The Revelation 2025

Tuesday, August 5, 2025

The Just Shall Live by Faith

A central theme in the life of Paul can be summed up in a phrase he used: “The just shall live by faith.” What does that mean? How do we live by faith today?

In 2 Corinthians, the apostle Paul put together a list of the trials and hardships he had been through (2 Corinthians 11:23-27). As you read through this list of beatings with rods, being stoned, imprisoned, shipwrecked, and on and on, you can’t help but wonder how Paul was able to make it through all of these trials. In addition to all of this, he had the responsibility of managing the churches in the gentile world (verse 28).

There were tremendous highs in the life of Paul, and then there were some deep lows. After all of his intense activity, Paul languished in jail for years in Caesarea and Rome!

Paul’s example of how to live by faith

As we read through these accounts of Paul’s life, we have to ask ourselves, How did he do it? How was he able to hang in there and endure?

The answer isn’t a great mystery really, because Paul tells us time and time again how he did it.

One of the scriptures where he tells us how he managed to make it through all of these trials is Galatians 3:11, where he tells us, “The just shall live by faith.” It must have been one of Paul’s favorite quotes, as he uses it more than once in his epistles.

Paul is actually quoting an Old Testament passage found in Habakkuk 2:4, where it states, “The just shall live by his faith” (emphasis added). This is an interesting concept in itself—the just shall live by his faith. Not that we don’t need the faith of Christ in us (see our articles “Christ in Us” and “Living Faith”), but we also have a part to play when it comes to living by faith.

The two blind men’s example of living by faith

As an example of personal faith, Matthew recorded for us a time when two blind men came to Jesus and asked Him to heal them. Jesus first asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”

Their reply was, “Yes, Lord.”

“Then He touched their eyes saying, ‘According to your faith let it be to you.’ And their eyes were opened.”

These two men exercised their personal living faith in Jesus Christ that He could indeed heal them—and they were healed (Matthew 9:27-30).

The challenge of living by faith in beliefs and actions

Everyone, at some point in time, is going to have to live by his or her faith. Not my faith or someone else’s faith, but his or her own faith. He or she is going to have to take a stand on his or her faith. You are going to have to build your life on your faith and endure your trials and afflictions by your faith. (Of course, faith is also a gift from the faithful, all-powerful God, so our faith has a firm foundation!)

Living by faith is how Paul got through all of his hardships and trials, and that’s how we’re going to get through all of ours.Living by faith is how Paul got through all of his hardships and trials, and that’s how we’re going to get through all of ours. We have to personally exercise faith in God to see us through, no matter what we may have to face in this life.

So, it actually gets right down to what you believe, doesn’t it? It finally gets down to what’s living in your heart and mind in terms of your set of beliefs and values that you hold on to and build your life upon. One benefit of going through trials is that they strengthen your faith. It’s a fundamental truism—“the just shall live by faith.”

Paul again mentioned “the just shall live by faith” in Romans 1:16-17. He showed how the glorious gospel of Christ is a very powerful thing. He went on to say there is power in that gospel to lead one to salvation—there is power in that message. But we must also live by what Christ taught in that message. This is what living faith looks like. Living faith is living our lives as Jesus Christ lived His life. It’s obeying and doing the things He did.

Living faith includes what you do, as well as what you believe (James 2:18-20). Unless a person’s belief is backed up by good works, James says his or her faith is dead.

More examples of people who lived by faith

The phrase “the just shall live by faith” is also found in Hebrews 10:35-38. The writer of Hebrews was encouraging those whose faith was wavering to hang in there. He followed it in the next chapter with examples of faithful people:

Abraham, known as the father of the faithful, exercised living faith when he offered up Isaac.
Moses exercised living faith when he led the children of Israel through the Red Sea.
David killed the Philistine giant Goliath by exercising living faith that God would be with him and give him the victory.
Daniel exercised living faith when he refused to stop praying in spite of the penalty of being thrown into the lions’ den.
Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego exercised living faith when they refused to bow to King Nebuchadnezzar’s image of gold and then faced the “violence of fire.”

All of the above and many more like them, some of whom are listed in Hebrews chapter 11, put their lives on the line because they lived by faith, and God saw them through!

How can we live by faith?

