Belief/Trust/Perseverance + = Faith
James 2:17 (NIV) …Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
Maybe one of the best ways we can express it is “Faithing”, as in…
Hab 2:2/Rom 1:17 The righteous will live by faithing…
Hebrews 11:1–16 (ESV) 1 Now faith (“faithing”) is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 (AMP) 1 Now faith (“faithing”) is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for…
Faithing is the “title deed” of the things we hope for. It’s how you the promises that are given you in Christ Jesus.
Heb 10:23 Let us hold on tightly to the confidence we have in our good and beneficial future, for he who promised is faithful.
(Hebrews 10:23 (NIV84) Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.)
Hebrews 11:1–16 (NLT) Faith(ing) shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. 2 Through their faith(ing), the people in days of old earned a good reputation.
3 By faith(ing) we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.
Abel, Enoch, and Noah stood out as 3 of the greatest examples of righteous people in the midst of growing evil.
4 It was by faith(ing) that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did.
Abel’s offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith(ing) .
5 It was by faith(ing) that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—“he disappeared, because God took him.” For before he was taken up, he was known as a person who pleased God.
6 And it is impossible to please God without faith(ing). Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.
7 It was by faith(ing) that Noah built a large boat to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about things that had never happened before.
By his faith(ing) Noah condemned the rest of the world, and he received the righteousness that comes by faith(ing).
Genesis 6:9b (NLT2) Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God.
8 It was by faith(ing) that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.
9 And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith(ing) —for he was like a foreigner, living in tents. And so did Isaac and Jacob, who inherited the same promise.
10 Abraham was confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God.
11 It was by faith(ing) that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed that God would keep his promise.
12 And so a whole nation came from this one man who was as good as dead—a nation with so many people that, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore, there is no way to count them.
This is the main point so far! It shows that God is faithful!
13 All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it.
Hebrews 11 is better understood Hebraically: each person listed acted obediently to God, showing persistence despite not knowing what the would be.
Faithing is being steadfast, finishing the race, and overcoming through obedience to God who was first faithful to us.
Luke 12:32–40 (ESV) 32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy.
Jesus has just been teaching on how God provides for the birds of the air and clothes the lilies of the field. He can be trusted to take care of us because it’s in his nature.
You can do what the king asks without worry and even sell your possessions and give to the needy because God is always faithful.
Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Faithing is always active, so be ready to serve him at any time:
35 “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning, 36 and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks.
37 Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them.
38 If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants!
39 But know this, that if the master of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have left his house to be broken into.
40 You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
We can trust God,
who is always actively faithful…
By faithing
Where is God calling you to action? (MULTILINE)
Where have you been hesitant to trust? (MULTILINE)
Is God calling you to greater generosity? More patience? (MULTILINE)