WHAT IS FAITH? (Part 2)
Shalom women of God. Welcome back to our exploration on the definition of faith
We have partly defined faith as a spiritual entity that produces physical results. We are pushing on with the explanation of faith by defining the key components of the definition given by the Bible.
*Weymouth New Testament*
11:1 Now faith is a well-grounded assurance of that for which we hope, and a conviction of the reality of things which we do not see..
Hope: Secondly, faith is a substance of hope. I find a similar error in the rendition of hope in commentaries and sermons as something that is carnal. It’s my humble suggestion based on my little study of the Bible that the translations of Hebrews 11:1 did not purpot the full spiritual understanding that Paul intended. The rendition “…things hoped for”, does not bring out the reality of hope. Please the hope here is not the same as the one taught to us by our primary school teachers. That one is a wish you would like to happen in your future. I was saddened as I saw that this same understanding of hope is what has been applied in our interpretation of the Bible.
However, Bible Hope just as faith is something concrete. It may not be seen in the physical realm but in the spirit, it is as solid as a rock. It can be seen, felt, known etc. With all humility, I submit again that hope is not futuristic as has been previously defined and neither is it inferior to faith. People say hope will not bring your promises to pass. But I submit that hope is actually the promise. And without hope faith cannot be in existence. For faith is but a substance of hope.
What then is hope. To understand hope let’s look at these scriptures:
Genesis 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
Revelation 13:8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
2 Peter 1:3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
Hmmmm meditating on these scriptures cause a rush of the anointing down my spine. Wow, what a lovely and powerful God we serve.
When Elohim rested from His works in Genesis, He never awoke to do more work again. All that we see, the work of salvation right from Abraham to Jesus and His death were never a period when God worked. Rather, He was in rest through out all these periods of time. So to understand all this, Rev.13:8 explains that Before God created man He had foreseen man’s fall and sacrificed His Son as remedy to the impending death that laid before man. All these phases of the salvation of man had played out in God long before the Earth was made and He stored them in Him in a treasury called HOPE. And what we have seen was God releasing the drama phase by phase.
Please understand that God is never flabbergasted by the happenings on this earth nor in your life. He is the One who sees the end from the beginning. That is why before creation Jesus died. Before you even started out as a Christian He saw that you would need certain spiritual and physical provisions. So He made provision for them all. So 2 Pet 1:3 says He has given us all things that pertains to life and godliness. So when you ask God for a shoe, He is not perplexed looking for a shoe for you because He has made provision of shoes for you in the treasury called HOPE. Oh that our eyes would behold what glorious verities He has in store for us. That should be our prayer. For if we can see, then we will ensure to possess them even on earth.
Well back to our subject here. So hope is a storehouse where every thing good for man to aid in his life on Earth is stored. While faith is the evidence you show to the heavens and to hell that that storehouse belongs to you. It’s like a MasterCard which helps you to download from your treasury of hope bringing substance to that hope here on earth.
In conclusion, I say hope is in the now. Yes all you have ever wanted has been made available in your bank account of hope. This is nonsense to the natural mind howbeit it is more true than the shirt you are wearing right now. This is a reality. And this is the reality that will set your faith above. For you know you are releasing things from your own spiritual account.
Shalom women of God and May the resurrection of our Lord Jesus be unto us a resurrection of our faith in Him to cause the necessary changes in our lives, marriages or relationships, families , churches, and nations. I hope to see you soon. This was a lengthy one thanks for your patience. Have a shalom evening.
