What Is Faith?
Sermon
Big Lessons From Little-Known Letters
Second Lesson Sermons For Sundays After Pentecost (Middle Third) Cycle C
Have you ever had to take a big risk, not knowing what the outcome would be? Doctors Andrea Eisen and Barbara L. Weber believe they can confidently advise women with high risks for breast cancer where to look for answers that beat the odds against them. While commenting on a study related to reducing risks for breast cancer, the doctors were quoted as saying, "It is difficult to think of a more effective strategy of cancer prevention." The strategy they were referring to was actually very straightforward. They want to remove both breasts surgically before any signs of cancer emerge.
Women who undergo this radical surgery can cut their risk for developing breast cancer by ninety percent. That's good odds, but it also requires enormous trust. Risk factors for contracting breast cancer naturally vary depending on heredity and lifestyle. But to undergo radical surgery when all seems fine requires, well, faith. So how can a woman make that kind of decision? She must have something to bank on, or someone to inspire a confident decision.
In October, 1990, a weatherman predicted that a major earthquake would strike sometime in Arkansas. An earth scientist claimed that this kind of prediction is about as reliable as throwing darts at a calendar, then picking a disaster date. This scientist said that a quake would happen in that region, but anything more specific has about a one-in-60,000 chance of being accurate. Yet, people purchased earthquake insurance as fast as agents could sell it. Schools even designed "earthquake drills" in order to be ready quickly should the quake come sooner than expected. Other people devised regional escape routes, purchased emergency supplies, and took earthquake survival courses. Nine years later the ground is still rock solid. Not even a tremor. Will their faith be rewarded soon?
Breast cancer and earthquakes kill people, and that's not fair. Tragedies are unavoidable, which means that no matter who or what we trust, unfairness happens. But there is still the dilemma that we must trust something beyond disasters and even death.
Cassie Bernall was one of the victims shot during the Columbine High School massacre of April, 1999. She was confronted by one of the two shooters and asked if she believed in God as a gun was pointed at her head. She replied, "Yes," and was murdered at point-blank range. As if that were not horrible enough, another Christian classmate, Rachel Scott, who also confessed her faith, was executed. What enabled these two young martyrs to speak so bravely and face death with confidence?
It's confusing when people of faith die young the way Cassie and Rachel did. And it can be frustrating when others seem miraculously to escape disaster, seemingly by the hand of God. These realities sometimes challenge our confidence in God's goodness.
In June, 1998, boaters fourteen miles off Cape Canaveral, Florida, came upon a man screaming for help in the churning Atlantic Ocean. This man had been bobbing along for nineteen hours after getting lost after coming up from a dive. The Coast Guard searched all night using boats and aircraft, yielding nothing. While they were still searching for the man, around 1 p.m. the next day something miraculous happened. Some New Jersey residents in a sailboat heard screams, and then saw a purple-colored Keith Johnson about 100 yards away. They yanked him up into the boat in amazement. Johnson had been floating nineteen hours, alone, twenty miles north of where he started diving the day before.
The petty officer said, "It's definitely a miracle." Both Keith Johnson and those New Jersey boaters were of course overwhelmed. But, the episode raises a heavy question: Was God present in a miraculous way here, but not at Columbine High School? How are we to reconcile the two?
To the writer of Hebrews, there is a way for us to understand these events: by faith. So before we can understand, we need a definition. What is faith? In Hebrews 11:1 it "is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." That's an abstraction, so let's unpack it carefully.
Faith is a way to view life. The tiny Greek verb "is" in verse 1 conveys a dynamic, not static reality. The writer goes on to claim that faith has a two-fold nature. The first component of faith, "the assurance of things hoped for," relates to certainty. When driving under a bridge that holds up a moving freight train, we have assurance that the reinforcing bar is holding concrete together. We can't see the re-bar. We don't fully understand the engineering and design which enables the structure to support a train. We just drive under the bridge in confidence that someone knew what they were doing. In fact, the Greek word for "assurance" in verse 1 means "substance" or substructure. Just as that re-bar which is woven into a concrete bridge sustains the train, so faith is the certainty that something truly exists despite our not being able to empirically verify it 100 percent.
