1.      Faith is to believe God - not in a god.

2.      The Oxford Dictionary explains faith as a complete trust or confidence as the primary meaning. The secondary meaning of the word faith is a strong belief in a religion or a system of religious belief

Faith is not only to believe in God (or in a god or gods – that is merely religion or world faith – which is the secondary meaning of the word faith namely a strong belief in a religion) but true Christian faith is to believe God Himself.

God gave His Word so that He can be known – if this is untrue and the Bible (His Word) a result purely of human thoughts and actions it would imply that the God of creation allowed millions and millions of people through the centuries, and currently 2.2 billion people in the world, to be mislead by a ‘false book’  and one would then, and rightly so, question His integrity, the integrity of the Creator Himself.

Who would create a world and humans with hearts, then leave them to their own fate and further allow every human who wants to be loyal to Him, the Creator, to be totally mislead by a totally or even partially false book – a Book (the Bible) of which has sold more copies than any other book in the history of the world and for which more people have given, and would still give up their lives for what is written in it about God, than for any other book ever written?

Very few people  would deny, with absolute certainty in their hearts, that there is a God, a Creator, even if they do not know Him or know very little about Him. Almost every human being believes that there is a God but they would not believe God, what He communicates to them.

 

To have faith is not to have ‘some entity’ called “faith”. “You must have a lot of faith to be willing to give up your life, your career or time for it” as if this is “something” that you must find somewhere, whether in doctrine, philosophy or religion.

 

No, faith is to believe the Living God, believe Who He is, what He says, what He has done and what He will do. This is what living faith is, believing the Living God and trusting Him. Only in a personal relationship with the Living God can your faith in believing Him become a faith that is alive and true and can you come to a deep trust in the Creator, in a living relationship with God. A dynamic daily interaction. The guidelines are in His Word, the Bible.

 

Christian writer A.W. Tozer wrote: 'True faith is never found alone; it is always accompanied by expectations. Real faith is not the stuff dreams are made of or something created by man to compensate for his own insecurity; rather it is tough, practical and altogether realistic. Faith sees the invisible but does not see the nonexistent. Faith engages God, the one great Reality, Who gave and gives existence to all things'.

 

'God’s promises (in His Word, the Bible) conform to reality, and whoever trusts Him enters a world not of fiction but of fact. The Christian knows a thing to be true, not because he verified it in experience but because God has said it. His expectations spring from his confidence in the character of God.' He believes and trusts God as he has a living, dynamic and loving relationship with God – faith,  a complete trust and confidence, in God.

 

In the words of St Augustine ‘Faith is to believe what we do not see, and the reward of this faith is to see what we believe ‘ When we trust God, we will see God, experience Him. Only when you trust God will He reveal Himself to you.

 

‘Faith is a living, daring confidence in God’s grace, so sure and certain that a man could stake his live on it a thousand times’. Martin Luther.

 

Thus, it is not having enough of this “thing” called “faith” or to believe in a religious system, that you would put your life at stake for it (like a suicide bomber who believes and have so much faith in his religion and religious leaders) but to know God, to love the Person of God, enjoy God, trust God and believe God enough and put your whole life in this faith because you believe God. The result is that you will see God, His actions now and in future through a loving relationship with Him.

 

Faith is not an entity, it is a relationship. A reality in your heart with Someone as real as your own life.

 

Faith is about trust. “I do not trust you, I have lost confidence in your character, your integrity” A declaration like this would instantly alienate friends by destroying the foundation by which friendship is built. We alienate ourselves from God if we do not believe Him, if we do not trust Him, if we have no faith in Him. No man can afford to live or die under the frowning displeasure of God, being alienated from Him. He created us for a loving and living relationship with Him through His Son. The alternative is not really an option ‘It is a dreadful thing to fall into the Hands of the Living God’ Hebrews 10:31.

 

If we do not trust God, believe God, then a relationship with Him is impossible and we will be faithless, hopeless.

 

'And without faith (trusting God) it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him' 

Hebrews 11:6

 

MCMLV