Add to Your Faith

"Giving all diligence: add to your faith." -II Peter 1:5 [KJV]

Here is the Christian’s work. All diligence is required in it. O believer, be assured (the Lord impress it upon your heart and mine) there is no being a lively, comfortable disciple, without it. Beware you do not add to your faith licentious notions and Antinomian sloth, instead of Christian virtues, holy tempers, and heavenly affections, which adorn our profession, and glorify our Saviour. 

Ever remember, you are called to honour Christ by your life on earth, as well as to be saved by and enjoy Him in heaven. By faith we receive Christ, rest upon Him, and look to Him alone for justification unto eternal life. But a lively faith will not leave us barren and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

If there be not an habitual disposition of soul, to add to faith, virtue, knowledge, patience, godliness, etc., we should examine and see to it; lest, instead of Christ dwelling in our hearts by faith, we have only a notion which floats in our heads. If so, this will only make us idle talkers; but not diligent workers and holy walkers. That we are guilty sinners, justified and saved by Christ only, is a truth which is ever to be held fast in the conscience. 

We can add nothing to Christ’s work. To attempt to do any thing towards our own justification before God, is the basest act of unbelief. But faith is the queen of graces. She lives upon the King of saints. She will have a noble retinue to attend her. Let us never desire to get beyond this blessed rule of addition. Let us never subtract from it. Let us give all diligence to multiply more and more. Have we got into the rule of three? Do we know the love of the Three One God?—the everlasting love of God the Father; the redeeming love of God the Son; the sanctifying love of God the Holy Ghost? 

Still we must never leave the rule of addition: add to your faith; but go on to all diligence in practice. Christ hath taught it: faith enjoins it; love constrains to it: Christ’s honour and glory demand it. But beware of getting into fraction, as though any thing you do gives you a title to glory. But see, hence, the glory and spirituality of the gospel, and the reason why the belief of it is called, “your most holy faith” (Jude 20.) We are called by the faith of Christ to glorify God, by adding an obedient life to our most holy faith. This is our way in Christ: walk in it, and ye shall find rest for your souls from Christ. -see Jeremiah 6:16

 

Add to my faith!—the sluggard smiles: 

“I want no more than Christ:” 

But Him you want, for sin beguiles— 

His truth you do resist. 

Dear Lord, stir up to diligence, 

To walk in all Thy ways: 

O! arm my soul with vigilance, 

Which Thou hast sav’d by grace.

 

-preacher Wm. Mason (1724-1797 A.D.)

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