What about us? How can we have the kind of living faith all of these Bible greats had? How can we be counted among those who exercised living faith? What does God expect of us?

The apostle Paul further tells us that “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). Our faith can be increased by studying the examples of those who lived by faith. A careful, in-depth study of the lives of those faithful people mentioned in this article would be a good start. God expects us to study His Word, the Bible, to help us live by faith. Regular Bible study is a faith builder.

Moreover, God’s Word will reveal other areas of our lives that we’ll need to change if we are to live our lives as Christ lived His. We should embark on a study of the life of Christ, as recorded in the Gospels. He set us an example in all things, and we are admonished to “follow His steps,” meaning to live as He lived (1 Peter 2:21).

We can also ask God for more faith. God will increase our faith if we ask Him for it and diligently seek to draw closer to Him in prayer and the study of His Word. Living faith is not just believing that God exists. It is demonstrated by one’s service and obedience to God. Living faith is something we should have 24/7, not just during times when we are going through a trial.

After a life of faith

We began this article talking about Paul’s example of living by faith. How did living faith finally play out in the life of this apostle of God? What was the end result for Paul?

He tells us in his second letter to the young evangelist Timothy. Paul wrote: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:7-8).

A major part of Paul’s preparation for this momentous event was living his life by faith—living faith! We, too, can do the same.

Study more about growing in faith in our article “How to Grow in Faith.”

Safe in God’s Hands

Jesus promised that His followers can’t be snatched from the Father’s hand. What does that promise mean for us today?

A most comforting and encouraging promise is found in John 10:27-29. Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. … My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.”

Jesus is quite emphatic. His disciples have been given to Him by the Father, and no enemy is able to snatch them out of God’s hands.

Do we believe this promise given to us by Jesus? And what does God expect us to do to claim this promise?

Consider the first part of what Jesus said: “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”

“My sheep hear My voice”: believing Jesus’ words

In the final hours before Jesus’ crucifixion, Jesus prayed to the Father. He asked Him to sanctify or set apart His followers by His truth and added, “Your word is truth” (John 17:17).

It is through the Bible—the Word of God—that we come to know Him. We must hear the good Shepherd’s voice and follow Him—and choose not to listen to other voices or wander off. We must hear and believe the pure truth of God’s Word—and reject temptations to sin or to believe nonbiblical ideas.

Jesus Himself revealed how powerful and everlasting God’s words are by stating that heaven and earth will pass away, but God’s words will not (Matthew 24:35).

Therefore, we can know and be assured that what Jesus promised about God keeping His followers in His hand is sure.

As Christians, we must all be fully persuaded that God is able to preserve us. As it says in Hebrews 11:6, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

“They follow Me”: obeying God

It is of great value to believe in God, but the Bible says there is more everyone must be doing. Even the demons believe in God and tremble (James 2:19), but Christ’s followers are told to “be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22). We must do what God commands.

The apostle John wrote, “He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him” (1 John 2:4-5).

Notice what the apostle Peter emphasized we need to do: “Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator” (1 Peter 4:19).

So we must be obedient to God’s way of life and believe that He will watch over us, just as He did the many men and women in the Bible who believed and obeyed God. They sought God as their refuge and focused on pleasing Him.

“No one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand”

To those who believe and obey, Jesus made this wonderful promise that God will always faithfully do His part, and no enemy has the power to overcome God. God is all-powerful and completely trustworthy.To those who believe and obey, Jesus made this wonderful promise that God will always faithfully do His part, and no enemy has the power to overcome God. God is all-powerful and completely trustworthy.

This promise does not mean that no one will ever fall away from God, for we humans are fallible and will be judged in accordance with what we do (John 5:29). What this promise in John 10 is referring to is God’s faithfulness and omnipotence. God will not go back on His word, and no power on heaven or earth can alter God’s plan to reward those who in faith seek God and strive to live as He instructs.

Paul’s example

In Paul’s second letter to Timothy we find him alluding to Christ’s promise. He wrote, “I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day” (2 Timothy 1:12).

Paul was fully persuaded that Christ was able to keep what he had committed to Him. And what was it that Paul had committed to Christ? It was his life!

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown’s Commentary suggests that the word translated “believed” in 2 Timothy 1:12 might be better thought of as trusted, “carrying out the metaphor of a depositor depositing his pledge with one whom he trusts.”

