Saturday, January 27, 2018
Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
AN UNSHRINKABLE FAITH
If you could choose any one thing in the entire universe that would make 2018 a happy new year for you, what would it be? For a lot of folks the answer is this simple: "Just let the Sweepstakes van pull into my driveway at the end of this month. Yes, with that kind of money--millions of dollars at my disposal, nothing in the year ahead could get me down." Others might say, "If only I were feeling better and could do the things I used to do . . . ." "If only I owned my own home; if only we had a different car; if only I were promoted at work; if only . . . ." -- on and on the list could go. Maybe finances are especially tight at the moment and maybe you have been living with excruciating pain. Perhaps a new home or car would help, but none of those things can provide what we need to overcome the unforeseen troubles lurking in the future. What can?
Consider the prayer expressed in Hymn No. 396 in The Lutheran Hymnal:
Oh, for a faith that will not shrink Tho' pressed by many a foe;
That will not tremble on the brink Of poverty or woe.
What each of us needs, really needs, is an unshrinkable faith. Just what is "unshrinkable faith"?
"Faith," Scripture teaches, "is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1). Faith is the conviction that what we believe is true even though we cannot see it with our eyes. This distinction is worth remembering, because what we see with our eyes is sometimes just the opposite of what we believe. God's sure, powerful Word is both the cause and the basis for a faith that will not shrink. The Bible reveals that God is the God of all power who does literally anything. He is also the God of all grace, who has redeemed us from our sins through the life, death, and resurrection of His own Son Jesus.
Lord, give us such a faith as this; And then, whate'er may come,
We'll taste e'en now the hallowed bliss, Of an eternal home.
-- From the "Lutheran Spokesman"
