Bearing Faithfulness That Glorifies God

      As we strive to glorify God, we must turn our attention to bearing faithfulness (Galatians 5:22).

      The term translated “faithfulness” in the NKJV and “faith” in the KJV, is pistis.  It is used most often to describe either the fact that we believe (e.g. Matthew 8:10) or the faith in which we believe (e.g. Acts 6:7).  Galatians 5:22 uses the term more abstractly, referring to the behavior we have because we believe.  We are trustworthy.  The term is also used this way in Titus 2:10, speaking of the Christian servant who can be trusted not to steal.

      Notice, as with all of the God-glorifying fruit, the text does not specify with whom we demonstrate our trustworthiness.  Therefore, God-glorifying faithfulness must be toward all – God and man.

      Can God trust us?  Can He count us among the faithful?  We must not say, “I attend all the services of the church, I must be faithful.”  Certainly, if we forsake assembling, we are not faithful, but assembling is not the litmus test for faithfulness.

      Being trustworthy in relation to God means God can trust us to do what is right.  He can trust us to fulfill our charge, using the abilities He has given us to do His will (Romans 12:3-8).  He can trust us to keep our commitments (Ecclesiastes 5:1-5).  He can trust us to serve Him whether we are at the church building, at home, at school, at work, etc.  He can trust us to use our resources to serve Him (cf. II Corinthians 8:5).

      Being faithful in relation to others means people can trust us to do the right thing.  Regrettably, claiming to be a Christian does not mean anything to anybody anymore.  Televangelists, cults and fallen brethren have demonstrated to the world that Christians can be rotten just like everyone else.

      However, we need to stand out in faithfulness.  We need to keep our commitments.  As Jesus pointed out in Matthew 5:33-37, our “Yes” should be “Yes” and our “No” should be “No.”  We do not play games with our commitments only meaning what we shore up with vows and promises (unless, of course, we had our fingers crossed).

      We should mean what we say and say what we mean.  We should do what we have said.  Brethren and others must be able to see that we keep our word and our commitments.  Certainly, mistakes and forgetfulness occur.  But habitually forgetting commitments is a problem.  Certainly at times we may accidentally bite off more than we can chew.  But consistent over commitment that ends in not fulfilling commitments is wrong.

      Can God and men trust us?  How much God-glorifying faithfulness can we bear this week?

Edwin L. Crozier