Tag Archives: Faith

Faithful Men of the Bible

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“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.” –Hebrews 11:1-2 (NIV)

The Book of Hebrews has been called the “Faith Hall of Fame” (Luci Swindoll quote) and a number of men have been given access to that hall according to their faith.

Hebrews 11:6 says: “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

According to the Book of Hebrews, the men of faith included Abraham, Moses, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. Others are mentioned at the end of the Book of Hebrews.

ABRAHAM–He was noted as the “father of faith.” God called him from his home in Mesopotamia to journey to the promised land, where God promised to multiply Abraham’s offspring and make them into a great people and a blessing to the nations. There were a lot of decisions along the way that Abraham made that appear to make him doubt his faith; but in the end he persevered and God did accomplish all that he had for Abraham to do and He blessed him accordingly.

Hebrews 11:8-12 says: “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city, with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. By faith Abraham, even though he was past age–and Sarah herself was barren–was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who made the promise. And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.” (NIV)

MOSES–He was noted for leading the Jews out of slavery, unleashing the ten plagues against Egypt per God’s instructions, guiding the freed slaves for forty years in the wilderness, carrying down the law from Mount Sinai, and preparing the Jews to enter the land of Canaan.

Hebrews 11:23-30 says, “By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict. By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the King’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. By faith, he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel. By faith, the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.” (NIV)

ISAAC–By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future. Hebrews 11:20 (NIV)

JACOB–By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff. Hebrews 11:21 (NIV)

JOSEPH–By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions about his bones. Hebrews 11:22 (NIV)

“All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead they were longing for a better country–a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.” (Hebrews 11:13-16, NIV)

Hebrews 11:32-38 says “And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated–the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.” (NIV)

All of these individuals were “commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.” (Hebrews 11:39, NIV)

Men of faith are men who are faithful, have integrity, are great, godly, strong, and courageous. All of the above proved to have such characteristics as they believed in what God had promised.

Faith then is believing in what has been promised but not necessarily seeing the results of that faith before we die. Seeds of faith are planted every day without our knowing the outcome. Our actions speak louder than words. Planting a seed of hope, love, and grace in another person’s life should be our desire. Let God do the rest.

Blessings,

Yvonne

“What Is” Series: Faith

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Faith is the key to our relationship with God

“Optimism is the Faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can not be done without hope and confidence.”–Helen Keller

What is faith? According to Merriam-Webster, faith is:

  • allegiance to duty or a person–loyalty; fidelity to one’s promises; sincerity of one’s intentions
  • belief and trust in and loyalty to God; belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion; firm belief in something for which there is no proof; complete trust
  • something that is believed with strong conviction, especially a system of religious beliefs; faith without question

Examples of faith could be:

  • Light switch: You go into a dark room. You turn on the light switch; but before you do this, you know that if you turn it on, there will be light. A glimmer of faith.
  • Chair: The chair represents faith so that when you sit down on it, you believe that the chair will hold you and that it won’t break.

There are countless scriptures in the Word of God that tell us what faith is and who our faith is to be in–God:

Hebrews 11:1: “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (NIV) In this particular chapter, Paul gives us examples of individuals who lived by faith: By faith Abel; by faith Enoch; by faith Noah; by faith Abraham; by faith Isaac; by faith Jacob; by faith Joseph; by faith Moses; by faith the people passed through the Red Sea; by faith the walls of Jericho fell down as well as countless others are listed because of their faith in God.

Romans 10:17: “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ.” (NIV)

II Corinthians 5:7: “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” (NIV)

Hebrews 11:6: “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” (NIV)

Mark 11:22: “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. (NIV)

I Corinthians 2:5: “So that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.” (NIV)

I Corinthians 16:13: “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage, be strong.” (NIV)

Romans 1:17: “The righteous will live by faith.” (NIV)

Galatians: 4:4-6: “There is one body and one Spirit–just as you were called one hope when you were called–one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all, and in all.” (NIV)

So why do so many people struggle with a “lack of faith?”

According to GotQuestions.com, many people struggle with a lack of faith because “we follow our perceptions of what is true rather than what we know to be true in faith.”

As Christians, our faith is based on our belief in God and in His Son, Jesus Christ. His Word is a testimony of His faithfulness and His promise to us is actual evidence of our faith and hope in God (Hebrews 6:17-20: “Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.” (NIV)

“The main reason we struggle with faith is that we don’t truly know the God in whom we profess to have faith.”–GotQuestions.com

In order to “know” God and “have faith in God”, we need to know Him by spending more time in His Word and getting to know Him in a more intimate way by conversing with Him through prayer and listening to His “still, small voice.” In other words, we need to spend time in God’s presence on a daily basis. We don’t have to spend hours on our knees. The song, “In The Garden”, says that “He walks with me and He talks with me and He tells me I am His own.” God can only become more real in your life if you allow Him to “walk and talk with you.”

God is standing at the door “knocking and asking” for you to let Him in–to get to know you more–and make Himself more real in your lives.

In conclusion, I want to leave you with Paul’s prayerful words to the Ephesians:

Ephesians 3:14-19: “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through FAITH. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge–that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (NIV)

May the Lord bless each and every one of you as you grasp “how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” for you.

Blessings,

Yvonne

Coffee Inspiration: Pour A Cup of Faith and Hope

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The Oxford Dictionary explains that Faith is:

“1. Complete trust or confidence in something or someone;
2. Strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual comprehension rather than proof.”

On the other hand, Merriam Webster dictionary describes hope as:

“1. To cherish a desire with anticipation: to want something to happen or be true;
2. To expect with confidence;
3. To desire with expectation of obtainment or fulfillment.”

There are various scriptures that describe both faith and hope. Some of them on faith are as follows:

Hebrews 11:1 – “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”

II Corinthians 5:7 – “We live by faith, not by sight.”

I Corinthians 13:13 – “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

Scriptures describing hope are as follows:

Romans 12:12 – “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

Psalm 39:7 – “But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you.”

Hebrews 6:11 – “We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure.”

As I searched the scriptures regarding faith and hope, I was reminded that “without faith, there is no hope.” For example, several years ago our family lost a loved one. In a conversation with her fiance, he told me that he no longer had any hope. As I listened to his grieving heart, I asked the Lord to help me listen and to give me words to comfort him. It was then that I realized that even in a time of loss, that God wants us to continue to have faith in Him and in doing so we would have hope. As I mentioned this to him, I could see a change in his attitude and countenance. Since that day I have thought of and prayed for him and hoped that in time he would come to realize that there is “hope even in the darkest of times” when we put our trust and faith in God.

In “Thank Heaven for Coffee (and in other little pleasures)” by Barbour Publishing, Inc., I found the following quotes on faith and hope:

Faith: “To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.”

Hope: “Look to this day…for yesterday is but a dream, and tomorrow is only a vision…but today well-lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness and every tomorrow a vision of hope.”

Remember, “He that lives in hope dances without music.”–George Herbert; and,

“Beginnings are always scary, endings are usually sad, but it’s the middle that counts. You just have to give hope a chance to float up.”–Steven Rogers

May the Lord bless your hearts and minds as you have faith and hope in what God can do.

Blessings,
Yvonne