The Fruit of the Spirit: Faithfulness

by Dennis Tucker

Faithfulness or faithful are mentioned over 240 times in the New Testament. Vine's Dictionary defines the faith as a passive, to be trusted, reliable, b) active, signifying believing, trusting, relying upon. To those who are found faithful the promise of eternal life with God is mentioned, "Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life" (Revelation 2:10b). Is faith something you either have or don't have? Can we encourage our own faith to grow? As we study different aspects of the Fruit of the Spirit, we have stressed the human part in nurturing this fruit within ourselves. The writer is telling us we have a responsibility in our own spiritual growth.

One element in faithfulness is learning. To be convicted about something, you must know the subject. "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10:17). I am convinced that people are unfaithful due to their own ignorance. How can we possibly be faithful to that which we know nothing about. Some religious practices are not based upon the Bible but human traditions. We often look at the idolatrous worshippers in the Bible and feel as if we are better off. Many people today are just as ignorant of God's word. "Professing to be wise, they became fools" (Romans 1:22). In conversations with different religious people, I often ask them by what authority they do certain things. Many times I get a blank stare followed by "I will ask my preacher" or "Well everybody does some things not in the Bible." To be faithful we have to know the will of God.

We must learn to trust God. "Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me" (Acts 27:25). In times of peril, we are tempted to carry the burden by ourselves. If we learn to let God's word guide us we will be better off. It will give us courage when others are afraid. Faith gives us the strength to live a life of purity as others give into sin. It starts with believing in God and His word.

Another element of faithfulness is action. As Paul mentioned in Galatians 5:19 he is not simply discussing a concept but a way of living. I am afraid that many of us have simply become passive students of Christ and not active disciples of Him. We have learned the right phrases but not the right action. We can define faith but not display it.

"Then He will answer them, saying, 'Assuredly, I say to you, in as much as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you will not do it to Me.' And these will go away into ever lasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life" (Matthew 25:45-46). Part of faithfulness is daily obedience. Every so often, a book appears foretelling the Second Coming of Christ. People purchase it and read it, some actually believe the author. Why are so many people interested in knowing before hand about the end of this age? Some are not interested in obeying God each day but want to wait until the last possible minute. To be found faithful, we must live our religion each day.

"He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?" (Luke 16:10-11). Faithfulness means meeting our responsibilities. In Matthew 25:14-23 we read of the Parable of the Talents. The master had three servants who he trusted with different amounts of money. One went and hid the money and gave back only what he had received. The master called him a wicked and unfaithful servant. The other two received different amounts and brought back different amounts but were called faithful servants. The principle is, we must use whatever abilities and opportunities God has given us to be found faithful. Unfortunately, some people try to excuse their inactivity because they don't have the same abilities as others. Jesus wants us to use what we have and grow. My faithfulness does not depend on the abilities and actions of others.

"Moreover, it is required in stewards that one be found faithful" (1 Corinthians 4:2). The apostles had a great responsibility place upon them. God chose them to spread the gospel. They were expected as stewards to do so. To neglect their stewardship would be equal to unfaithfulness. Today we are God's stewards. He blesses us with food, clothing, health, and His Word. We are expected to rightly divide the Word of God (2 Timothy 2:15), to be conformed to His image (Romans 12:2), and to spread the good news (2 Timothy 4:2). As we allow the Word of God to control us, we will be showing our faithfulness in our lives.