Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval.

                                                                                                                    Hebrews 11:1-2 

Perhaps the best definition of faith that we have in scripture appears in today’s passage. Faith is being assured of things that have yet to take place. Faith is a conviction that what we believe, although unseen, is a reality and something rather someone in which we can place our trust.

When it comes to the Christian life, faith is everything. Without faith, it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Our faith is what saves us (John 3:16). It is faith that brings righteousness (Romans 4:4-5). It is our faith that reconciles us to God (2 Corinthians 5:18-19). Faith in Jesus makes us adequate to be ministers of the new covenant (2 Corinthians 3:4-6). It is faith in Christ that justifies us before God (Galatians 2:16). It is faith that brings the blessings of God (Jeremiah 17:7) and it is faith that yields powerful results in prayer (Mark 11:24).

Faith (believing) is one of the most commonly used words throughout scripture and it is an indispensable part of the Christian life. It is the will of God that everyone who places their faith in Jesus will have eternal life and, as believers, Jesus Himself will raise us up on the last day (John 6:40). 

Interestingly enough, our battle for faith will not come as a result of failing to believe that God can do something, the battle will be in believing that God will. I have personally never heard an authentic Christian utter the words, “I don’t believe that God can do that.” But I have run across many people, including myself, who have questioned whether or not God will do something. Our faith will be determined on the basis of whether or not we believe what scripture actually says versus what we are taught or have been told that it says. When we open the Word of God, we are inviting Him to speak to us directly and it is our responsibility to take what we have heard and to lean, rest, and depend on those promises and instructions. For example:

How many people do you know who hold on to grudges, harsh feelings from past events, or just have an overall unwillingness to forgive someone who has wronged them? Yet Jesus says, “For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions” (Matthew 6:14-15). If we really believe His instructions, shouldn’t we be about forgiveness?

Or perhaps you have seen those who profess that salvation comes as a result of faith and works of the Law. Yet Paul says, “…nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified” (Galatians 2:16). Three times Paul tells us how to be saved and three times he tells us how we are not justified yet we still hear that salvation and justification come through our works.

And what about this one? When confronted with the question, “What must I do to be saved?” Paul responded with the simple yet powerful answer of the good news… “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved…” (Acts 16:30-31). Yet how many times do we complicate the gospel with our own traditions, theological leanings, or doctrinal preferences rather than just declaring the truth of the good news?

The list goes on and on. Every time we are confronted with the truth of scripture, we are given the opportunity to either believe what it says and then live out that truth in our lives or we can put it aside, explaining away the very words that we have been given to bring us abundant life.

Our passage tells us that the men of old gained approval through their faith. Is our faith of the quality that would bring God’s approval or are we just going through the motions of lifeless religion? Let’s walk in the confidence, assurance, and conviction that faith in Jesus Christ brings to everyone who will believe!