Living by Faith

Faith is big today. How often you have heard someone described as a “person of faith” or you have heard someone say that their faith would get them through. But what do they mean by that? What is faith?
The writer of Hebrews gives us a working definition of faith. In Hebrews 11:1 he says, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Many people today would say that this is a paradox; the certainty of what we are hoping for and the evidence of what is unseen.
As you read through the role call of faith in Hebrews 11 you begin to understand what it means to live by faith and remember that the writer reminds us that without faith it is impossible to please God.
Peter says, "Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:" 1 Peter 1:1
There are a few things that we should notice about this faith. It is not a feeling but it is confidence in the truth claims of God and he calls this faith precious. This faith is not something we conjure up in ourselves but it is given to us by God Himself.
The first three people mentioned are those that lived before the flood. Abel worshipped by faith, Enoch walked by faith and Noah worked by faith. As you study each example that is given to us you soon see that faith permeated every aspect of their lives. They worshipped, walked or worked by faith because they had a trust in the promises of God.
So how do we live by faith? First we must believe that God exists and that He has communicated to us through His Word and through His Son. We must believe in the promises of God. There are many who want explanations about what happens in this world but we don’t live by explanations but by promises. Finally we must live with eternity in view. We see that at the end of the chapter. Take time to read the end of the chapter and notice the fact that these continued to live by faith even though they did not receive the promises.
There are those who would have us believe that if we had more faith we would see more miracles, signs and wonders. The problem with that is that once again it becomes very man centered rather than God centered. These heroes of faith did not generate more faith like the “little engine that could” but rather they had a view of God that was evident in their day by day lives.
Remember, faith isn’t positive thinking. Faith is knowing a person and that person is Jesus Christ.