WHAT IS FAITH?
Faith is a spiritual focus on God, His purposes and His power.
It leads us to respond to God by trusting and obeying Him.
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrew 11:1)
Hebrews 11 is the faith Hall of Fame in the Bible. God is not impressed with great deeds or intelligence. God is moved and impressed by men’s faith. Jesus was impressed by people when they believed God. Faith is not positive thinking. Faith is a strong sense of trust and dependence on God and His Word. “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” (Hebrews 11:6) God is not impressed by how much people give, but He is impressed by how much they believe Him.
“….hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith…” (James 2:5)
In other words, when we do not have a life of “ease and plenty,” we tend to be more dependent on God and more inclined to pray for our needs.
It is human nature to neglect to pray and seek after God when life is too easy. So God allows times of struggle, adversity and even enemies for our benefit. Because they focused their vision on God and His purposes instead of on their immediate comfort or gain, many “Heroes of faith” in the Bible were delivered out of impossible situations. Many others through faith, were able to choose eternal life over their safety, and they were killed by those who reacted to their godly witness. These other heroes of faith are called “martyrs,” and the enemies of the gospel are murdering thousands of Christians around the world.
Faith is not positive thinking, because faith is not a function of the mind. Some people think they can get God to do what they want through positive confession. Note while positive mental attitude is healthy and good, it does not move mountains or produce miracles. Faith is trust and a response to God in our spirit. When God speaks a promise to our heart – things hoped for faith responds to God and receives it from God, and the physical results follow. Some people try to apply to their need a scripture or a promise God made to someone else, and insist that God must do the same thing for them if they confess and claim it for themselves. This is called presumption in the Bible and is focused on their problem or want, rather than on God.
Faith is not a way to assert our own will. Instead, faith surrenders to God’s will and purposes, even when we do not understand what is happening. In fact, if we could see the final chapter, it would not be faith. Faith is the “evidence of things not seen.” Faith is honest, simple, spiritual trust. One of the greatest expressions of faith was from a man who had lost everything and had absolutely nothing in the natural to show for his faith. This man, Job, said, “…though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him…”
NOW THAT IS FAITH! (Job13:15)
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