Now Faith Is

Q: What does the Bible say about faith?

The Bible defines faith as the assurance of things hoped for and evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). In Hebrews 11:1, faith is described as the 'substance' of things hoped for and the 'evidence' of things not seen. Faith in the biblical sense is more than mere belief; it involves trust and confidence in God and His promises. Saving faith is characterized by a deep-seated conviction that God is who He says He is and that His Word is true. This kind of faith not only accepts God's existence but also entrusts all aspects of life to Him, recognizing His sovereignty and grace.

Q: How do we know faith is a gift from God?

Ephesians 2:8 states that we are saved by grace through faith, and that faith is not of ourselves; it is the gift of God. The doctrine of faith being a gift from God is rooted in Ephesians 2:8, which highlights that we are saved by grace through faith and that this faith is not something we can claim credit for. It is a divine gift, bestowed upon God's chosen people by His mercy. Understanding faith as a gift underscores the sovereign grace of God in salvation; it eliminates any notion of human merit. Just as we cannot earn grace, we cannot earn faith. It is a result of God's calling and revelation to our souls, enabling us to respond in trust and belief.

Q: Why is believing in God's Son important for Christians?

Believing in God's Son is essential because He is the appointed Savior, and without faith in Him, one cannot attain eternal life (1 John 5:12). Belief in God's Son, Jesus Christ, is central to Christian faith as outlined in 1 John 5:11-12, which asserts that eternal life is found exclusively in the Son. This relationship signifies the assurance of salvation; to possess the Son is to possess life. Furthermore, recognizing Jesus as Lord and recognizing His sacrificial work on the cross is foundational. A genuine faith acknowledges Christ's divinity and His role as the Redeemer. Without this faith, one remains in spiritual death, separated from God. Thus, it is imperative for every believer to hold a correct understanding and belief in who Jesus is.

Q: What is the importance of faith in salvation?

Faith is the means by which we receive salvation and is essential for pleasing God, as stated in Hebrews 11:6. Faith plays a crucial role in salvation as it is through faith that we receive God's grace and forgiveness. Hebrews 11:6 emphasizes that without faith, it is impossible to please God, suggesting that faith is a prerequisite for a right relationship with Him. God's Word teaches that it is through faith in Jesus Christ that we acquire eternal life and become justified. Thus, faith is not a mere intellectual agreement but an active trust that relies wholly on Christ's completed work, leading to transformation and a renewed relationship with God.

Q: How does faith come according to the Bible?

Romans 10:17 teaches that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. The Bible clearly states that faith originates from the proclamation of the Word of God. Romans 10:17 asserts that faith comes by hearing the message of Christ. This underscores the importance of the Gospel being preached and taught. As individuals hear the word of God, the Holy Spirit works in them to create faith, allowing them to believe in Jesus Christ. Thus, preaching and reading Scripture are essential components in the life of a believer, enabling the growth of faith that leads to a deeper relationship with God.

