Hebrews 11:6 (ESV) 6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
Romans 10:17 (ESV) 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
1 Peter 1:6-7 (ESV) 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
What does it take to please God? What would you say? Doing rituals. Reading your Bible more. Pray more. Light some candles. Have a “to do” and “don’t do” list for God. Be more religious.
But God isn’t interested in any of that. He’s interested in a relationship with you. The Bible says that it is impossible to please God unless you have one thing… FAITH.
Jude 1:20 (ESV) 20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit,
So… What is faith anyway? Faith is like a multi-faceted diamond. There are many different aspects to faith.
Today… I want us to look at six different aspects of faith, of how to live the kind of life that pleases God.
If you want to look at faith, you have to go to the Bible and the book of Hebrews, chapter 11.
Chapter 11 of Hebrews is God's Hall of Fame -- actually God's Hall of Faith. It's the list of all the great men and women in the Bible who God says, "These people, they done good!" They had faith. They did it right. They were men and women of faith.”
Let's look at six aspects of how do you build a great life by learning to live by faith.
1. Faith Is BELIEVING When I Don't SEE It.
Hebrews 11:1 (ESV) 1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Faith is visualizing the future in the present, it's seeing it in advance, it's being certain of what we do not see.
How many of you have ever said… “I’ll believe it when I see it?” And God says, "No, you've got it all backwards. Some things you have to believe it, in order to see it." Whether you're an architect planning a building, or whether you're an artist creating a sculpture, or whether you're an Olympic athlete trying to break a world's record, or whether you're a scientist trying to send a man to the moon, you have to believe it before you can see it.
All of those things require faith. You have to believe it's possible in advance, long before it will ever be possible. That's what the Bible says faith is -- believing when I don't see it.
Faith turns dreams into reality. It is believing before I see it. But it's far more than that.
2. Faith Is OBEYING When I Don't UNDERSTAND It.
God gives us a couple exhibits. Exhibit A is a man named Noah. Just think of the doubts that Noah might have had.
Can you imagine if God came to you one day and said, "I'm going to wipe out the whole world and start over with you." How many of you would have doubts about this plan?
Hebrews 11:7 (ESV) 7 By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.
Faith, the Bible says, is obeying when I don't understand it. It didn't make sense. Noah had all kinds of questions and doubts because it had never happened before.
The Bible says that, before the flood, it had never rained. The earth was watered by a mist that came up from the ground like dew in the morning, condensation. It was a different kind of atmosphere. That may have been one of the reasons that people lived longer in those days -- of course they didn't have food additives then either.
But the atmosphere evidently changed. It had never rained.
When God said, "Noah, I want you to build this big boat because it's going to flood." Noah said, "What's a flood?" God said, "It's when you get a lot of rain." And Noah said, "What's rain?" " God says… It’s Like when I take a lake and pour it down from the sky on you."
Would you believe that, if you'd never seen it? But Noah, because he had faith, obeyed even though it didn't make sense.
Exhibit B is about a guy named Abraham.
Hebrews 11:8 (ESV) 8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.
Here's Abraham, 75 years old and he lived in a place in modern day Iraq that is called Ur of the Chaldees.
Just about the time he's ready to do social security, hang it up, retire, God says, "Oh, no. I don't want you to hang it up and retire. I want you to get it down, dust it off. You're getting ready to go on the adventure of your life at age 75. You're getting ready for social insecurity. I'm going to take you and turn you into the father of a brand new nation, so we're going to go to a new country."
I'm sure Abraham had all of his doubts and all kinds of questions. He said, "Where are we going?" God said, "You never heard of this place." Abraham said, "How long is it going to take to get there." God said, "Don't worry!" Abraham said, "How will I know when I'm there?" God said, "I'll tell you."
Would you do it? But because Abraham obeyed when he didn't understand it, he became the father of a nation called Israel.
3. Faith Is GIVING When I Don't HAVE It.
Giving and faith go together. God uses finances to test our faith. Have you ever had to decide between tithing and paying a bill? This is a test! God's saying, "Who are you going to trust? My promises to take care of you if you put Me first or yourself?"
In Hebrews 11, this Hall of Fame, the first guy who gets listed is a man named Abel.
Abel gets listed not because he did something great. He didn't. He had no great accomplishment. No great achievement to his name. The only thing he did was he gave an offering. And God put him in the Hall of Fame. Why? It wasn't how much he gave, it wasn't what he gave, it was how he gave.
Hebrews 11:4 (ESV) 4 By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks.
He said it wasn't what he gave that pleased God but how he gave it. It wasn't the amount, but the attitude.
God doesn't care about the amount. He cares about the attitude by which you give.
You need to understand that there are two ways to give. You can give by faith or you can give by fear. You can give by reason or you can give by revelation. One of these ways you don't get any credit for. The other way pleases God.
2 Corinthians 9:6-8 (ESV) 6 … whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.
Faith is giving when I don't have it. But it's even more than that.
4. Faith Is PERSISTING When I Don't FEEL Like It.
That's the opposite of our culture. Our culture says, "Do everything based on your feelings." If it feels good, do it. If it doesn't feel good, don't do it. Do whatever feels good. Live by your emotions.”
As a result, we end up being manipulated by our moods. Mature people live by their commitments, not their emotions.
