FAITH IS NOT A FACTOR

Monday 20 January

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. Romans 10:17 (ESV)

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

Faith has been defined or explained by many people in many different ways. Some have based on it on their personal experiences. Some on what they have heard from others. Some on the faith of the Old Testament saints. Others have taken their understanding of faith from the gospels. This is why there are so many ideas out there on the subject. Let’s start with the Old Testament.

Hebrews 11:1-2

says ‘now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the ELDERS obtained a good report.

Notice something here. Even though the book of Hebrews is located in the New Testament, the ELDERS are in direct reference to Jewish, Old Testament saints and not the faith of the New Testament believer. It even tells us in verse 1 that the faith of these elders was ‘the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.’

An example of this would be when they would bring the sacrificial goat and scapegoat to be slaughtered and sent away for the sins of the people, it represented the substance of what they hoped for and the evidence of what they didn’t see which was Christ. In other words, their hope was in a futuristic Messiah.

Then we have faith in the gospels. What we have to remember is that faith was not a finished work in the gospels because Jesus had not yet died and rose again. This is why people could have no faith, little faith or great faith as it was in relation to believing in what Jesus said. Faith in the gospels was incomplete because salvation had not taken place.

In Hebrews 12:2 it says ‘looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of FAITH. This took place after the resurrection. This is the correct rendering of this verse, not our faith. Why is it not ‘our faith’ and just ‘faith’? The answer is simple.

‘I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.’ Galatians 2:20 (NKJV)

Did you see it? We live by the faith of the Son of God. So it’s not our faith, it’s HIS. This is why we must not compare the believer’s faith with those who did not have His finished faith. When not taught correctly, the portrayal of faith in the gospels can become a heavy burden for Christians. Especially when they have been led to believe that they need to have more faith before they can enjoy their inheritance in Christ.

They find themselves praying for more faith. They even blame themselves for not having enough faith when they are facing challenges and difficulties in life. This is the result of inadequate teaching.

In the New Testament, every believer received this faith in a measure:

‘For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.’

You received full and complete faith when you received the gospel. This has been allocated to every man and distributed to every believer at the point of salvation. What does this tell us? You don’t need more faith. In the New Testament there is a different emphasis.

Knowledge. Not just any kind of knowledge. Full and exact knowledge of the Word. Revelation knowledge that you begin to relate with. When you grow in this type of knowledge, you are able to effectively put to work or use the measure of faith you were given. The challenge therefore is not weak faith or no faith but the ignorance of accurate and precise knowledge.

‘Grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.’

APPLICATION

I am in Christ and Christ is in me; therefore, I have full and complete faith for everything. As I grow in grace and the knowledge of Christ, I am able to exercise faith effectively.