Silas
Beloved of All
Thank you for sharing this burden and for your desire to see him come to know the Lord. It is a good and loving thing to pray for someone's salvation, and God hears that kind of prayer.
The Bible tells us that faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. It is not just wishing, but a confident trust in what God has promised even when we cannot yet see it. Scripture also says that without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him. Your prayer for him is an expression of that faith, trusting God to work in a life you cannot change on your own.
Salvation comes only through faith in Jesus Christ. It is by grace we are saved through faith, and that faith itself is a gift from God, not something we earn or deserve. No amount of good works or trying to live better can earn right standing with God. The law cannot make anyone righteous. We are counted righteous because we put our trust in what Jesus has done for us. As Abraham was counted righteous because he believed God, so we are counted righteous when we believe in Jesus.
At the same time, the Bible is clear that a genuine faith will show itself in a changed life. Faith alone saves, but the faith that saves is never alone. It will produce fruit. To simply say we have faith while there is no change in how we live is not the true faith that saves. True faith works, it brings forth the fruit of the Spirit and deeds of righteousness, not as the price of salvation but as the proof of it. God looks at the heart of faith that then moves a person to act. If God does bring him to true faith, you will see evidence of it over time in repentance and a new direction, because God makes those who trust Him new from the inside out.
Hardships can be one of the ways God gets a person's attention. The Bible speaks of the proving of our faith, and that proving is not for God to learn what is in us, for He already knows, but for us to see what is really there and to be refined. Having faith does not guarantee we will avoid suffering, many faithful people in Scripture suffered greatly, yet God often uses difficulty to strip away false confidence and to show a person their need for Him. It may be that the problems he is facing now are being used by God to soften his heart and help him see his need for a Savior. That is worth praying toward.
Pray that God will open his eyes to his need, that he will hear the good news of Jesus and respond with real belief, and that God will grant him repentance and faith. Pray that if he does believe, God will give him the Holy Spirit and begin the work of transforming his life. You can trust God with the outcome and with the timing. Today is the day of salvation, and we should not presume on more time, so keep praying faithfully while leaving the result in God's hands.
Continue to walk in your own faith as well. Let your trust in Christ be evident in your life, not in order to earn anything from God, but because you already belong to Him. Rest in the promise that those who are justified live by faith, day by day trusting Jesus.
We join you in prayer that God, in His mercy and grace, will draw him to Himself, that he will place his complete trust in Jesus Christ alone for forgiveness and new life, and that the reality of that faith will be seen in a truly changed life.
The Bible tells us that faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. It is not just wishing, but a confident trust in what God has promised even when we cannot yet see it. Scripture also says that without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him. Your prayer for him is an expression of that faith, trusting God to work in a life you cannot change on your own.
Salvation comes only through faith in Jesus Christ. It is by grace we are saved through faith, and that faith itself is a gift from God, not something we earn or deserve. No amount of good works or trying to live better can earn right standing with God. The law cannot make anyone righteous. We are counted righteous because we put our trust in what Jesus has done for us. As Abraham was counted righteous because he believed God, so we are counted righteous when we believe in Jesus.
At the same time, the Bible is clear that a genuine faith will show itself in a changed life. Faith alone saves, but the faith that saves is never alone. It will produce fruit. To simply say we have faith while there is no change in how we live is not the true faith that saves. True faith works, it brings forth the fruit of the Spirit and deeds of righteousness, not as the price of salvation but as the proof of it. God looks at the heart of faith that then moves a person to act. If God does bring him to true faith, you will see evidence of it over time in repentance and a new direction, because God makes those who trust Him new from the inside out.
Hardships can be one of the ways God gets a person's attention. The Bible speaks of the proving of our faith, and that proving is not for God to learn what is in us, for He already knows, but for us to see what is really there and to be refined. Having faith does not guarantee we will avoid suffering, many faithful people in Scripture suffered greatly, yet God often uses difficulty to strip away false confidence and to show a person their need for Him. It may be that the problems he is facing now are being used by God to soften his heart and help him see his need for a Savior. That is worth praying toward.
Pray that God will open his eyes to his need, that he will hear the good news of Jesus and respond with real belief, and that God will grant him repentance and faith. Pray that if he does believe, God will give him the Holy Spirit and begin the work of transforming his life. You can trust God with the outcome and with the timing. Today is the day of salvation, and we should not presume on more time, so keep praying faithfully while leaving the result in God's hands.
Continue to walk in your own faith as well. Let your trust in Christ be evident in your life, not in order to earn anything from God, but because you already belong to Him. Rest in the promise that those who are justified live by faith, day by day trusting Jesus.
We join you in prayer that God, in His mercy and grace, will draw him to Himself, that he will place his complete trust in Jesus Christ alone for forgiveness and new life, and that the reality of that faith will be seen in a truly changed life.
