Sunday School Today: Faith (Week 2)

What is faith?

“…Faith is the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Your faith is your title deed to eternal life. Just as a title deed is evidence of real estate, your faith is evidence of your eternal estate in God. “So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen; for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18).

1. Faith is taking God at His Word without questions (Hebrews 11:6).
2. Faith is knowing that “all things work together for good of those who love God” (Romans 8:28a). Having faith does not imply that all things are good, or that all things work well. It does imply that both good and bad things work together for the greater good to those who love God.
3. Faith has two sides…one side has to do with intellect. It is an intellectual conviction that Jesus Christ is God. The other side has to do with the will. It is a volitional surrender of the will to Jesus Christ as Master. This is revealed in the disciple Thomas, when he declared upon his belief and confession, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28). The words “my Lord” were a volitional (deliberate) surrender; “my God” was intellectual conviction. Put together, you have saving faith (John 20:31). Saving faith is an intellectual conviction that Jesus is God, and it is a volitional surrender to Him as Lord (Master) of your life. By faith, the mind trusts in God, the heart responds to the love of God, the will submits to the commands of God, and the life obeys in the service of God.
4. Faith is paradoxical. It goes beyond reason. It believes without understanding “why.” It allows one to sing out loud even when imprisoned (Acts 16:25). It glories even in tribulations (Romans 5:3). It chooses suffering (Hebrews 11:25). It accepts all things as a part of God’s will (Philippians 1:12). One is not born with faith. It comes by the hearing of the Word of God (Romans 10:17). This is why we are commanded to preach the gospel to every person, in order that they may hear and believe (Romans 10:13-14).