Faith! Belief in Action

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

What is faith,and what role does it play in the process of repentence leading to baptism and salvation?    Many people believe in God.They assume He exist,but He is not real enough to them, to affect what they think and do.To believe God, on the other hand, is to have faith that God will do for us whatever He has promised to do.He expects us to act on that belief, He requires that we have living faith in His existence, power and promises. Faith isn't some magical ingredient,it does however,lead to a confident attitude toward God.Faith motivates our minds to the assurance of God's power and will to act in our lives. Faith becomes more than a mental conviction as it grows into a commitment,not only to trust God to involve Himself in our lives,but to do His will.

God's word assures us that "the just shall live by faith" and "we walk by faith and not by sight".People who live by faith as followers of Christ are believers in Him.Faith is belief.But let us not make the mistake of thinking that if we believe in God,that he exist,we therefore have faith. many hold to this mistaken idea.Thinking because they believe in God; they think they have faith. To believe in God is just the beginning of faith.But believing in God does not necessarily involve conviction or commitment to Jesus Christ and God the Father. Belief in God is profitable,but incomplete. James tells us"even the demons,believe and tremble!"We must go beyond the level of faith exhibited by demons. The Bible defines faith this way "Now faith is the substance[realization,confident assurance,solid ground] of things hoped for, the evidence[ conviction,reality, proof]of things not seen.Faith is our assurance of things we cannot see.

But faith is not wishful thinking,a pie in the sky feeling that everything will be alright.Faith is a deep conviction that God deeply cares for us and will always act with our best interest at heart. Each of us can have this kind of faith. In fact,we must have it if we wish to honor and love God,because "without faith it is impossible to please Him,for he who comes to God must believe that He is ,and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him". This scripture describes two aspects of faith.First we must believe God exist,He is all righteous ,all powerful creator and ruler of all and cares about His creation.Then we must believe God will ultimately reward those who humbly, and obediently seek Him. Changing our lives to submit to God's will. Saying "I believe" without making life altering changes is not enough.The kind of faith required for salvation includes not only understanding what God desires from us, but also our acting on that understanding.We must base our faith on a correct understanding of God's word and a commitment to live by that word.We must walk in the faith of what God word says, and not by the sight of what the world shows us.............