Find A Church  |  Resources  |  Links  |  Free Downloads  |  Free Email  |  Home

Bible Study: Perseverance

SOMETIMES FAITH ALONE IS NOT ENOUGH! Give me a few minutes of your time to let me SHOW you in the Word of God a principle of the Kingdom that many of God’s people have never realized is necessary for us to operate in when it comes to receiving certain things. Failing to understand this principle may be the REASON why you are having trouble obtaining certain promises.
   

Scripture Reference:
• "For you have need of patience, so that, after you have done the will of God, you might receive the promise" [Hebrews 10:36]
 

SOMETIMES FAITH ALONE IS NOT ENOUGH!
Sounds radical doesn’t it? And for ‘faith’ people it almost sounds contrary to scripture. But hold on a moment and let me explain.
 
When it comes to salvation from our sins, it IS by grace that we are saved THRU faith – and faith is ALL we need to grab hold of the promise of eternal life thru the remission of our sins by the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
 
But! When it comes to SOME of the other things that God has promised in His word like healing, deliverance, and supernatural provision there are TIMES when according to scripture we NEED something else too if we are going to see those promises manifested.
  

WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY “SOMETHING ELSE”?!!!
Your first reaction might be: “I’ve never heard THAT before and I’ve been a Christian for years!”
 
If that’s you then give me a few minutes of your time let me SHOW you in the Word of God a principle of the Kingdom that many of God’s people have never realized is necessary for us to operate in when it comes to receiving certain things. Failing to understand this principle may be the REASON why you are having trouble obtaining certain promises.
 

Let’s start by examining a couple key scriptures:
• Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. [Ephesians 6:10]
 
• And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not (give up – shrink back). [Galatians 6:9]
 
• Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not faint (give up – shrink back). [Luke 18:1 NIV]
 
• “If you faint (give up – shrink back) in the day of adversity, your strength is small.”
[Proverbs 24:10]
 
• Consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest you be wearied and faint in your minds [Hebrews 12:3]
  

NOTICE THAT WE ARE COMMANDED TO “BE STRONG IN THE LORD”
- Did you ever ask yourself ‘why’ this scripture is in the Bible?
- Did you ever ask yourself WHY being strong in the Lord is ‘important’ to us?
- Did you ever wonder HOW one becomes strong “in the Lord and the power of HIS might”?
- Did you ever think to consider what happens if we are NOT strong in the Lord as the Word instructs us to be?
 
Now look at Galatians 6:9 and notice that reaping a harvest (for provision or increase) is CONDITIONAL. According to the scripture we will only reap a harvest IF we don’t ‘faint” (give up – shrink back)
 
Galatians 6:9 tells us specifically that in order for us to obtain the manifested promise of God for a harvest we CANNOT ‘faint’ (give up). ~~~ But that is exactly what so many of God’s people do: They give up!
 
So many of God’s children THINK they are standing in faith and believing God for His promise of supernatural provision or increase – Yet all the while they are considering various sources that they can tap into for help: (Friends, family, bank loans, credit cards, more hours at work, overtime, a second job, etc..)
 
Others TRY to stand in faith for provision but as the hour approaches where that provision is needed – They too begin to ‘faint in their heart or minds’ – They also begin to look for other alternatives, other options, other sources where they can obtain the finances or provision that they need so desperately.
 
THEY GIVE UP!
Why do they give up? Because the ‘day of adversity has arrived and unfortunately their ‘strength is small’. The reason why their strength is ‘small’ is simple – They are NOT ‘strong in the Lord and the power of HIS might?
 

SAME WITH HEALING:
Most do not realize it but while obtaining the promise of supernatural healing is available to all – not everyone understands what is necessary in THEIR case to see it manifested in their body.
 
Thank God for the manifestation of the ‘gifts of healing’ as described in 1 Corinthians 12:9 – Yet the ‘gifts of healing’ are NOT always in manifestation because the scriptures say that it is manifested “as the Spirit wills” [verse 11]
 
More often than not – Folks that have been taught on the subject of healing are REQUIRED to use what the scriptures teach and USE their faith! [See Luke 12:48]
 
Unfortunately, the average Christian has rarely made the effort to build themselves up in the knowledge of God’s promises for divine healing – nor have they become strong enough ‘in the Lord and the power of His might’ - So when their healing does not manifest as quickly as they hoped, they begin to ‘faint’ (give up and shrink back).
 
Why do they give up? Because the ‘day of adversity has arrived and unfortunately their ‘strength is small’. The reason why their strength is ‘small’ is simple – They are NOT ‘strong in the Lord and the power of HIS might?
 

WHY WE MUST BE STRONG IN THE LORD?
Earlier I asked the question “WHY is being strong in the Lord is ‘important’ to us?  Here’s where I begin to explain why I made the statement: “Sometimes Faith Alone Is Not Enough!”
 
