THE CHARACTERISTICS OF FAITH

Heb. 11:1

Morning Meditation 4/29/2014

Verse 1 says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

It will not be the primary purpose of this meditation to define faith. F. E. Marsh gives an outline called the Body of Faith that I will use as a guide.

FAITH HAS EYES TO SEE THE UNSEEN

Heb. 11:1 says that faith is “evidence of things not seen.” When a person is an eye witness to some even, it results in evidence that can be testified to. Others may not have seen it happen, but there is one who did and can testify to it. This gives evidence to the reality of the thing that happened. Faith sees the unseen. Faith is the evidence of what is not seen. This whole chapter in Hebrews amplifies this truth. By faith “the elders obtained a good report.” They trusted the Lord, they walked by faith, they received assurance back from the Lord which is called “a good report.” It was not something that could be seen but something that was so convincing that they stood assured before God of what He had said.

Verse 3 of chapter 11 gives creation as an illustration of the faith of Christians: “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” It is not “through science we understand.” It is not possible for science to examine creation on the basis of true science. True science has to examine something happening. They were not there when it happened. God was, and tells us about it. So unbelieving science comes along and violates their own definition of what science is because they REFUSE TO BELIEVE WHAT GOD SAYS ABOUT HOW HE DID IT. “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” Science knows that things that are seen are not made of visible things. We knew it before they did because God said it.

FAITH HAS EARS TO HEAR GOD SPEAK

John 5:24 says, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” God’s speaking voice today is heard through His written Word. Paul confirms this truth in 1 Thess. 2:13: “For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.”

This text plainly says that the Word of God “effectually worketh also in you that believe.” It is the one who walks by faith who has ears to hear from God through the written Word.

FAITH HAS HANDS TO RECEIVE GOD’S PROMISES

John says in John 1:12, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” What is it to “receive Him?” It is to “believe on his name.” 1 John 1:1 says, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life.”

Faith is the capacity God has given us to receive His promises. Without it, it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6). There are promises throughout the Bible that wait to be received. They go unclaimed because of the weakness of faith or the lack of it. Isa. 34:16 says, “Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them.” God never breaks a promise, is what Isaiah is saying. God personalizes His written Word and it becomes a present promise to the believer. It is nothing but ink on a page to an unbeliever. But to those of us who are saved, we walk by faith and God’s promises are real to us.

FAITH HAS FEET TO WALK

2 Corinthians 5:7 says, “(For we walk by faith, not by sight:).” To walk by faith simply means that we live by it. We act in response to God’s Word. Christian’s do things because the Word of God says that Christians should. To walk by faith is to act on what God says. This is what it means to walk by faith.

FAITH HAS A MIND TO THINK

Phil. 2:5 says, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” What kind of mind was in Christ as a man? It was a mind of faith. Gal. 2:16, 20 says, “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, BUT BY THE FAITH OF JESUS CHRIST, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified BY THE FAITH OF CHRIST, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified . . . I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live BY THE FAITH OF THE SON OF GOD, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Caps mine for emphasis). Most all the new translations of the Bible change “the faith of Christ” in these places to “faith in Christ.” They are wrong to do it. In the Textus Receptus from which the KJV is translated, has it exactly like the KJV translates it. Jesus as a man had perfect faith in God. How many times have you felt guilty over your lack of faith? You have saving faith. You know you have trusted Christ but you, like the Twelve, have a problem with faith to live by. It is good that Jesus IS OUR PERFECT FAITH and we are SAVED BY HIS FAITH. That does not justify weak faith. We should be constantly praying like the man in Mark 9:24, “And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” Did Jesus honor this man’s faith though weak? You can read it for yourself in verse 25-29. Amen!

FAITH HAS A HEART TO GIVE DEPTH

Rom. 10:9 says, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Salvation is not based on a mere intellectual faith. The Pharisees had intellectual faith. The disciples had a heart faith. A heart faith is committed to change. Jesus becomes not only as our Saviour, but also, as our Lord. He is a person from whom we receive orders. There are many who claim Him as Saviour who have not taken the first step to follow Him in Scriptural baptism. Baptism does not save, but because it does not save, is not an argument against it. When Philip won the Eunuch to Christ in Acts 8 the first thing he wanted to do was be baptized. Acts 8:36-39 says, “And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.” Faith has a heart of sincerity that wants to pay the price of openly confessing Christ as Lord and Saviour.

FAITH HAS A MOUTH TO TASTE

1 Pet. 2:3 says, “If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.” Hebrews 6:5 speaks of tasting “the good Word of God.” David speaks in these same terms in Psalms 34:8: “O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.” To taste is to partake of with enjoyment. It is to feed in the green pastures of God’s Word. I can give testimony, as I am sure most of the ones reading this meditation can, that the Word of God is sweet to the taste. It is my greatest enjoyment. Faith can taste.

May the Lord bless these characteristics of faith to you heart.

In Christ

Bro. White