The second component of faith relates to how we test something as valid. It is a logical progression in "the assurance of things hoped for." We grow certain by testing all things. And we test all things by faith. Since the spiritual world exists beyond our five senses, we cannot rely on measurements which are seen. We must surrender our will despite not having verifiable reasons for doing so. It's the biblical principle of obedience. When we obey, God responds. When God responds, our faith is strengthened. When our faith is strong, we obey. This principle is just like water and fertilizer on the spring grass.
Would you believe that the Arctic used to be as balmy as Florida? Well, it was a few years ago, about ninety million to be exact. Scientists located the remains of a crocodile-like animal called a Champosaur there in 1997. The fossil remains told scientists that there may have been a healthy growing season there, in the "balmy" old Arctic. Yes, siree. A dinosaur expert believes the Champosaur was cold-blooded, so it could not tolerate the seasons. It was also too small to have realistically migrated down to warmer climates.
Hebrews 11:3 tells us that "by faith" is how we understand creation. Maybe there were Champosaurs on the "balmy" old Arctic because we believe that "what is seen was made from things that are not visible." When we glance at a pink mountain sunset, or witness a yellow ocean sunrise, we are convicted. That conviction assures our hearts that there is a Creator behind the creation. The self-authenticating nature of creation needs no argument or defense. It speaks and we respond -- by faith.
So what is faith? That question has been raised earlier in our discussion. Let's answer it, and provide a human example now that we have a biblical definition. Faith is total trust in God. That's it -- period. Either we trust or we don't. And that means we are always either growing deeper in trust, or growing more skeptical in doubt. In any given pain or predicament, either our faith is being nurtured, or it's being knocked around. Ultimately then we are becoming better, or becoming bitter human beings.
The example Hebrews 11 spotlights is Abraham. We notice two things about his faith in this chapter. First, we see how "by faith" he left his comfort zone (vv. 8-10). Second, we witness how against all odds he believed God able to make possible what seemed impossible (vv. 11-12).
In verse 8, notice that obedience is the key to unlocking faith. Abraham specifically trusted God as "he set out, not knowing where he was going." A classic thought by Thomas Merton summarizes well this aspect of Abraham's trust in God.
My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Notice that faith continued to be the driving motivator as Abraham lived like a vagabond "in a foreign land ... in tents" (v. 9). Not only did Abraham apply faith by demonstrating willingness to leave his comfort zone; he clung to God's promise against all odds.
The chances were zero that Abraham and Sarah could conceive a child. Yet, they stubbornly held onto faith, believing that the impossible was possible with God. Then when Isaac was born to them, Abraham made the ultimate step of faith when he took his son to the mountaintop in obedience to offer him as a sacrifice. God rewarded this faith by providing a ram at the last moment for sacrifice. It was Abraham's faith that led him to do the unthinkable, but still somehow believe that God was in control.
In the summer of 1998, Americans participated in the world's richest lottery. The odds of winning the 175 million dollar Powerball Jackpot were eighty million to one. Yet, people still believed and bought tickets.
Lisa was a typical example of those who believed against all odds that they could win. She made a four-hour trip to Nebraska because Powerball tickets were not sold in her native Colorado. She drove with a purse full of cash because everyone in her office had a measure of faith as well. Her attitude was pure faith in the impossible, "Someone has to win," she exclaimed. Someone did win: Frank Capaci of Streamwood, Illinois.
We are capable of great faith in the impossible if the object of our trust seems worth it. Lisa thought that even with the odds eighty million to one, she would make the trek to Nebraska -- just in case she was the lucky one.
Abraham also thought the object of his trust was worth it. His faith paid off, and "from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, 'as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore' " (v. 12).
Verses 13-16 give us a glimpse into how people like Abraham lived this kind of faith. "They were strangers and foreigners on the earth" (v. 13). They understood that all this stuff around us is temporary. They lived like resident aliens, knowing where their true home would be. This kind of faith enabled them to hold loosely to the attractions of earth, and live accordingly with their sights set on heaven.
