Pastor Leon Seaton

How Much Faith Does It Take?

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead. By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. And 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.” Hebrews 11:1-6

How much faith would you need to –

• Sit on a chair?

• Become a Christian?

• Go to the dentist?

• Cross a bridge?

• Preach a sermon?

• Get married?

• Ride a roller-coaster?

• Jump into a life raft?

• Parachute out of an airplane?

“God our Father made all things depend on faith; whoever has faith will have everything; whoever does not have faith will have nothing.” Martin Luther

Last week I read Hebrews more slowly than usual… and the more I read the more excited I got! It seemed as if the author was talking directly to me. Guess what! He was. While we do not know which human wrote the letter, we do know that the Holy Spirit is the Divine Author. If you see the Bible as just another book, it will seldom inspire you. However, if we view it as a letter from God and allow the Holy Spirit to reveal its truths to us, we can fully understand God’s message.

I. A Message from God must be combined with faith.

“For we have had the gospel preached to us, just as they (the Old Testament people) did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not combine (the message) with faith.” Hebrews 4: 2

God speaks to us in a variety of ways:

- The Scriptures

- Our spirit (innermost being)

- Other people

- Nature

- Circumstances

Because we see what we are looking for and hear what we are listening for, we sometimes miss God’s message. God is instantly available, but we have to listen carefully sometimes. I’ve tried to get God to tell me what I wanted to hear on a few occasions. If you have tried that you know that the results are not always pleasing.

There has to be a bottom line in every relationship. For conservative Christians that bottom line is God’s Holy Word. Last fall one of the national magazines did a cover article putting down those of us who accept the Bible as the “bottom line.” Did he prove anything? Only that he values his opinion above everyone else’s!

Personally I have tested God’s word every way I know how. It always works!

Remember, God’s message is just information unless it is combined with faith and obedience.

True faith acts on God’s Word. William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army said, “Faith and works should travel side by side, step answering to step, like the legs of men walking. First faith, and then works; and then faith again, and then works again – until they can scarcely distinguish which is the one and which is the other.” William Booth in “The Founder’s Messages to Soldiers” in Christianity Today, October 5, 1992, p. 48

II. Lack of Faith will get us in trouble.

Even Moses, the great man of God, failed because of lack of faith. He led the Children of Israel from Egypt to the border of the Promised Land. However, he could not enter because his patience (faith in action) failed when he became angry at the frequent acts of stubborn rebellion in his followers.

The pastorate I held before coming to Loyal taught me patience. I still do not know if it was my Waterloo, my Gethsemane, or my Seminary, but I learned a lot there. When I became your pastor I told you that I was going to preach the Word of God. I was not going to ask you to change. If you wanted to change that was between you and God.

(I have been trying to catch up with you ever since then! I often feel like the man who anxiously said to a man standing on a street corner, “Which way did they go? How many were there? I must catch up with them, for I am their leader!”)

III. God’s Word is our major source of Wisdom

We find it and apply it.

“Study to show thyself approved unto God…” (2 Timothy 2:15 KJV)

The NIV expands on that verse… “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”

Hebrews 4:12, 13 – “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”

If you do not understand the scriptures – or a particular passage – ask the Holy Spirit to reveal its meaning to you. He promises to do that for us. God does not accept the excuse, “Well, I just do not understand the Bible.”

Abraham Lincoln said “You can fool some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time. But you can’t fool all of the people all of the time.”

That’s true, but you can never fool God.

However, we do fool ourselves far too often!

Allow His word to get you on track and keep you there.

Someone told a well known preacher, “I think the Bible says…” His response was, “Don’t ‘think’ the Bible, read it!” Bingo! If you get stuck on something ask the Holy Spirit to reveal it to you. He will! (Maybe not instantly, but the answer will come.)

Hebrews 4:14, “Let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.” This is the heart of the matter. HOLD FIRMLY to our FAITH which we PROFESS. Seaton's translation: “Stick to your guns!”

IV. Pray Boldly

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

God respects a meek and humble spirit. But if you want answers, pray with passion and according to God’s will. None of us doubt that God wants to save us, so it is easy to have faith in that area of our lives. The scriptures also promise that God will meet every need we have. By knowing God’s word about your need you can pray boldly and with confidence.

John wrote, “If we ask anything according to His will He hears us. And if we know that He hears us--whatever we ask--we know that we have what we asked of Him.” 1 John 5:14, 15

How are we going to know His will? Certainly not by waiting to see if He answers the prayer. We need to know His will going in!

Praying with passion helps. Listen to how Jesus prayed when He faced Gethsemane. “During the days of Jesus' life on earth, He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverent submission.” Hebrews 5:7

Jesus put emotion in His prayer when He faced a crisis:

• Loud Cries

• Tears

• Reverent Submission

It is noteworthy that the writer of Hebrews was often frustrated by how slowly some people learn. Hebrews 5:11-14, “We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!

Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.”

V. How Much Faith Does It Take?

The Children of Israel had enough faith to start on their journey. They left 400 years of slavery behind them. They saw all the miracles that God performed when Moses walked in obedience. They saw the plagues against the Egyptians.

As someone has said, “The longest journey starts with the first step.” St Paul wrote (2 Timothy 4:7) “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”

How much faith does it take?  Enough to finish the race!

February 2, 2009