Monday, January 2, 2012

What is Faith?


Recently, I have been “stumbling” around the internet, seeing a number of views and opinions about Christianity and religion in general.  There are so many out there who wish to discredit the name of Jesus Christ, to disprove the existence of God, and/or to eliminate religion from our society altogether.  They claim there is no proof that Jesus was anything other than a man who lived and died.  They claim that the Christ of Christianity is nothing more than a fabrication of man.  They claim that there is no scientific evidence in God, much less scientific evidence that God came as a man, lived a sinless life, died, and rose from the grave to conquer death.  Faith, they say, is irrational.  There is no proof of the resurrection.  There is no proof that God even exists – at least proof that they acknowledge.  Religion, they say, is the source of all evil in society – pointing to any number of heinous acts committed in the name of religion - from the crusades to 911.

The problem is that true Christianity is not a religion, it is a relationship with a savior – and to say that faith is irrational is to deny the very meaning of faith.  I suppose that we will never be able to “prove” the existence of God to the satisfaction of the likes of Carl Sagan, Stephen Hawking, and Richard Dawkins.  However, to say there is no rational reason to believe in God is – well – a bit self-serving on the part of those who would eliminate God from society.  There have been a number of proofs given for the existence of God and for the resurrection of Jesus Christ (which will not be repeated here), but to those who have hardened their hearts so as to choose not to believe, no proof would ever be sufficient.  To those who choose to be open to the possibility, however, the proof is overwhelming.

That proof, unfortunately, will not engender faith or lead one to accept the premises of Christianity.  Hebrews 11:1 says “… faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (ESV) – but what does that really mean?  Faith is not mere intellectual assent nor is it simple belief – although both assent and belief are necessary components of faith. The kicker is that it is assent and belief in “things hoped for” and not “things rational proven”.  

Assent and belief, though, are only a part of the meaning of faith.  True faith engenders action, and that action is the “conviction of things not seen.”   To “act in faith” is the ultimate sign of belief.  To claim faith but not have the willingness to act on that faith is to delude oneself into thinking that you believe when, in all practicality, you are as much an atheist as those who wish to drive God from society completely.  Conviction runs deep and breeds loyalty.  Conviction in something not seen – not proven or perhaps not even rational (at least by some standards) - is the heart of true faith.

To be a Christian is to LIVE by faith – not by reason or proof.  This is precisely what it says in 2 Corinthians 5:7.  Surely there is reason in faith and those who have faith have the proof of their faith living within them – namely, the Holy Spirit of God.  However, the live a Christian lives, he lives by faith.  That means the full weight of his trust is upon that which he cannot otherwise prove.  He acts based upon something that those around him cannot see nor understand, and he does so believing that he is right when all others say he is wrong.

Christianity is about faith: 
  • ·      Faith that Jesus Christ was the Son of God. 
  • ·      Faith that he was 100% God, but at the same time 100% man.
  • ·      Faith that he rose from the grave and therefore conquered death
  • ·      Faith that he has the power to forgive sins
  • ·      Faith that he can grant us both resurrection and eternal life


And that faith demands action – a life that is full of conviction that to believe these things is to live as if they are true.