“But without faith it is impossible to please (God), for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”
Hebrews 11 is known as the “Hall of Faith,” because it is about the faith of great Old Testament saints who were people of faith. The beginning of the chapter actually defines faith as: “The substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” In verses 4-5, the writer described Abel and Enoch who pleased God because of their faith. Then in verse 6, the writer points out that the only way to please God is by faith. Paul wrote that we are saved “by grace through faith.” (Ephesians 2:8) James wrote that genuine faith is a faith that works. Real faith will express itself, not only in the confession that it makes, but in the action that it takes. The kind of faith that pleases God is the kind that serves. In other words, genuine faith is not dormant, but it is active. I think that all of the great servants of God in the Old and New Testaments served the Lord by faith. It is impossible to please God without faith, but what is the nature of that faith? First, the person who has faith that pleases God must believe in His existence: “For he who comes to God must believe that He is.” I know that this is elementary, but it is certainly necessary. The only way that we can grasp the reality of God is by faith in Him. Everything around us gives us evidence of God’s existence, but the faith that pleases God is the faith that takes Him personally. There are people who believe in the existence of a god, but they have no definition of this god, nor do they have a relationship with this god. One group of people who believe like this are called “deists.” Their definition of God is that He created the world, then went about His own business and has no interest in what goes on in His creation. This could be called “belief” but it certainly is not faith in the biblical sense of the word. Which takes us to the next point. Second, the person who has faith that pleases God is the person who believes that God is interested in his or her life. Observe: “And that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” This means that the person of faith who pleases God is not a “fair-weather friend” of God. People of faith are diligent about what is important to them, and God is certainly important to people whose faith pleases Him. This is illustrated in many ways in the Bible. Abraham is a good example. Because of his faith in God, Abraham took his family and moved from the comforts of his home to go to a land to which God led him. Moses is a good example, for he gave up everything to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. Paul is a good example because he gave up all that this world offered him in order to follow Jesus Christ. All of these men had diligent faith. Third, the person who has faith that pleases God is one who takes this life seriously, as did all of the Old Testament saints mentioned here, but also realizes that he or she is serving a higher purpose than the things of this world. In verses 9-10 we read about Abraham: “By faith he sojourned in the land of promise as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles (tents) with Isaac and Jacob, and heirs with Him of the same promise. 10. For he looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” By faith we are citizens of two countries. We are citizens of heaven; therefore, we are to remember that we serve a higher purpose than the things that we accomplish in this world. We should be careful that we use our faith to promote God’s kingdom and not just our worldly endeavors. Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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