Light Brings Salt
Volume 2, Issue 35
Iron Range Bible
Church
Dedicated to the
Systematic Exposition of the Word of God
What is Biblical Faith?
by P/T
Hebrews 11:1
reads, "Now faith is the
assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."
Faith means
learning to trust God for what we cannot see with our visible eyes. It means
learning to think and act on the principles and promises of the Word regardless
of how things seem to us. Remember we only see one small aspect of a situation;
God sees the end from the beginning. In
the words of 2 Corinthians 5:8, we are
to "walk by faith and not by
sight."
Hebrews 11:6
reads, "And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he
who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those
who seek Him."
There are two important concepts we learn from this verse:
(1) You
cannot please God without faith. It is
to be the modus operandi for the Christian life.
It is God's desire and plan
that we learn to live by faith because faith acknowledges our
weakness and rests in God's provision. It glorifies God. But
faith in what?
(2) Faith as
our modus operandi consists of two fundamental concepts:
First, we must believe that He is. We must believe in the existence of God. According to the Bible, a true
belief in God's existence includes
faith in His
essence and transcendence.
Transcendence is the concept
that God exists outside and beyond the
universe.
Essence speaks of who God is
as the independent and sovereign God who is omnipotent, omnipresent,
omniscient, infinite, and unchangeable, holy, love, veracity, etc..
Second, we must believe that He is also a rewarder of those who
seek Him.
This means belief in the
very personal love of God, that He provides for and
cares for His own.
Included in
this is the concept of God's eminence, that though transcendent, He is nevertheless involved
in the affairs of the universe, and that the creation cannot exist or function
properly without Him and His intimate involvement. Col. 1:17
Point that Hebrews 11:6 makes is that we are totally dependent
on God for our existence, for our happiness, and for our security. God cares
about us intimately. 1 Pet 5:7
Application to our daily life: For many Christians, the
Christian life is totally devoid of God's power. It is simply a matter of doing
the best they can to conform to certain expected standards.
Some are more
successful at conforming externally to the pattern of their peers than others, but
even for these, there is generally the awareness that something is missing.
Some find
comfort in the ideas that no one is perfect, everyone has their weaknesses.
They are doing their best, and feel
sure God understands.
Certainly, no
one is perfect. Maybe we are doing our best and God does understand, but this
does not alter the fact that unless we are walking by faith in God and His plan
and provision, we are missing out on the life Christ offers us.
Our best is not what God wants. He wants
faith in His best--the Lord Jesus--His very
own Son and the fullness of blessing He has made for us in Him.
Think about
this. No one can live the Christian life on their own any more than they can
perfectly keep the law of the Old Testament Rom. 3:9-20; 7:1-25; Gal. 3:10-14).
If we could
live the Christian life without God's enablement, why do you suppose God would
send the Holy Spirit to indwell the church through each believer (John
If we could
live the Christian life and serve the Lord without God's power through faith,
why would the Lord Jesus give the Holy Spirit the title of the
"Helper" or better translated, "the Enabler" (John 14:16,
26)?
Why would He point to the
disciples' inadequacy apart from the Spirit (John 16:7) and tell them not to
attempt any ministry until the coming of the Spirit (Acts 1:4-8)?
If they were
able to operate successfully without God’s empowerment these exhortations make
absolutely no sense!
Because of
all we face from the enemies of God who are arrayed against us as Christians,
the world around us, the flesh within us, and the devil with all of his
counterfeit programs and doctrine seeking to deceive us.
With all this against
us, the Christian life and ministry is an absolute impossibility apart from
God's supernatural ability which must be appropriated moment by moment through
faith. The nature of these forces and our weakness necessitates the need for
nothing short of the divine power of God.
To think that
we can live the Christian life on our own is the height of ignorance or pride.
So what then is it to be for you, a life of muddling along in your own way, in
your own power or a life of faith, living by His power and provision?? &