True Faith

Today, in modern evangelicalism, there's a great misunderstanding about faith in Jesus Christ. And so, I thought before we go any further in our study of Moses. We as a church need to come to grips with what it means to live a life of faith. What does it mean to have faith in God, and what does it mean to live that life of faith every single day? And because there is so much misunderstanding about faith, that very common aspect of our lives when it comes to Jesus Christ. I thought it imperative for us to take a moment this morning and to break down faith for you, to help you understand what faith is, how it operates, and what the Bible says about living by faith and trusting God.

In faith. And so, as we look at Hebrews chapter 11, which is the supreme chapter in the Bible about what it means to have faith in God, let me read to you the first Three verses because that will be the springboard for our discussion this morning about faith and the life of Moses and his parents and how they lived that life of faith.

It says Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen, for by it the men of old gained approval. By faith, we understand that the worlds were prepared by the Word of God, so what is seen was not made out of things which are visible. This morning, I want to talk to you about seven elements of faith to help you come to grips with what it means to live by faith. We want to first of all talk about faith's inception.

Where does it begin? And then we're going to look at faith's expedition. And then we're going to look at faith's Reception, how one receives faith.

Then faith's conviction, faith's manifestation, continuation, and lastly, faith's Compensation so that when you leave this morning, you will have a greater understanding of what it means to live a life of faith. We must begin at the beginning, and so we begin with point number one: faiths.

Incept. Where does it begin? With each point, I'm going to give you a phrase. Here 's phrase number one: faith commences with Christ.

Faith commences with Christ. That is faith's inception. Where does it begin? You must understand, listen carefully. Faith does not begin in the mind of a man. Faith does not begin with you. Faith is not about human reason. Faith is not a function of the human mind. How do we know that? Simply this, your mind is un to have faith in God Number one, because of sin, and number two, because of Satan.

One, because of your iniquity, two, because of your adversary. There are two things that keep a man from believing in God. There are two things that keep man from faith in God. And the first is his own depravity, his own iniquity.

You know the verse. Romans chapter 1 tells us, verse number 18: For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. who suppress the truth in unrighteousness because that which is known about God is evident within them, for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world, His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, Have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

The heart of a man, because of a sinful nature, is blind to God. It 's dark to God. Therefore, man cannot come to faith in God. On his own. He cannot do that. In fact, the Bible says over in 2 Corinthians chapter 4, these words.

Verse number 3, it says, And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the God of this world. Has blinded the minds of the unbelieving that they might not see the light of the glorious gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. So my ini based on my depravity keeps me from faith in God. My adversary, Satan himself, has blinded my mind that I cannot see God or belie in God. That 's why you must understand. Faith's inception. It commences with the Christ.

A man can have faith in God only because of God. No other answer. So when we understand that Moses had faith, that Amran had faith, and Jacob had faith, they had faith because God granted them the opportunity to believe. God gave them the gift of faith. Faith's inception. It commences. with the Christ. You must understand that. If you miss this, you'll miss the next six points. You must understand this one. That's why it's number one.

It all begins with Jesus Christ Himself. Number two, faith's expedition. Faith is sought after sincerely. Faith is sought for sincerely. Listen, if it begins with Christ, then it can be sought for. And that's why the Bible says in Hebrews 11, verse number 6, that God is a rewarder of those who diligently Seek him.

You say, okay, listen, if man is dead in his trespasses and sin, if man because of his depravity. Is blinded to God, and if Satan him comes along and veils that man so he cannot see the glorious gospel of God. Then, how can man ever seek God? Because faith commences with the Christ. If it commences with the Christ, it will be sought for sincerely. You'll seek after it. That's why. The Lord God said in Jeremiah chapter 29, verse number 13, And you will seek me and find me when you search for me with all of your heart.

Faith believes in God. Faith seeks after God. Even though Romans 3, verse 11 says, There is no one who seeks after God. There is no one who understands. Paul is quoting Psalm 14, describing the The natural nature of man that he is incapable of finding God. And so the Bible says that no one seeks God, and yet God says in Jeremiah 29: if you seek Me, you will find me, and the only way you're going to seek God is because faith is a gift from God.

Faith is granted to you to believe in God. Therefore, it commences with the Christ. If it commences with the Christ, it will be sought for sincerely. You'll go after it. The Bible says in Amos chapter 5.

Verse number four, for thus says the Lord to the house of Israel, seek me that you may live. Seek me that you may live. God compels man to come after him. God compels man to seek him. That's why he said in John 6: No man can come to the Father unless. It has been granted to him by the Father, unless God graces him with the gift of faith. That's the only way it happens. Moses, Amram, Jacob, people of great faith, Hebrews 11, they believed what God said. And the only way they believed what God said is because God granted them the gift.

