“But without faith it is impossible to please him [God]” (Hebrews 11:6).
Remember the Old Testament stories about Noah building an ark, baby Moses floating in a basket, and Daniel surviving the lions’ den? Did you know that those people are also in the New Testament? The eleventh chapter of Hebrews is often called the “faith” chapter. It reminds us of people such as Noah, Moses, and Daniel to show us what faith is and how faith pleases God.
Faith caused Noah to obediently build an ark even though he had never seen rain. Faith caused the midwives to hide Moses when all the other Hebrew baby boys were being murdered by the Egyptians. Faith caused Daniel to continue praying to God even though he knew that doing so meant being thrown into a den of hungry lions. We know the ending of those stories. We know that God saved Noah and his family, rescued baby Moses, and kept Daniel safe. But, Noah, Moses’ parents, and Daniel could not see the end of their stories. They did not know how their faith would affect them, but they did know that faith pleased God—and that was all that mattered!
Obedience to God requires faith, and faith pleases God. Living by faith does not mean you get what you want, nor does it keep you from being teased or persecuted. But faith does please God, and that is the only thing that should matter. You will not know the outcome of your faith in God at the time you are obeying and trusting Him, but you know that your faith pleases God regardless of how it affects you.
Revelation 4:11 tells us that God created all things and that all things were created for His pleasure. As a person who was created by God, you must please Him. That is impossible to do without faith. And it is impossible to live by faith that pleases God unless you first have faith in God for your salvation.
Faith pleases God, and it proves that someone believes in God and seeks after Him (Ephesians 2:8–10).
My response:
» Have I trusted God to save me?
» Am I afraid to trust God if I cannot see how things will turn out? Or do I trust Him no matter what?
» How can I demonstrate faith in God today?