Communicant—Page 1

February 2012

VOLUME 24  ISSUE 2

 

From the Desk of – Kate Juhasz, Christian Education Director

 

 The Evidence of Faith

This article is based on Stephen Flurry’s article in:

The Philadelphia Trumpet, October, 2011, Vol. 20 #9.

 

You cannot see faith.  It is spiritual.  It doesn’t come by the five senses.  Faith is spiritual because it is relying on a spiritual, invisible God.  Hebrews 11:1 makes it plain:  Faith is simply evidence you cannot see.

 

There are several outstanding models of living faith recorded in Holy Scripture.  Noah, for example, “moved with fear” after being warned by God “of things not seen as yet” (Hebrews 11:7).  Noah’s evidence, in other words, was based on faith.  His decision was based solely on what God said.  There was no physical evidence to suggest a flood would eventually come and destroy all humankind.

 

Abraham also faithfully feared and obeyed God.  He was 75 years old when God told him to leave all that he had and to travel to an unfamiliar, faraway place.  God told Abraham to go, (Hebrews 11:8).  He left in faith, not even knowing where he was going!

 

“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1)

In these two examples faith does not require understanding.  Noah was warned of things not seen.  Abraham didn’t know where he was going.  Yet their obedience didn’t depend on God answering their questions. 

 

It is not important to know why God says to do something-only that God says “Do It”!  That is what makes it a test

of faith:  because faith depends on evidence NOT SEEN.

 

What is Faith?

“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).  Faith is believing God.  It is trusting God to do what He hasn’t yet done.  If we know it is God’s will, then we can ask in faith. (Romans 10-:17).  Of course the question remains.  How do we know what God’s will is for us?  Keeping God’s commandments and “do those things that are pleasing in his sight,” (1John 3:2).  Unfortunately, obedience to God is the often overlooked aspect of living faith. 

 

What we do so often is put a time line on those things that have been promised to us.  When that happens, faith immediately breaks down because we generally base the how and when on any available physical evidence.  However, we have to remember that faith is a spiritual thing. 

 

God will often test our patience.  God doesn’t promise how He will answer our request because when He does answer, He wants us to know that He did it-not us.  God often answers our prayers in a way we would least expect. 

 

The single greatest reason people lose faith in God is that He does not necessarily answer immediately. Or He doesn’t answer the way we want Him too. Yet if we can focus on our faith, our trust and belief in God, He will answer us.

 

In order for us to get to know the promises of God we need to read Scripture to see how, his people of faith were not let down.  Even though they were tested many times, God eventually answered their prayers.  We need to trust God that He will answer our prayers too, in God’s time not ours.  The more we realize God through our faith the more we see our prayers being answered.