Of faith to believe in him. That's it. There is no other way. You must understand faith's inception. You must understand faith's expedition. That is, there is a searching. There is a longing. There is a passionate pursuit of the living God. So important. Why? Because you've got to tie in point number three, and that is faith's recept.

Faith 's reception. How do I receive faith? Very important. You must understand this, because there is a wide spread in ev today called natural theology. Some of the greatest evangelists of our times believe in natural theology. I'm not going to tell you who they are this morning because I don want to burst your bubble about these people that you listen to on the radio and TV. But natural theology has swept the church of Jesus Christ in the world. Natural theology believes that man can come to God because Of general revelation.

That's it. He looks around the world. He sees that there is some God, some higher being. And because there is, that's good enough for God to accept him into heaven. Folks, let me tell you something.

That's not what the Bible says. I don't care how many credentials the guy on TV has or how long he's been preaching. If he tells you that you can come to faith in God because of general revelation. Because of some idea that there is a higher being up there, and somehow I'm going to believe that there is something up there, although I don't know what it is, that that's good enough to get me to heaven. That is not true. And we know that because of this book. We know that because of the truth of God.

He who comes to God, Hebrews 11:6, must belie that He is. He is what? Allah. He is what? Some supreme being? He is what? Some figment of my imagination? No. He must come to believe in the God described in the Bible. Listen, rem the Ethiopian eunuch. He was seeking sincerely God. Remember him in Acts chapter 8? He wasn't a believer in God. Except for the fact that he believed in the existence of a God, but he was reading the book of Isaiah. And God sent Philip to him in order that Philip would explain to him the truth, the revelation of God.

And that's when the man got saved, and that's when the man was baptized. How about Cornelius, Acts chapter 10? The Bible says he was a devout man, he was a man who prayed continually.

And he was a man who sought after God. He was a Gentile, but he wasn't saved. He wasn't saved until Peter came to him and explained the gospel to him. How about Lydia, Acts chapter 16? The Bible says that she was a worshiper of God, but she wasn't saved until the Lord opened her heart.

And when did the Lord open her heart? When Paul preached to her the gospel of Jesus Christ. Listen. Romans 10, 17, we've quoted it the last three weeks in a row. Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. No man ever comes to faith without hearing the truth about God in this book. You must. Romans 10, 9 and 10. If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, that is, you believe that Jesus is the master of the universe, that Jesus is the God of this world, that Jesus Christ came to earth.

And the one who walked on earth was God of the flesh. Okay? If you confess with your mouth, Jesus says, Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be what?

Saved. You're not going to get saved any other way. There's only one way to heaven. There is no other name under heaven given among men whereby you must be saved. What's that name? The name of Jesus, Acts 4:1. So, how does a guy who doesn't know the name of Jesus get saved? Answer: He doesn't. He doesn't, or she doesn't. That's why we are compelled to go into all the world and preach the gospel. That's why we have a mandate to go tell people about Jesus Christ. And that's why we as a church are committed to going on short-term trips to tell people about Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world.

For how shall they hear without a preacher? So we go and we preach to them the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. Face inception, it commences with the Christ. Faith's expedition, it is sought for sincerely. Faith's reception, it is received only through the revelation of God's holy word. Number four, faith's conviction. Faith's conviction. Because faith is characterized By confidence and commitment. Faith is characterized by confidence and commitment. Hebrews 11:1. Faith is the assurance, hupost, which means to stand up under.

Faith is the assurance. I am able to stand up. I am able to have a concrete conviction based on what God has already said. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for. It is solid. It is unshakable. It is confident. Concrete conviction. It is the present confidence of a future real. It is absolute assurance. I believe with all my heart that when I die, I'm going to heaven. I've never been there. I've never known anybody who went there and came back. I've never. Never see the picture of it, but I know it exists because God said so.

That's good enough for me. I don't need any. That 's unshakable in my mind. That 's stability in my mind. God said it. Everybody has faith in something, but we have faith in the Word of God that tells us about our God and who He is and what He did. We believe in who He is. Assurance of what I hope for is based on what God's Word says. And I had that unshakable confidence. Faith is the assurance of things, so forth. The conviction, which implies a deeper manifestation of what. I say I believe. People of faith, listen, are prepared to live.

Their faith. That's the conviction. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for. That's the inward reality. It's the conviction of things not seen. It's the living out of what I say I believe on the inside. And I do it with conviction. You see, that's why I get so excited when I preach. Because I believe that what I'm saying out of the Word of God is absolutely true. I'm convinced of it. I have no doubt about my eternal destiny. I have no doubt about Christ coming to die for your sins, for my sins.

