The two most important things in our holy religion are the life of faith and the walk of faith. Master these, and you're not far from mastering the depths of true Christianity. They are vital—absolutely vital—to every believer.

You will never find true faith walking alone without godliness. Never! And you will never discover a truly holy life that hasn't sunk its roots deep into living faith in the righteousness of Christ. Woe to those who seek one without the other!

Some cultivate faith but forget holiness. They may score high in orthodoxy, but they shall sink deep in condemnation—for they hold the truth in unrighteousness! Others strain after holiness but deny the faith itself. Like the Pharisees of old, the Master called them "whitewashed sepulchres."

We must have faith—this is the foundation. We must have holiness of life—this is the superstructure. Tell me, what good is a bare foundation when the tempest comes? Can you hide yourself in concrete and rebar? You need a house to cover you, not just a foundation to stand on! So we need the superstructure of spiritual life if we would have comfort in the day of doubt.

But seek not a holy life without faith! That would be to build a house that can afford no permanent shelter, because it has no foundation on a rock.

Let faith and life be put together, and like the two abutments of an arch, they will make our piety enduring. Like light and heat streaming from the same sun, they are alike full of blessing. Like the two pillars of the temple, they are for glory and for beauty. They are two streams from the fountain of grace; two lamps lit with holy fire; two olive trees watered by heavenly care.

O Lord, give us this day life within, and it will reveal itself without to Your glory!