Faith and Belief

What is FAITH and what does it mean to BELIEVE?

FAITH (belief or trust) is not some difficult thing which no one really understands. People walk by faith every single day. When you sit down in a chair you have FAITH in that chair and you BELIEVE that it will hold you up and not break into pieces when you put your weight upon it! When you drive in your car you TRUST the brakes and you BELIEVE that when you need to stop suddenly, your brakes will work! If you fly from one city to another, you have FAITH in the airplane and you TRUST that it will carry you safely to your destination without crashing to the ground. Whenever you eat food, you TRUST that the food has been properly prepared and not poisoned. When you go down into your basement, you RELY UPON the pillars and walls that hold up the ceiling over your head, and you BELIEVE that the house will not come crashing down upon you. When you climb a tree and hang all your weight upon one branch (30 feet above the ground!), you TRUST that the branch is strong enough to hold you up. Every time you drive or ride your bike over a bridge, you DEPEND UPON that bridge to hold you up and not collapse into the water or the highway below. When we pet a big dog, we TRUST that it is a friendly dog and that it will not bite our hand off! When your friend tells you that he will meet you at the park at 3 o’clock the next day, you TAKE HIM AT HIS WORD and BELIEVE that he will do what he said he would do! Can you think of other examples of how we live by faith every day?

Sometimes the brakes in a car do fail and a person might have an accident. Sometimes airplanes do crash and lives are lost. Sometimes chairs do break when people sit in them. Sometimes there is something wrong with the food we eat and it might make us sick! Sometimes the roofs on buildings do come crashing down. Sometimes branches do break when we climb trees. Sometimes friendly looking dogs do bite! Sometimes our friends do not keep their promises.

FAITH IS ONLY AS GOOD AS THE OBJECT (person or thing) IN WHICH IT IS PLACED!!! Is it possible to trust something or someone that will never fail us? Is there someone that we can put our faith in who will never disappoint us or let us down?¹ Yes, the Lord Jesus Christ!

John 14:6 ⁶Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.²

¹Middletown Bible Church, "What Is Faith?," http://www.middletownbiblechurch.org/salva/salva3.htm (accessed August 20, 2008).
² John 14:6, NIV.