THE RACE OF FAITH - introduction

Faith is the foundation of the Christian life. Faith carries us throughout our stay on earth as believers. From the moment we become born again till the time we meet our Bridegroom in eternity, we need to cling tightly to the faith in Him.

Everything that goes on in our Christian life is backed by faith. Without faith, both salvation and sanctification are impossible and unattainable. To become a Christian, one needs faith. Paul said in Ephesians 2:8-9 that

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9,NASB)

So here we see the apostle making emphasis on the faith of the objects of this gracious salvation. To try to run around faith to attain salvation is like looking for needle in a haystack. And even less probable than that. It's of zero chance.

But one may ask, where can we find this faith?
This important question will lead us to the principal text in this series. The verse is taken from the book of Hebrews , chapter 12 reading from verse 1 going it says

1 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:1-2, NASB)

Going back to answer the question, we take the words of the writer of Hebrews which says in verse 2

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith

It's quite an easy task to see from this verse that Jesus Christ is the author of our faith. Author meaning He is the producer and giver. Without Christ there would be no faith at all. Lest you want to bring the Old Testament Jews who had faith in God even before Jesus came on earth. And this proves the deity of Christ and even 'before Abraham was born, I am." said Jesus. (John 8:58, NASB)

He is the God of Isaac and Jacob. The Rock of ages and he's eternal. He is the One who gave faith to Elijah to call on heaven to shut it's floodgates. Talking aboutMoses, He is the One who gave him the faith to lead the Israelites to the promises land. He has been the Author and Finisher of the faith of those who worship Him since creation.

Knowing that we have our faith from Him, how about those who have 'faith' in other things other than the One true God? I must admit that those who worship creatures other than the Creator do not have faith at all. They have a counterfeit that was given to them by the Deceiver in order to trap them into the fiery furnace of hell. All true faith, Faith that leads to salvation by grace comes from God.

In this prefatory post, my objectives are 1.for us to know the source of faith 2. the initial application of that faith that's salvation, and 3. The meaning of faith. And from this list, you'll agree with me that we have tackled the first two. So finally about the third one, we shall observe something from the the same book of Hebrews, chapter 11 verse 1. The bible says

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1, NASB)

Admittedly, there are many definitions of faith that you might have come across which are true. But I want us to hear what the bible says about it. Here we find that faith is the assurance of things hoped for. Assurance means having confidence in something. If there is anything like 100% confidence, then that's what I am talking about. An absolute surety of something you do not see and have never seen before.

We may also observe that this assurance is geared towards hope. An unwavering trust in something. Together we see that our faith is an absolute confidence in things we hope for. We may also see in the verse that it's the conviction of things not seen. But is faith without a substance? Is it blind as some people say. No. In this New Testament era, Christ has given us a perfect example of things hoped for.

We didn't see our Savior born by the Virgin Mary, being crucified or rising again on the third day. But we have the substance laid clearly in the infallible Word of God. That's our substance. For in all things, we look the our Master Jesus,, who is the perfect Example. We have faith that we'll go to Heaven one day because our Savior came from there and is now seated at the right hand of the Father in glory.

Just count it. The very things we are to hope for and you'll see that it has happened before. The proof is there. That is our hope. Jesus did it and we will be able to do it by His power on His name.

Its my pleasure to have you here reading this message. I would like to here you in the comment section and don't miss out on the part 1. See you later. God bless you

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