Unbelief and faith 7-6-9

“However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” (Lk 18:2) When I was a young Christian I was sure that Jesus would find me and all the rest of my brothers and sisters full of faith. I even wondered why He said this sentence. But that was almost 38 years ago . . . a lot can happen in that time. Life’s circumstances can erode our faith, and some of the battles that seemed like nothing actually ended in defeat for us. After a while, unbelief began looking like a protective coat of armor to keep us from the wounding of hopes deferred, and disappointments.

“What does the walk of faith look like?” I’d find myself wondering. Powerful. In 2 Peter it is written that “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness.” (2 Pet 1:3). Clearly, God gave us everything so that we could be godly people. Faith then looks like this; God has given us everything.

A walk of faith is the life of a believer who knows that God gave him everything for a purpose. God gave the children of Israel manna and protected them from their enemies for a reason. He gave them a promised inheritance; the Promised Land. It seems that God believed the people could obtain what He promised them, and so He accompanied them on their journey and met their needs as they traveled. God believed in His people. But His people didn’t believe, and because of their unbelief, they didn’t enter in (Heb 3:19). Those people who held the promise became an example to us of unbelief.

Faith enters into the promises of God and believes God has provided for us, to the end that we would obtain that which is promised. We believe, not in what we see in ourselves, but in what God sees in us. That’s why faith pleases God, and unbelief displeases God. When the 12 Israelites spied out the Promised Land 10 of the spies said “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are . . . The land we explored devours those living in it. . . . We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” (Num13:31-33). These spies were looking at themselves to see if obtaining the Promised Land was a possibility. But Joshua and Caleb said “And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protections gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.” (Num 14:9). Joshua and Caleb were looking at God as the source of obtaining the Promised Land.

The life of faith, then, is entering into what God has promised. It is hoping in what is yet unseen, or not yet obtained, and standing on what God has said alone, as if it has already come to pass.

There is an example of the walk of faith in the Gospel. It is the story of Jesus healing 10 men from leprosy (Luke 17:11-19). Jesus asks these 10 men to “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” On the way to the priests they discovered they were healed. It took obedience to begin the walk . . . obedience to Jesus’ word. After their obedience, the 10 men obtained the promise of healing. Their actions were spurred on by God’s Son’s word, and they believed it enough to act on it. This is faith.

We need faith to enter into God’s promises for our lives and for the Church. Once we enter in to His promises, how do we occupy them? This wording may sound funny, but the Isrealites that entered into the Promised Land 40 years later occupied the land. They found that God would fight on their side, if they were willing to obey His word to fight. Many of the 12 tribes fought and won their battles, and obtained their inheritance in the Promised Land. But the tribe of Dan didn’t fight. This tribe had gone along for the ride, hoping for a nice life in the Promised Land without having to eliminate their enemies. Dan did not have the obedience to God’s word that is necessary to maintain faith, and eventually this tribe left the inheritance promised to them.

Faith wins the victories necessary to maintain the promises God has spoken. Let us not harden our hearts and prefer the shelter of unbelief to the life of obedience to God’s word. There is provision for us to live and conquer, so as to obtain our promises. Let us not, therefore, go along for the ride with our brothers and sisters, not doing our part to drive the enemies from that which God has promised us. And let us also not look at our own capabilities to judge whether or not we can obtain our promises. For it is God alone who is able to bring His word to pass for those who obey and have faith. Amen.