What is real faith?
Hebrews 11:1-10
Introduction
I want to talk to you a minute about faith. I have heard it all. My faith is personal. My faith is what I believe. Faith is different for each one of us. I think the Bible gives us two kinds of faith. A faith that is active and alive. One that is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The second one that is a dead faith. One motivates and will keep you spiritually growing and one that is worthless. Dead faith is worthless and just a polite way of expressing what you believe, but not enough to do anything about it or with it.
Illustration-
How many of you have heard of the great tightrope walker Blondin? He was one of the best tightrope walkers of all time, and there are many legends told of feats he performed. One of the most often told stories is of his crossing over the Niagra Falls on a tightrope. At some point he turned to his audience , which included reporters from various newspapers, and he asked them, “How many believe I can walk across this tightrope over the Falls pushing a wheelbarrow? People cheered loudly, they were sure the great Blondin could do it. Then he asked, how many believe I can push a wheelbarrow across the tightrope with a man sitting in it? Again, the crowd applauded. Then he pointed to one of the mean applauding in the audience, okay, you get into the wheelbarrow. Needless to say, the man made a quick exit. The measure of our faith is not our talk. It is our walk. It is what we are prepared and willing to do with it.
Hebrews chapter 11:1-10
By faith, Abel, Enoch, Abraham put their faith in action. I want you to see something else. Each one of them died living out their faith. They went to their graves believing God’s promises and they did not see it happen in their lifetime here. We always associate faith with religion. What faith are you? I am Nazarene, I am Lutheran, I am Baptist. No, what faith are you? I have the faith that Jesus Christ is Lord. That He died for my sins and God resurrected Him from the grave. Because I put my faith in Christ, He will also resurrect me from the death of sin and that I will be able to spend eternity with Him. James 1:26 “ If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this, to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. Faith is an action word, and can never be hidden or kept to ourselves. It is doing for others, and keeping ourselves pure from the pollution of the world. God’s definition of faith is in verse 1. Now faith is.. Being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. (KJV)- Now faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not unseen. Faith is knowing that you know James 2:23 “ You see his faith and his actions were working together and his faith was made complete by what he did. When our faith is anchored in Jesus Christ. Not in works, we will put our faith to work. It is Christ in us, in action. The problem with most is their faith is not in Jesus Christ. It is anchored in self, it is anchored in what we do or don’t do, it is worthless and does not allow us to live a life of faith, but causes us to live double-minded and unstable. Never getting a grip of what God wants for us because we never ask God for His wisdom or direction.
Without faith it is impossible to please God. Without God, it is impossible to have proper faith. But the just shall live by faith (Habukkah) And th just (justified) shall live by His (God) faith. God gave us faith- proper faith and He can take a mustard seed of faith and move mountains
Illustration (Sermoncentral)
we operate on faith everyday. Just not always in God. Example- you go to the doctor whose name you do not know or cannot pronounce. Whose degree in medicine you have never seen. He gives you a prescription you cannot read. You take it to a pharmacist you have never seen before. He gives you medicine you do not understand, you go home and take the medicine by his instructions. You do that by faith We all have it. Some more than others. Some want to seek more, some want and seek more, some deny they have any at all. Everyday we exercise faith. That our car will start. That every box, bag or can of food is safe for us to eat. Even the atheist have faith. They just don’t like the word faith. They believe in themselves. They believe there is no higher power called God. They believe that a world of chaos just happened to produce perfection that fell in place and created a world that man controls. (V3) By faith, we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. You know why we take that faith? God is not going to explain himself to us. God assumes you are smart enough to know that God created everything. Genesis 1:1-In the beginning God created... “Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith” You get your eyes off Jesus and Him being the creator of everything and you will never get a right perspective of faith. The Bible tells us that “they exchanged the truth of God for a lie” faith in Christ- “being fully persuaded that God had the power to do what he had promised” last week- I am not ashamed of the gospel Seven words that can change your life Romans 5:1-2 “ therefore since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through thom we have gained excess by faith into the grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God” Faith through Christ. More faith- by exercising what you have. Faith is not personal. It requires outward action. The parables of Jesus describes changed behavior, not quiet reflections kept to themselves. Back to the text By faith, Abel, Enoch, and Abraham displayed their faith to the world they lived in. Jesus healed the sick, feed the hungry, had compassion on people. He didn’t just go to the synagogue once a week and keep his religion to himself. Of course not Our action tells the world what kind of faith we have. Living or dead, and it tells the world where we put our faith. In Jesus Christ or in ourselves and in our little world.
Illustration
I got a 14 day fishing licence from Wisconsin. It cost me more than a resident pays for a whole year. 14 day pass, but I was only there 5 days. So it is good till next Friday. I left the river, but the licence is still good. So it is with our faith- the licence is still good, when we walk away from the river, get back to the river. Faith causes works, works don’t cause faith. Why is it that someone has to die before we hear about their faith that they had from a preacher most of the people at the funeral never saw before. We need to stop just studying the Bible, we need to experience the person of the Bible I’m winding down, but not closing yet. Christianity is compatible with logic and reasoning. It is based on historical evidence, biblical record, personal testimony, and by our own personal relationship. You take any part out, and you will fall short. A.W. Tozer
Some people believe faith is believing in something that is not actually there. Biblical faith believes God when He tells us there is a reality, which we cannot see. Faith means that we keep our eyes on God who controls circumstances, not in the circumstances themselves. Biblical faith is not a blind leap into the dark. That you have no reason to believe there is a God. That we come from mindless matter , accidently made by the universe and Big Bang theory. Biblical faith is a relationship with a personal God who cares for and loves you and I. Closing Does your faith cause you to walk with God, or is it something you just talk about. Does your faith draw you to worship God with all your heart, mind, and soul? Does your faith push you to action like Abel, Enoch, Abraham? If God asked you to build an ark, would you? Warren Weirsbe “faith enables us to understand what God does. Faith enables us to see what others cannot see. As a result faith enables us to do what others cannot do.
Illustration
a young preacher went to a small church and God was showing him a great vision for the church. He worked very hard to do his part, setting an example and encouraging others to see God’s vision and the potential for his church. In big letters he posted on the wall above the baptistery, where there is no vision, the people perish. No one would catch the vision. No one wanted to see it. None cared to see it. They were content with the way things were. One day, God called him to another church. And on his last Sunday there, after his last message delivered, a strange thing happened. As he was walking down the aisle to leave for the last time at the close of the service, for everyone to see, the “w” fell from the sign...to which it now said, “here is no vision, the people perish. Most people lack the vision of faith.
