Jesus the Author and Finisher of our Faith

Did you know that the Devil is the father of lies? If you’ve never looked to Jesus for your salvation, the Devil is your father too. He will continue to deceive you with his lies until it is too late. It’s a scary thought isn’t it? To belong to the Devil. 

When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. John 8:44b 

In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.2 Corinthians 4:4 

God on the other hand is perfect. He is holy. He is the Father of lights. He never lies. He never changes. Through Jesus, God can be our Father too. 

God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath He said, and shall he not do it? or hath He spoken, and shall he not make it good? Numbers 23:19 

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. James 1:17 

Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Phil 1:2

The Devil wants us to believe that our salvation is somehow about us: our feelings, our emotions, our understanding of our misery (which is never enough), and our experiences. 

Salvation is really all about Jesus. 

Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith. 
Looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith; Hebrews 12:2a 

Jesus, the Son of God. 
 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Matthew 3:16-17 

Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. 
The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. John 1:29 

Jesus, the One who must be lifted up. 
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:14-15 

Jesus, the one who was wounded, bruised and chastised for our sins. 
But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. Isaiah 53:5 

The Devil wants to trip us up, confuse us, make us doubt we can be saved, and when we fall into his traps he is very pleased. The only way we can be free from his lies is by the truth. 

Jesus is the Truth. 
Jesus saith unto him, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 14:6 

And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 8:32 

Make sure what you are believing is really the truth. 

One lie Satan uses to immobilize us is the lie: What if I don’t feel my misery enough? Spurgeon uses the illustration of a house on fire to deal with this question. If your house is on fire should you wait for it to become fully involved before trying to escape it? Shouldn’t the smoke alarms going off be enough to rouse you from your sleep and look for a way of escape? Or the frantic calling of a loved one be enough to get you to look for a way of escape? Or the smell of smoke? Or even the smallest hint of fire? 

Outside of Jesus we are all in grave danger. Our house is on fire, whether we fully grasp it yet or not! Outside of Jesus, God’s wrath cannot be satisfied. 

For our God is a consuming fire. Hebrews 12:29 

Outside of Jesus is eternal damnation, everlasting punishment, torment, worms that never die, and a fire that is never quenched. 

In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; 2 Thes 1:8-9 

Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. Mark 9:45b-46 

Life is temporary. We have no idea how much time we have left. Today might be our last day. We still have time to escape the torment of hell where the rich man ended up. 
And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, Luke 16;23a 

Jesus could return at any moment. 
For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 1 Thes 5:2-4 

Shouldn’t we use the time God has given us wisely? The Bible says how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? 
How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; Hebrews 2:3a 

Are we really going to waste the time God has given us? As we read these warnings, will we harden our hearts? 
Today if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. Hebrews 3:15b 

Today is the day of salvation. For He saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 2 Corinthians 6:2 

Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. 
Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. Isaiah 55:6-7 

Jesus must be our focus. 
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:14-15 

Only Jesus can save us from the wrath of God. 
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. Romans 5:8-9 

Come to Jesus. He is our only hope and He promises to save all those who come to Him. All that The Father giveth unto Me will come unto me and he that comething unto Me I will in no wise cast out.  John 6:37