As this verse clearly says that if we do not have faith, we cannot please God. We can’t even have a relationship with God without faith. It is faith in Christ that justifies us before God. In today’s skeptical society, faith has been twisted and misrepresented until it has been equated with ignorance. Mark Twain’s definition was: "Faith is believing something you know ain’t true." Skeptics commonly say that to have faith, you must abandon reason and logic. The skeptical viewpoints are shaped partly by the very fact that they reject God and party by hearing the arguments of those who defend Christianity without clearly knowing why they believe. The Bible instructs us to be prepared to give an answer for the hope that is within us.

1 Peter 3:15 and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;
16 having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.

I don’t believe in blind faith and the Bible doesn’t teach blind faith. Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." The substance of our hope is based on the evidence. Look how God dealt with Abraham. He revealed enough of Himself to Abraham to give him evidence to believe, and then God required faith. When Israel was enslaved in Egypt, God didn’t demand faith. He showed them His might through plaguing Pharaoh into submission. When Pharaoh decided to avenge, the people were still far from believing in God as they blamed Moses for what appeared to be their certain destruction and asked why he didn’t leave them in bondage. God delivered a nation of unbelieving people. In the desert God fed, watered and preserved the people and didn’t even allow their shoes to wear. All of this was evidence designed to prepare Israel for a decision of faith that God would soon require before giving them the promise. God tested them by revealing that the inhabitants of the Promised Land were mightier than they were. Then God instructed them in Exodus 19:4-5,

"You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for the earth is Mine."

God then instructed them to go – believing that He would fight for them. God did not require blind faith, but faith based on the evidence He had already revealed to them.

The same is true throughout the Bible. Even Jesus revealed evidence and then called for faith. Jesus did not come to reveal His ability to do miracles, but the miracles were to reveal that He was the Christ. When Jesus began His 3-½ year ministry, He started with miracles. The closer Jesus came to the focus of His ministry (His death on the Cross), the fewer miracles He preformed. Jesus systematically shifted the focus of the people from His miracles, to His purpose. His reason for coming was not to put on a big show, but to show us how to live and then to die in our place for our sins. The image Jesus painted for us to have a relationship with God was radically different than the religion of the time. Without miracles, what proof was there that He wasn’t the heretic that the Pharisee’s claimed He was? Jesus’ miracles were to give us enough evidence so that we could take the required step of faith and commit our lives to Him.

Faith must have an object and the object of our faith must be God through Jesus Christ. Jesus said that we are to have faith in God and that through prayer and believing that nothing is impossible (Mark 11:22-24). It begins with faith in God. Not in our words and not having faith in faith itself. I spent time with a friend who has a completely different view of faith than I find in the scriptures. He explained to me that faith was a force all around us and we just have to tap into it by speaking ‘faith words’ and believe in those words. No where could he produce any scriptural reference that strengthened his position. Every reference to faith puts focus on believing in God and glorifying Christ. As a rule, if anything takes power or glory away from God, it is not of God.

Faith is not a mystical force that gives us power. This view of faith comes directly from the New Age occult religions. I read a book on crystal worship and it produced an almost identical concept. The words have been changed but it still parallels paganism and does not adhere to scripture. One popular TV preacher admitted on the air that this type of belief is very close to the New Age religions, but he also claimed that they also adopted these scriptural concepts. It does not take much investigation to quickly realize that the New Age is dogmatically opposed to the Bible. Contrary to this view idea of special words, biblical faith is believing God and acting upon His word because we trust that what God has said is true and worthy to be acted up. Belief becomes faith when it makes the six-inch journey from the head to the heart. The focus must be on God through Christ. Anything else is a counterfeit. Take a look at the following passages:

Acts 3:16 "And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.

Acts 20:20 "how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house,
21 "testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 3:26b that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Nowhere in scripture is faith referred to as a force. Faith is always considered to be an active belief in what God has said and Jesus Christ is the central focus of our faith. This has been a general overview concerning how the Bible defines faith, now I want to look at six ways faith applies to our daily lives.

1. Faith is accounted for righteousness. In Isaiah 64:6 we are told that all of our righteousness is filthy rags to God. We can’t measure up to God’s character nor can we measure up to God’s standard of righteousness. Jesus compared our sin to leaven. It is like yeast in a lump of dough. If you add more dough without yeast, it doesn’t change the dough, but rather, the entire lump – including the unleavened dough – will soon be leavened as well. Likewise, we can add good deeds to our lives, but the sin remains. There has to be something greater than ourselves that cleanses us and then makes us righteous. The righteousness of God is engrafted into us when we commit our hearts to Christ by faith. Look at Ephesians 2:8-9

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 Romans 4:4-5

4 Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.
5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness

Our good deeds don’t earn grace therefore we have no boasting rights. It is only through faith in Christ that we receive the gift of God’s righteousness that gives us salvation and renews us. In Philippians 3:9 the apostle Paul says that he doesn’t have his own righteousness from his efforts but the righteousness that is from God through faith in Christ. God imputes righteousness into us. It does not and cannot come from our own doings. Look at the following two passages:

Romans 4:3, 23-25

3 "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness."
…
23 Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him,
24 but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead,
25 who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.

