How to Get Your Faith to Work

For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. (Galatians 5:6)

Faith only works as intended when it’s paired with love. Without love, faith is just noise, rituals, and religious fluff that go nowhere. When you combine love with your faith, you become an unstoppable force in the world.

My spiritual father, Kenneth E. Hagin, was known as a man of faith, but for those of us who knew him closely, we knew he was a loving man too. Real, Biblical faith isn’t cold or mechanical. It’s not about following five steps and making it work for your life. Genuine faith is fueled by love for God and love for people. If your faith ever feels powerless, you need to check your love life.

Paul expanded on this idea by telling the churches that circumcision or uncircumcision “availeth nothing.” In modern terms, he was emphasizing that outward rituals, religious mindsets, or titles don’t matter if love isn’t present. Your ability to memorize scripture or seem powerful in your speech means nothing if you aren’t loving well.

Loving well involves both loving God and loving others. Jesus told us that the greatest commandment in all of scripture is to love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. But loving God doesn’t mean just having an emotional feeling of connection with Him. Loving God fully means doing what He says, not just what we say. When love leads, obedience naturally follows.

Loving others means treating them with the same value and protection you would give yourself. True love serves first, forgives first, and apologizes first. Faith that works through love cannot fail because love never fails.

Practical Application

Don't judge your faith walk by external rituals or titles. Instead, evaluate it by how you walk in love daily. Forgive someone who has wronged you. Put someone else’s needs above your own convenience. Faith is active through love, so let’s put it into action.

1 Corinthians 13:2; James 2:17