What is Faith?

Walk by Faith

I was at Safe Harbor!

Not a topic for today — we will do another sermon on it but what is the spirit? In short, the spirit is what convicts you, allows you to feel and experience grace, the spirit is our hardline to Jesus Christ and Our Father God for those who think they dont hear from God or God doesnt talk to them, can you do wrong without feeling bad? do you have a pulling in a certain direction and you can feel it but dont know why? God is Speaking to you! God is calling you! God is trying to get you on the line! its unexplanable and I often find myself saying man thats crazy because I cant explain it! I cant explain because God operates beyond comprehension and outside of intellect often so you know its him!

We were talking about being unworthy and unqualified!

one of my guys over there (sammy) looked at me and said

“God didn’t call the qualified, God qualified the called!” and don’t that just sum it up! Time and time again, the disciples didn’t fill out applications.

Jesus didn’t sit there looking through them trying to find who went to church and paid their tithes consistently! He found 4 fishermen, a tax collectors and a Judas!

I cant drive home enough how worthy you can become

paul wrote timothy while in prison waiting to be executed and

It is written that:

2 Timothy 3:12–17 “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

The man of God may be complete - The anxiety, depression, anger, guilt and shame will no longer have a home to dwell because where there is Light there can be no darkness.

And you will be equipped for every good work! You will be prepared to handle any and all things that come your way prepared by the word of God himself.

Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

Hebrews 11:6

6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

but what is Faith?

Faith is defined as a strong belief or trust in something, such as a person, idea, or concept, typically without proof or evidence.

So, Faith is believing without seeing!

Let me ask you this,

-What is a Rhetorical question?

is a figure of speech in the form of a question that is asked to make a point or to create an effect, rather than to elicit an actual answer or to provoke thought

-The last time you got on a bus or in an uber or in a cab - did you ask the driver for his license and registration?

-The last time you went to a restaurant and recieved your food did you check the cook’s resume or did you even know the name of the cook? - I mean are sure you weren’t poisoned - unless it was Mexican food you probably weren’t! I am just playing that was a joke I love Mexican food.

-The last time you got on an airplane, did you ask the pilot to see his credentials or what school he went to to become a pilot? So just to make sure we are on the same page, Someone who will literally be flying you in a plane 35000 feet in the air- Someone who if they mess up everyone will literally die -

Lets challenge this in another way - Why do you drive when the light turns green? are you sure that others will stop?

Stop signs are the same thing!

What about seat belts? you all wear those don’t you? Why? outside of the reason they are the law of course but because if you get in to an accident you believe it will save you right?

You stop a red lights and have a strong belief others will

you drive on green because you have a strong belief that others will stop

same thing goes for the bus and cab driver

same for the pilot

knowing you are good in all of these situations is times you reveal the faith in your own life

How many of you checked to make sure the chair was there when you sat down?

anybody go to an atm and count your money after it dispenses lol we dont have faith in atms lol but I actually never met someone who didn’t get their money out of the ATM.

When we first started driving we had a lot less faith in these things but after doing it over and over again we learned to trust these things, we developed our faith in these things over time.

Why do we not exercise our faith in God to grow it in strength? Why do we ask God for his credentials and for him to prove to us he will keep us safe and want him to earn our faith to earn our strong belief but the Pilot, the driver, the chef all of these people are safe but God doesn’t get that same type of treatment.

How many bad days have you made it through?

How many day’s have you faced the fire and made it out?

So, let me ask you How is God doing?

Last, Rhetorical question!

How do you know your parents are your parents?

Because a piece of paper tells you right?

and I am pretty sure that there is a block for a witness to sign

So, just so were clear - its not common to get a DNA test at birth and so you relied on the piece of paper and a witness to install in you the faith that your parents are who you think they are?

but you have objections and question the Bible, which just so happens to be a lot of pieces of papers with quite a few people claiming to be witnesses - at least 500 come to mind!

God the creator of all creation with thousands of years of evidence - The most debated topic about the most famous well known person on the face of the planet, the reason for wars, the reason for peace and here we are still saying that its not enough!

Romans 10:17 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

Faith comes from Gods word, Faith comes from Jesus Christ — The way the truth and the life right

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

Ephesians 2:8–9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

so we become christians through faith!

We have power in faith—Not only does it strengthen our relationship with the father through the sun it gives us power by the Holy spirit — an unshakable confidence — it takes us from wanting to be invincible and makes us unstoppable regardless of the hardship, trial, or tribulation.

1 John 5:4–5 “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”

1 John 5:9–12 “If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”

1. Faith is the assurance of things desired; Heb. 11:1.

2. Faith is taking God at His Word; John 5:24.

3. Faith is believing and trusting in God; Acts 27:25; Ps. 9:10.

You have Homework Church — Lets spiritually get fit — lets build our confidence in faith, lets Increase your faith.

Faith causes us to look into the future. (1) Enoch saw the Lord’s coming—Jude 14. (2) Abraham saw Christ’s day—John 8:56. (3) Moses saw Christ, who was invisible—Hebrews 11:27. (4) Paul said at the end of his life that there was a crown awaiting him—2 Timothy 4:8, 10–12. Put your faith into action!

Read —Rom. 10:17. Read and re-read Hebrews 11 – try and do it until next sunday and lets see how many Testimonies God wil give us.

Let Bow our heads:

Our father who art in heaven, hollowed be thy name, thy kingdom come thy will be done!

God we come to you today to thank you for ordering our steps, for allowing us to be in the right place at the right time — for allowing us to say the right thing to the right person to make the most divine impact on the lives of the hearers of your word! For it is written that Faith come from hearing, faith comes from believing without seeing, faith has been what guided all of the greats called to do your work, faith guided the unworthy and you made them worthy faith guided unqualified and you qualified them Lord. We pray that everyone of your churches that makes up this church everyone with their heads bowed lord that you allow the spirit to allow us to have faith in you in an area of our life that we are currenlty struggling in that you allow us to leave these struggles at your feet lord and have faith this one time knowing that you the creator of creation will reveal to us the power of faith in you as you have done for all of your followers before us God and we thank you in advance to the rest, mercy and grace we will experience this week through faith building your kingdom lord and solidifying our testimonies. As always in your name God the father, Jesus christ the son and the holy spiri—- the whole church says amen.