I watched my daughter Alyssa jump out of a plane on her 18th birthday. Talk about an uncomfortable feeling for a dad! I remember thinking, “This is the same girl who took like two hours to jump into my arms from the side of a pool into the shallow end.”
Standing in that pool, I remember wanting to reach into my daughter’s heart and strengthen her faith in my ability to catch her and keep her safe. I wanted her to trust me and my words. I’m her daddy—of course I would catch her!
This experience at the edge of the pool stood in stark contrast to her launching out of the door of a plane on her 18th birthday. There she was with total faith in this random skydiver dude!
Lord, Strengthen Our Faith
You may feel like that little girl at the edge of the pool, spiritually speaking, with weak faith that needs to be coaxed and encouraged. Don’t we want to be the kind of people that trust God so much that we are willing, not just to jump into the shallow end of the pool, but to jump out of airplanes for God, metaphorically speaking?
No matter what your faith is like, I pray that through this article, God would reach into your heart and strengthen your faith today. First, I’ll give you a definition of faith. Second, I will make three observations about faith from Hebrews 11:1-6. Before you keep reading, ask the Lord to strengthen your faith today.
What Is Faith According to Hebrews 11:1?
The essence of Christian faith is reliance on the person, work, and promises of Jesus Christ. Reliance means to depend on or to count on him. Jesus is a living person with certain character qualities. He has also done things on our behalf. He is doing things right now. He has promised to do more. Faith is relying on him in all those regards.
I want you to see this definition of faith from the Bible. Hebrews 11:1 puts it this way:
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1 ESV)
Let’s look at each phrase of this verse so that you can see the connection between what the Bible says and my definition.
What Are the “Things Hoped For”?
That phrase “assurance of things hoped for” does not encourage wishful thinking in general, as though faith is an inner assurance that you are going to get whatever you hope for in life. No, that’s not Christian faith. Rather, “assurance of things hoped for” specifically refers to the Christian hope of the future, defined by the Bible.
Jesus said he’s coming back to resurrect his people and transform the world, to put everything right, to undo all the effects of original sin. This is what the phrase “things hoped for” means. It refers to the second coming of Jesus, and all that will come with it.
Christian faith, then, is believing that promise from Jesus—even more, relying on that promise. Christian faith involves making decisions in life and living here on Earth with Jesus’ promises in view because you are counting on them happening in the future. You are relying on them.
For example, most of us get paychecks. And we make decisions during the week or month because we are counting on that paycheck coming. If the paycheck doesn’t show up, we are in trouble because we are relying on it.
Likewise, if you have Christian faith, others should be able to look at your life and see your plans for the second coming, that you are relying on it. Why do you do A, B, and C? Well, it is because Christ is going to return. Why don’t you do X, Y, or Z? Because you are counting on the “things hoped for”—the resurrection.
“Conviction of Things Not Seen”
Similarly, that phrase “conviction of things not seen” is also a reference to God and what he has specifically done in Jesus, not just our general confidence in something we can’t see.
For example, Christ laying down his perfect life to pay the penalty for my sin is a “thing not seen.” I didn’t see that happen. You didn’t see that happen. It’s part of “things not seen” of Hebrews 11:1.
Even though we Christians didn’t see it, and don’t see it, we have conviction about it. Not only do I believe that Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross happened, but I am also relying on his work as the only way that I can be right with God. For Jesus provides the only way to deal with my personal sin. I am relying on Jesus for forgiveness and reconciliation with God. That’s Christian faith—it is our “conviction of things not seen.”
Likewise, another example of “things not seen,” is Jesus rising from the dead. I didn’t see that. He then ascended into heaven. I can’t see him now. But I have a conviction that it is true, based on God’s own Word (1 Corinthians 15:20; Mark 16:19).
Every time you or I pray, we are relying on him as the intercessor King who sits on the throne of the universe (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25-26). He’s our only chance to battle our indwelling sin. We cry out to him for power to obey and for mercy when we fail (Hebrews 4:16). We rely on Jesus.