Back to Hebrews 11. Hebrews 11,
verse 1, begins this way, Now faith is Faith is. There's been a lot said about faith in many books written on the
subject of faith. I've read some myself. A lot of sermons preached on
faith. What I want to do This morning,
what I want to do every time I stand up here is tell you what
this book says about faith. Tell you what God's word says
about faith. We hear people use the term a
lot. We hear a lot said about faith. Up there in verse 6, it says,
Without faith, it is impossible to please God. Without faith. In Ephesians 2, verse 8, it says
we are saved by grace through faith, the means of faith, saved. Without faith, we can't please
God, and faith is a means by which we are saved. So it's pretty
important, isn't it, this thing of faith. We need to understand,
we need to have it. And we need to understand whether
or not we truly have it or not. Saving faith. Saving faith. Our Lord. Faith, very simply. The word faith in the dictionary
means belief. When you believe in something
or someone, you're persuaded of this thing, the truth of something
or someone, someone's ability. You believe in them. You believe
in something. You place your faith in it. We
place our faith in things all the time. We place our faith
in our automobiles when we get in them. that will carry them
to our destination. We place our faith in people
at times, and so forth, that they will do what they say they're
going to do, and so forth. It's belief. It's persuasion
of someone or something. You're persuaded of it. OK? Very
simply. Faith is belief. All right, here
and now it says, Faith is this belief, this persuasion,
this trust, belief in, and I read verse 6 to you, it says, look
at verse 6 again, without faith it is impossible to please God. For he that cometh to God must
believe that he is, that he is. that there is a God? No, that's
not what's said there. You must believe he is, that
God is God. I say that all the time, don't
I? We take it for granted. We believe here, I preach and
you tell others, and we believe here, beyond a shadow of a doubt,
that God is God. It seems ridiculous to have to
say that, doesn't it? But we live in a generation of
people that don't really believe in God as God, do they? Amos 3.3 says, How can two walk
together except they be agreed? No one knows or loves or understands
or believes God who doesn't believe he's God. You know what I'm talking about,
don't you? That he is God. Not that there is a God. A lot
of people claim to believe in a God. Some of them claim to
believe in creation, or that God created all things. Certainly
he did, and we must believe that. We cannot have any belief in
any form of evolution and be a believer in God. You can't
do it. Three, it says, through faith
we understand that the worlds were framed by what? An evolutionary process? By the
word of God. That one day God said, let there
be, and it was immediately. How do you receive that? By faith. You believe that by faith, not
by proofs or evidences brought forth to you. You believe. Why do you believe? Because God
said so in the beginning. And you see, it says the things
that are made are clearly seen. They're seen. Verse 3, things
which are seen, they were made by things that aren't seen. Made
by nothing. How can you believe such a thing?
I believe God. I believe God is. Right? How can I believe that God made
the world from nothing? Because I believe God's God."
He can, he does, he did. That's how. He that cometh to
God must believe he is. So you may think that's a very
simple statement, but it's a fact. You can't believe in any kind
of evolutionary, have any kind of evolutionary idea and believe
that God's God. Fair play. That he's sovereign. God is. God is sovereign. That's what the name means. Absolute. I like that word. Absolute. Ruler. Sovereign. Controller
of all things. You know what absolute means?
Undeniable, irrefutable, unchangeable. Absolute. And that means that
if this is the way it is, there ain't no other way. And he's
absolute ruler. He's sovereign. Sovereign. reigns and rules among the armies
of heaven." A lot of people believe that, don't they? They say they
believe God reigns and God is in control. Where? Well, they
believe in heaven. Well, what about on earth? God
finished the rest of that verse. He reigns and rules among the
armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of earth. God gives the kingdom to whomsoever
he will. Right? God's sovereign, absolutely
sovereign. So we must believe, number one.
It's where you start, isn't it? You believe God is. Now, faith
is believing God is God. Anybody that doesn't believe
God is God. Creator, sovereign, ruler, controller,
judge. He will by no means clear the
guilty. He's judge, right? Didn't he
say that in Isaiah? I am a sweet, loving God and
