Faith From The Past
Faith From The Past
Colossians 1:3-5,3 We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4 Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints, 5 For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel;
I. 2 weeks ago we learned about Hope
A. Hope is in the future, I hope to go to heaven, or new house, or new bike
B. Faith bring hope into the presents
1. Faith is the key to Hope
2. Faith makes Hope possible
II. Today I want to expound on Faith a little more
A. Were does Faith come from?
1. The word Faith is only used 2 times in the OT
2. Put in the OT the word Trust is used (150 times) which is the equivalent to Faith
3. When we hear and learn about God we start to trust (or have faith) in what we have learn
a) We believe what we learned about Christ dieing on the cross is for us and we trust He can do the same for us
B. How do we get Faith? Romans 10:17
III. Remember what I said about Hope
A. Hope is in the future
B. Something which is out of our grasp
IV. Faith comes from the Past
A. Faith rests on historical facts
1. Our testimonies which we give are historical facts
a) Mark 5:19, Howbeit Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.
b) Psalm 107:2, Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;
2. Everything we see and hear about the Bible and what we see in someone’s life is historical facts
B. Romans 10:17, So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
1. Faith is not a leap into darkness
2. It rests on what we have read and studied in the Bible (Historical Facts)
3. Faith comes from the Heart and from the mind
a) Romans 10:8-10,8 But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; 9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
b) The Heart, we feel that what we hope for is real. It is a feeling
c) The Mind, we know by what we have read and learned that this is real. From Books and the Bible
(1) We that are saved have faith that Christ die for us as if we saw Him die on that cross some 2000 years ago
Conclusion:
So we end this challenge with; hope is in the future and faith is from the past.
A shipmaster was once out for three nights in a storm; close by the harbor, he yet dared not attempt to go in, and the sea was too rough for the pilot to come aboard. Afraid to trust the less experienced sailors, he himself stood firmly at the helm. Human endurance almost gave way before the unwonted strain. Worn with toil, beating about; worn yet more with anxiety for his crew and cargo; he was well-nigh relinquishing the wheel, and letting all go a wreck, when he saw the little boat coming with the pilot. At once that hardy sailor sprang on the deck, and with scarcely a word took the hehn in his hand. The captain went immediately below, for food and for rest; and especially for comfort to the passengers, who were weary with apprehension. Plainly now his duty was in the cabin; the pilot would care for the ship. Where had his burden gone? The master’s heart was as light as a schoolboy’s; he felt no pressure. The pilot, too, seemed perfectly unconcerned; he had no distress. The great load of anxiety had gone forever; fallen in some way or other between them.
Remember, faith is what you have learn from the past and applied today
Each time you come here your faith grows
Sunday morning Biker Services 3/30/08