What is the definition of faith?
Faith is simply believing something you can’t see, hear, or feel.
Sometimes God asks us to have faith in what He’s doing. Oftentimes, He’ll show us Scripture that says something like how He will provide for all our needs and then we’ll come across having a need and we will be tempted to not want to have faith that He’ll provide for us. We have to believe the Bible is true, even when it seems like things are not lining up in our lives…that’s faith. 😊
If He says He will provide all our needs, He will. But we have to decide what’s a need. Is a brand new car a need?
Maybe it’s a need to someone who has a job outside the home and doesn’t have a car. Does it have to be new or can it be used? Is a new car a need for someone who already has 3 cars? Most likely not.
Needs are different to each and every person but come down to this: food, clothing, and shelter. We need food to survive. We need clothing to live so that we are not ashamed. We need a roof over our heads. God provides those things and asks us to trust Him, even when the situations don’t look promising. That’s what faith is all about. Does that mean making foolish choices, banking on God will provide?
Absolutely not. We don’t want to test God or mock Him (manipulating Him in any way). But we CAN trust and have faith He will provide if we are doing what WE are supposed to be doing. 🎉 What an incredible thing that is!!!
When I was homeless, even at that time that I was NOT saved, I STILL had a roof over my head. I lived in a homeless shelter. God was incredibly good to me, even as an unbeliever at the time! God is SO good to us, all the time, in all things. He’s our Father and He genuinely cares for us!
We need to have faith, meaning, we need to believe that God’s Word is true, inerrant, and accurate. He doesn’t lie or change His mind. Those things we can bank on.
Having faith in God is required to be a Christian (we need to believe in something that we can’t SEE with our physical eyes in order to put our faith and trust in Him to be saved) but it’s not the only thing that saves you. As a demon, Satan believes in God. Talks with Him all the time. Satan knows God is real. Satan believes. Is Satan a Christian? NO WAY!
Believing God is real isn’t the only requirement to being saved. We must give our lives to God and make Him LORD.
All my life, I thought I was a Christian. I believed that if I died, I would go to Heaven. I went to church, was baptized, I did all the right things. But I never made him LORD of my life, meaning, gave Him and ONLY Him COMPLETE control over everything.
Once I did THAT, I became saved, for REAL. And now, if God asks me to walk through fire (tough trials, etc.) I do it. Even for long periods of time. Why?
Because, HE is Lord of my life. He’s in control. HE’S the boss. No longer am I the boss, but He is. And if He wants me to walk through fire or do anything else, I’m gonna do it.
He can count on me to obey and be faithful to Him. Why? Because I have faith.
I have faith that He’s good. He won’t do anything mean or bad to me.
I have faith that He understands how I feel PRIOR to the situation.
I have faith that He’ll carry me THROUGH the situation.
I have faith that He’s in full control, meaning, no one can harm it, take it away from me, destroy me, or do anything opposed to me that HE Himself does not allow and He only allows things for my good.
I have faith that, after I get through the hard trial, I’ll get my reward- the things He’s promised me. If He’s teaching me to lessen my pride, I’ll be less prideful at the end of the trial. If He’s asking me to become better at being a steward of His money, I’ll learn how to save money more and manage His resources better. Whatever the ending of the story IS, I can know and trust (and have FAITH) that it will happen. He will accomplish everything He intends to accomplish.
Do we need to know all the answers in order to have faith? No. We rarely ever do. And if we THINK we do, we only understand about 1/10th of the REAL situation. God’s ways are higher than ours. HE sees the whole picture. We do not. We are simply called to trust Him, to put our lives in His very capable and loving hands and let HIM work. We do our part, He takes care of it all. That’s faith.
When we make Him Lord of our lives, we die to ourselves and let HIM live in us. We become submissive to the thing we are becoming a slave to. I am God’s submissive slave and I can do that, because I know He only loves me and wants what’s best for me and He will never hurt me in anger or meanness. Anything He does, whether it’s good or bad (bad = judgment, punishment, the chastisement of a child, etc.) is always good and perfect. No sin is ever found in Him.
Jesus Christ is a wonderful master. Never taking advantage of us, always putting us first (to the point of dying for us), always caring about what’s best for us, never being unkind or harsh for no reason, always full of compassion. Every single human being on earth will fail you, but Christ never will.
What am AMAZING thing to contemplate. It’s why we are able to love Him and obey Him to the ends of the earth. He will never fail us. He’s always there to pick us up when we’re hurting, always there to care for us with compassion, love, and gentleness. Always there for us, always keeping His promises. Truly, there is no one on earth that can compare to Him!
My relationship with God IS THE most important relationship I have in my life. Nothing else can compare. Nothing else can bring me such immense joy. Nothing else can lead me, guide me, and direct me with such fervent love and concern for MY best interests (not well hidden behind a myriad of their own manipulative, self-seeking interests).
Having faith in the sense of becoming a Christian means believing He exists, believing He died for us, and making Him Lord of our entire life, not holding anything back. No hidden doors or rooms in the house of our hearts, but fully giving Him absolutely everything and knowing that He is GOOD. He will not do anything that is not for our good. He loves us so much He died for us and suffers every single day in pain when we fail Him purposely (rebellion). He loves us so much He constantly wants to be near us, that He makes a way for us to have direct access to Him through prayer. Ah yes, our God is certainly BIG and good, and worthy to be praised. 🙏