your Savior, personal Savior. Is that what he said in Isaiah
45? I'm a sweet, loving God and your
personal Savior, if you'll let me. First thing he said, just
God. and the Savior. He'll be just
first. Judge. God is first, means judge. We read that in chapter 10, didn't
we? It's a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living
God. Right? So he that believeth, he that
believeth must believe that God is faith, God is God. Secondly,
he that believeth He that has this faith must believe in God's
Son. He must believe in God's Son.
Turn over to 1 John, chapter 5, with me. 1 John, near the
end of the Bible. 1 John 5. If you have one, look
at it. 1 John 5. We must believe in
God's Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ. Because God is
a spirit, you see. Nobody has ever seen him. Nobody
has ever heard his voice. Never seen him. Look at 1 John
5. God must veil himself to us. He must reveal himself to us. 1 John 5, verse 11. This is the record that God to
us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the
Son hath life. He that hath not the Son of God
hath not life. And these things have I written
unto you, that believe on the name of the Son of God, that
you may know you have eternal life. You may believe on the
name of the Son of God." He said that twice, didn't he? 1 John
5, verse 13. These things I write unto you,
that ye may know ye have eternal life, that ye may believe on
the name of the Son of God." What's that mean? Everybody calls
him Lord. Most everybody calls him Lord. Everybody calls him Jesus. Some like to call him Christ. What's that mean? You need to
believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. What does that
mean? Well, you believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. You believe he's Lord. Huh? Not that you must make him. Huh? See, he's splitting hairs. Faith
splits hairs. There's a false faith. Christ
talked about it a lot. I'm trying to make it as plain
as if I were speaking to our children. You understand me? Anybody can understand this message
if you just listen a little bit. Christ talked about a lot of
people who believed in him. He said there were many that
believed on him, but he didn't commit himself unto them. He knew what
was in them. A lot of people today claim to believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ, do they? Well, anybody who says that we
must make him Lord, they don't believe on the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ, do they? He is Lord, always has been,
always will be. He is right now my Lord, right
now. He may be my Savior, but he's
definitely my Lord. You see, that's the first thing.
in this step of salvation. He that cometh to God must believe
that he is, who he is, that Jesus Christ is Lord. Whether he saves
me or not, he's Lord. Without letting do anything,
he's Lord. Right? The absolute meaning of the word. Absolute. Sovereign, ruler, controller
of all things. He's Lord. He's God. There's
no two ways of looking at it here. Didn't Christ save Henry
and John 8.24, if you believe not that I am He, you'll die
in your sin. Didn't he? And now he said, Terry,
if you believe not that I am God, you'll die in your sin.
So if anybody doesn't believe Jesus Christ is very God of very
God, he doesn't have faith. He doesn't know Christ. He's
going to die in his sins. Right? I didn't say that, did
I? Jesus Christ said that. Jesus.
I like to use that word. It has a sweet sound to it. It
is. There is no sound so sweet on
earth as Jesus. Blessed Jesus. You know why it's
sweet to me? Because it means what it says. When I say Jesus,
I mean Jesus. What does it mean? Savior. That's what the name means. Savior.
That means he did it. Call his name Jesus, for he shall
save his people from their sin." Now, if your Jesus is one who
tried and failed, who can't because you won't let him, then name
him something else. Call him something else. Call
him Pedro or Pablo or some other Spanish name, but not Jesus,
not Jesus. Jesus means Savior, Salvador,
Savior. It means, he says, them that
believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. See, his person and his work
are wrapped up in his name. When you say my name, you think
of my characteristics, you think of my attributes, you think of
what I look like, you think of how I do things, don't you? You
think of why I think of Henry Sword? I think of a man who's
in his early sixties, a fine man, a man I love, a sweet man
who owns a station down here, a hard-working man, has a wife,
and this is the way he does things, his attributes about him. When
you say, Lord Jesus Christ, you're talking about the person and
the work of the Lord Jesus Christ now. And there's only one way
to look at it. Right? Jesus Christ. Christ. He's the Christ. He's
the Messiah. He's the substitute. He's the
