FAITH

Morning Southside family on this Waitangi Day celebrations. Its good to be back home. Thank you for all your prayers for us.

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see” Hebrew 11:1

This I one of the only places in Gods word where a definition of faith is actually given but it seems hard to understand so let’s have a closer look.

The word faith means to persuade to trust, or to believe. It refers to a guarantee or warranty of something that is sure. Faith is described as a location that you can be in or out of. So, faith is a place and you can be in and out of faith.

To stay in faith means you have a made a decision to be unmoving and you will not move or budge from the calling or promise God made. If you want to bring pleasure to God you have to stay in in that place. Faith also depicts something that is moving forward like a force that is propelled forward. It never retreats back into unbelief or despair. Faith is like a bullet from a gun.

Being sure of or the substance of in some translations. It describes the attitude and actions of one who is determined to stand by something promised and refuse to budge from it. It’s a fixed decision. Its lot like a bulldog with a bone in its mouth. No way will you get it out of its mouth. It just won’t let go. In the same way when you are in faith. You relentlessly stand by what God has said in His word. You are not going to let go and you continue to tenaciously hold to his promises until they become a reality in your life.

Hope does not mean hope so. Its not wishful thinking. It’s a picture of confident expectation of something. It does not mean I hope this will happen. It means I confidently expect this to happen. Although it hasn’t happened yet there is an active expectation that it will take place.

We must believe what God has said and promised.

You must stand by it, stick with it and never budge from it.

You must know payday is coming when God will reward you for staying in faith. Let’s stay in faith for 2024 with expectency.