Faith

“Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].” (Heb. 11:1 AMP)

Faith becomes reality as we reach into the unseen world, grasp God’s promises, and draw them into this world. It is the basis of our perspective and the way we see this life. It’s not just something we do on Sundays, something we study, or something we blindly follow. It is our entire existence, our being at our very core. It is our work, our play, our home life, and our public life. 

Faith is to perceive things as they truly are. The human heart is proficient at denial, but God opens our soul to light. The Gospel invites us to live in the real reality, even if our natural senses cannot perceive it at first. God opens our eyes, opens our ears, and we taste, feel, and smell His goodness. He heightens our spiritual senses and we attain His promises by faith. Faith becomes tangible as we live out those promises in our everyday life.

By the Holy Spirit, faith seeks to influence our entire being. What starts in our inner spirit works outward, influencing our thoughts, emotions, and desires before spilling out into reality by our actions. Faith seeks to inform our thinking, which changes our feelings, which together remake our desires and we naturally act out God’s will. 

Faith is of the spirit (1 Cor. 12:9) and belief is of the mind. Faith necessarily influences beliefs, but sometimes our mind gets in the way. God puts faith in our spirit, yet our mind may create a barrier so we cannot see the proof of our faith! We know we have faith, but we have a hard time believing, so we never experience confirmation of our faith in this earth. Our heart fails when we cannot see or sense God is pleased with us.

God so lovingly wants to give us proof of our salvation and new life. There is so, so much more to life than fleeting good times. There’s a depth, a richness, a layer of eternity God wants to add. He desires to enhance our existence so that we actually receive a bit of our heavenly inheritance here on earth. We experience God’s promises by being sustained and controlled by faith. We trust naturally because we have experience and assurance through the Holy Spirit. What we do, say, and feel become the proof of our faith. Through faith, God uses our life circumstances to confirm His reality.