LEADERSHIP-U Faith

What is faith? It is through faith that we receive our salvation. It is by faith that we embrace the incredible calling to be living pictures of the great goodness of Jesus Christ.   But what exactly is faith? Hebrews 11:1 outlines it in simple terms, “Now faith is being sure of  what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”

Abraham Genesis 12. - Here we meet Abram, later called Abraham. Here, God calls Abraham to separate himself from his established life in his country, his people, and his home to become a wandering stranger.  He had to trade his tiny corner of the world in order to become the father of many nations. Can you imagine leaving the land and family you could touch, and follow God blindly, having no idea where you were going?

Into the impossible Faith calls us to let go of what we think we can do on our own, and venture into the seemingly impossible with God. God does not give us goals that we can accomplish all by ourselves. Check out Hebrews 11, known as the “faith chapter” for a list of people who lived out incredible faith. Take notice, faith and obedience go hand in hand. You can not have one without the other.

Challenges of Abraham Though he is known for his incredible faith, Abraham still struggled in the face of trouble.  On two separate occasions Abraham feels compelled to lie and say that Sarah is his sister instead of his wife. He fears that if these rulers know the truth, they will kill him so she can become the king’s wife. Sometimes it is easier to have faith in the big dreams rather than the details that are immediately in front of us!

Challenges of Abraham Abraham became distracted by natural circumstances. In Genesis 16, at the encouragement of his wife, Abraham has a child, Ishmael, with his concubine instead of waiting on the Lord to bring an heir through Sarah. Abraham and Sarah’s natural circumstances caused them to be impatient and waver in their faith.

Peter’s example Matthew 14:28-31 - Like Abraham, Peter had the faith to step out into the unknown, but Peter also got distracted and overwhelmed by his natural circumstances. He had the faith that he could walk out on the water, but once on eye level of just how big the waves were, he took his eyes off of Jesus.

God’s faithfulness God did not call you out to be separate, as His representative, to forsake you and leave His promises unfulfilled. He did not call you out of the boat to leave you, and let you drown. Lift up your eyes, reach up your hand. That is faith, knowing he will take your hand and set your feet on solid ground. He will take what is impossible in the natural and make it so.

Back to Abraham Sarah does indeed have a son, Isaac, through which God promises that he will fulfill his covenant with Abraham. One day, God asked him to take Isaac, the very child he has waited a lifetime for, his child of promise, and sacrifice him. Abraham had faith that God would take care of the details. Abraham passes this test of his faith, and God did provide a lamb to sacrifice in the place of Isaac. God honors Abraham’s faith, and confirms that he will bless all people through Abraham because of his willing obedience.  

Willingness Only God can birth an entire nation out barrenness. You might feel like you have no influence, and you feel like your efforts yield only barrenness, nothing.  Remember, you don’t have to have all the answers. You only need the willingness to go where God calls you, and do what he has called you to do. God will bring forth his promises to his children when they walk in obedience to His Word.

Faith is like mustard? Matthew 17:20 talks of faith the size of a mustard seed. It is said of the mustard seed that though one of the smallest seeds, it grows into one of the largest plants in the garden. Give that mustard seed of faith to God, and he will show you that he can move any obstacle. As your faith grows like the mustard seed, your branches of influence will likewise grow.

What does Peter say later? 1 Peter 1:7, written by the same guy who attempted to walk on water, says, “These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.”