Defining Faith

Hebrews 11:1-16

Before reading Hebrews, read these two verses from Ephesians.

Eph 2:8  For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

Eph 2:9  not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

If you have been attending church for any number of years, you’ve heard this section from Ephesians before. It is so important that we know what ignites faith inside of us. It’s faith. It starts with faith. When faith is produced inside of us, it is faith that starts the first spark of grace to transform us into men and women of God. All of the benefits of Grace begin to become ours and we walk in freedom and joy. Without faith, there is no grace or the benefits of grace.

There are so many Christians who can talk about the logic and concepts of grace from God through Christ, but so many church goers don’t walk in it; Grace through faith. Let’s look at Hebrews.

Heb 11:1  Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

So many definitions about faith are found in the dictionary. In verse 1, we have a biblical definition of faith. Most of us get the last half of this verse. Faith is believing in something that we can’t see, like Santa. But it’s also an assurance of things hoped for. Ask yourself this question, “Where does hope come from?” Why do people hope?

If you hope, there is something good coming into your life in the future that your life currently doesn’t have. You are going to receive something that benefits you. In a way, hope comes from a discontentment with your current situation; discontentment with either something that’s bad or discontentment because you’re lacking something. Your current situation isn’t enough and something in the future will make it better. So what does this mean then in regard to faith? If faith is the beginning of grace (Ephesians 2), and hope is a part of faith (Hebrews 11:1), perhaps discontentment is what sparks faith. Maybe discontentment leads us to faith in Christ because He has something to offer us that is better than our current life situation.

What does this discontentment look like? Well, for one, I’m not content with the final destination of hell. “Turn and Burn” preaching may not be the best way to lead someone to Christ but it gets people’s attention. The fear of hell alone is insufficient and can soon be laced and covered by the pleasures of this world. So what people truly need is to pair a fear of hell with discontentment with the pleasures of this world. The promises from Christ are not just promises of the escape from wrath but also the inheritance of pleasures greater than anything here. It’s revolutionary. Not only does Christ save us from wrath but will gratify us greater than anything that we currently experience.  In fact, the pleasures of this world are fleeting, incomplete, and lead to eternal separation from God. For those of us who follow, Christ is a no-brainer.

So what does this mean for church-going, grace-understanding people who don’t walk in grace and experience the benefits of it? These people are “Christians” who doubt, don’t have joy, feel ashamed, take pleasure in things of this world, are arrogant, prideful, don’t respect scripture, etc. These Christians don’t understand Christ when He says that He is a “never-ending stream of water” to our souls. Or when He says that in Him are pleasures forever more.

Maybe the problem for them is their contentment. I’m sure they have found discontentment with hell but maybe they haven’t found discontentment with the things of this world. Because of this, their faith is shaky at best and they don’t experience grace in their lives like the bible says they would. They don’t hope for Christ but rather use Him as their fall back plan when things go wrong and they think of Him as their free pass into heaven.

Heb 11:2              For by it the people of old received their commendation.

Heb 11:3              By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.

Heb 11:4              By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.

Heb 11:5              By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God.

Heb 11:6              And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

Heb 11:7              By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

Heb 11:8              By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.

Heb 11:9              By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise.

Heb 11:10            For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. 

Heb 11:11            By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised.

Heb 11:12            Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.

Heb 11:13            These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

Heb 11:14            For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. 

Heb 11:15            If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return.

Heb 11:16            But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.

Do you hope for God in assurance that you will receive Him? Is this the vision you cast to others when you are witnessing to them about Christ? He is better. He is greater. He is a better country on the horizon that we will do anything to get to, even if it means giving our lives.