Is Your Faith Steadfast?

An Anchor. Full of strength and stability. Once thrown overboard a vessel, it hooks to the seabed and prevents a boat from drifting. 

An anchor is such an excellent symbol of steadfastness. It stays firmly fixed in place and causes the vessel attached to it to be unwavering in its position. Immovable. 

When you think of your faith as a believer, would you consider it to be steadfast? When trials come to rock your boat, does your faith oscillate like the waves of the sea?

If I’m honest, my faith can get a little shaken when I’m facing a hard trial. By God’s grace, he can always realign me again and cause me to be steadfast.

I believe this is why the apostle Paul encouraged the church in Corinth with heartfelt sentiments: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” 1 Corinthians 15:58.

In Chapter 15 of First Corinthians, Paul explains the gospel and reassures the believers of the resurrection of the dead. Verse 58 is a response to the truth revealed in verses 55-57: “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Death is defeated for all saints. Paul encouraged the believers in Corinth to be steadfast in their faith because of this truth. Truth can withstand anything because it is unchanging, consistent, and steadfast. Our faith doesn’t have to fluctuate when it is founded on the truth of the gospel. Regardless of the circumstance, we can follow Paul’s encouragement today and be steadfast in our faith because Jesus has given us victory over death as well.

Although our faith doesn’t have to fluctuate, it can still have a tendency to do so if we are not careful. So how do we get a faith that resembles the steadfastness of an anchor? Do we will it to be? Not quite. I’m afraid it doesn’t work that way. I believe you and I become steadfast by first deciding to be. It begins with a decision. We have to have our minds made up that we will stand on the truth because trials are sure to come. Trials will roll in on waves of unbelief crashing into your faith to test it. But if we can endure trials and suffering, steadfastness can be produced in us. 

James 1:2-4 says: “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

I don’t particularly like being tested, but I know the testing is needed to make my faith resolute. It may be easy to have unwavering faith when everything is going well, but what about when things aren’t going so ideal? Even in rough times, our faith still needs to be firmly fixed in the truth of the gospel.

When things are going well and when you face all kinds of trials, be faithful to your commitment to God. When the enemy sends wave after wave of attacks to get you to move out of your position in Christ, stand firm. 

Be steadfast. 

The evil one bombards us with temptations, all in an attempt to weaken our faith. He would even love for it to fail us altogether. But stand firm anyhow. Our faith isn’t founded on us but on what Christ did at calvary. Like an anchor being hooked into the bed of the sea, we hook our faith into Christ and stand firm in him and in everything he did for us.

Be steadfast and immovable.

While we are being steadfast, we are also instructed by Paul to always abound in the work of the Lord. A steadfast faith produces a life full of good works. Our works should flow from our unwavering faith and abound all the more. We can rest assured that our work is never in vain when we do it in the Lord. 

Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.

The Lord desires to produce steadfastness in us. However, he is not calling us to be something He is not already. One characteristic of His love is that it is steadfast towards us. Lamentations 3:22 says, “the steadfast love of the LORD never ceases.” The Father desires our faith to be steadfast only because his love toward us is that way. We look to the Lord and reflect what we see in him. 

“Therefore, my beloved sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.”

Application Questions

1. When your faith gets shaken, what has the Lord used the most to realign you back to a place of steadfastness? Does he use his word, prayer, community, or a mixture of all three?
2. If you have a tendency to waver in your faith, what steps can you take to be more resolute? If you’re unsure of what steps to take, a good place to start would be to examine your beliefs about Christ. Your beliefs drive your actions, so it’s always good to start there.