It is a battle to start believing because your fleshly mind reasons against faith. Then once you believe it is a battle to keep on believing because you have so many reasons to stop believing in an invisible God! That is why Paul refers to it as a fight, or a battle. It is a battle to keep on believing in God. The devil does his best to discourage you and to make you doubt, because he wants to rob you of your faith. But God has given you a quality of faith that is supernatural. He has given you resilient faith. Your faith can bounce back in the face of adversity. Your faith will get up and go on when everything seems lost. Nothing can stop your faith in God, because it comes from God! It is the kind of faith Jesus had. It is the kind of faith Peter had. It is the kind of faith John had. It is the kind of faith Paul had. We have received ‘like measure of faith’ as they have!

Paul’s suffering

Paul suffered much during his apostleship. But he never stopped believing in God!

Let us examine a few of the things Paul suffered that could have stopped his faith.

II Corinthians 11:23 – 33

Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. 24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; 26 In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; 27 In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. 28 Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not? 30 If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities. 31 The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore, knoweth that I lie not. 32 In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king kept the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, desirous to apprehend me: 33 And through a window in a basket was I let down by the wall, and escaped his hands.

Labors

Stripes – of Jews 5 times (39 stripes each time)

Prisons

Deaths

Beating with Rods (3 times)

Stoned

Shipwreck (3 times)

In the deep (a night and a day)

Journeying

Perils of waters

Perils of robbers

Perils by own countrymen

Perils by heathen

Perils in the city

Perils in the wilderness

Perils in the sea

Perils among false brothers

Weariness

Painfulness

Hunger

Thirst

Watching

Fasting

Cold and nakedness

Care of the churches – some churches rejected him as a false apostle

Weakness

Arrested by a whole garrison

Let down in a basket through a window to escape

Paul says he glories in these things! Why? Because he has learned that when he is weak, Christ’s strength is revealed.

Paul had resilient faith. Resilient also means elastic, tough, durable a kind of bounce-back faith. A 7 shield Van Dyk carpet in South Africa is known for its resilience. When you walk on it your footprint is left for a while and then the fiber of the carpet causes the footprint to disappear again. That is the best picture to describe resilience.

If anyone had reasons to doubt God and to stop believing in Jesus Christ, it was Paul, and yet his faith bounced back every time after a setback and he kept on believing.

Acts 27:21 – 25

21 But after long abstinence Paul stood forth in the midst of them, and said, Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss. 22 And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man’s life among you, but of the ship. 23 For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve, 24 Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. 25 Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.

At the end of his life Paul still believed in God. In spite of all that happened to him, in spite of all the things he suffered, in spite of the persecution for Christ’s sake, in spite of all the rejection, in spite of all the imprisonment, in spite of all the shipwrecks, he could still say: ‘I believe God!’

The basis for resilient faith

He could say this, because he was told right at the beginning of the ‘great things’ he would suffer for the sake of the Gospel.

Acts 9: 13 – 19

Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: 14 And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name. 15 But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: 16 For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake. 17 And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. 18 And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized. 19 And when he had received meat, he was strengthened.

At the end of his life Paul told Timothy

II Timothy 4: 6 – 8

6 For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

We have received resilient faith

It is a battle to start believing because your fleshly mind reasons against faith. Then once you believe it is a battle to keep on believing because you have so many reasons to stop believing in an invisible God! That is why Paul refers to it as a fight, or a battle. It is a battle to keep on believing in God. The devil does his best to discourage you and to make you doubt, because he wants to rob you of your faith. But God has given you a quality of faith that is supernatural. He has given you resilient faith. Your faith can bounce back in the face of adversity. Your faith will get up and go on when everything seems lost. Nothing can stop your faith in God, because it comes from God! It is the kind of faith Jesus had. It is the kind of faith Peter had. It is the kind of faith John had. It is the kind of faith Paul had. We have received ‘like measure of faith’ as they have!