What is faith? Faith is total trust in God. That trust transcends illness, earthquakes, and even death itself. It is the only reasonable way for those calling themselves believers to live.
Women who undergo this radical surgery can cut their risk for developing breast cancer by ninety percent. That's good odds, but it also requires enormous trust. Risk factors for contracting breast cancer naturally vary depending on heredity and lifestyle. But to undergo radical surgery when all seems fine requires, well, faith. So how can a woman make that kind of decision? She must have something to bank on, or someone to inspire a confident decision.
In October, 1990, a weatherman predicted that a major earthquake would strike sometime in Arkansas. An earth scientist claimed that this kind of prediction is about as reliable as throwing darts at a calendar, then picking a disaster date. This scientist said that a quake would happen in that region, but anything more specific has about a one-in-60,000 chance of being accurate. Yet, people purchased earthquake insurance as fast as agents could sell it. Schools even designed "earthquake drills" in order to be ready quickly should the quake come sooner than expected. Other people devised regional escape routes, purchased emergency supplies, and took earthquake survival courses. Nine years later the ground is still rock solid. Not even a tremor. Will their faith be rewarded soon?
Breast cancer and earthquakes kill people, and that's not fair. Tragedies are unavoidable, which means that no matter who or what we trust, unfairness happens. But there is still the dilemma that we must trust something beyond disasters and even death.
Cassie Bernall was one of the victims shot during the Columbine High School massacre of April, 1999. She was confronted by one of the two shooters and asked if she believed in God as a gun was pointed at her head. She replied, "Yes," and was murdered at point-blank range. As if that were not horrible enough, another Christian classmate, Rachel Scott, who also confessed her faith, was executed. What enabled these two young martyrs to speak so bravely and face death with confidence?
It's confusing when people of faith die young the way Cassie and Rachel did. And it can be frustrating when others seem miraculously to escape disaster, seemingly by the hand of God. These realities sometimes challenge our confidence in God's goodness.
In June, 1998, boaters fourteen miles off Cape Canaveral, Florida, came upon a man screaming for help in the churning Atlantic Ocean. This man had been bobbing along for nineteen hours after getting lost after coming up from a dive. The Coast Guard searched all night using boats and aircraft, yielding nothing. While they were still searching for the man, around 1 p.m. the next day something miraculous happened. Some New Jersey residents in a sailboat heard screams, and then saw a purple-colored Keith Johnson about 100 yards away. They yanked him up into the boat in amazement. Johnson had been floating nineteen hours, alone, twenty miles north of where he started diving the day before.
The petty officer said, "It's definitely a miracle." Both Keith Johnson and those New Jersey boaters were of course overwhelmed. But, the episode raises a heavy question: Was God present in a miraculous way here, but not at Columbine High School? How are we to reconcile the two?
To the writer of Hebrews, there is a way for us to understand these events: by faith. So before we can understand, we need a definition. What is faith? In Hebrews 11:1 it "is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." That's an abstraction, so let's unpack it carefully.
Faith is a way to view life. The tiny Greek verb "is" in verse 1 conveys a dynamic, not static reality. The writer goes on to claim that faith has a two-fold nature. The first component of faith, "the assurance of things hoped for," relates to certainty. When driving under a bridge that holds up a moving freight train, we have assurance that the reinforcing bar is holding concrete together. We can't see the re-bar. We don't fully understand the engineering and design which enables the structure to support a train. We just drive under the bridge in confidence that someone knew what they were doing. In fact, the Greek word for "assurance" in verse 1 means "substance" or substructure. Just as that re-bar which is woven into a concrete bridge sustains the train, so faith is the certainty that something truly exists despite our not being able to empirically verify it 100 percent.
