we see again the same stress on doing what we can do ourselves as well as looking to God for what we cannot do. Look, for example, at Jesus’ miracle of feeding the 5,000 (John 6:5-15). When a need arose to feed the hungry crowds that followed Jesus to hear His teaching, we see that He did not simply command so that ample food miraculously appeared. The feeding of the 5,000 is also known as the “miracle of the five loaves and two fish” because Jesus asked what food they already had, then taking that, multiplied it miraculously so there was enough food for everyone.
If we read the Gospel accounts of Christ’s miracles, we find this pattern repeated many times. To give only one further example, Jesus did not just create jars of wine for the wedding miracle (John 2:1-11), He commanded that jars of water be brought – what the wedding hosts could do themselves – and then used His divine power to turn the water to wine to fulfill the need.
The principle is simple. God does not look at our efforts to do what we can do in difficult situations as a lack of faith. Rather, He often helps us to the extent that we are doing what we can to the fullest of our abilities. This principle has sometimes been summarized as seeking divine help as though there is no physical help available, and seeking physical help as though there is no divine help available. It is not a lack of faith to do what we can do ourselves – it is a sound biblical principle of working in partnership with our faith in God’s help, of doing what we can do and trusting God for the rest.
By R. Herbert
You know you need faith, but does faith need you? In asking this, I mean are there times when faith should be augmented by what we can accomplish through our own power and by our own work? And please realize that we are not talking about justification here – just everyday life. Let me explain. Throughout our present era many very sincere people have caused themselves – and others – unnecessary hardship through not understanding the principle of trusting God and at the same time doing what we can do ourselves.
Many Christians have believed that in any problematic situation we should trust entirely in God’s help and wait patiently for that help to materialize. As a result, in extreme situations some have even felt that seeking medical or other help is to lack faith, but is that what the Word of God shows to be the case?
This article looks at some examples from the lives of faithful servants of God – all drawn from times of danger or need – that show clear partnership with faith.
Hezekiah and the Assyrian Threat
Hezekiah was one of ancient Judah’s few righteous kings who ruled in a time of international unrest. Around 700 BC when a vulnerable Jerusalem was threatened by the burgeoning Assyrian war-machine, Hezekiah took action. Second Chronicles tells the story:
“After all that Hezekiah had so faithfully done, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah. He laid siege to the fortified cities, thinking to conquer them for himself. When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that he intended to wage war against Jerusalem, he consulted with his officials and military staff about blocking off the water from the springs outside the city, and they helped him … Then he worked hard repairing all the broken sections of the wall and building towers on it. He built another wall outside that one and reinforced the terraces of the City of David. He also made large numbers of weapons and shields” (2 Chronicles 32:1-5).
These preparations for war were extensive, and some of them have been confirmed archaeologically, but looking to what he could do physically was not all Hezekiah did. Second Chronicles tells us he encouraged the people of Jerusalem with these words of faith:
“ ‘Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.’ And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said” (2 Chronicles 32:7-8).
When an Assyrian siege of Jerusalem looked inevitable:
“King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz cried out in prayer to heaven about this. And the Lord sent an angel, who annihilated all the fighting men and the commanders and officers in the camp of the Assyrian king. So he withdrew to his own land in disgrace… So the Lord saved Hezekiah and the people of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib king of Assyria and from the hand of all others” (2 Chronicles 32:20-22).
God worked a great miracle to protect Jerusalem under Hezekiah, but the Bible makes it clear that the king did everything within his own power to help the situation, as well as calling to God in faith for the additional help that was clearly needed.
Nehemiah and Jerusalem’s Walls
Now jump forward some two hundred and fifty years to the life of another man of God, Nehemiah. After the time of Hezekiah, Judah’s sins led to her eventual conquering and the captivity of her people by the Babylonians. When God made a way for the Jews to return to Jerusalem from their Babylonian captivity, they faced a great problem. The kings and governors of the areas surrounding Jerusalem resisted the Jews’ return and their attempts to rebuild the protective walls of Jerusalem. Plots against the Jews grew and the situation looked dire indeed. But notice the reaction of Nehemiah and the individuals of faith at that time. First, they called to God for help (Nehemiah 4:4-5), then they immediately set about doing what they could to help themselves:
“So we rebuilt the wall … for the people worked with all their heart” (Nehemiah 4:6).
After praying for God’s help, Nehemiah and his fellow Jews clearly worked as hard as they could in doing what they themselves could do. The situation is summed up perfectly in one illuminating verse of Nehemiah’s account regarding the response of these righteous individuals to the impending threat:
“… we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat” (Nehemiah 4:9).
God honored the faith of these people in asking for His help – along with doing what they could do themselves – and He saved Jerusalem from what could have been the end of its reestablishment.
The Miracles of Jesus
Finally, jump forward some four hundred and fifty more years to Judah in the time of Jesus. Here we see again the same stress on doing what we can do ourselves as well as looking to God for what we cannot do. Look, for example, at Jesus’ miracle of feeding the 5,000 (John 6:5-15). When a need arose to feed the hungry crowds that followed Jesus to hear His teaching, we see that He did not simply command so that ample food miraculously appeared. The feeding of the 5,000 is also known as the “miracle of the five loaves and two fish” because Jesus asked what food they already had, then taking that, multiplied it miraculously so there was enough food for everyone.
If we read the Gospel accounts of Christ’s miracles, we find this pattern repeated many times. To give only one further example, Jesus did not just create jars of wine for the wedding miracle (John 2:1-11), He commanded that jars of water be brought – what the wedding hosts could do themselves – and then used His divine power to turn the water to wine to fulfill the need.
The principle is simple. God does not look at our efforts to do what we can do in difficult situations as a lack of faith. Rather, He often helps us to the extent that we are doing what we can to the fullest of our abilities. This principle has sometimes been summarized as seeking divine help as though there is no physical help available, and seeking physical help as though there is no divine help available. It is not a lack of faith to do what we can do ourselves – it is a sound biblical principle of working in partnership with our faith in God’s help, of doing what we can do and trusting God for the rest.