Paul knew that God is trustworthy.

Paul trusted Christ and was fully persuaded that He was able to resurrect him on the day of His return, when all those who are in Christ will be changed to spirit beings.

Thus Paul confronted his coming death with confidence: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:7-8).

Our enemy

We battle against a strong adversary. Jesus tells us that the devil is the father of lies (John 8:44) who deceives the whole world (Revelation 12:9). Satan is the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2), and through moods and attitudes, he bombards everyone with negative, hateful and evil thoughts all the time.

Satan’s goal is to cause us to fail. He wants to rip us out of God’s hand. But God cannot lie (Titus 1:2). Therefore, if Jesus said that no one can pluck a disciple out of God’s hand, it is a promise that we can count on.

Our choice

Satan can—and will—try to get us to doubt God and to wander away from God. But he can’t take us—only we can choose to leave. If we leave the protection of the Father’s hand, it is by our own choice. But God gives us all the help we need to avoid making that wrong choice. His analogy and His promise are intended to encourage and strengthen us to always make the right choice.

Jesus used the analogy of sheep to describe His followers. He said that they hear His voice and follow Him, the good Shepherd. And if we recognize Him as our loving and protective Shepherd, we will follow Him; and He will give us eternal life.

His promise to us is that no one will be able to remove us from either His or His Father’s hand. Let’s hang on to that promise!

For a further study on the promises found in the Bible, read “God’s Promises: Rock-Solid Hope and Assurance.”

Dealing With Doubt

Spiritual doubt is common, even among those who want to believe. But the Bible shows us how to deal with doubts and grow in faith.

This article explores six biblical tips for dealing with doubt:

Examine God’s creation.
Test all things.
Prove by doing.
Ask God for faith.
Study what God has done in the past.
Exercise your faith.

More about these in a moment.

Modern and Millennial doubts

Our modern world seems designed to foster doubts about God and the Bible. Evolution discounts the need for a Creator. Scholars question the accuracy of the Bible. Public opinion redefines the biblical standards of right and wrong. Religious leaders too often show appalling hypocrisy. Evil grows, and yet God seems to be in hiding.

And religious people struggle with doubt.

For example, a Barna study showed:

“Just over one-quarter (26%) [of American adults who self-identify as Christian] say they still experience spiritual doubt, while four in 10 (40%) say they have experienced it in the past but have worked through it. Only about one-third (35%) claim to have never experienced it at all. …

“Having come of age in a more secular and pluralist culture, Millennials (38%) currently experience about twice as much doubt as any of the other generational groups (23% Gen-Xers, 19% Boomers, 20% Elders). Men are also more likely than women to actively experience doubt (32% compared to 20% women). Those who have been through college and encountered an array of ideas, philosophies and worldviews are twice as likely to experience doubt as those who have a high school education or less (37% vs. 19%).”

But though it seems to have grown in the modern age, doubt is nothing new.

Biblical doubters

When we have doubts, we can consider ourselves in good company. Jesus said to Peter, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:31). Of course, Peter did have faith to step out of the boat to walk on water! But as the wind hit him, so too did doubt.

However, over the years Peter did learn not to doubt and taught others to “not be afraid,” as he wrote in 1 Peter 3:14.

Then there was the disciple, soon to be apostle, whose name has become associated with doubting. After the resurrection, doubting Thomas said, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe” (John 20:25).

However, when the resurrected Christ did appear and speak to him, Thomas responded in verse 28: “My Lord and my God!”

Then Jesus pronounced a blessing on us today who face even more of a challenge. Jesus said, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).

But how do we claim that blessing? How can we deal with doubts and strengthen our beliefs?

How to deal with doubts

God is the Creator, and the Bible is His message to us today. He cares about us and is working out a plan that provides opportunities for every human who is alive or who has ever lived. But how can we prove these things and build the faith to deal with the overwhelming challenges and storms of life that can cause us to doubt? How can questioning our faith help it to grow?

Here are some biblical principles for dealing with doubts.

Examine God’s creation.

David, a shepherd who became a king, was an ardent observer of nature. His hours of contemplation led him to write, “The heavens declare the glory of God” (Psalm 19:1). As he thought about the vast universe, the moon and the stars, he wondered, “What is man that You are mindful of him?” (8:4).

