Pure Faith Sees God Alone.
Pure faith trusts in God's sovereignty and faithfulness, living in the present moment and trusting Him to provide for our needs.
Francois Fenelon preaches about the importance of pure faith in seeing God alone, emphasizing the need to trust in God's provision day by day without worrying about the future. He describes pure faith as constantly keeping the soul in suspense, relying on God's freedom to act while focusing on being faithful in what is within our control. This momentary dependence and peace under the uncertainty of the future is likened to a silent martyrdom, leading to a gradual death to self and complete trust in God's provision.
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LETTER XIV.
Pure faith sees God alone.
Be not anxious about the future; it is opposed to grace. When God sends you consolation, regard Him only in it, enjoy it day by day as the Israelites received their manna, and do not endeavor to lay it up in store. There are two peculiarities of pure faith; it sees God alone under all the imperfect envelopes which conceal Him,[4] and it holds the soul incessantly in suspense. We are kept constantly in the air, without being suffered to touch a foot to solid ground. The comfort of the present instant will be wholly inappropriate to the next; we must let God act with the most perfect freedom, in whatever belongs to Him, and think only of being faithful in all that depends upon ourselves. This momentary dependence, this darkness and this peace of the soul, under the utter uncertainty of the future, is a true martyrdom, which take place silently and without any stir. It is death by a slow fire; and the end comes so imperceptibly and interiorly, that it is often almost as much hidden from the sufferer himself, as from those who are unacquainted with his state. When God removes his gifts from you, He knows how and when to replace them, either by others or by Himself. He can raise up children from the very stones.
Eat then your daily bread without thought for the morrow; "sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." (Matt. vi. 34.) To-morrow will take thought for the things of itself. He who feeds you to-day, is the same to whom you will look for food to-morrow; manna shall fall again from heaven in the midst of the desert, before the children of God shall want any good thing.
Sermon Outline
- The Nature of Pure Faith
- The Importance of Living in the Present
- God's Sovereignty and Faithfulness
- God knows how and when to replace His gifts
- He can raise up children from the very stones
Key Quotes
“Be not anxious about the future; it is opposed to grace.” — Francois Fenelon
“Eat then your daily bread without thought for the morrow; 'sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.'” — Francois Fenelon
“He who feeds you to-day, is the same to whom you will look for food to-morrow;” — Francois Fenelon
Application Points
- Focus on the present moment and trust God to provide for your needs.
- Remember that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and He will provide for you again tomorrow.
- Let go of anxiety about the future and trust in God's sovereignty and faithfulness.