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1. The Meaning of Faith
Hebrews 11:1 Provides the most succinct description of faith that we can find in the Bible: “Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
Last fall, as part of our series on the book of Hebrews, we went deeper into the meaning of faith than we will today. If you would like to understand the meaning of the actual word, you can listen to that sermon again, which is on our website.
The understanding of faith throughout the New Testament has to do with the manifestation of what is unseen. In other words, when we have faith in God and in Jesus Christ, he will become increasingly real through our character, behaviours, and thoughts.
Another way to translate Hebrews 11:1 could be, “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.”
Faith believes in the unseen realities of God’s kingdom as more certain than visible circumstances. 2 Corinthians 4:18 “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”
A person with unwavering faith in Jesus will not be shaken. They trust in the promises of God when bad news comes.
After Easter, we will begin a series on the book of Job. It is a story about a man who had great faith in God. When he lost everything, even though it caused him great pain and sorrow, he never stopped trusting in God.
The question today is, “How can I have faith?” This is meant to be a practical message. So, let’s consider the process for how we come to faith in Jesus.
Romans 10:9–10 “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.”
Faith begins by hearing the gospel and agreeing that it is true. The verbal proclamation of faith is an important part of this process because our words shape us. The more you say something, the more you will be transformed by the words.
But, faith is not just believing that God exists and repeating some magical words that will get you into heaven. It includes entrusting ourselves to Him completely.
James 2:19 “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.”
Faith is trusting and behaving according to that trust. We trust in Jesus to bring us peace now and for eternity, to restore our humanity. We trust that his words are true and his actions are right.
Many years ago, the story goes, a man named Blondin strung a tightrope across Niagara Falls. He then proceeded to traverse the raging waters. A crowd gathered as he successfully made his way back to his starting place.
“Who here believes I can cross over Niagara Falls again, but this time pushing a wheelbarrow?”
The exhilarated crowd began shouting, “We believe, we believe!” And sure enough, Blondin steered the wheelbarrow successfully across The Falls and back, to the applause of the onlookers.
“Who here believes I can cross over Niagara Falls a 3rd time, but this time with a man in the wheelbarrow?”
The crowd could barely control their enthusiasm, so spectacular were the achievements of this death-defying aerialist. “We believe! We believe!” they roared, all the louder.
Blondin replied, “Okay, then who will be my first volunteer in the wheelbarrow?”
Silence.
Faith is getting in the wheelbarrow, not merely shouting, “I believe!”1 So, viewed this way, the meaning of faith is that what we trust in will be given life through our behaviour.
Regardless of what you trust in, this is how faith works. This is why it is important to have a clear object of our faith, one that is worthy of our trust.
2. The Object of Faith
A weak faith in a strong Saviour is better than a strong faith in a weak saviour.
We have many options for saviours in our world. Money, our career, our family, security, politicians, Connor McDavid.
We may not call them saviours. However, we often behave as though they can give us what can only be found in Jesus. Hope, joy, satisfaction, justification, a reason for our existence.
As I was watching the US vs. Canada game on Thursday, and the game went into overtime, I had to tell myself that it doesn’t matter what the outcome is. I told myself this because it’s so easy to make the wrong things bigger than they are. I was so thrilled when McDavid scored the winner in overtime. But, he and team Canada could have just as easily failed us and then what?
When we make our favourite athlete, social media influencer, author, pastor, or even family member or loved one bigger than they are, we put our faith in someone who cannot bear the weight of our worship. They will fail us.
God is the only one strong enough and worthy enough for our full trust. Strong faith is worthless if it is misplaced.
This even goes for trusting God for the wrong sort of things. Consider what God has promised. Most of God’s promises are about the transformation of our thoughts, character, and behaviours.
When our faith in God depends on him providing money, or work, or possessions, we will soon be disappointed. We may think that God is not actually good.
If you want to be sure that your faith is rightly oriented, then the best thing you can do is know Jesus. Read the gospels until you know them well. Get a good study Bible that has notes that help interpret what is written and about how the gospels are connected to the Old Testament.
The NIV Application Bible is a good one for most people. If you want to dig really deep into studying the Bible, the NRSV New Interpreter’s Study Bible, or the NIV Cultural Background Study Bible are good options. I have both of those in my office if you want to take a look.
Things like Study Bibles or commentaries are helpful because they are like the guardrails on a highway that keep you from straying from the road. The Bible is God’s word and as far as the church is concerned, there is nothing new to be added to Scripture. But the study notes help us understand God’s word and they aid in the transformation that the Bible is meant to bring to our lives.
It is easy to make the object of our faith the wrong thing by misunderstanding the Bible or misplacing our trust and hope. This is why it is so important to learn about God within the community of his people.
This also goes for the response of faith. Our faith is not an individual exercise. It is meant to be lived out within community.
3. The Response of Faith
Once you have heard the gospel and begun to understand that faith is about trusting in the one true God who is known most fully through Jesus Christ, what is the right response?
Acts 2:37–39 “When the people heard [the gospel], they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
According to this passage, the first thing is to recognize your need for a saviour, then repent from your sins, and then be baptized.