Considering the wonders of the human body, he concluded, “For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well” (139:13-14).

The apostle Paul also pointed to the universe around us as powerful evidence of the Creator. “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse” (Romans 1:20).

To help in your examination of creation, download our study guide Does God Exist? And visit the “Is There a God?” section of Life, Hope & Truth, where you can find dozens of articles that can help you prove beyond a doubt that our universe, and our lives, were created for a purpose by a superintelligent being of awesome power—our Creator God. The subjects include everything from DNA to the fossil record, from intelligent design to evolution, from irreducible complexity to organic chemistry.

Test all things.

God doesn’t expect us to just accept the things in the Bible, to turn off our thinking and just go with our feelings. He created the universe to follow rational laws and He intends us to use our minds to prove what is true.God doesn’t expect us to just accept the things in the Bible, to turn off our thinking and just go with our feelings. He created the universe to follow rational laws and He intends us to use our minds to prove what is true.

As the apostle Paul wrote, “Test all things; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). The Bible praises people who check things out. In Berea Paul found fair-minded people who “searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11). Since they found Paul’s preaching to be true, “many of them believed” (verse 12).

Our study guide Is the Bible True? can help in your quest to prove it.

Prove by doing.

One of the most important things God wants us to prove is that His way of living is right—that it works and produces good results in the long run. Jesus said, “Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own” (John 7:17, New International Version).

God even gives us some specific promises we can test:

“‘Honor your father and mother,’ which is the first commandment with promise: ‘that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth’” (Ephesians 6:2-3). God invites us to try it and see if learning to honor authority won’t help us in every area of life, including, according to the will of God, giving us long life.

Malachi records another specific command and blessing: “‘Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this,’ says the LORD of hosts, ‘if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it’” (Malachi 3:10; see “Tithing: What Is It?”).

The basic principle is that God has defined what is right and wrong. In the end, doing what is right leads to good results, and doing what is wrong produces bad results (Galatians 6:7-9; Deuteronomy 28:1-2, 3-6, 7-8, 9-11, 12-14; 30:15-16; see our article “Why Is Our Modern World Under Ancient Curses?”).

Ask God for faith.

“And the apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith’” (Luke 17:5). We can ask the same thing in our moments of doubt—or any time, for that matter.

The Bible records a poignant example of a man seeking healing for his son. The disciples had not been able to heal him, so when Jesus came, the father explained the situation to Jesus. “And often [an evil spirit] has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us” (Mark 9:22).

Jesus answered, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes” (verse 23).

After all the years of watching his son suffer, and after seeing the disciples fail, the father had his doubts. He cried out with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” (verse 24, emphasis added).

We can ask God for living faith, saving faith—Christ’s faith (Ephesians 2:8-10; Galatians 2:20). Learn more in our article “How to Grow in Faith.”

Study what God has done in the past.

Paul wrote, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).

Much of the Bible recounts stories of God’s faithfulness to His promises. Read those stories and meditate on them, as the psalmist did: “We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, the deeds You did in their days, in days of old” (Psalm 44:1).

Consider the example of the father of the faithful, Abraham, who knew by experience that God was faithful. Paul wrote, “He did not waver at the promise of God, through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised, He was also able to perform” (Romans 4:20-21; see “The Faith of Abraham”).

Seeing what God has done can also include asking believers today why they believe. People have told me of miraculous events and healings they have experienced, and such stories from reputable sources can strengthen your faith as well.

Exercise your faith.

Growing in faith is essential to becoming the kind of people God wants us to be. That means that we have to go through trials and tests to exercise the faith muscles He is developing in us. If we never faced challenges, if He answered every prayer immediately, if He was visibly present before us every moment, we would have no way to grow in faith. (Learn more about why God allows fiery trials in “Through Many Tribulations.”)

Applying these principles can help us deal with doubts. But don’t stop here. Take the next step by studying “How to Grow in Faith.”

What Does It Mean to Believe in Jesus Christ?

Is believing in Christ just saying a few words? Is it some mysterious spiritual-sounding concept? Or is it a rock-solid foundation for your life now—and forever?

Millions of people profess a belief in Jesus Christ, but is their belief consistent with the biblical description of believing in Jesus? Can your faith in Christ be a counterfeit version of the real thing?

