Air Date: 11 10 21
Faith in God’s Trustworthy, Unfailing Nature Wed Nov 17. 2021
The writer of Hebrews opens chapter 11 with a brief description of faith: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1, NKJV). This statement should not be regarded as a complete definition of faith. Instead, the author focuses on two critical aspects of a much broader theological concept to introduce a famous gallery of Old Testament heroes of faith. The first vital facet of faith is that it is “the substance of things hoped for.”
The word for “substance” (KJV, NKJV) in the clause faith is the substance of things hoped for, is alternatively translated as “assurance” (ESV), “confidence” (NIV), and “the reality” (NLT). In the original Greek, the term conveys the idea of “a firm foundation,” “the real being,” “the actual existence,” “the substantial nature,” and “a resolute trust.” One sense of the word refers to a title deed or a legal document guaranteeing the right to possess a property.
Faith as the substance of things hoped for” could be translated “faith is the title-deed of things hoped for” Faith, as described in Hebrews 11:1, “apprehends reality: it is that to which the unseen objects of hope become real and substantial. Assurance gives the true idea. It is the firm grasp of faith on unseen fact.”
In order for us to take hold by faith, we have to know God’s will. We have to know His principles and precepts from Scripture as the foundation for our faith. God’s will holds the supremacy in all the factors concerned so God works in us to know His will by the Word and Spirit. As we ask, seek and knock, we discover God’s will in our own personal circumstances. He works in the conditions and environment to set things up for us and within us to direct us to take hold of that which is His will.
Listen to Abiding in Christ Ministries with radio host Lesha Cantrell Monday through Friday at 6:45am (MT) on AM670, KLTT in Colorado; online at 670kltt.com; or via your mobile device on the free KLTT app. May God richly bless you as you abide in Christ
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