Faith is defined as confidence or trust in a person or thing; belief that is not based on proof. Now understand that “proof” does not mean a lack of evidence. You can have faith that God created the heavens and the earth even though you don’t have concrete, in-my-hands proof. But the evidence is all around. “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork” (Psalm 19:1). The Bible describes faith this way: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Remember, when we speak of hope in a scriptural sense, it's not hope as in wishful thinking, but hope as in divine certainty. We may not be able to see God but that doesn’t negate the fact that He exists. We cannot see wind either, but based upon the effects around us we know it is real. So, when we say we have faith in Jesus, that He is God in flesh who gave His life for us and three days later rose from the dead, we are not expressing a hopeful wish, but stating a divine assurance. To “have” faith in God thereby means to surrender control of our life fully to Him. Here is a crude example of that. Take a chair. You can say that it is a good chair. You can say that you believe it will hold you up, but if you never sit in the chair, belief is all you have. However, if you go to the chair and sit back relaxed in the chair, you have now moved from belief in that chair to faith in that chair. To have faith is to take all of who we are and place it in all of who God is. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” And just as the wind produces results, so does our faith in Jesus. The results of a life of faith in Jesus are a closer and growing relationship with Him, peace in times of pain, heartache, and loss, real hope in those dark times, and purpose in all times. Someone has described faith as an acronym: F A I T H, Forsaking All I Trust Him. Live your best life by living a life of faith in Jesus and you‘ll experience His love, joy, goodness, forgiveness, and complete sovereignty in a way that satisfies the longings in your heart.
