Hebrews 10:23 – “And let us hold unwaveringly to the hope that we confess, for the one who made the promise is trustworthy.”

I will make a statement that some may have difficulty with, but hopefully, you will allow me to expound on what I mean: “Faith is an almost useless word for many Christians.”  For many, it seems that it is relegated to the mystical and is virtually an unattainable prize that only the super saints experience.

Believers readily believe in Salvation, but even then, many are unconvinced that God truly forgives All sins.  Some find it almost impossible to embrace the idea that Grace is unearned and not connected to acts but the heart.

Hebrews 8:6 – “…He (Jesus) is the catalyst of a better Covenant which contains far more wonderful promises!” In the New Covenant, God embeds His laws in our thoughts and fastens them to our hearts.  (Hebrews 8:10).  In (Hebrews 8:12), we read that God’s promise is to Never remember our sin.   Few truly embrace that, thereby negating faith.

If, as Hebrews 10:14 declares, by Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross, we are made Perfectly Holy and Complete for all time.   Why is it so difficult to see ourselves that way?

I believe that one of the reasons is we trust what we see, feel, and think more than what God has said.   God said it, but we don’t see it. Therefore, we don’t believe it.   For us to become, we must embrace His Word!   It is not what we see but what He says that makes things real.

One translation of Hebrews 10:23 is incredible, “So now wrap your heart tightly around the hope that lived within us, knowing that God ALWAYS keeps His promises!”

Hebrews 11:1 – “Now faith brings our hopes into reality and becomes the foundation needed to acquire the things we long for.  (Long for not just kind of want).  It is all the evidence required to prove what is unseen.”  [My added thought included in parentheses]

Hebrews 11:3 – Faith empowers us to see.

Hebrews 11:4 – Faith moves people.

Hebrews 11:5 – Faith translates people.

Hebrews 11:7 – Faith opens hearts.

Hebrews 11:8 – Faith motivates to obedience.

Hebrews 11:11 – Faith embraces God’s miracle power.

Hebrews 11:11b – “…for the authority of her faith (Sarah) rested in the One who made the promise, AND she TAPPED INTO HIS FAITHFULNESS.”  [Emphasis mine].   Tapped into it.  Wow!

Hebrews 11:16 speaks of the motivating power of faith.   “But they couldn’t turn back, for their hearts were Fixed on what was far greater, that is, the Heavenly Realm.”

I am blown away by verse 26b.  It says of Moses that he saw true wealth because…“his eyes looked with wonder, not on the immediate (that’s where most look), but on the ultimate – faith’s great reward!”

Hebrews 11:33 describes the operation and power of faith.   “Through faith’s power, they conquered kingdoms and established true justice.   Their faith Fastened onto their promises and pulled them into reality!”  

Think about fastening onto God’s word and pulling the promises (the unseen, the hoped-for) into being in the present.  That is amazing!

Hebrews 11:40 reveals our invitation into God’s world, “But now God has invited us to Live in something better than what they had – Faith’s Fullness! God’s Promises are absolute.   If we are to live in faith, we must reject our doubts and what we think is reality and totally place our confidence in Him and His Promises.  

Faith is not Sight in the Natural.   It is vision, seeing into the eternal.   Faith is confidence that God’s integrity is impeccable.  Faith is the learned ability to see beyond what we think is reality into what God says and drag that reality into the present, persistently clinging to the promise.   It is being willing to die and being deemed a fool for holding onto God’s promise.

Faith is confidence, trust, expectancy, and obedience. It is refusing to let natural sight dictate our lives and steal our hope.

Today, God is talking to me about Trust.    Our eternity is dependent upon our trust.   If I can’t believe He has made me Holy, what can I trust Him for?  If I can believe that, then what is it that I can’t trust Him for?   That makes Faith a functional part of my life.

Today is your day of victory.  Rejoice and be who He says you are!