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Introduction
Faith is one of the fundamentals of Christian practice. It is perhaps the most extensively talked about in Christian teachings. “For without faith it is impossible to please God… (Heb. 11:6). It is by faith that we believe in God and everything He did. In fact, faith is that act of believing in God. The subject of faith has been exploited more than any other topical discussion both in the bible days and in this our contemporary world. The whole of our salvation experience is all about faith. For by Grace are ye saved through faith … (Eph. 2:8).
What is faith?
Faith, according to the bible definition is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Heb. 11:1). Taking a deeper look into this seemingly simple definition from the word of God, one would discover that faith is a continuous process and not a one-off thing or something you only exercise when needing something from God. The bible says, “Now, Faith is…. Faith is a now and habitual thing.
Faith is synonymously used with the word “believe” in the bible which throws its weight on trust and confidence. You cannot talk of faith without talking about trust and confidence. Faith is living a life of perpetual believing in God through Jesus Christ.
Dimensions of Faith
The usage and practice of Faith in the bible is multidimensional even though the same Faith is being referred. So some of the dimensions of faith includes but not limited to these:
1. Saving faith – Eph. 2:8. Perhaps the very first most important encounter with God in respect to faith is that we need a measure of it to be saved. New birth, Justification and every other things associated with salvation cannot hold without faith. We need faith to be saved and remain saved.
2. Faith as a vital requisite or tool needed for getting miraculous thing to happen – Mark 11:23. No one can receive anything from God except by the act of faith. The only thing God responds to is our faith and not our tears or our being emotional. Now this is talking about a dimension of faith that many Christians are used to; faith to receive but there is another level God wants us to get to.
3. Faith as a practice of Christianity – 2Cor. 13:5. Faith is a practice of Christ’s life, hence, the practice that all Christians are called to embrace. Our practice of Christian faith should reflect our total trust, confidence and absolute submission to God in faith irrespective of what we are able to get from God or not.
4. Faith as a living standard or a lifestyle – Gal. 2:20. Lastly, faith in God should become our standard living or lifestyle. Everything we do in life should be motivated by faith, in faith and for faith. Faith should be the reason for existence, the reason for evangelism, the reason for doing things the way we do them, or even the reason why we eat or refrain from eating. This is the height of faith God wants all believers to get to. Faith goes beyond just asking and receiving, it a life we must all cultivate.
Some of the benefits of living in faith
1. We are immediately passed from death to life – John 5:24
2. We possess the superior weapon to defeat the devil and all his antics – Eph. 6:16
3. We no longer react to only what eyes can see but we walk by faith and respond only to the word of God – 2Cor. 5:7
4. We are able to please and align ourselves more to the will of God – Heb. 11:6
5. We are guaranteed of answered prayers – Mark 11:22-23
Final note
Faith is activated, spurred, retained and boosted by the word of God. People who spend more time with the word of God are more likely going to have more faith than those who do not. The word of God is the lubricant to our faith, so stay more with it – Rom. 10:17
PASTOR FEMI ATODE
Our Beloved Pastor
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