Christian faith is the “assurance of things hoped for” and the “conviction of things not seen.” It means relying on the person, work, and promises of Jesus Christ. That’s my simple definition derived from Hebrews 11:1.
What We Learn About Faith From Hebrews 11:1-6
Now here are three observations that take us a bit deeper into thinking rightly about faith.
1. Faith Precedes Understanding
First you rely on Christ, then you understand. To be clear, I don’t mean that knowledge doesn’t occur before faith or reason doesn’t occur before faith. They do! Knowledge and reason inform faith.
But true understanding—the wisdom of God—that happens after faith, not before. Think of it in this way. First, knowledge and reason. Second, faith. Third, understanding.
Look at Hebrews 11:3:
By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. (Hebrews 11:3 ESV)
“By faith we understand.” As a result of relying on the person, work, and promises of Christ, we comprehend. By trusting in Jesus, we become wise.
Before I put my faith in Jesus Christ for the first time, I researched Christianity, particularly the resurrection. I analyzed all the data. I considered within my brain the various options that explained the empty tomb and I came to the rational conclusion that the best explanation for it, in fact, the best explanation for the world, was that the gospel is true. It was a scientific exercise for me. There was a lot of evidence. I examined it and I came to a verdict.
Hebrews 11:3 isn’t saying that we check our brains at the door in order to get into the kingdom of God, as though you have this sort of blind faith without reason in order to follow Christ. No. Rather, when you look at the evidence of what is seen, it points you to something you can’t see, and at that point you need faith.
So, knowledge and reason precede faith, but faith precedes understanding. That’s Hebrews 11:3. By faith, we understand.
Aurelius Augustine, 4th-century Bishop of the African city of Hippo put it simply, quote.
I believe in order to understand. (Augustine)
Listen, if you are trying to figure out your situation before you have faith, you have it backwards. If you are telling God, “Lord, I don’t get why you want me to do this. I don’t get how this is going to work. Tell me why. Teach me how. I need to understand it first. Then, I will trust you.” If that is your approach, you will never put your faith in Jesus regarding that situation.
Friend, trust in Christ. Rely on him. Take that step he wants you to take. Do it and you will be able to look at your life and gain understanding, understanding that will also help you in the future when faced with similar situations.
2. Faithfulness Is the Lifestyle that Pleases God
Being full of trust in Christ brings a smile to the Lord. Us relying on Jesus makes him happy.
For by it the people of old received their commendation… And without faith it is impossible to please him. (Hebrews 11:2; Hebrews 11:6 ESV)
This idea of being approved by God is repeated often in Hebrews 11. The chapter ends by stating that all the people mentioned were commended by the Lord through their faith (Hebrews 11:39-40).
That’s Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, and Samuel. All of them pleased God. They were faithful.
Now, we often think of faithfulness as always doing what you said you would do or being totally committed to someone. That is partially true. But I want you to think of how faithfulness is presented in Hebrews 11.
Faithful means full of faith. Being faithful in relationship with God means regularly relying on the person, work, and promises of Jesus Christ. Faithfulness means relying on God for power to obey, relying on God when you need to be forgiven because you didn’t obey, and relying on God when you don’t understand and need help coping.
Faithfulness is a decision today to trust Jesus’ character, followed by another decision tomorrow to take him at his word, followed by another decision the next day to believe he will do what he said he would do. Christian faithfulness is a life of faith, relying on God (Galatians 2:20).
Being faithful does not mean being perfect or sinless. How do we know that? Well, the people in Hebrews 11 were clearly flawed, yet commended by God himself. They were sinners. Read their stories. Yet, they pleased the Lord. They failed, even repeatedly, but they were full of faith.
So, be careful that you don’t view faithfulness as an unrealistic standard of obedience and think you aren’t ever pleasing God because you are a sinner. The sinners of Hebrews 11 pleased God!
Think about the situation I described at the beginning of this article with my little girl at the edge of the pool. Do you know how happy it made me when my daughter trusted me and leaped into my arms into the water? Of course you do! I’m sure you have experienced the joy of someone totally trusting you.
