"MISSION POSSIBLE…FAITH"

God's Gifts In You
November 19, 2006

PASTOR VERA JOHNSON

When it comes being human, one of the things that's pretty consistent about us, is our need to trust, particularly, in times of deep desperation. The story is told about a man who fell off a cliff, but managed to grab a tree limb on the way down. The following conversation ensued: "Is anyone up there? "I am here. I am the Lord. Do you believe me?" "Yes, Lord, I believe. I really believe, but I can't hang on much longer." "That's all right. If you really believe you have nothing to worry about. I will save you. Just let go of the branch." A moment of pause, then: "Is anyone else up there?" Everyone has faith in something. But faith means different things to different people. To some, faith is simply a "belief system." To others, it's "a way of life." Needless to say then, people have faith in all kinds of things - good luck charms . . . horoscopes . . . "a higher power" . . . a personal, Almighty God and a whole lot more! Of course, this idea of faith extends beyond these boundaries of personal belief. We often talk about having faith in the government . . . the legal system . . . health care professionals, our family . . . our church . . . friends, etc. etc. So what does the word faith really mean? Webster's dictionary defines faith as confidence, belief or trust in something; unquestioning belief that does not require proof or evidence; unquestioning belief in God; complete trust or reliance; allegiance or loyalty to something.
When we turn to the Bible, we find that faith is defined in pretty much the same way. In fact, the Biblical understanding of faith encompasses all of these definitions. Heb.11:1 says, " . . .faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Let's look at the word "faith" as Paul uses it in the Greek language. In Greek, faith means a conviction in the truthfulness of God. In essence then, the Biblical definition of faith is having a firm belief in the faithfulness and truthfulness of God. Of course brothers and sisters, given the ebb and flow of life so to speak and the things we experience from day to day, a person's faith never remains the same. But where or how does it begin?
In the newspaper business, reporters are trained to ask a number of questions. Among them are, "Who, what, why, when, where, and how." As we continue with our Mission Possible theme and focus on faith today, I'd like to apply the skills of a reporter to help us better understand it. To begin with, when we ask the question, "Who has faith?" Based on our understanding of who we are as humans, the answer is a "no brainer" . . .everyone! One of the realities then, is that no matter what our understanding of faith might be, we all believe in something or someone.
This leads us to the next question. "What is the object of our faith?" Since people have faith in all kinds of things, this is key. Identifying the "object" of our faith gives us a clear understanding of what's important to us and helps determine where our "focus" is, in life. For example, in a Christian's life, one would expect that the object of faith would be the God Almighty, who created the world out of nothing and sent His Son to die for us. But that isn't always the case. In reality, it could be a variety of other things. Depending on what it is, an individual could either flit around like a butterfly trusting in all kinds of things, or remain consistent in the faith, trusting in God alone. Needless to say then, the question is not whether we have faith. What really matters is, in "what" or "whom" we believe. You see brothers and sisters, it's important that we understand this, because whatever we believe or trust in has control over our lives. We rely heavily on it. Sadly, when we put our faith in material things, we have one disappointment after another. Trusting in material things leaves us nowhere. On the other hand, trusting in a God who is faithful and steadfast in His love for us, makes all the difference in our lives.
As we continue exploring how faith works in an individual's life, the next question is, "Why have faith?" This isn't one of those questions that we could simply answer, "Because it's the thing to do!" You see faith is not "blind" faith. In other words, even though faith is "believing without seeing," given the written record in the Scriptures that tell us about who God is - His deep love for the world and His faithfulness from generation to generation, how can we not have faith in Him? But even more than that brothers and sisters, I'm sure each of us not only has stories about the power of God in our own lives, but we've also heard about what He has done in the lives of others. Why have faith? Faith is what keeps us going from day to day. Given the challenges and struggles we face day after day, how can anyone make it through life, without faith in God?
So, "when & where should we have faith?" Brothers and sisters, faith is not limited to time and space. For Christians, we either have faith in God or we don't. You see, faith isn't something we turn on and off, like a switch. It is a lifestyle. It is a living faith. In other words, simply saying we have "faith in God" doesn't cut it. When it comes to being a follower of Jesus Christ, we are to always be witnesses of that faith. Needless to say then, no matter where we are or what our situation might be, not only are we to always stand firm in our faith but more importantly, we need to show what our faith in God means to us, through everything we say and do.
Finally, the "How" question. "How does faith happen"? How did I, how did you, come to faith? In truth, brothers and sisters, faith comes to us. Faith comes when we open our minds and our hearts to God's leading. You see, for a Christian, faith is directly connected to one's relationship with God. Of course, when it comes to having a relationship with God, we usually talk about it as being "personal." While some understand this as an individual "intimate" relationship with Him, others see it as being a very "private" thing.
Given an individual's relationship with God then, a person's faith is usually described in terms of strong or weak. Often times, this has a lot to do with our experiences through the different stages in life. You see, depending on what we're going through in life, our faith either becomes stronger and we draw closer to God, or it gets weaker and we pull away from Him. This brings us back to the question, where does it begin? I'm sure for each of us the answer is probably different. For some, it might have begun early in life. For others, maybe it began later on as an adult. Perhaps some of you here today are unsure of what you believe and haven't committed your lives to Jesus . . . as yet! You see, when it comes to faith, God meets us right where we are in our lives. It could happen at any time! This morning, we have a special video presentation of a faith testimony given by one of our youth who was recently confirmed. (PLAY DVD)
Yes brothers and sisters, when it comes to our God be prepared for the unexpected. He is truly a God of miracles. You could have an encounter with Him in the most unlikely place, when you least expect it. If there's one thing I've come to know about God, from my own experience, it's His deep love for all people. No matter who we are or what we might have done in our lives, our God will go to any length and do the unbelievable, to bring us into a relationship with Him. Brothers and sisters, not only did God come into our world in the flesh and blood of Jesus, He even went to the cross to die for us. God did it all. He came to us. So even though it might seem that we are responsible for our own faith, in truth, faith is a gift from God. Heb.12:2 says "Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith." Paul affirms this in Eph. 2 verses 8 & 9. "For it is by grace that 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."
From Paul's words, it's evident that faith in Jesus Christ is a key factor in our relationship with God. It's all part of His plan for our salvation. We are however, responsible for the decision we make in response to His initiative. In other words, it's our choice to believe in Jesus and commit our lives to Him. But even though the choice is ours to make, we cannot take credit for our faith in Him, simply because faith in Jesus Christ is impossible without God. You see brothers and sisters, being saved by Jesus and living a new life in Him isn't something we can do single-handedly. We not only need the help of other people, but more importantly, it takes the power of God for us to acknowledge our sinfulness and our need for Jesus. But that's not the half of it. You see, even after we commit our lives to Jesus, it's still hard for us to stay on track in our faith. It's only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we are able to stand firmly in our faith in Jesus and become new creations in Him. You see, God not only initiates our faith, He also sustains it.
Brothers and sisters, now that we have a better understanding about faith, the question is, how can we use this gift of faith that God has given us? Like Joe, each of us has a story to tell about our faith that someone, needs to hear. People all around us need to hear our stories of God's steadfast love and faithfulness, to give them comfort and hope in the midst of their struggles . . . to help them celebrate the joy of God's presence when they experience His goodness in their lives . . . to give them strength in times of temptation . . . but most of all, brothers and sisters, we need to share our stories of faith, so that God can use them to draw people closer to Jesus . . . Amen.