Faith!

Faith!

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Hebrews 11:6 KJV

This is the chapter of faith, or as it is called, the roll call of faith. The whole chapter defines faith, its importance, its defining characteristics, and those whose lives have become examples of faith which we can seek to emulate. In understanding today's extract then, it is important to know what faith is. The very first verse of the chapter where today's extract is taken from defines it as: faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Faith does not need physical evidence; faith does not need to hold it before it believes it. The words used here are a bit funny: substance and evidence. In a court of law, these are quite important, but in God's court, my physical senses are not the best measures for what God is saying, or what He wants me to know about Him.

If what I have is faith as defined by God, I cannot always trust what my senses are saying. If it is faith by God's standard, I do not have to physically see or feel before I believe. This is why the Christian experience is so different. Nothing about it makes much sense if you want to understand it all; it is an experience that underscores total dependence on what God has said, and trusting that no matter what happens, God is in control. Not so easy for mortal men, who by nature try to prove that they are masters of their own destinies.

Faith does not need to see, feel, touch, taste, smell or hear before it accepts God's Word for who and what He is. There are quite a number of things that God has said that we have not seen, yet God wants me to trust and believe Him. If I had it all in view, what would be the value of hope? If there were no possible surprises in my walk with God, why would I be bothered by the expectation of making heaven? If I have it all figured out, what is the use of the Christian experience?

But because I know nothing of what tomorrow holds, I have to depend on the One who holds that tomorrow. No wonder, no man can please God if s/he does not have faith. How do I show I am totally dependent on God if I do not bother to ask Him for guidance, or seek His will in all I do? I see the word: 'impossible' and the image is this: no matter what else I have, if I am not totally dependent on God, I will not make it. The world may celebrate me, but in the final analysis, God's view of judgment is the only thing that matters. It is not that it is difficult; God says it is impossible.

If I will please God, I must come to Him on his terms, not mine. Even if it is out of disappointment, pain or desperation, I come. He is also introduced as the God who rewards all those who diligently seek Him. There is no man who ever sought out God and didn't find Him. At different times in the accounts of the Bible, men and women called out to God, and we see how all of them were met by God, at different times in their lives. 

It is still the same God, with the same love, still seeking men who will commit to Him totally. He does not discriminate; all people, no matter what the past looks like, all welcome. Would I take advantage of this offer and make an approach? Would I keep rejecting his love, thinking I can make it on my own? The stakes are indeed high; signs are clear that His coming is at hand. What am I looking forward to? What I keep in front of me will always define the things I pursue? I must make sure they are the things God approves. His time of favour is here.