“WORKING OUT A FAITH THAT IS GENUINE AND SINCERE”
Text Focus:
Philippians 2:12–13
James 1:2–4
1 Peter 1:6–7
Hebrews 10:36
Romans 5:3–5
INTRODUCTION: THE END OF A LONG ROAD
As we stand at the end of this year, we are not merely closing a calendar—we are closing chapters of endurance.
Some years are marked by breakthroughs.
Others are marked by waiting.
Still others are marked by silent obedience, where nothing seemed to move, yet God was working deeply within us.
Many of us did not lose our faith this year—but neither did we feel triumphant.
We simply endured.
And that endurance was not accidental.
Scripture tells us plainly:
“Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.” (James 1:3)
Faith is not proven in comfort—it is worked out in testing.
I. FAITH IS NOT INHERITED — IT IS FORMED
“Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.”
— Philippians 2:12
Paul does not say earn your salvation.
He says work it out.
This implies:
Faith begins as a gift
But it matures through process
And sincerity is forged through experience
A faith that has never been tested often speaks loudly, but stands weakly.
A faith that has been tested may speak softly—but it stands firm.
You cannot borrow another person’s faith for your own storms.
You cannot live on yesterday’s encounters.
Your faith must become personal, lived, and proven.
II. TESTING REVEALS WHAT IS REAL
“Though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations.”
— 1 Peter 1:6
Peter does not deny the heaviness.
God does not pretend the pain was small.
But Scripture says “if need be.”
This tells us something uncomfortable yet holy:
Some trials are necessary.
Why?
“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth…” (1 Peter 1:7)
Gold is tested by fire.
Faith is tested by delay, loss, silence, and uncertainty.
If your faith survived:
unanswered prayers
misunderstood obedience
years of waiting
loneliness in righteousness
Then your faith is no longer shallow.
It is genuine.
III. WAITING IS NOT WASTED TIME
“For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.”
— Hebrews 10:36
Notice the order:
You did the will of God
Then you needed patience
Only then comes the promise
Many believers expect reward immediately after obedience.
But Scripture teaches obedience first, endurance second, fulfillment last.
Waiting:
purifies motives
removes self-reliance
teaches trust without control
God often withholds answers not to punish us, but to deepen us.
A faith that can wait without bitterness is a faith that is sincere.
IV. ENDURANCE SHAPES CHARACTER, NOT JUST SURVIVAL
“Tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope.”
— Romans 5:3–4
God is not just interested in getting you through the storm.
He is interested in who you become because of it.
Endurance produces:
humility where pride once lived
discernment where naivety once ruled
compassion where judgment once stood
A genuine faith does not only ask:
“When will this end?”
It also asks:
“Lord, what are You forming in me?”
And sincere faith accepts that God’s shaping is sometimes slow—and always intentional.
V. SINCERE FAITH STAYS WHEN FEELINGS LEAVE
There were moments this year when:
prayer felt dry
worship felt heavy
Scripture felt distant
Yet you remained.
That is not hypocrisy.
That is maturity.
Faith is not proven by how strongly you feel God’s presence,
but by how faithfully you obey when you don’t.
Jesus Himself cried:
“My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?”
Yet He stayed obedient unto death.
Sincere faith does not walk away when clarity disappears.
It clings to God’s character when circumstances confuse.
VI. GOD WAS WORKING EVEN WHEN YOU COULD NOT SEE IT
“For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.”
— Philippians 2:13
While you thought nothing was happening:
God was refining your will
aligning your desires
strengthening your inner man
You thought the delay meant denial.
God was preparing capacity.
Some blessings cannot be rushed,
because they would crush the person you once were.
So God waited—
until your faith became strong enough to carry what is coming.
CONCLUSION: A FAITH THAT HAS PASSED THROUGH FIRE
As this year ends, hear this truth clearly:
If your faith still stands—
after disappointment,
after silence,
after long obedience with little reward—
Then your faith is genuine.
If you still pray, even when weary—
still obey, even when unseen—
still hope, even when delayed—
Then your faith is sincere.
And Scripture assures us:
“He that shall come will come, and will not tarry.” (Hebrews 10:37)
God is not late.
God is not indifferent.
God is not finished.
FINAL EXHORTATION
Do not despise the years of testing.
Do not regret the seasons of waiting.
Do not minimize the endurance you have shown.
What God has worked out in you this year
cannot be taken from you.
You are not ending the year empty—
you are ending it refined.
“Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life.”
— James 1:12
Amen.
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