Redeemer. He's the only Savior, the only
representative. He is the Messiah. He is the
one that came and represented a people and did what he did
successfully and went back to the Father and now represents
those people. He's the Messiah. He's the representative
of the people. Do you believe that? Do you believe him? the Lord
Jesus Christ. Do you believe on that name?
Well, faith is belief in God. Faith is belief in God's Son. Faith is a gift. Ephesians 2
says that we're saved by grace through faith, and that's not
of yourself. It's a gift. Right? Personal decision is not a gift,
is it? He's splitting hairs again, Preacher. It's a gift, isn't it? I don't
believe on the Lord Jesus Christ now because one day I made my
personal decision. That's works, isn't it? Am I
splitting hairs or am I getting to the heart of faith? No, which
is it? I'm going to quit, if that's
all there is to it. I'm going to get out of this
business. Why are we suffering persecution at the hands of the
world for what we preach, if there's no difference? I'm going to quit. If men are preaching the gospel,
And they say, it's God loves you and Christ died for you.
He wants you to accept him as your personal Savior. And those that are coming
down are hearing that and making their decision and believing
they're saved. I quit. I just quit. I'm not going to
go out. I'm not going to suffer this,
if that's the way men are saved. But it's not your personal decision.
That's works. It's a gift. It was a day when
God Almighty crossed my path and stopped my wild career. Not me, I didn't turn over a
new leaf. He stopped my wild career and
said like he said to the ocean when he created it, here the
two of you have come, no further. Now stop what you're doing and
turn around the other way and come to me. Come to me. Going the other direction, he
turned to turn us, O Lord, and we'll be turned. He turned me
and pointed my eyes at Christ and said, Now come. And like
a, I'll be God's puppet, sure will. If he's got me on a string,
I'm all right. Right? If he's got me bound with
cords of love, I'm all right. I'll be a puppet. That makes
me a puppet. I'll be God's puppet. bound the
cords of love. He's got me. He's got ahold of
me on a leash. Come on back here. Come to me. You know how you
have a dog on a leash and you let it go every now and then
and let it root and rut and whatever a dog do, you know, you let it
do on a leash? That's what's about us, isn't
it? Gentile dogs you get into and finally the master says,
enough of that. Back to my side. He pets the
dog. Good dog. You're no good doggy.
Nothing good about it. He's good because he belongs
to the Master. He's good to the Master. Well, it's a gift. Faith is a gift. Look over at
Romans 10 with me. Mark your place there in Hebrews.
Romans 10, very quickly. Mark your place in Hebrews. Faith, the scripture says, cometh.
How does it come? Romans 10, I told you it's a
gift of God. It's a gift of God. He chose
a people to save them, and this is how he calls them. See, he
chose a people, and they're born in time, they're born of water,
and they're born of spirit. The Word of God comes in the
hands of the Spirit of God, the gospel, the Word, and God calls
them by his Now he's worried about his gospel. That's his
voice. This is God's voice talking. Sheep, sheep, sheep. Center,
center, center. He calls his people by this voice
of faith, and they believe. When he calls them, he says,
You're my sheep. They believe. He said, I'm God.
The first thing he says is, I'm God. There's none else. I believe
that. They believe. Christ is your
only Savior. They believe. You're a sinner, you need cry,
I believe. See, faith cometh, verse 17, faith cometh by hearing,
and hearing by the word of God. Right? We don't drum up, nobody
is going to have faith, except through preaching of God's word,
or the hearing of God's word, the reading of God's word. Look
back up at verse 13. Well, whosoever shall call on
the name of the Lord shall be saved. Yeah, but how are they
going to call, verse 14, on him whom they have not believed? Nobody is going to call on Jesus
Christ if they don't believe he's Lord Jesus Christ. How shall
they believe in him whom they have not heard? Nobody's going
to believe that he is the Lord Jesus Christ if they hadn't heard
the message of God's sovereign grace. You can cry. Right, Terry? You have to believe this gospel,
don't you? Huh? And what Paul said? This gospel.
Well, how are they going to hear without a preacher? They're going
to have to hear a preacher, somebody, a man, a woman. It doesn't have
to be up in this pulpit. to be a woman talking to somebody
at work or in the store, preaching the gospel, prophesying. That's
what it meant when it said, Your daughter shall prophesy. You
women prophesy, you preach to people out there in the job.
