Another Look At Faith
Hebrews 11:1 Now Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Years ago I heard someone say that if you want to find out what something is, one should find out what it is not. John Wesley once said that the devil has given man a substitute for faith. It looks and sounds like faith but it is not. He calls it "mental assent." Mental assent agrees that God's Word is true but for some reason i cannot get what i want from God. Mental assent or agreement is not faith.
Faith is not feeling. Many Christians have a good feeling about some things and they call that faith. But faith has nothing to do with how you feel. Martin Luther said, "For feelings come and feelings go , and feelings are deceiving." Feelings change. They are unreliable, and therefore cannot be trusted.
Faith is not hope. Faith is the substance of things hoped for. Hope is the starting point. We must have hope, desires, ambitions. But hope in itself will not get the job done. Hope is always in the future tense. Faith is always in the present tense. Hope is a great waiter but not a good receiver. So many christians are just hoping something will happen. Nothing will! Faith brings our hopes from the future into the realm of the reality, the realm of the NOW!
Faith is not denial. Some Christians deny or ignore their present circumstances and call it faith. They think that by denying their circumstances, somehow, they will go away. In the story of Abraham and Sarah when God promised them a son they both faced obstacles. Abraham's body was dead as far as having offspring is concerned and Sarah was barren. But they did not deny their condition. They faced it with faith believing that the promise of God will prevail and God's mighty power will intervene and bless them with the promised son. Faith does not deny sickness, lack or poverty. But faith denies the right for these things to exist in our lives. These things may look or sound like faith but they are not.
We will examine next time what true Bible faith is.
Prayer: Teach us O God what it is to truly believe you and take you at your Word so that our needs will be met, and our joy may be full. In Jesus name. Amen!
