“Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists, and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” (NIV) This is a Bible verse that is found in Hebrews 11:6. Here the writer of Hebrews tells us that faith is THE KEY to pleasing God. In this article I would like to explore with you the meaning of faith, the object of our faith, how you receive this God pleasing faith, and what is living faith.

First, the meaning of faith as found in the Webster Dictionary is belief without proof, or a belief in God. The Bible defines faith in Hebrews 11:1 as: “Faith is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see.” (NLT)  In essence faith seems to be confidence in or assurance of something or someone that we cannot see, hear, taste, smell, or touch. We were not with God when He created all things, but we have faith that He created because He tells us so in the Bible.

The object of our faith, who or what we believe, is as important as having faith itself. Many times we hear of sports heroes who believed in themselves to accomplish great feats. We also hear of great acts of courage where people put their faith in others or even God. But when it comes to faith concerning the Bible we see that faith is a belief in the existence of God and that He is the provider of our salvation. The Bible speaks over and over again of our need to believe (have faith) in Jesus as Savior. For God so loved the world (people), that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes (has faith) in Him, will not perish, but have eternal life. According to the Bible, Jesus, should be the object of our faith.

How do we get this faith that the Bible talks about? Unlike doubting Thomas (one of Jesus’ disciples), who was able to see, hear and touch the risen Lord Jesus, we must believe based upon what we understand from the Bible.  The Apostle Paul tells us in his book to the Romans that faith comes from hearing and hearing comes from the word of God. So it is the hearing, reading, and studying of the Bible that gives us our faith. For as we hear the Word of God, we begin to understand who God is. We understand that He loves us and has blessed us with eternal life through His Son Jesus. Just as the Bible says for by grace we are saved through faith. Jesus also describes the faith we need when he said, ”Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I assure you, anyone who doesn’t have their kind of faith will never get into the Kingdom of God.” A little child’s faith is wholehearted without any reservation or holdback. Children freely accept what you tell them to be true. God wants us to accept the things He tells us as true, without reservation.

Lastly, I want to look at living faith. A living faith, in God, is shown when we obey God’s commandments. Obeying God by helping our neighbors, giving to the needy, praying for the sick, and talking to others about God increases our faith as we see God work in our lives and the lives of others. The Apostle James said faith without works is dead. Good works and deeds is not what get us to heaven, but they should certainly follow a life of faith. Good works is the evidence of a living faith. 

In summary, faith is not a one-time act. Rather, it is an attitude of action that should characterize the entire life of those who say they have faith in God. God wants our faith to be in Him with our salvation coming from Jesus. Our faith increases and is living as we study the Bible, obey God’s commands, pray, and reach out to others. Our faith needs to be child like, accepting without reservation. May we take THE KEY of faith and please our God!