2 Corinthians 5:19 God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them...

This is the amazing grace of God. If we will receive Christ, God does not count our sins towards us but instead accounts our sins to Christ who died for those sins. God also accounts Jesus’ righteousness toward us. He imputes our sins to Christ and imputes Christ’s righteousness to us. This is why it is written, ‘without faith, it is impossible to please God’. Without this exchange, we never become righteous, and cannot obtain the promise of heaven because sin cannot remain in God’s presence. Without redemption through faith in Christ, we remain condemned by our sin and will reap the wages of our sins. Spiritual death as is the wages (Revelation 21:8).

2. Faith is a defense against satan. Look at 1 Peter 5:8-10:

8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.
10 But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

To be sober is to have a clear mind. Know what you believe and stand steadfast on a solid foundation built on the word of God. We live in a fallen world. God never promised us exemption from pain, temptation or suffering. The advantage we have is the promises of God. Romans 8:28 tells us that all things work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose. Psalm 1 tells us that the Lord knows the ways of the godly. If you are in Christ, God knows your way. God has planned every detail of your life and every thing that happens, God has promised to use for our good. The Bible compares our lives as precious metals such as gold and silver. Unless these metals are purified with fire, they never increase their value. Faith gives us the ability to trust God to turn suffering into value. Satan desires to destroy us and use suffering to make us bitter toward God or discourage us into turning our back on God. Very few Christians every trust God completely and allow God to use their problems for their good. How many times do we turn back when a little more endurance would allow God to reward us according to His promises?

Ephesians 6:15 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.

In ancient wars, the archers would coat their arrows in tar or other flammable substance and shoot flaming arrows at their foes. As a defense, soldiers would wet their shields to use to extinguish these darts. That is the picture this passage is trying to get us to envision. Our faith in God gives us the ability to quench these arrows of doubt that satan uses to slay many Christians who are weak in faith.

3. Faith is increased by our commitment. The Bible tells a story about a man who had a possessed son. The disciples of Jesus had faced similar challenges, but this time they were completely unsuccessful. Jesus came and set the young man free. The disciples questioned why. Jesus gave an interesting reply.

Matthew 17:20 So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.
21 "However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting."

Jesus first said that their failure was unbelief and then said the key was prayer and fasting. The Bible says each of us is given a measure of faith by God. I don’t believe that we have the power to increase our own faith, but we can be found faithful and God can increase our faith. Jesus said that prayer and fasting are essential. Romans 10:17 says that faith comes by hearing the word of God. Many times I hear people say they wished they had more faith. Increased faith comes by cultivating a close relationship with Christ. That relationship can only be cultivated through discipline. Scripture study and a strong prayer life are vital ingredients. Jesus taught that God deals with us according to how we use what He has given us. If we are faithful over the little things, God will increase what we have. If we are slack and don’t bother to faithfully use the abilities God has given us, He will take what we have. (Matthew 25:14-30)

4. Faith is the only way to please God. We have already read how that God has said that without faith it is impossible to please Him. Also look at these passages:

Hebrews 10:38

Now the just shall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him."

James 1:6-8

6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;
8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

One important thing to note about asking in faith is that we must be in the will of God. This is a clear principle throughout scripture. 1 John 5:14-15 tells us that we can have confidence that when we ask according to God’s will, we will receive the petitions that we ask of God. We need to have the mindset to ask God to lead us where He is blessing instead of asking God to bless what we are doing. James 4:3 warns us that when we ask with self-gratification motives, we won’t have our prayers answered. Psalm 37:4 says, "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart". If God is your delight and your focus, your desires will be to please God. Then you will pray for things that edify instead of things that draw your focus away from God. This is when we have the confidence that our prayers will be answered. It all begins with God. Is our focus on selfish motives, or is it on Christ? God will satisfy and gratify. But if self-gratification is our first love, then nothing will satisfy or gratify. Our judgement will be perverted and everything will be asked with a ‘me’ motive.

5. Faith must be alive. Faith is believing God and acting upon that belief. Believing alone means little. We can believe something without demonstrating faith. Look at what the book of James has to say:

James 2:17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
…
James 2:22-24, 22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?
23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the friend of God.
24 You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.