And people aren't going to hear it unless they hear it from a
man, or a woman. Right? Cometh by hearing, hearing
by the word of God. Now back to Hebrews 11. I'm going
to make this as simple as I can. So faith is believing God is
God. Faith is believing God's Son,
His person, His work. Faith is a gift. Faith cometh by hearing, and
this is the reason Paul said all through Hebrews 10, he says,
don't forsake the assembly of yourselves together, as the matter
of some is, because you need this faith. Don't cast away. Look at verse 35 of chapter 10. Don't cast away, therefore, your
confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. Verse 34
is a better and enduring substance that lies waiting for your faith,
waiting for your faith. Now look at verse 1 of chapter
11. Faith is the substance of things
hoped for. Faith is the substance of things
hoped for. I read verse 34 to you, didn't
I, in chapter 10. It says that you have in heaven
a better and enduring substance. Substance. What do we hope for?
What do you hope for? What are you looking for? Huh? You call yourself a believer,
a Christian. All right? substance of things hoped for. What do you hope for? Well, preacher,
I want to get to heaven. I don't want to go to hell when
I die. That's not faith. That's not faith. That's just
trying to escape judgment. That's just wanting to have a
carnal utopia. That's just wanting to have your
cake and eat it, too, you know. Right? Scripture talks about a man named
David. God said this about him. Barbara said, He's a man after
my own heart. He's a man that really believes
me. He knows me. He loves me. I love
him. I love him. Here's what David said. One thing
have I desired of the Lord, and that will I seek after, that
I may dwell in the house of the Lord. That's heaven in it. Well,
it can be here, but it is heaven. And I may dwell in the house
of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold streets of gold,
pearly gates, my little mansion in the corner of glory, to behold
the beauty of the Lord." The beauty of the Lord. A person, you see. a person that is hoped for. Did you follow that? Faith is
wanting to see a person. You see, faith is coming to the
knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, a person. Faith is knowing who
God is. Faith is knowing what you are
before that holy God, and faith is having Christ revealed to
you. who he is and what he did. And
you fall in love with a person. You become enamored with and
taken up with a person. You believe and trust in a person.
You're persuaded. Remember the definition of the
word faith? You're persuaded. You believe,
you trust. Not a thing, not a doctrine,
a person. You believe a doctrine as it
relates to the person. He said, you fall in love with,
you're taken up with a person. A person. And what do you desire
in this life? David said that in Psalm 65,
didn't he? One thing, Psalm 73. Sixty-five.
Sixty-five, twenty-five. He said, whom have I in heaven
but thee? And who, there's none on earth I desire beside thee. See, there's nothing that will
keep you coming here. Nothing will keep you coming
here but a person. You want to come here by a person,
huh? Not see the choir, not see so-and-so, but a person, the
Lord Jesus Christ, coming here to see him, coming to grow in
grace and knowledge of him. You've seen him. Faith is seeing
him. Believe in trusting him, coming
to know and love him. And then that's who you long
to go be with, right? A man is separated from his wife
for years. He's gone off to war, perhaps.
He's separated from his wife. He loves his wife. He longs to
see his wife, doesn't he? He thinks about his wife. He
wants to go home to be with his wife, doesn't he? He doesn't
want to go home to see his dog Spot. Huh? He doesn't miss his
sports car in the garage. See what I'm saying? He's away
from his wife. And I'm the bride. The scripture
says believers are the bride of Christ. Right? His wife, he's
the husband. We've been separated for years. As a matter of fact, I've never
seen, I've fallen in love with a man who's just written me letters.
I never met him. Can that be? Oh yeah, it's the
evidence. That's what, look at verse one
there. It's the evidence of things not
seen. It's the evidence of things not
seen. I'm not even going the way that I wanted to go with
this, but it's right anyway. It said in the margin there faith
is the ground, the confidence of things hoped for. How do we
hope to get to heaven? Based solely upon what Jesus
Christ did. The ground, the confidence, the
foundation, the ground. The ground is like a foundation,
whatever you stand on. The ground is what you're standing
on. The ground I'm standing on in hopes of getting to heaven
is Jesus Christ, the solid rock. I hope to get to heaven. Foundation