Ephesians 2:1–9 “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Faith acknowledges that we cannot save ourselves. Our faith is not in a genie who can grant us three wishes so that we can have everything we think we want. Our faith is in a God who gives us what we truly need.
Until you know what you are truly lacking, it will be difficult to rightly respond to the gospel. Embracing Jesus without first understanding how he meets our needs will likely produce a weak faith that will fail when you no longer see the need for Jesus.
What we are all lacking is the ability to save ourselves from death and destruction and enter into eternal fellowship with our Creator. What we are lacking is the ability to satisfy our deepest longings.
For those who do not believe in an afterlife, there may seem to be no need for a saviour. But everyone, regardless of what they believe, wants to have a sense of meaning or purpose in their lives. We all want to know that our lives matter. We all want to feel a sense of satisfaction.
The meaning, purpose, and satisfaction will be an endless chasing of the wind until you find it in Jesus. Once you have heard and believed the gospel, and you have begun to know God, the right response is to evaluate the ways in which you are still trying to save yourself or give yourself what only God can give you.
Consider the desires we have for intimate relationships. Some of us get married and we think that our desire for intimacy will be satisfied in marriage. Some have kids and think those relationships will satisfy. Some use pornography or romance novels to try and satisfying the desire for intimacy.
No matter how moral or immoral our attempts at satisfying our desires, we will never experience complete satisfaction until we are satisfied in Jesus. All of our desires are meant to be fulfilled in him.
Consider also our desire even to live rightly, to gain the approval of others or of God. We try to live a good life with hopes that we will be rewarded.
If we focus on our own ability or lack of ability to live up to a good moral code, we will collapse under our own self-righteousness or our failure.
The appropriate response of faith is to repent from all this chasing and posturing and trying to satisfy ourselves, and Trust in Christ. In Mark 1:15, Jesus said, “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
Faith is turning away from self-reliance and toward Jesus as Lord and Saviour. This changes your whole life.
Galatians 2:20 says, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Faith in Jesus is not just the doorway into the Christian religion or the kingdom of God; it’s the way we live each and every moment of our lives.
If a doctor diagnoses a life-threatening illness and hands you a prescription and a promise that the medicine will cure you, you have two choices: ignore it and hope for the best or take the medicine and be healed.
Faith is taking the medicine—it’s trusting Jesus for salvation, not just knowing about Him.
After acknowledging your need for a saviour, and turning away from your attempts to save or satisfy yourself, the next thing is to be baptized.
Baptism happens in the midst of repentance. You don’t need to wait until you have eliminated all the sin from your life. Baptism is the way in which you enter into the new life that enables you to live for God.
So, if you trust in Jesus to save you and you want to live for him, you should be baptized. If you are not, then please talk to me.
4. The Strengthening of Faith
Our faith comes by hearing and believing the gospel, by knowing and trusting God, and by turning away from our attempts to save ourselves or find satisfaction in the wrong sort of things.
Many of us are at that point. We believe and trust in Jesus. But we are all on a journey that brings challenges and threatens our trust in God. So, how do you ensure your faith is strong enough to stand up to the trials of life? I’ll suggest three ways that your faith will be strengthened.
First, Faith grows through hearing God’s Word.
Romans 12:1–2 “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Knowing the Bible is the foundation for strong faith. Reading, hearing, studying God’s word is like getting on the treadmill or going out for a run. If I’m going to finish a 26 mile race in August, I need to do strengthen my muscles, my lungs, and build perseverance.
Second, faith deepens through trials.
James 1:2–3 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”
When precious metals are harvested from the earth, they are impure until they are heated up. The impurities are burned off and what is left is pure.
A common story is about a silversmith who refines silver by heating it up until impurities rise to the surface. He keeps watching the silver, and only when he sees his reflection in it does he know it’s ready.
Whether or not this is actually what a silversmith does, the illustration is helpful as a way of understanding how trials reveal our impurities. The unwise will not eliminate the impurities from their lives. But the wise will identify and remove the impurities as they reveal themselves in the midst of difficulties.
Finally, faith is strengthened in community.
Hebrews 10:24–25 “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
Within the community of faith, what we call the church, we are strengthened as we worship God, pray, and learn together. We will come back to this topic in more depth in the final message in this series, so I’ll just leave it at that for now.
Conclusion
Think back to the story of Blondin. Many who watched him perform his daring acts said they believed in him. But only those who were willing to get into the wheelbarrow proved their trust in him.
Jesus proclaimed that he is the way to salvation. Many say they believe in him, but trusting him with our lives is the demonstration of our faith.
The question today is for everyone. If you do not trust in Jesus, or if you have just begun to trust him, or if you have trusted him for many years. The question is, what are you holding back from him?
He wants everything. Your whole life. Your thoughts, your desires, your relationships, your dreams. Faith means allowing God to shape your life in his image even though it is costly and difficult. You can trust him.
- (https://godcangodcares.com/wheelbarrow-a-parable-of-faith, accessed Feb. 17, 2025) ↩︎