Faith Makes Jesus Real To Us

  “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11.1). The Bible teaches that faith is the key component to belief. It is oriented to things not yet present; it points unmistakably to the reality of what is invisible. Paul wrote, “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4.18). And later he adds, “For we walk by faith not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5.7).

What does the Hebrew author mean by “assurance”? It may clearly mean that we can have great confidence in God. Faith then becomes the very soul of the believer. It becomes the key component of conviction. If we are convinced that something is true, then we trust that our belief is solid and unshakeable.

What makes the unobservable—“things not seen”—real? Built on the solid foundation of tangible evidence and reason, faith gains substance to things hoped for and becomes the conviction of things not seen. After “seeking” the reasonableness of believing Jesus is the Christ, faith makes Him the influence in our daily life. We may not have seen Him or His death, burial, and resurrection, but those events become real to use as if we were actually present when they occurred.

The Hebrew writer also emphatically stated that without faith we cannot please God (Hebrews 11.6). The one who has faith will believe in God and that He will reward those who diligently seek Him, as He promised. Thus, faith involves active an obedience rather than a passive belief in the truth of God. This obedience involves trust.

Just because we have not seen something does not mean that no evidence exists for it. Most of us have not seen atoms, yet we accept that they exist. The common idea about faith is that it is a belief without evidence. This makes faith sound irrational and naive. No one wants be like this. So what is a reasonable and saving faith? First, the Bible says we need a level of understanding (Acts 17.22-31). Second, faith is not just accepting some silly concept but is grounded on objective evidence and testimony (2 Peter 1.16-21). Finally, faith requires a willingness to act (James 2.2-26).

Therefore, you can place your faith upon this testimony: “Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12.2).

Kevin