Or, on the other hand, do you think faith in Jesus Christ is a meaningless, sentimental platitude? Do you consider belief in Christ the territory of religious fanatics who are out of touch with the practical needs, issues and realities of everyday life?

The true Jesus of Nazareth thundered this warning to those who did not believe: “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:23-24).

Surely the question of faith in Jesus Christ is no light matter reserved for only the religiously sentimental. Ignorance can cost you your eternal life.

The question that becomes immediately relevant is this: What does it truly mean to believe in the real Jesus Christ of the Bible? As we will see, belief in Christ means believing and trusting Him and doing what He says.

The foundation: His existence, identity and nature

Faith in Christ means believing:

That He is God and divine, the same type of being as the Father, though willingly submissive to the Father’s authority.
That He existed eternally with the Father, without beginning or end.
That He walked this earth as a man—that Christ was a real, historical figure.
That He continues to exist at the right hand of the Father.
That He is a living example of the way of life that pleases God, and that the goal of true Christians is to grow into His likeness (Ephesians 4:11-16).

Belief in Christ is built on the foundation of trust in the reliability of the Gospel accounts as a source of historical truth. Take the time to inquire about and test the origins and authenticity of those accounts.

You will also find that there is an abundance of sources external to the Bible that confirm beyond reasonable doubt that these books were written by real apostles about a real Jesus of Nazareth. (Learn more in the articles in the section on “Is the Bible True?”)

Faith in Christ means believing Him

Jesus of Nazareth brought a message from God called the gospel, which means good news. The gospel reveals that Christ will return to the earth as a king, and like any other king, He will have a kingdom with subjects, territory and laws that He expects His subjects to obey. His message also contained a grave warning. ...The warning is that we must repent; otherwise, we are in danger of annihilation for our sins against God. Sin is breaking His laws, summarized by the 10 Commandments.

The good news is that there is a way out. God has offered us forgiveness through repentance of sins and belief in the gospel (see Mark 1:14-15).

Faith in Christ means believing this message with its warning and good news, as well as the premises upon which that warning and good news are based.

This process of rescuing mankind from eternal annihilation is referred to in the Bible as salvation. Faith in Christ also means believing His message about His role in our salvation. He is directly responsible for our salvation. That is why His name is Jesus, which signifies “Savior.”

He is performing this role in three key phases—past, present and future:

1. He became a sacrifice—dying for us so that we can be acquitted of past sins.

2. He now provides us, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, with the power to stop breaking the law, along with access and intercession before God.

3. He has promised to transform us at His second coming into immortal spirit children of God.

Faith in Christ means accepting His terms for salvation

Faith in Him means accepting the terms and conditions by which we can be beneficiaries of God’s grace and of Christ’s saving work (the above three phases).

The terms and conditions are that:

1. We must repent and stop breaking the law, since breaking the law is responsible for the penalty of eternal death hanging over our heads.

2. We must exercise the type of faith in Christ described throughout this article.

3. We must submit to the Father and Christ.

4. We must be baptized to express the above-described repentance and faith.

Faith in Christ means trusting Him

Trust means to be confident about the reliability of a person’s words and performance in the face of risk. Jesus Christ is so trustworthy that we can have rock-solid faith in His promises and in His love for us. This can help us deal with all the dangers and risks we face. The stakes are high, but God’s faithfulness is unshakable.

This confidence can help us avoid succumbing to the negative influences of Satan the devil, the evil world and our own human carnality. It can help us keep repenting, overcoming and striving for perfection until the end.

Faith in Christ means trusting Him to bring you through successfully in the face of all the adverse possibilities. It includes going to your limit in doing all you can do, while depending upon Him to do all you cannot do.

So faith in Jesus the Christ is not about fanciful sentimentalism reserved for a religious mind that is out of touch with everyday realism. On the contrary, it is about commonsense cooperation with a being who is genuinely interested in your eternal survival and in rescuing you from a collision course with certain future destruction.

Jesus said, “You believe in God, believe also in Me” (John 14:1). Believing in Christ means believing in His existence, believing His gospel message, accepting Him as Savior and trusting Him as Lord and Master.

Learn more about faith in our articles “What Is Faith?” “How to Grow in Faith” and “God’s Promises: Rock-Solid Hope and Assurance.”