Faith is not just a feeling, belief or confession; it does not just exist on its own, and as such cannot be completely separated from work. Some people believe that once they profess to trust God or to believe His word, everything is finished; and then they would go and relax, waiting for results to come without any form of action.
Come to think of it, why did the bible say that “the demons believe God and they tremble?” (James 2:19 & 20). Does that make demons to be Christians? The answer, of course, is an emphatic ‘NO’. Demons may believe that God is real and that he made the heavens and the earth; but if they do not take action to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and personal savior, their belief amounts to nothing.
While was Abraham called the father of faith? Was it because he believed what God said? After all, he faltered along the line and slept with his housemaid Hagar. The reason he was addressed as the father of faith was because of the actions he took. First, when God asked him to leave Ur of the Chaldeans to a place He (God) would show him, Abraham believed God completely and he took action by leaving his father Terah and followed God’s direction.
Besides, when God instructed Abraham to sacrifice his promised son, Isaac, he didn’t argue; he knew that Jehovah Almighty was capable of giving him back what he would offer. He took action and took his son to the mountain of Moriah until God divinely intervened. His faith was totally backed with work.
The bible also says that faith that is not backed by good works amounts to nothing (James 2: 14-18). When you process to be a believer, you must back up your profession with good deeds. When you hear God’s voice, you also need to be proactive; you need not to be a passive observer of His command, you must take action and do what He says you should do before you start getting results.
If you are looking for a job for example, you must go and submit your CV to the company you hope would employ you. Don’t stay in the house and hope to get an invitation for interview when nobody knows your phone or email address. When you have submitted your CV, you put your trust on God to touch the management of the company to invite you for a job interview.
You get results because first you believed God; and second you took action which is a back up to your faith. If a prophet gives you a message from God for example and gives you instructions as to what to do, you must follow his instructions otherwise your belief without taking action would never earn you a positive result.