I have no doubt in what God has said in His Word is true. So we have conviction. We live it out. And that's what Hebrews 11 is all about. People who lived out their faith. Characterized by confidence, by faith, Moses left Egypt. By faith, Moses chose to suffer the affliction with the people of God rather than to endure the passing pleasures, or excuse me, enjoy the passing pleasures of sin for a season. By faith, Moses was hid for three months by his parents. Why? Because they had conviction. They were assured of something.

They believed that what God told them was true. And they were so convinced of it that they would do anything God asked them to do. That's faith. Now you can ask yourself a question. Do you have that kind of faith? That's biblical faith. That's true saving f. Ah, but it gets better. Faith's man. Faith 's manifestation. If faith commences with the Christ. If faith is sought for sincerely, if faith is received through revelation, and if faith is characterized by confidence and commitment, Then faith, listen, is witnessed in works.

That's faith's manifestation. It's witnessed in works. How do we know that? Hebrews 11. Simply put, by faith. They worshiped God, they walked with God, they worked for God, they obeyed God, they were committed to Him soul. Heart, mind, and strength. Faith's man. Listen, if faith is the root Then works are the fruit. Works, listen, are not a component of faith, they are the consequence of faith. T saving faith always works. Faith alone, the reformer said, and I believe. Faith alone just, but the faith that justifies is never alone.

It's always seen, it's witnessed. In works. That's why it says over in the book of Titus, the second chapter.

The 14th verse about our great God and Savior and his appearing. It says, Who gave him for us. That he might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for him a people of his own possession. Are you ready? Zealous for good works, enthusiastic about serving God. Convinced that God is true and righteous, and so much so that they will serve that they are zealous for good works. You know someone who's zealous? They're excited. They're enthusiastic. They want to do it. God purified us for that purpose.

He did. That's why it says over in the book of John, the 15th chapter, it says this: He says, I am the true vine, and my father is the vine dresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he takes away. And every branch that bears fruit, he prunes it, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. It says this, verse 16. You did not choose me, but I chose you. That's faith's inception. And appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain.

That's fair manifestation. God says, I chose you. Therefore, because I chose you, you're mine. And because you're mine, there will be evidence of the fact that you are mine. No evidence of the fact that you're mine? Guess what? No matter what you say, you're not his. Because the word of God says, faith will manifest itself in works.

That's what James 2 is all about, right? Well, James says, listen, if you say you have faith, show me your works. Show it to me. That's why the whole aspect of the book of James is about show and tell. You say you believe, show me. Make it evident. Prove you're born again. Why? Because the believer is zealous for good works. That's faith's manif. Sixth, faith's cont. Faith 's continuation Here's the phrase. Faith promises to persevere. Faith promises to persevere. Because we just read it earlier, John 15:16, not only will you bear fruit, but that fruit shall, as Christ said, rem.

It shall remain. That 's important. A man's faith in God cannot die. You want to know why it can't die? Because it's not your faith. It lasts forever. You want to know why it lasts forever? Because it's God who granted you the gift of faith. It's a supernatural faith. That's why it lasts forever. That's why it can't die. That's why a man's faith is not fragile. That's why a man's trust is total and not temporary. Because he believes in what God says, and because God granted him the faith to believe, he stays with God.

That's why in Luke 22, Christ said to Peter on the eve of the crucifixion. Peter, Satan has come to me because he wants to sift you like wheat. But Peter, I have prayed for you that your faith will not fail. Say, wait a minute, Peter denied the Lord. He did. But no failure on the part of the believer is final or fatal ever. Christ said, I have prayed for you that your faith will not fail. And when it's all said and done, you might go and strengthen your brethren. That's so good. You'll go and strengthen your brethren.

And that's why it's so important to know Hebrews 7:2 and Romans 8:3 and 1 John 2:2, because we have an advocate. We have our great high priest in heaven praying for us. That's why my faith will not fail because Jesus Christ Himself makes intercession on my behalf. That's why. And he grants me the strength from day to day. And lastly, faith's compens. Faith 's comp. Is rewarded by the righteous judge. Hebrews 11:6. He who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a reward of those who diligently seek Him.

Face comp is that you are rewarded by the righteous judge. That is so good. So good. Proverbs 11:18 says, To him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward. Christ said, Seek first my kingdom and my righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.

Christ says, you seek me, I'll reward you. What's he reward us with? Grace, mercy, forgiveness, heaven, his presence. We're joint heirs with Christ, right? We're joint heirs with Christ. Christ is the heir to the throne. Whatever Christ gets, guess what? We get. Because we are joint heirs with Christ. That's faith's reward. That's faith's comp. Thank you, Lord, that you granted me the opportunity to believe in you and you've worked in me. In order that I might receive from you the greatest of all rewards, your pres in me always.