Castle Howard
To celebrate our fifty-fifth wedding anniversary, June and I recently spent two weeks in England. We traveled from one end of the island to the other, seeing various historical sites. The building that most impressed me, however, was Castle Howard. I was fastened with its history.
To see the picture of the castle: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10539485
The Howard family got the land in 1566 and the construction of Castle Howard began in 1699. It was not until 1811 that the building was finally completed, over one hundred years from the start. The house and land cover over 13,000 acres (22 square miles) and is surrounded by four villages and its own railway station. It is a place of beauty with lakes and gardens. Even today it is used as a setting for various television shows and movies.
The Howard family was very political, catering to kings and parliament and marrying into wealth. The castle was built for show, not for defense. In the beginning, their faithfulness and loyalty to kings brought them land and wealth. Their politics and social status caused them not to offend anyone or to take sides, unless it was on the winning side. When England went into civil war led by Oliver Cromwell, they sided with him and parliament. When King Charles II returned to become king, they changed sides and supported the royals. The king asked the Howards why they didn’t support the throne during the war. They made all kinds of silly excuses, finally saying they wanted to, but were simply unable. King Charles then give them a coat of arms that read, “WILLING BUT NOT ABLE.” Their excuse was that because of circumstances they were not able. But the real issue was that they were unwilling to make the commitment! The king wanted to illustrate to everyone that they were all talk, but no action. To this day, that slogan is on the coat of arms over the front door of Castle Howard.
Is your loyalty to the throne of King Jesus or to your own interests? Jesus said that He would separate the sheep from the goats (Matt. 25). The sheep follow the shepherd. The goats are independent and do their own thing. When King Jesus returns will he give you a “coat of arms,” that reads, “WELL DONE, THOU GOOD AND FAITHFUL SERVANT” (Matt. 25:21)? Or will your coat of arms read, “WILLING BUT NOT ABLE”? Are you all talk, but no action? Full of excuses, but really you are unwilling to make a commitment to King Jesus? The command of scripture is to “Be doers of the word and not hearers only.” Only when you step out by faith will you get to see God work; for God honors His Word. “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do” (James 2:14, 17-18).
James says your faith can be living or dead, depending on your corresponding actions. Living faith has conviction or persuasion plus corresponding actions. Dead faith has belief, conviction, or persuasion, but no corresponding actions. It is lifeless and powerless. Every reference to faith in the New Testament is talking about living faith, never dead faith. Faith is being confidant in God, that He will keep His Word (1 John 5:14-15). Faith plus action equals results. Hebrews 11:1 gives the best definition of faith: “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
You obey Jesus by receiving God’s word and acting on it. That is what gives you life-giving power (John 1:12). Your faith is a conviction, a sense of knowing from the Holy Spirit that God has spoken. In Acts 16:10, the Macedonian call first came through an inward conviction and vision, then “concluding that God had called us,” they moved out. Remember, the Holy Spirit twice stopped them from going into Asia by a sense of restraint. It was the witness of the Holy Spirit in their hearts that gave them the assurance and confirmation that God was able and willing.
It’s like having the title deed to your car. The title deed is the assurance from the Word of God and the Holy Spirit verifying that you “have the petitions” that you’ve asked of Him. You own it and have the proof. This assurance of faith causes you to move out and put your Bible-faith into action in word or deed. But the Word has no life or power until you act on it (James 1:22). As you believe it and put it into action, you will receive it (Mark 11:24). This is the leap of faith. It will always have some risk to it.
To cross the Jordan, you must first step into the water. To kill your Goliath, you must first confront him with your sling-shot. To walk on water, you must first get out of the boat. For the lepers to be healed, they must first show themselves to the priest. For the blind-man to be healed he must first wash the mud out of his eyes. Thus, “Faith without action is dead.”
Through the Lord’s precious promises, you can share in His divine nature. “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know Him, the one who called us to Himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of His glory and excellence, He has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share His divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires” (2 Peter 1:3–4 NLT). Ask the Lord to help you to not only hear the word, but to put it into practice; to help you to be a “good and faithful servant.”