"Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep His commands." Deuteronomy 7:9
We are on a quest for freedom. Freedom from fears, doubts, sin, lies and any ungodly thing that bind us. Previously we looked at the amazing power of love and how it frees and empowers us through its security. As we continue our quest for freedom we turn now to faith. But in identifying how faith can help us achieve freedom we need to understand what faith is and what its role is. The Bible, in particular the New Testament, is filled with references to faith. It is through these scriptures that we’ll get a better view of the importance of faith.
What is faith?
Hebrews 11:1 says: “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Dictionaries echo that definition describing it as the firm belief in something for which there is no proof; belief without question.
Where does it come from and how does it grow?
“Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” Romans 10:17
Based on scripture we know the more we dig into the Word of God and the more we hear God’s message, the stronger our faith will become. I happen to believe, also, that a person’s faith will grow the more it’s put into practice.
How important is faith?
Throughout the gospels Jesus comments quite a bit on the faith of those around Him. On many occasions He made statements like “Your faith has saved you.”, “You have great faith.”, or to the negative: “You of little faith.” It’s as if faith acts almost like a barometer. It’s a measuring tool. It was one of the key things Jesus looked for in people. It is important! Here are some scriptures that give us proof of that.
In Mark 11:22 Jesus gave this direction: “Have faith in God.”
Hebrews 11:6 says “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
Romans 10:13-14 says “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. How then can they call on the one they have not believed in?”
Romans 1:17 says those who live by faith are called righteous.
Romans 3:22 says: "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe."
What is the affect of faith in our lives?
The Bible shows us many examples of how faith affects our lives. Repeatedly we see that when Jesus encountered the sick and after He “saw their faith”, He healed them. It appears based on scripture that the amount of faith we have correlates to the amount of blessings we receive. In Matthew 9:29 Jesus says "According to your faith will it be done to you.” and conversely Matthew 13:58 says “And he (Jesus) did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.”
Having faith makes us stronger. We are not reliant on the visual for proof. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says: “We live by faith, not by sight.” When we encounter problems or satan’s deceptions we are able to deal with them in confidence.
If your faith is strong (meaning you are secure in what you know), then you are a stronger, more free individual. Doubt (a wavering belief) makes it easier for deception to find a place to settle in one’s mind. And deception ultimately leads to imprisonment. Think about something you know as a certainty (the color of the sky, your address, anything). You know without a doubt what is true. There is no wavering in your belief. If someone came up to you and tried to convince you otherwise, you would 1) either think they were crazy or 2) recognize their attempts to manipulate your understanding of what you believe. Having a strong faith will give us the ability to spot and fight the attacks of the Deceiver. I believe it is important to constantly work on building our faith. A weak faith can be damaged by life's circumstances (loss of a loved one, physical illness, financial problems, natural disasters, etc). A strong faith will get you through life's difficult times and keep you close to God.
How are we blessed by faith?
Acts 26:18 says that we are sanctified (made holy) by faith in Jesus.
In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. Ephesians 3:12
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On a side note – as I was working on this article I began writing down what my definition of faith in God was. And as I was writing, it occurred to me that I was writing a statement of faith. This surprised me. Not because of what I was writing but because, to my knowledge, I have never actually written a Statement of Faith. It may sound strange but there is something “freeing” and empowering in writing out my faith in God and verbalizing it. I have been learning lately about how our negative words can have a binding affect in our lives. Think, then, how much more powerful the positive declaration of our faith can be. At the top of this blog there is a tab I’ve created called “Statement of Faith”. I have put my statement there. I hope you’re encouraged to create your own statement.
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