What is faith? How do you trust Christ? It is definitely easier said than done.
So this question was asked to me earlier this week and I think its one we don’t often think about. What really is faith? How do we know if our faith is strong?
Well here are some ideas… Faith is love. Faith is trust backed by knowledge. Faith is believing the truth… the Good News.
To have faith we must first be truly convinced of the Truth. This means trusting in what the Bible says as reality – having trust in things unseen. We then must believe and put stake into embracing and seizing this truth. Check this out…
Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
So what is the difference between faith and ignorance? We can say, “Oh yeah I believe, that’s why I do not need to really read my Bible. I already know it is all true, so what is the point?” This is SUCH a common misconception. But really, guys, knowing is only half of the battle. We must SEIZE the truth he gives us and ake our faith active.
Luke 17:5 The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" He replied, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you."
Ok so what is an example of faith in action? Remember when Peter walked on water? He didn’t just believe… he acted. Think of the circumstances Peter was in – On a boat in the middle of the ocean, a huge storm waves crashing into the walls of the boat, and then Jesus appears and Peter takes action and begins to walk out to him. He didn’t just believe… he acted. Just believing is not enough… we MUST act. God demands for us to believe and trust in times of weakness. We must lean on him to make us strong. “Faith is the state of being convinced about what we hope for.” (See link below)
So we see, coming to a conclusion here, that faith and trust are hand in hand. We must believe, and then trust - even when our circumstances tell us otherwise. God is SO much bigger than anything we can see here on earth. Trust in his goodness and his might.
Love yall so much,
Lindsey
P.S. Check out the below page for more info on where I got this material!
http://www.acts17-11.com/faith.html
Love it!
ReplyDeleteThis is something I've always struggled with...ACTING out my faith, not just believing but actually acting it out (like Peter). What's the point of learning so much about our faith if we're not willing to act it out? We study the Bible and read all the verses about love, and yet rarely do we actually put those verses into action and love the people in our lives who are the hardest to love. I don't know, this is just something that's really been on my mind lately. But your post helped - thank you! :)
Love you!
-Haley
I could say so much about this post, but I'll stick to 2 thoughts:
ReplyDelete1) Hebrews 11:1 is probably one of my favortie verses. ever.
2) You know your faith is strong when you are ready and willing to put yourself in a situation where you know you will fail if God doesn't come through...or at least I think that makes sense haha