“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. 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. 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.”

Hebrews 11:1-4

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

Thank you for honoring my time away and allowing me to rest. It has been a busy year so far.

As we begin this month of August, I pray that our Heavenly Father will bless us mightily and grant us faith to trust him and lean on him no matter the challenges before us in our families, churches, Province, relationships, or work place. America and the rest of the world appear to be in a state of turmoil of all sorts over all kinds of things. We need God and we need to trust him especially in times like this. God is with us and he will honor our faith in Him.

What is Faith?

Faith is believing that God is trustworthy and faithful, that he will not break his promise, that he is able and willing to fulfill his promise to us, and that he loves us. Faith gives God praise and glory as we wait for the full fulfillment of his promises. According to the ESV Commentator:

By defining faith (Gk. pistis) as “assurance” and “conviction,” the author[of the Book of Hebrews in Chapter 11] indicates that biblical faith is not a vague hope grounded in imaginary, wishful thinking. Instead, faith is a settled confidence that something in the future—something that is not yet seen but has been promised by God—will actually come to pass because God will bring it about. Thus biblical faith is not blind trust in the face of contrary evidence, not an unknowable “leap in the dark”; rather, biblical faith is a confident trust in the eternal God who is all-powerful, infinitely wise, eternally trustworthy—the God who has revealed himself in his word and in the person of Jesus Christ, whose promises have proven true from generation to generation, and who will “never leave nor forsake” his own (13:5).

God never fails. He has never failed.

Faith is trusting God to do what he has promised. Faith is believing that God did and has done what he said he did. Faith is trusting God to do what is humanly impossible. Faith is trusting God even when you do not receive what you want knowing that it may not be his good will for you! Psalm 88 reminds us that mature faith is not measured only by how loudly we praise in seasons of victory, but by how faithfully we continue to pray when heaven seems silent! The psalmist teaches us that perseverance in the night is itself an act of faith and worship! May God grant us the grace to remain steadfast, trusting that the One who hears our cries in the darkness will, in His perfect time, bring us into the light. It is true that:

Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.

Psalm 30:5

Faith is not positive thinking, making empty prophetic declarations, trusting in the power of your spoken words, or speaking and declaring things into existence to manifest your destiny or desires.

In Romans 4:20-25 Paul gives us an example of true faith in the life of Abraham:

No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.

Abraham demonstrated his faith in God by doing three things regarding God’s promises especially the promise of a child.

1. First, he did not allow any form of unbelief arising from discouragement or fear or feelings or public opinion or length of time make him waver or disbelieve God and his the promise
2. Second, as he waited for the fulfillment of that promise he continuously gave thanks and praise to God. He glorified and obeyed God despite how he felt.
3. Third, and this is key to his faith and all genuine faith, he was “fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised!” True faith is demonstrated in being FULLY CONVINCED that God can, will, and is indeed willing to do what he has promised us.

Abraham’s faith was not in God’s promise nor in his own faith or ability but in God and his character, word, and power.

The result of Abraham’s (and ours) faith:

1. First, God counted his faith in Him as righteousness.
2. Second, God fulfilled his promises to him. God continues to fulfill his promises today in all who believe hence we receive the gifts of righteousness, total forgiveness, justification, eternal life, adoption, and more when we believe in Jesus the Seed of Abraham as our Savior and Lord. In Christ God continues to bless the nations as he promised Abraham.
3. Third, God was and continues to be pleased and honored by our faith in Him!

Do you believe that God is able and willing to fulfill his promise of salvation to everyone who believes that Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins? Do you believe that ALL the promises of God are Yes and Amen IN Christ and that through Him we receive all the blessings God promised to us?

Trust God and give him glory and praise because you know that he will and can fulfill his promises to us in and through Christ.

I wish you a blessed and faith-filled new month.