Emotions come and go. Sometimes we just have to persist in what we’re doing.When we step out for God – Satan gets mad and tries to throw things in our midst. He loves to hassle God’s kids.
We have to just keep being persistent. Keep doing the right thing, even when you don't feel like it.
I don't always feel like being nice to people. Do you? Sometimes I want to be selfish, grumpy, & grouchy. And… I want everybody to serve me. Sometimes I don't feel like serving my wife or thinking of her needs. Sometimes I don't feel like speaking to you on Sunday. This may shock you, but sometimes, even as a pastor, I don't feel like reading the Bible. Sometimes I don't feel like praying. I've discovered that when I don't feel like it, that's usually when I need to pray and read the Bible the most.
In fact, I've discovered if the only time I pray and read the Bible is when I feel like it, the devil makes sure I never feel like it.
So I have to keep on doing it, persisting in spite of how I feel. That is the secret of success. Successful people are simply ordinary people who do what the average person doesn't feel like doing.
How do you develop persistence?
Hebrews 11:27 (ESV) 27 By faith he left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible.
You know the story of Moses. He led an entire nation that had been in slavery for four hundred years out across the wilderness, through the Red Sea, out on to the Sinai Peninsula and they traveled around in circles for forty years, waiting for God to get the people ready to go into the Promised Land.
A forty-year wait is a long time to wait in a desert. How many know how true that is?
How do you be that persistent? The Bible tells us -- the last phrase. It says, Moses kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible."
The key is, Keep your eyes on God. That's what Moses did. When you keep your eyes on God, it keeps you persistent.
Some of you today are at the quitting point. You might feel like you're ready to give up on your marriage.
Or perhaps you're ready to give up on school, because it just seems too hard. Perhaps you're ready to give up on that career, or that dream, or that hope of ever getting married, -- or that hope of ever getting out of your marriage! -- or whatever. Some of you feel like your health situation is hopeless, "I'm never going to get any better." Some of you think your finances are hopeless, "I'm never going to get out of debt!"
And you feel like giving up. And God brought you here this morning so He could say this to you, "Hang in there! Don't give up. Keep believing when you don't see it, obeying when you don't understand it, giving, when you don't have it, and keep persisting when you don't feel like it."
Keep your eyes on God. If you look at your problem you're going to be overwhelmed. If you look at the world you'll be distressed, if you look within you'll be depressed, if you look at God, you'll be at rest. It's all what you have your eyes on.
5. Faith Is THANKING God Before I RECEIVE It.
A good example of this is the story of Joshua. Hebrews 11:30 (ESV) 30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.
After Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt from Pharaoh, into the Promised Land, they went to take over the country and the capital was Jericho. It was the most fortified city in the world. There was no chance a bunch of ex-slaves were going to take it over. It was considered impenetrable. But the people of God marched around the city parameter -- the walls of it -- for seven days.
First in silence, then later thanking God in praise. The whole time they were thanking God in advance that God had already delivered the city in to their hands.
On the seventh day, after thanking God in advance in faith, the walls came tumbling down.
It's thanking God in advance.
6. Faith Is TRUSTING If I Don't GET It.
Some people try to make God like a vending machine that God automatically will give you anything you want, but that's not true.
So God is not some kind of vending machine where you put in a prayer and you automatically get everything you want.
Some people today teach the idea that if you have enough faith you'll always be well, you'll never have any problems, you'll never be sick, everything will be going great.
Baloney! It's not in the Bible. The Bible doesn't teach that.
God's more interested in your character than He is in your comfort. God's more interested in making you holy than He is in making you happy.
The Bible says that faith is trusting if I don't get it.
Here's the truth: God hears and answers every prayer you pray. And… He doesn't answer always the way you want Him to.
In fact, sometimes when you pray, God says, “Yes.” And sometimes when you pray, God says,” No.”
And sometimes when you pray, God says, not yet. And sometimes God says, "I've got a better idea. I've got something different. I know you're going to like this better."
Hebrews 11:39-40 (ESV) 39 And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, 40 since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.
Living by faith does not exempt you from problems.
Sometimes we pray for God to remove a problem and instead He keeps the problem there and gives you the strength to go through it. And you end up being stronger.
If He took all the problems out of your way, you'd be a brat! Spoiled! You'd be weak.
But God wants you to have character and strength and maturity so He lets you go through some problems instead of removing them and He gives you the ability to handle it.
Anybody can trust God when things are going great.
Anybody can give when they've got extra money.
Anybody could persist when they see the deadline is only a couple inches away.
Anybody can believe when it's right there in front of them.
But real faith is built in the valleys of life. Sometimes its trusting God when I don't get it.
Which of these aspects do you need to work on? How much faith do you have? How do you rate your faith? If you're going to be pleasing to God, you need to work on these. Which one do you need to work on?
Do you need to work on believing when you don't see it?
Do you need to work on obeying when you don't understand it?
Do you need to work on giving when you don't have it?
Or persisting when you don't feel like it?
Some of you may need to work on thanking before you receive it. And you may need to work on trusting if you don't get it.
Romans 10:17 (ESV) 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
God will use difficulties to test your faith. God will use demands on your time to test your faith. God will use dollars, financial, giving to test your faith. God will use delays to test your faith.
Some of you are going through a tough time right now and you're about ready to give up. I want to say to you, Hang on! God will make a way if you will trust Him.
Original Outline by Rick Warren
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