WHY FAITH WORKS

Photo by B Smith from the patio

 

630 - 1 WHY FAITH WORKS

September 6, 1981  

Henry F. Kulp

 

Hebrews 11: 1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Faith is basic to the Christian life. Without faith, you have absolutely nothing. 

Hebrews 11: 6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Without faith it is impossible to please God. So first of all we ascertain that faith is basic—it is necessary.

1/  This is brought out to us in the first verse. Faith is the title deed to things hoped for. There are many things in life we hope for, but we have no title deed to them—we have no assurance that we will ever realize them. So we need a basis for things hoped for, and faith is that basis. 

2/  A student hopes to get better grades, but before that student will get better grades, they will have to study the subject so that they can get good grades on the test. If the student doesn’t study, all the hoping in the world would be valueless.

3/  A man may sincerely hope for a better job. Maybe at the plant where he works he wants an advancement, but really the only way, he can get that advancement is to study and to apply himself so he will be of value and understand that job. I may want a job as a tool and die maker because I know they make a lot of money, but I could never get the job because I haven’t the least bit of an understanding about what a tool and die maker does. So we must have a basis, and the basis of things hoped for is faith. 

4/  Then he tells us, faith is the evidence, the proof of things not seen. This morning I want you to see three things about faith being evident or proof of things not seen.

    

(1)  There is a God, but He is invisible. Man has always hated the thought that God is invisible. 

Romans 1: 21 - 23 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

Back at the tower of Babel, man went into idolatry. He changed God into an image, and man ever since wants to see God. That is why we have all these pictures of Jesus Christ. But we worship an invisible God.

5/  I wonder if you realize how much we believe that we do not see. Take most of the study of atomic science is based on the invisible. Man has what is known as the HEISENBERG UNCERTAINTY PRINCIPLE. In other words we see objects because light from the source light hits it and bounces back into our eyes. But if light hits something and the cause of the impact makes the object to be knocked out of sight, we can’t see it. And this has been true of some of the atomic science such as electrons, protons, and neutrons. When light strikes the electron that man wants to see, the electron is knocked from its path, and therefore cannot be seen, but yet we see the effect of the electron, and we know that it exists.

6/  We know there is a God, we see the evidence of God all about us. Man has to be a fool to say that God does not exist.

7/  But the biggest reason why I believe there is a God, is because God has revealed Himself in the Bible—A perfect Bible, an infallible Bible. So if I had no other evidence but the Bible, that is enough for me. 

    

(2) So faith is based on an invisible God, and secondly it is based on His Word. 

He has revealed Himself, He has spoken to us. This is why Romans 10: 17 is so  important. So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

8/  So the first two points are, God does exist, and he has spoken.

9/  This question is not, do you believe, but whom do you believe? Men tell you much and make many statements and many times we believe them, and our faith is not founded, because man is wrong in many things he states as being fact. So it is whom you believe, and we believe God because He has spoken, He has given us a revelation.

10/  The greatest sin is the failure to believe in God. 

Genesis 2: 15 - 17 And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Eve did not believe God, she hoped she would not die when she ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But her hope was vain, her hope was not based upon a foundation, the record that God gave, and she did die, the day she ate of the fruit.  

Many things we hope for are just like the hope of Eve, not based upon fact.

 AMEN

Ref: 09/06/1981 / 630-1 WHY FAITH WORKS / 01/18/2021