Consider carefully this scripture:
• Hebrews 10:36 KJV: “For you have need of patience, so that, after you have done the will of God, you might receive the promise.”
 
For greater understanding let’s look at that passage in a few other translations:
• AMP Translation: "For you have NEED of steadfast patience and endurance, so that you may perform and fully accomplish the will of God, and thus receive and carry away [and enjoy to the full] what is promised."
 
• Douay-Rheims Translation: "For patience is NECESSARY for you: that, doing the will of God, you may receive the promise."
 
• English Majority Text Version: "For you NEED endurance, so that having done the will of God, you may receive the promise"
 
• Easy To Read Version: "You MUST be patient. After you have done what God wants, you will get what he promised you."
 
• God's Word Translation: "You NEED endurance so that after you have done what God wants you to do, you can receive what he has promised."
 
• International Standard Version: "For you NEED endurance, so that after you have done God's will you can receive what he has promised."
 
• The Message Bible: "But you MUST stick it out, staying with God's plan and not giving up so you'll be there for the promised completion."
 
• New International Version: "You NEED to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised."
 
• New Living Testament: "Patient endurance is what you NEED now, so that you will continue to do God's will. Then you will receive all that He has promised."
 
• Weymouth New Testament: "For you stand IN NEED OF patient endurance, so that, as the result of having done the will of God, you may receive the promised blessing."
 

SOMETIMES FAITH ALONE IS NOT ENOUGH:
Did you notice something about this passage? No matter what translation one reads - EVERY translation tells us that we “need”, or “must have”, or that it is “necessary” for us to have something else BESIDES our ‘faith’ IF we are going to OBTAIN or RECEIVE the promise that we are standing on (Believing God for).
 
Did you notice what that ‘something else is?
The King James translation calls it “patience”
Other translations call it ‘steadfast endurance’ or ‘patient endurance’
The New International Version calls it ‘perseverance’.
 
ALL of these are accurate because when one does a study of the Greek word (hupomone’) used in this passage that is translated as ‘patience’ or endurance or perseverance we discover that the definition is that of a the characteristic of a man who is not swerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even the greatest trials and sufferings.
 
In other words: It is a person who is steadfastly patient – willing to stand fast on what he/she believes and endure anything and everything that comes against him/her that would try to
make them ‘give up’ or ‘faint’ in their purpose. They will persevere in any trial of their faith and not shrink back or give up or become discouraged – But with ‘fierce longness' stand on the promise of God for as long as it takes and no matter what comes against them.
 
They will NOT look to any other source for help neither will they accept any alternative or substitute for the promise that God has made but will ‘hold fast’ and refuse to be moved until they actually see it manifested.
 

PERSEVERANCE IS NECESSARY!
Notice again that ‘patience’ – ‘Steadfast endurance’ – ‘Perseverance’ is NOT optional if we want to see the promise manifested in our life: It is REQUIRED – We NEED it – And we MUST persevere if we are going to ‘receive the promise?

Remember that I said that “Sometimes faith alone is NOT enough”?
This is exactly what the Scriptures teach in Hebrews Chapter 10.

Let’s look at Hebrews chapter 10 a little more and see if we can get the WHOLE picture of what the Scriptures are trying to tell us. Naturally the BEST thing to do is to real the entire chapter – But for the sake of time let’s summarize the content by using a few of the key scriptures out of the chapter.

“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) ... (And) do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. ... (But) You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised." [Hebrews 10:23, 35-36 KJV / NIV]

Get the Picture?
Yes faith IS necessary – But sometimes it is NOT enough! We MUST stand fast and hold on to the promise we are believing for WITHOUT “wavering” (doubting) – AND we must be willing to PERSEVERE thru every test and trial that comes our way that is designed to cause us to “cast away our confidence” and give up – shrink back – or doubt that God WILL fulfill His promise and it WILL manifest in our life.

And, no matter how much faith we may have – No matter how much we may ‘believe’ the promises” - If we fail to persevere with steadfast patience thru the testing of our faith – Then the scriptures state emphatically that because of our ‘wavering’ we will NOT see the promise manifested in our life. [Read carefully Hebrews 10:23 and James 1:6-7]
 

STAND FAST:
“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) [Hebrews 10:23]

God IS Faithful my brothers and sisters – He will NOT let you down – So HOLD FAST to the promise you are believing for and do NOT give up - But persevere with steadfast endurance waiting patiently for the manifestation of the promised blessing - And God promises that you WILL receive that which was promised. Hallelujah!
 

Print This Study Using:
Adobe Acrobat
MS Word
 
Read Other Studies
Listen or Watch Online Bible Studies

In addition to his contributions to this website Reverend W. C. Slyde Moran also has a weekly television show • Online Audio Studies • and an ever-increasing outreach ministry providing free Audio teachings on CD to enable the growth and maturing of the body of Christ.

  •  Terms of Service  •  Privacy Policy