Friday, July 21, 2006
Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
THE SUBSTANCE OF FAITH
The whole world would encourage us to believe, to trust, to have confidence in order that we might be able to live our lives in serenity and calmness, and thus better assure ourselves of success. "Believe in yourself," they say, "and you will be a better salesman." "Believe your country and you will have protection from all its enemies." "Believe in this or that product and you will have abundant peace of mind."
Faith, in all of these instances, is made into a subjective experience. If one is able to take an intellectual step upward and believe, all will be fine. It is the act of believing itself which is supposed to make everything turn out all right. It is really having faith in faith. Just believe! It doesn't matter so much what, just as long as you believe something.
This concept of faith can even satisfy, but tends to break down in the critical times of life. Then mustering up "faith" becomes difficult, and despair often follows. Then comes the terrifying realization that no matter how hard one tried, he cannot seem to be as "faith full" as he ought to be. Such is the concept of faith of many professing Christians. It is no wonder we live in an age of confusion -- the blind are indeed leading the blind!
What is faith? First, it is not just an experience of believing. It is the grasping hold of truth. It is seeing what is already there. It is the uncovering of realities. Faith is the instrument used by the Holy Spirit to show us the hidden facts of God and His universe. In our text the writer does not speak of faith as simply the act of believing. Rather, he says that faith is the substance (literally, the reality) of things hoped for. Faith is not a "shot in the dark," but is the looking forward to things that really exist. Faith is the evidence (literally, the proof) of things not seen. That is, not seen by the human eye.
One who has been granted faith in Christ Jesus is able to see something that in reality does not exist for natural man. The Christian has been given a spiritual eye that sees things no one else is able to see. Faith is not just "believing" or "hoping." It includes the substance, the factual proof of what cannot be seen by the natural eye.
