I can remember when I first became a believe, I would often hear from other Christians, "you need to have faith".
When I sought advice for the difficult moments I would always be met with the words "just have faith.." but what was faith? And why do I need it? And where do I put it?
Maybe you're reading this because you have the same questions. In this article, I want to uncover what it means to have faith as a Christian and why it's important.
What is faith ?
By definition faith is the complete trust in someone or something. The world would define faith as being hopeful, being wishful or being optimistic. But biblical faith is not the same, it is so much deeper.
In the Strong's Concordance faith is the word pistis meaning to persuade or to be persuaded.
This word also means assurance, belief, trust and fidelity.
Now when you read to persuade or to be persuaded do not think of this as manipulation.
God is not a manipulator nor is anyone who claimed to be a true son of God carry a spirit of manipulation . The persuasion talked about here can simply be defined as this... conviction or belief in something supported by evidence .
The Bible makes this clear in Hebrews 11:1 .
"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen " - Hebrews 11:1 ESV
Faith is the assurance that what you are hoping for exists. It is based on the evidence of things that have already happened that gives you the confidence to believe. Faith is not wishful thinking but it is confidence and trust. And as Christians that confidence and trust is placed in Jesus. It is based on what he has has already done and who his as told by the testimony of others written in the scriptures.
We are able to believe that Christ exists and that he died for our sins, rising from the grace on the third day because of the scriptures in the Bible and testimony of what others have witnessed .
We trust that what was written about him is true. We trust that God really is who he says he is And more . Even though we were not there to physical see some of those things happen we trust that what has been recorded and the evidence that supports those claims are true.
True faith starts with belief . And once you're able to believe you're able to trust. — Jay Smith
How do you have faith ?
I'm order to have faith you must believe in the thing you're hoping for .
As Christians we are (confidently ) hopeful that Christ will return again one day. We are hopeful that everything he has spoken in the Bible concerning us as believers will come to pass. We are hopeful that he exists & that his Holy Spirit lives within us.
We believe in God because we believe God. - Jay Smith
Faith is trust . If you can't trust that what God says is true then you can't have faith & your hope becomes wishful thinking instead of Godly confidence .
We have faith by reading God's word and becoming very familiar with it. We learn what his word says, why it says it and then we live it out in our everyday lives. Trusting and believe that what we know about God is accurate because of the evidence we have read .
The scriptures say in Romans 10:17..
" Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ." — Romans 10:17 ESV
The more you hear something repetitively the more likely you are to believe.
When we listen to the testimony of others it encourages us & sometimes empowers us to want that for ourselves. The word of God is the same way. The word of God , also known as the good news is shared Vocally by mouth and received with open ears. It encourages and uplift the heart and mind of all who hears it .
Become familiar with what the word says about God, believe it and exercise it in your every day life.
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