By Faith - Day 305 Month 10-31 Week 42-4
By Faith
Today's Reading (Bible in 1 year)
2 Chronicles 26:16-28:15, Job 23, Amos 9:1-10, Hebrews 11
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).
By faith Abel…offered a better sacrifice
By faith Enoch…did not see death
By faith Noah…being warned by God about things not yet seen
By faith Abraham…obeyed…not knowing where he was going
By faith Sarah…received the ability to conceive
By faith Abraham…offered up Isaac…considered God could raise Isaac from the dead
By faith Isaac…blessed Jacob and Esau
By faith Jacob…blessed each of the sons of Joseph
By faith Joseph…made mention of the exodus of Egypt…giving orders about his bones
By faith Moses…chose to endure ill treatment with the people of God
Hebrews chapter 11 is a chapter about faith, with examples of biblical people who acted on their faith. Some people would consider this kind of faith to be blind faith. After all, these people were assured of things they hoped for without knowing how things would turn out. They were convinced enough to follow a God they could not see. But I don't think their faith was blind. They had heard from God and trusted Him, even when they couldn't see how His promises would be fulfilled. They didn't know what the future held, but they knew the God they were trusting.
I am a Jesus follower. There are many in this world that would ridicule those of us who are Jesus followers because of lack of evidence to the faith of which we follow. However, over 500 witnesses saw Jesus after His resurrection. Witnesses even saw Jesus taken up into heaven. These were not just made up stories, they were witnesses. Right there is strong evidence of the truth of Jesus
So what is the assurance that I have of things hoped for? I have the assurance that I have been forgiven for my thoughts and actions that are contrary to the will of God, otherwise known as sin. I have been justified through Jesus' death and resurrection. My conviction is that Jesus' death was the sacrifice for my sin and that I will live eternally with Him in His kingdom.
I have faith in this as truth, and I have experienced God in my life. A quick example is when I was out of work about 15 years ago. We had no savings or ability to weather a storm of financial difficulty. However, we never missed a mortgage payment and we always had food on our table. By faith, we believe it was God's provision. Someone else might say we were lucky or that it was just coincidence that whenever we were in need, the funds arrived. I know how I see it.
You can make your own decision about whether you are willing to accept Jesus by faith or reject Him. I have accepted Him, and that decision continues to shape how I live.
I could choose to sit back and rest on these truths of my faith and just wait for Jesus to welcome me into His kingdom, passport in hand. Instead, I choose to do what Jesus has asked me to do. I choose to love my neighbour as myself. I choose to live my faith out loud and possibly have the opportunity to help others choose to follow Jesus.
There is no shadow of doubt in my mind that I will see Jesus and join Him in His kingdom. Having said that, there are days when I do have doubts. On those days, I can look back at times in my life when God showed Himself real to me. I can remember His provision and the ways He has carried me through difficult times. My faith isn't based on having all the answers or never having doubts. It is based on the One I have chosen to trust. That is what it means for me to live by faith.
Have a great day!
Steve
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