Hope Worth Having

Faithfulness

(Hebrews 10:24-25 NKJV)  And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

 

What does it mean to be faithful?  The root meaning of faithfulness (Heb. emunah) is “certainty” and “dependability.”

 

Today we should resolve to be faithful to the church services.  We cast our vote to close that service when we choose not to attend.  We need church.  Our family needs church.  Our church needs us.  We need to be obedient to our Lord and Savior who bled and died to purchase the church with His precious blood.  We also need to be faithful to keep the covenant we made to our church when we joined.  Most church covenants state that members will support their church family through faithful attendance.

 

A pastor was once asked to define “Faithful attendance at Worship,” and this was his reply: "All that I ask is that we apply the same standards of faithfulness to our church activities that we would in other areas of our life.  That doesn’t seem too much to ask.  The church, after all, is concerned about faithfulness."

 

Consider these examples: If your car started one out of three times, would you consider it faithful?  If the paper boy skipped Monday and Thursdays, would they be missed?  If you didn’t show up at work two or three times a month, would your boss call you faithful?  If your refrigerator quit a day now and then would you excuse it and say, “Oh well, it works most of the time.”  If your water heater greets you with cold water one or two mornings a week while you were in the shower, would it be faithful?  If you miss a couple of mortgage payments in a year’s time, would your mortgage holder say, “Oh well, ten out of twelve isn’t bad”?  If you miss worship and attend meetings only often enough to show you’re interested but not often enough to get involved are you faithful?

 

The Marine Corps has an interesting motto, Semper Fidelis, the short is Semper Fi. Perhaps you have seen that on windows or bumpers of cars. Semper Fidelis are two Latin words that mean, “Always Faithful”. It is really the code of conduct and character of the gallant soldiers of the Corps. It is a description of their loyalty, and a definition of their lives as Marines. It is supposed to be their driven purpose as honorable and dedicated soldiers to this branch of service – Always Faithful.

 

May it be said of God’s people….Always Faithful.