Faith: Confidence in God and His promises

Many of us have heard the scripture "Without faith it is impossible to please God" but very seldomly have we heard the end of this scripture. Hebrews 11:6 reads "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." So, if we want to please God, then there are two criteria you need to meet. First, have faith that God exists. Frankly, this is the base level of faith. In Romans 1, we learn that all of creation points to God, and those who do not believe are without excuse (Romans 1:19,20). But, just by believing in Him does not please God. For example, devils and demons believe in God but they do not please Him. The second level of faith must be in us, as well. This level is believing that God "rewards those who earnestly seek Him."

So, what is this saying? To have a faith that pleases God, we must believe in Him and His promises, which are given to those who are commited to seek a relationship with Him. Whoops, I forgot to defined what faith is, my bad. Hebrews 11:1 tells us faith "is the confidence in what we hope for and the assurance about what we do not see." Now that we have faith defined, Hebrews 11:6 makes more sense. We can not see God nor His promises, but if we have confidence and assurance in Him and His promise, then we please God and the promises are fulfilled. Thank You, Jesus.

We must remind ourselves of the promises of God daily to encourage ourselves and each other. We need to stop worry about the Law, or trying to obey all the scriptures and focus on the promise of God. The Law, only gets us to look righteous, but having faith in the promises of God is what makes us righteous. (I am not saying that we can do what ever we want when we want; for those who do that, have little knowledge of the Lord and His promises) Lets look at the scripture

Galatians 3:15-22 (BibleGateway.com NIV)
15 Brothers and sisters, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. 16 The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ. 17 What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. 18 For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on the promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.
19 Why, then, was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator. 20 A mediator, however, implies more than one party; but God is one.

21 Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. 22 But Scripture has locked up everything under the control of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.


As we can see in the scripture, God is all about promises. Without having confidence in the promises of God we can not please Him. So we must remind ourselves of His promises daily so that we can increase in our faith. Below, I have listed some of the promises, please feel free to comment on this post and share some of the promises of God that you have found in the Word.

Promises:

• We have peace - Phillipians 4:7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus


• We lack nothing - Psalm 34:10 The lions may grow weak and hungry,
  but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.


• We have eternal life - But now you are free from sin and have become slaves of God. This brings you a life that is only for God, and this gives you life forever.


• We will be seated on the throne with Christ - Revelation 3:21 To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.

God Bless,

KC