The second component of faith relates to how we test something as valid. It is a logical progression in "the assurance of things hoped for." We grow certain by testing all things. And we test all things by faith. Since the spiritual world exists beyond our five senses, we cannot rely on measurements which are seen. We must surrender our will despite not having verifiable reasons for doing so. It's the biblical principle of obedience. When we obey, God responds. When God responds, our faith is strengthened. When our faith is strong, we obey. This principle is just like water and fertilizer on the spring grass.
Would you believe that the Arctic used to be as balmy as Florida? Well, it was a few years ago, about ninety million to be exact. Scientists located the remains of a crocodile-like animal called a Champosaur there in 1997. The fossil remains told scientists that there may have been a healthy growing season there, in the "balmy" old Arctic. Yes, siree. A dinosaur expert believes the Champosaur was cold-blooded, so it could not tolerate the seasons. It was also too small to have realistically migrated down to warmer climates.
Hebrews 11:3 tells us that "by faith" is how we understand creation. Maybe there were Champosaurs on the "balmy" old Arctic because we believe that "what is seen was made from things that are not visible." When we glance at a pink mountain sunset, or witness a yellow ocean sunrise, we are convicted. That conviction assures our hearts that there is a Creator behind the creation. The self-authenticating nature of creation needs no argument or defense. It speaks and we respond -- by faith.
So what is faith? That question has been raised earlier in our discussion. Let's answer it, and provide a human example now that we have a biblical definition. Faith is total trust in God. That's it -- period. Either we trust or we don't. And that means we are always either growing deeper in trust, or growing more skeptical in doubt. In any given pain or predicament, either our faith is being nurtured, or it's being knocked around. Ultimately then we are becoming better, or becoming bitter human beings.
The example Hebrews 11 spotlights is Abraham. We notice two things about his faith in this chapter. First, we see how "by faith" he left his comfort zone (vv. 8-10). Second, we witness how against all odds he believed God able to make possible what seemed impossible (vv. 11-12).
In verse 8, notice that obedience is the key to unlocking faith. Abraham specifically trusted God as "he set out, not knowing where he was going." A classic thought by Thomas Merton summarizes well this aspect of Abraham's trust in God.
My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Notice that faith continued to be the driving motivator as Abraham lived like a vagabond "in a foreign land ... in tents" (v. 9). Not only did Abraham apply faith by demonstrating willingness to leave his comfort zone; he clung to God's promise against all odds.
The chances were zero that Abraham and Sarah could conceive a child. Yet, they stubbornly held onto faith, believing that the impossible was possible with God. Then when Isaac was born to them, Abraham made the ultimate step of faith when he took his son to the mountaintop in obedience to offer him as a sacrifice. God rewarded this faith by providing a ram at the last moment for sacrifice. It was Abraham's faith that led him to do the unthinkable, but still somehow believe that God was in control.
In the summer of 1998, Americans participated in the world's richest lottery. The odds of winning the 175 million dollar Powerball Jackpot were eighty million to one. Yet, people still believed and bought tickets.
Lisa was a typical example of those who believed against all odds that they could win. She made a four-hour trip to Nebraska because Powerball tickets were not sold in her native Colorado. She drove with a purse full of cash because everyone in her office had a measure of faith as well. Her attitude was pure faith in the impossible, "Someone has to win," she exclaimed. Someone did win: Frank Capaci of Streamwood, Illinois.
We are capable of great faith in the impossible if the object of our trust seems worth it. Lisa thought that even with the odds eighty million to one, she would make the trek to Nebraska -- just in case she was the lucky one.
Abraham also thought the object of his trust was worth it. His faith paid off, and "from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, 'as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore' " (v. 12).
Verses 13-16 give us a glimpse into how people like Abraham lived this kind of faith. "They were strangers and foreigners on the earth" (v. 13). They understood that all this stuff around us is temporary. They lived like resident aliens, knowing where their true home would be. This kind of faith enabled them to hold loosely to the attractions of earth, and live accordingly with their sights set on heaven.
What is faith? Faith is total trust in God. That trust transcends illness, earthquakes, and even death itself. It is the only reasonable way for those calling themselves believers to live.
