Faith!

Faith!

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. Romans 10:17 NIV

The Context and Focus:

Paul spends time explaining to his audience in Rome about the importance of faith in their walk with and work for God. Note that the walk comes before the work, and this is the foundation to be laid for today's verse. We live in a world where effort is loudly appreciated as well as results. Most don't really care how you got it, as long as you got it. Some see the efforts and labour and are so distracted by them that they forget to also audit the end result. The world cannot demand from me that which it does not have or give, and this is why the walk with God is not one that the world encourages. This is also the basis of the righteousness under the law, because it was focused on effort, not on faith. You just had to align with particular activities, such as sacrifices and a mode of worship, and you were fine. Unfortunately, under the regime of faith, works were not the most important; it is faith in the One who brought an end to the requirements of the law, and laid out a new way of walking with and working for God. Do not let a man like yourself deny you access to God by flauting physical achievements; this is NOT the place to start.

The Message:

Let's consider a definition for faith according to online sources.  It is a "strong belief in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual conviction rather than proof." Isn't it quite interesting that even the world knows that there is something spiritual about faith that it cannot understand or explain? It is about a conviction first, long before the proof manifests. It is not a wonder that faith is also defined in the bible as the conviction of the reality of what is not revealed to the senses. To a world that relies on physical evidence, how would you convince a sick and dying world of its need for a Saviour? To a world that only believes and acts based on what it can see, taste, touch, hear or feel, how do you convince it that faith in that which is unseen is the key to its salvation? What is hearing too? It is defined as 'the faculty of perceiving sounds'. It is a blessing to be able to hear, and it is closely connected to the discovery of the purpose of God for the world. How do the two parts (faith and hearing) link together? How do these two very personal experiences lead me to the place where God wants me to be? 

The Conclusion:

Faith, though invisble, will push you to do things or act in a way as if you can see what you seek. Faith does not always have to make sense to anyone else, as long as I know the One I believe, and I fill my heart with the right information that can support my faith the right way. It matters what you hear, and how you hear. Two people may hear the same thing, yet act in different ways, based on their understanding and application of what they heard. This is why faith and hearing are linked because it is what you hear that will either enhance or dampen your faith. The Word of God is about God's dealings with man, and spells out His desire for man to walk with and work for Him. If I don't hear corectly, read the right way, and then understand it, how do I apply it the right way? If all I know about the word of God is what other people say about it, where is the place of my own reception and understanding of what God wants me to be or do? Faith may be invisible, but the proof of its existence cannot be denied. I need God's word to be the sole director of my life, if I ever want to walk with and work for God the right way, and get the reward He has promised all who do His will to the end. God's time of favour is here.