“And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)
Even as a child, I understood that I had to have faith to be saved. If we don’t believe there is a God, that Jesus died to pay the price for our sin, and that he was resurrected from the dead, we can’t enter into a right relationship with God.
It took me a lot longer to grasp hold of why faith is such a big deal. Faith isn’t just so we can be saved or have our prayers answered. Faith is actually a key component that enables God to do what wants to do in and through each of us.
Hebrews, chapter eleven, gives us a list of people who lived by faith. Noah built a giant boat in a time when it had never rained. Though his neighbors made fun of him, Noah acted on his faith in God, and his family was saved.
Moses’s parents defied Pharaoh and hid Moses in a basket in the river for three months. They risked their lives, but their son was rescued from death, and eventually led God’s people out of bondage.
By faith, the Israelites stepped into the Red Sea. The walls of water towering over them must have been terrifying, but they followed God in faith. Because they stepped out, they not only made it across safely, but God used the walls of water to destroy their enemies.
These are only three out of many examples of people who lived out God’s purpose and brought God glory because they acted in faith. Not logic. Not research. Not emotions. Faith.
For some incomprehensible reason, God wants to use ordinary people from every walk of life to show his light in a dark world and to bring him glory. He wants to use me. He wants to use you.
Second Corinthians, chapter four, explains that Satan blinds peoples’ minds, making them unable to see the light and glory of the message of Christ. It says that God put the treasure of the message of Jesus in “jars of clay.” Friend, that’s us. Inside our broken, flawed, fragile hearts dwells the light and glory of God himself.
When we act on our faith, the light of God shines into the darkness, and the glory of God becomes visible to those whom the devil has blinded.
Think about this: What is the opposite of faith? For many years, I would have said fear was the opposite of faith. Recently, I heard Stephen Furtick say that the opposite of faith is actually certainty. Interesting, isn’t it? If we are certain we can handle it, it’s not faith. If we’re certain we’re strong enough on our own, it’s not faith. Faith is when we have no idea how it’s going to work out, but we trust God and take the step anyway.
Faith is the detonator that explodes God’s light and glory into a dark and desperate world. That’s why faith is such a big deal. When God’s people act in faith, the world sees past their own blindness, past the world’s darkness, and past the deceit of the devil. Through our faith in action, the world sees the face of God.
Dear God, I’m amazed that you use a fragile, flawed vessel like me to carry the beautiful light and glory of Jesus. Help me have faith to obey your leading so the world can see the light in the darkness and the glory of salvation. In Jesus’s name, amen.
Family Worship Center Devotionals 