This passage often confuses people. Some erroneous doctrines use this passage to teach that salvation comes by faith plus good works. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The Bible makes it clear that salvation is by grace and there is nothing we can do to earn it. In the passage I referred to earlier, Romans 4:4 shows us that our works do not earn grace. When we try to work for grace, we can never measure up because our debt is too great. If we can’t pay the debt, how can we start earning merit with God? As Romans 11:6 tells us that if salvation is by grace, then it is no longer by works, otherwise grace would no longer be grace. What James is trying to tell us there is a difference between true faith and merely holding a belief. If we have true faith, there will be evidence. James refers to many examples of faith. The passage I quoted was Abraham. Abraham had faith and was willing take action. He believed God and left the safety of his home to obtain a promise that was yet to be revealed. He was willing to offer Isaac knowing that God would keep His word because God specifically promised that Isaac would carry Abraham’s heritage.

If we say we have faith but will not put that faith into action, it fades into a superficial belief. Dead faith has no more power than a myth. Our faith is brought to life by our actions as well. God promises a transformed life, a new birth into His family, a place in His kingdom and the hope of heaven through the completed work of Jesus Christ on the cross. I can believe that all my life and it means nothing. My faith comes alive when I not only believe it, but I am willing to make Jesus my Lord and Savior and I willingly yield myself and invite Him into my heart. The promise of God is given to me, but I never leave my bondage to sin until I receive it. I still have not done anything to earn God’s grace. I still don’t have any merits to boast of. It is still God’s grace and salvation through Christ alone, but I do have to make a choice to leave my old path and follow the promise of God.

The same is true for my daily lifestyle. I can look at how the Bible is filled with promises from God to me and I can believe it is true. Those promises are never fulfilled in my life until I believe enough to act. This is why so few Christians experience the fullness of the Christian life. Throughout the Bible we are told that if we deny ourselves and trust God to be the one to fulfill us, we will be filled with His abundance here and will be rewarded in heaven. I can also believe this is true. It is easy to believe these promises, but it is hard to have faith to put my beliefs into action. Until I do put God’s promises to the test, my faith is dead and God will never be able to fulfill His promises in my life.

Malichi 3:9 tells us to put God to the test. If we give our portion to God, He will open the windows of heaven so that we cannot hold all His blessings. I believe that the same holds true for all of God’s promises. Put Him to the test. The first step is to put our faith to the test. Every promise requires a step of faith. Armchair faith never produces results. God always measures to us based on what we measure to Him. According to Jesus in Luke 6:38, God uses our measuring cup but He does pack it full and fills to overflowing before He returns it. Most Christians who are willing to even act, use a thimble full of faith and wonder why they get unimpressive results. This hits on my final application of faith:

6. By faith we claim the promises of God. When we ask in prayer, we must pray in faith. This goes right back to praying in God’s will. If our lifestyle is not in God’s will, our prayers will not be in God’s will. The first step to praying in faith is living by faith – trusting God’s plan for our lives and living accordingly. If I decide that I trust my desires more than I trust God, I can’t live by faith, therefore I can’t have a confident prayer life. If you are distant from God’s will, begin by making your lifestyle the focus of your prayer life. You can confidently pray for God to draw your life into His plan. We know that aligning ourselves with God’s will is a prayer He will hear. David prayed, "Search me, Oh God, and know my heart. Try me and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me and lead me into the way everlasting". Reveal and cleanse my sins to me and lead me into Your will – that is a prayer God will hear.

When we are living a godly lifestyle, we can have the faith to confidently claim the promises of God. Look at Mark 11:22-24:

22 So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.
23 "For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.
24 "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them."

What obstacle is too great to be moved by God? I believe God puts mountains in our paths to test our faith. Throughout His ministry, Jesus focused our attention on asking God to meet all of our needs. He showed us that God is eagerly waiting for us to ask so that He can answer. Jeremiah 33:3 says, "Call to me and I will answer, and show you great and mighty things that you do not know". No request is too big for God and no request is too small. If we care, He cares. The only question is, what is our motives?

Persistence is also an important part of faith. Look at the story Jesus told about the poor widow in need.

Luke 18:1 Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart,
2 saying: "There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man.
3 "Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’
4 "And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man,
5 ‘yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ "
6 Then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge said.
7 "And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?
8 "I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?"

I have heard people say that they only ask God once because Jesus warned us against vain repetitions. There is a difference between persistence and vain repetitions. Jesus was referring to a practice where people chanted specific prayers repetitiously believing that the words themselves had power. I think this still applies to the practice that words themselves have special power as well as reciting written prayers that become so over used that we don’t even think about what we are saying. Pray with faith and a purpose. After warning how not to pray, Jesus gave a model for prayer in Matthew 6:9-13. Also remember that there will be times when God will answer before we finish asking (Isaiah 65:24) and other times when we must pray fervently. God responds to our faithful persistence. Some Christians don’t pray because they don’t know what to say. The words themselves are not what God sees, it is the heart. The power belongs to God and faith comes from the heart. "I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings." Jeremiah 17:10

Faith revolves around our relationship with God through Christ. Without Christ, the only prayer God hears is repentance through Christ. If you do not know Jesus as your personal savior, I urge you to make that commitment today. 

Eddie Snipes
Exchanged Life Outreach
http://www.exchangedlife.com