of my faith is that God's going to accept me and let me in someday
on the basis of what Jesus Christ did. That he lived a perfect
life, that he had my sins on him and God punished him in my
stead. And my ground, my confidence,
my hope of getting into heaven and being accepted by God is
because there's a man up there. There's another man up there. My representative, a man who
sits by the right hand of God, who says, Father, let him in.
He's ours. He belongs to us. We bought him
with a price. He's mine. I'm going to get there because
there's a man there. That's my ground, my hope, my
confidence. But the way this thing has gone
right now is that faith is the substance of things hoped for.
What faith is, my hope, desire, belief, what I want,
the things I hope for, the substance I hope for, is the person. In faith now, didn't Paul say
for me to live is Christ? Now, that's what I'm living for,
to learn more about Christ until someday I'm made fit and I go
to be with him. And we're going to live together
happily ever after. You see, like I said, I've fallen
in love with somebody. I've never seen his face. I've never seen his face. Anybody
that says they have, they're lying. They're lying. I never heard his voice. His
audible voice. Anybody that says they have,
they're lying. God speaks in the pages of this
book. I have heard his voice as really,
and only those that have heard it,
I believe, can enter into this. I've heard God speak and the
Lord Jesus Christ speak as if he, look I'm talking right now,
just as really, more so. John, I have, as if he said to
me personally, I know salvation. Christ Jesus came into the world
to save you, my beloved. You're mine, and I am thine.
Have you? Have you? You say, I don't know
about that. Well, it's faith is the evidence
of things not seen. I've never seen Jesus Christ.
How do you know he is? Again, it's still the best one
I've ever heard, illustration, and it illustrates what believers,
how they feel about their Lord. This man and this woman began
corresponding by letter. He lived in England, she lived
in the United States. He owned a little bookshop. She
was an avid book reader. She just happened to see his
bookstore in an ad, and she ordered some books from him. Well, they
got the corresponding, and over a period of time, they fell in
love. They'd never met. They'd never
seen one. She didn't know what he looked
like. He didn't know what she looked like. They fell in love
through letters, writing letters back and forth. And you know, one day he died,
and she finally went over there to where he was and visited the
place, but she never saw his face. Well, I've never seen Jesus
Christ's face. I haven't. Didn't Peter say that?
Never. Didn't Peter say that in 1 Peter
1, verse 8? Blessed are you whom, having
not seen, you love. You haven't seen him, but you
love him, and you rejoice with joy unspeakable. Can you say
that? Can you, huh? It's evidence. Faith is evidence. If you'd have
told me, say, how do I know what you're saying so? Well, I'm not
lying. God doesn't lie. God can't lie,
but I'm not lying to you. I'm not lying to you. If you
had told me the same thing twenty years ago, I'd have scoffed at
it, too. I heard them. I heard people talking like this.
You know, I heard and saw and witnessed people being all enamored
with and taken up with the gospel and smiling and laughing and
crying when the gospel was preached. I saw all that and I said, what's
going on here? And I know there are hypocrites
all over the world. Now, there are people who say,
oh, how I love Jesus. You know, they've got this fake pie smile
on their face. You know, I love you too, brother.
I know that. I know there are hypocrites like
that all over the world. But let me tell you now, it's real. He's real. This person I've never
seen before is more real than I am. He really is. See, the things that
are seen are temporal. things that are not seen are
eternal. It's evidence of things not seen. It's evidence to me.
It becomes proof. Didn't he say there in 1 Timothy
3, 2 Timothy 3, 16, that without controversy, great is the mystery
of God in us? God is manifest in the flesh,
15. God is manifest in the flesh, seen of angels, justified in
the Spirit, and says, You remember that? I don't think
I quoted it exactly the way it is, but it did say he believed
it's a mystery that he believed on the world. That someone would
believe in somebody they've never met before, who lived on the
earth 2,000 years ago. They've never met, never seen
his face, don't know what he looks like, never heard his voice,
but they believe him and love him just as really as they more
so than anything or anybody else. See, that's evidence of things
not seen. Right? Otherwise, you couldn't
have made me believe. Twenty years ago, you could do
anything you wanted to, you couldn't make me believe. Until I met
