Living by FaithSample

The Righteous Shall Live by Faith

The self-help industry with its numerous guides on “how to live your life” is a million dollar industry. People want to know how they must live and turn to such books and gurus for guidance. In Habakkuk, God gives the resounding answer for all ages on how the Christian should live in this world. The righteous shall live by faith. 

In contrast, the wicked Chaldeans were proud and arrogant. They did not rely upon God but rather trusted themselves. They were drunkards who reveled in the pleasures of sin. They were greedy and went about selfishly accumulating material possessions. They did not treat people as creatures made in God’s image, but used others selfishly for their own ends. The Chaldeans, who much like the wicked in our world who do not know the true living God, were dead in their sins. 

The righteous of God are marked by their faith. This concept is so central to Christianity that it is quoted twice by Paul in the New Testament (Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11) and once by the writer of Hebrews (Hebrews 10:38). This is the stark difference between all other religions and Christianity. People are justified by God, by faith in the completed work of Jesus. Life is not earned by our good deeds or religious offerings. No amount of prayers, pilgrimages, or piety can make one right with God. Eternal life is by faith alone in Jesus for without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Faith is that key that opens the heavenly gates of eternal bliss. This is the heart of the gospel message. It was this message that captured Martin Luther and eventually brought about the Protestant Reformation. May we learn to trust in Jesus alone in this life, for the righteous shall live by faith.