God is a Father who has great joy when you, his little son or daughter, leap into his arms. He tells you to trust him. And whenever you do, he is pleased with you—that includes trusting him that after you just sinned, you can come to him for forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9). When you believe that and do that, he is pleased with you.
3. Faith Involves Reward
Did you know there’s an incentive to relying on God? Counting on him results in personal benefit to you. Now, some Christians hesitate to believe that’s true, as though it somehow cheapens the relationship with God to seek him for reward. Shouldn’t we trust him irrespective of profit to us? Isn’t that the more noble way?
Well, let’s look to the Bible. It says that faith involves seeking God for reward.
For whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. (Hebrews 11:6 ESV)
We want to draw near to God. We want to get close to the Lord. To do that, Hebrews says we must believe he exists. Faith requires belief that God is real. But notice it also says we must believe that he rewards those who seek him. It’s a requirement of faith to believe that God rewards those who seek him.
So, here’s the implication of Hebrews 11:6. It pleases God when we draw near to him. But we won’t have faith to draw near to God if we don’t believe we will somehow benefit from seeking God. Wanting reward from God is inherently necessary to seeking him and pleasing him.
We do well to remember that the reward we get by drawing near to God in faith is not the reward we prescribe, but the one he determines, right? He determines the nature of the reward.
Still, thinking that we are getting rewarded in the way that he will determine is an essential part of faith. So, even though it is good to qualify reward in that way, don’t hesitate to believe that God rewards those who seek him! I must believe that seeking God provides reward according to Hebrews 11:6 for me to truly have faith.
One Way We Misunderstand Faith
I think we hesitate to believe this connection between faith and reward because Western civilization has been greatly influenced by the altruistic thinking of Immanuel Kant. You may not be aware of this, but the way many Christians think has been significantly impacted by Kant.
Here’s a quote that sums up his philosophy on this topic and has unfortunately undergirded Judeo-Christian culture for a couple centuries.
An action, to have moral worth, must be done from duty. (Immanuel Kant)
See what he said? My deeds, in order to be moral, in order to be righteous, in order to please God, must be done from obligation to God. Conversely, if I do something and I am not motivated by my responsibility to God or sense of duty to him, then it doesn’t have any value. According to Kant, if I have even the slightest bit of motivation that I am going to be rewarded by God, that is not pleasing to God. The Lord doesn’t like that. That’s Kant. This idea sounds spiritual and noble, but it is insidious. It breeds self-righteousness, not faith.
What the Bible Teaches About the Reward of Faith
The Bible teaches that seeking reward from God is an essential element of faith. This isn’t just taught in Hebrews 11. This is what Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount. For example, on the topic of giving to the needy, Jesus said:
But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:3-4 ESV)
Give to the needy in secret, Jesus says. Why? Because God will reward you. If you give to the needy in secret out of sheer duty, “I give to the needy because God told me to do it and I’m the kind of guy who obeys God,” that isn’t drawing near to God. It is drawing near to yourself. It is self-righteousness, not faith. Faith involves reward.
On the topic of praying, Jesus said:
But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:6 ESV)
Pray to your Father when you are alone, Jesus says. Why? God will reward you. If you do it because you fancy yourself to be the type of person that prays the way God tells you to pray, that’s pride, not faith. Faith involves reward.
On the topic of fasting, Jesus said:
But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:17-18 ESV)
These are Jesus’ words, friends. Jesus uses the incentive of reward to rely on him to give to the needy, pray, and fast. Faith involves reward. Reward from our Father who loves us motivates our obedience. That’s what the Bible teaches.
Let’s Start Relying on God
Faith is relying on the person, work, and promises of Jesus Christ. That’s a simple definition. And faith precedes understanding, pleases God, and involves reward.
You can’t have perfect faith. You can’t be fully dependent on God, but you can more frequently rely on the One who perfectly relied on God—Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world.
What might God do through us if we more fully relied on his Son, Jesus? What would God do through you this week, if you jumped in the pool, or even out of that plane, spiritually speaking? Let’s take those plunges.
Let’s add our names to the list of sinners in Hebrews 11. Let’s rely on Christ, for whatever he is calling us to do today. Let’s draw near to him and please him by faith.