him. Huh? Until I met him. Now, he's very real, very real
to me, because he is real. He says, verse 2, by it the elders
obtained a good report. You see that, verse 2, the elders
obtained a good report? Not a good report card. That's
not what that's saying. It's not saying that God rewarded
them because they were faithful. It's not saying that at all.
You'll find that out throughout here. Say they believed, and
by believing they saw the glory of God. Didn't he say that to Martha
and Mary at the tomb of Lazarus? Didn't I tell you that if you
believe, and all things are possible in Him, didn't I tell you that
if you believe, you'd see the glory of God? Just believe like
a child. Just believe. Believe. And they saw the glory of God.
They had God. God proved Himself to them. By this faith, they
obtained a good report from God. God let them in on some things.
You see what that's saying? Not saying that they were awarded
because of their faith. Well, they were. I mean, God
proved himself to them. But God gave them faith. They didn't earn it. They didn't
earn this reward. God gave it to them. On down
there, it talks about Abraham. Well, Abraham was an idolater,
wasn't he? How did Abraham get faith? Well, he made his decision
for God one day. No, it says God called him. God called him. By faith, Abel,
verse 3, Abel offered unto their God a more excellent sacrifice
than Cain. Here are two brothers born in the same house. Why did
one believe the right way and the other one not? Huh? It's a gift of God. God chose
Abel over Cain, didn't He? Huh? I already said to you, verse
3, that by faith we believe the word of God, so that things which
are seen are not made of things which do appear. We believe that
God created things by the word of God. In other words, by faith
we believe that God does what he says he does, exactly the
way he says it. By faith Abel offered unto God
a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. We believe that's talking
about Christ. He being dead, yet speaketh.
Verse 5, By faith Enoch was translated, or that is, he was transferred
or entered into the kingdom of God without death. They looked
for him one day, and he was not found, it said, because God had
translated him. God allowed him to walk right
on into heaven. But before his translation, he
had this testimony. What was his testimony? He pleased
God. Oh, he was a good man. He was
a righteous man. Without faith it's impossible
to please God. Where does faith come from? Go
back to the start. It's a gift of God. God chose
this man. God chose him. God gave him the
gift of faith. He walked with God. He obeyed
God. He agreed with God. He pleased
God. He looked to Christ. He believed
in Christ. Verse 7. By faith Noah, being
warned of God of things not seen, Noah had never seen it rain.
It had never rained on earth before that day, right? Never
rained. God watered the earth by a dew.
And God said one day to Noah, He said, Noah, it's going to
rain. Water is going to fall out of the sky. When Noah told
everybody else this, water out of the sky. Noah, come on, man. Have you ever seen it, this happen? No. Well, show me and I'll believe
too. You'll see, soon enough. But God said, believe, and you'll
be saved. You know it's going to rain fire,
people? Fire's going to fall out of the
sky, it's going to rain. You old-fashioned hellfire, brimstone
preacher, you! That's crazy! You ever see it rain fire? No,
but we will soon enough. Soon enough. Eve is coming. will come soon. He will yet come.
Either she'll come or come. He will not dare. He's coming.
Who? Jesus Christ. Go on then. Go on to heaven. Go on now. By faith Noah being warned and
moved with fear. Why? He believed God. Whatever
God said, he believed it. He believed it. See what I'm
saying? By faith he sojourned and so
forth. By faith, by faith, by faith. So here's the message. Faith
is, verse 1, the substance of things hoped for, the ground,
the confidence. You hope for eternal life, you
better hope in Jesus Christ and him alone. You hope for forgiveness
of sins, it better be because of what Jesus Christ did, not
what you did. Nothing in my hand, no price
I bring, simply to the Christ of the cross I cling. Better
be based on that substance. Whatever you hope for, better
be based on Christ, his person, his work. What do you hope for?
Are you looking for heaven? Why? Any fool would want heaven
over hell, wouldn't he? You better be hoping to know
Christ, to win Christ, to be found in him, to see him. It's
evidence. If you do believe, do you believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, like Peter
confessed there in John 6? We believe, Lord, and are sure. That's the evidence. That's the
evidence that he is. Because otherwise, you wouldn't
believe. Would you, John? Ten, fifteen,
