What Does It Mean to Be a True Child in the Faith?
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The only way to a pure heart is to love as Christ loves us and compels us (2 Corinthians 5:14). Baker’s Evangelical Dictionary defines purity as, “Purity is related to guiltless, blameless, or innocent behavior.”
5. A Good Conscience
When we abide in Christ, our spirit testifies with His Spirit (Romans 8:16) and our consciences are good because he dwells within us. The biblical definition of conscience is, “a term that describes an aspect of a human being's self-awareness.” Pastor Paul David Tripp says, “Good conscience living means I'm aware of a watching world. Good conscience living means I'm aware of God's will and God's honor. Good conscience living is a call to higher agenda living – I'm living for the glory of God. And I'm saying, ‘No!’ to all those other glories that could rule my heart.”
6. Thankfulness
We are forever thankful to the Lord for salvation and sanctification (1 Thessalonians 5:18).
7. Faithful
The fruit of the Spirit includes faith (Galatians 5:22-23).
8. Prayerful
Jesus didn’t say if we pray, He said, “When you pray…” (Luke 11:2; Colossians 4:2).
9. Worshipful
Jesus told the Samaritan woman one day we will all worship in Spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24).
10. Godly
We are to live godly lives (1 Timothy 2:2).
11. Partaker and Doer of the Word
Immerse yourself in God’s Word and do what he says (James 1:22-25).
12. One Who Knows and Abides in Truth
Once we know the truth, we must live it every day (John 14:6).
13. Persecuted
True believers will be persecuted for their witness for Christ (John 16:33).
We must ask the Lord for wisdom to grow and to teach (Proverbs 9:9).
There are many other qualities which mark a person as a true child in the faith. Timothy exhibits them and Paul gives us a look at some of his qualities in 3 Timothy 3:10-17.
Raised by two godly women (2 Timothy 1:5), Timothy had been reared in the faith of which Paul was sure. “And how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15). In fact, the name given him means, “one who honors God.”
We take our faith and add to it from God’s Word and from godly role models and teachers. If we surrender to and love our Lord and follow the Bible’s precepts and commands, we are indeed true children in the faith. And new believers need not fear the immensity of the Bible, for His Holy Spirit helps us understand as we grow. No one is “fully grown” this side of heaven (Philippians 1:6), but we continue to grow as God sanctifies us.
As we mature in our faith, the burden is on us to pray for the Lord to bring another Christian to us so we may help them grow into a true child in the faith. We are sent to disciple just as we have been discipled, which is a principle for the church. In 1 Timothy 3:15, Paul calls the church the “pillar and buttress of the truth.” Steve Timmis, director of Acts 29 church planting ministry in Western Europe explains, “The church, formed by the gospel, is for the gospel, and by her life and witness, she commends the gospel and is the primary apologetic for the gospel before the world.”
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Anastasiia Stiahailo
