What happens when we live by faith?
Feb 18, 2011
The Base for Grace - part thirty in a study of the book of Hebrews
By Mike Gaudet
What happens when we live by faith?
“Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while, ‘He who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith.’” Hebrews 10:32-38
If we had no prior knowledge of the Bible and began to read it for the first time, it wouldn’t take long before we determined that faith is important. The encouragement to “live by faith” is a thread that runs throughout the Bible.
In the 7th century BC, God revealed to the prophet Habakkuk that the nation of Israel would soon face dark days . . . days that would challenge their trust in Him. A Babylonian invasion was on the horizon. Brighter days would follow but in the midst of the captivity they would need to “live by faith” in order for their trust to remain intact.
Fast-forward to the 1st century AD. Chronic difficulties had taken a toll on the first Jewish Christians. In the “earlier days” they had been “publicly exposed to insult and persecution.” In spite of these hardships they had “sympathized with those in prison” and had “joyfully accepted” the confiscation of their property because they knew that they “had better and lasting possessions.”
It was one thing to begin well . . . it was quite another thing to finish well. Many of these Jewish believers had been forced by famine and persecution to leave their homeland. As aliens and strangers in foreign lands they were excluded from Jewish circles because they were Christians and from Gentile circles because they were Jews. Some of these Jewish converts were renouncing their faith in Christ in order to access the social and financial benefits that accompanied membership in the local synagogue.
They were tired of working menial jobs for low wages.
They were tired of being discriminated against.
They were tired of being excluded.
They were . . . tired
The writer of this letter reminds them to “live by faith.” He tells them, “You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.”
Faith is frequently portrayed as a kind of “Christian currency” that we can use to get stuff from God. We are encouraged to accumulate it through Bible reading, church attendance, prayer and obedience so that we can “purchase” what we want from Him. Testimonials of people who live by faith frequently feature individuals who leveraged their belief in God to amass health and wealth.
The Bible can be twisted to support this view. However, Biblical accounts of individuals who lived by faith portray men and women who trusted in God in spite of not getting what they wanted. “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.” Hebrews 11:13
Faith is confidence in God’s care . . . in spite of evidence to the contrary.
On one occasion Jesus directed a small boat to head out into the Sea of Galilee. In the middle of the Sea a “furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, ‘Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?’ He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, ‘Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?’” Mark 4:37-40
It’s important to notice that the disciples were in the storm because they had obeyed Jesus, not because they hadn’t. It’s easy to assume that if we’re in the middle of turbulent circumstances, we must have done something wrong. The truth is, we can be smack dab in the middle of God’s will . . . and be bailing like crazy!
God isn’t invested in alleviating our tension by eliminating our troubling circumstances. He wants to teach us to “live by faith, not by sight.” 2 Corinthians 5:7 He wants to teach us to base our confidence on what He says rather than on what we see. He wants to teach us to trust in Him in the midst of storms.
This is important to remember. When we experience hardships we often assume that God is either unaware or that He doesn’t care. This is how the disciples must have felt . . .”Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” God doesn’t express His love to us by sheltering us from storms, but by walking with us through them. He equips us with His promises and commitments so that by clinging to them we are able to keep our faith afloat.
As we learn to live by faith, we learn to be confident in God’s care . . .
. . . even when circumstances threaten to swamp us.