however many years ago, would you have believed all this? You
weren't even interested at all worrying about it. Huh? Theresa,
you weren't interested at all. Faith is the evidence that Jesus
Christ is. You see what I'm saying? See
what I'm trying to get across? The fact that he is, the fact
that you believe, the fact that you are interested in these things,
the fact that the gospel really does move you in your heart and
you love to hear about Christ, that's evidence that things are
not the same. He's real. Someday our faith
is going to give way. See, now abideth faith, hope,
and love. And the greatest of these is
what? Faith and love. They walk hand
in hand, don't they? You don't believe in one you
don't love, really. You won't love someone you don't really
believe. You may say it. But now abideth faith, hope,
and love, and the greatest of these is love. And all these
shall pass away. Love abides forever. Faith is
going to give way someday to sight. Hope is going to give
way someday to reality, to actual substance. I'm going to lay my
hands, well, he's going to lay his hands on me. He's going to put his Jesus Christ,
the Lord Jesus Christ, going to put his literal arm around
me. Literally. Now, that's what I
want. Now, I'll take a piece of pie
out there, if you offer it. Pie in the sky. With Mama, if
she's there, I'll eat with her. And I'll tell you what I'm looking
for. I want to see that face. I want
to see that face. I want to see those scars. I
want to see those scars. When he walks up and says, look
here, that will be glory for me. That
puts his arm around me. I've got some things to tell
you, and we're going to go over your life, and I'm going to tell
you what all I've done for you. I'm going to be like a little
child with his father. Have you ever seen a little boy
looking up at his daddy? His daddy tells him a story,
son, and I was in the war and fought a good battle. Wow, Dad,
that's the way I'm going to be with my Lord Jesus Christ, he
said. The fact that I believe that
now and come to tears over thinking about that, that's evidence that
he's real. He's real. I don't get all tore
up. for any length of time over fantasy. Do you? Over fiction? Oh, I read books and all that,
and I come to tears over a silly movie. You know, I'm easily teared
up over a movie. I'm ashamed of it, too. I hate
to be seen crying in a movie. But I do, anyway. But as soon
as it's over, I have a good movie. You know, just actors. Just actors. Every time I hear this story,
nearly every time, most of the time, put it that way, get the
same reaction. I've heard it, I've seen it.
You let me see the same movie a hundred times, John, I quit
crying. Surely, I've heard this gospel now for one hundred times,
one hundred times. And John, it's not old yet. It
hasn't grown old to me. It's still just as sweet and
just as regal. I still tear up thinking about it. things not
seen. If you don't have that faith,
there's only one place you can get it. I'm not telling you to
come down front and make your personal decision. That's not
where faith comes from. Face the gift. Face the gift. God alone can give it. Ask him,
Lord, I believe, I think I believe, help my unbelief. Faith cometh
by hearing. You want this faith? You want
to know a cry, you want to believe and be persuaded in your heart
that he is real and know him and commune with him, do you?
Faith comes by hearing. We're going to meet again tonight.
I'm going to expound from the Word of God tonight. If you didn't
hear him this morning, you don't have that faith, maybe he'll
speak to you tonight. See, he's a rewarder of them that seek
him diligently. Know what he said? Diligently. You come back tonight, faith
comes by hearing, hearing by the Word of God. All right, Brother
Joe, you got a song there? 228. I think it's My Faith Has
Found a Resting Place. 228, Brother Joe comes and leads. Stand with me and let's sing
the first and the third stanza. First and the third. I need no other argument, I need
no other argument, My heart is. in the Word of God. Salvation
by my Savior's name. Salvation through His blood. I need no
other argument. Thank you, and you're dismissed.

Now Faith Is

What does the Bible say about faith?

How do we know faith is a gift from God?

Why is believing in God's Son important for Christians?

What is the importance of faith in salvation?

How does faith come according to the Bible?

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Now Faith Is

What does the Bible say about faith?

How do we know faith is a gift from God?

Why is believing in God's Son important for Christians?

What is the importance of faith in salvation?

How does faith come according to the Bible?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

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