When you stop to think about it, “faith” can be a very mysterious thing. What exactly is faith, anyway? Some people use the word faith to describe their religion. They might say, “My faith (or faith tradition) teaches _______,” or they may name a religion and say, “I’m of the ______ faith.” It usually doesn’t bother them that someone else’s faith contradicts theirs. In other words, they feel that all (or almost all) “faiths” are equally good.
Others treat faith like it’s a positive thinking technique that gets God to do what they want Him to do. This idea is popular with a lot of false teachers who use religious words. They tell us that if we want something bad enough, all we have to do is have enough faith, and God will give it to us. Joel Osteen is a good example. In a letter he wrote to his congregation, Rev. Osteen said, “God wants us to prosper financially, to have plenty of money, to fulfill the destiny He has laid out for us.” Those thoughts contradict many Scriptures, like 1 Timothy 6:9–11, “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.”
Kenneth Copeland is another example of someone who teaches wrong ideas about faith. In his book The Laws of Prosperity, he writes that “Faith is a spiritual force, a spiritual energy, a spiritual power. It is this force of faith which makes the laws of the spirit world function. . . . There are certain laws governing prosperity revealed in God’s Word. Faith causes them to function.” In other words, if we exercise faith properly, our financial problems will disappear. Does the Bible actually teach that? Wouldn’t that make Jesus a failure? He was so poor that he didn’t even own a bed (see Matthew 8:20).
Let’s take a moment and discover what the Bible actually says about faith. A careful reading of Scripture reveals that faith always means trusting that what God says is true and that what God does is best. In other words, biblical faith is in a Person, not in a result that we want. God says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).
Here is a story that pictures what the Bible means by real faith. A group of scientists were on an expedition, looking for new kinds of flowers in a remote area of the Alps. One day, using their binoculars, they spotted a flower they had never seen before. It was growing on the side of a deep ravine, and it could only be reached if someone were lowered down by a rope to where it was growing. The scientists noticed a small boy, who was watching them, and they offered him some money if he would let them lower him down the cliff by rope to dig up the flower and bring it to them when they pulled him back up again. The boy took one look over the side of the steep cliff, and then said, “Wait, I’ll be back.” A few minutes later, he returned with an older man. “This is my dad,” the boy said. “I’ll go over the cliff now and get the flower, if you let him hold on to the rope.” As we venture into life’s unknown future, it makes a huge difference who is holding the rope, doesn’t it?
The great missionary, J. Hudson Taylor, put it this way, “Not a great faith we need, but faith in a great God.” What we must do is put our complete faith in the all-powerful, all-knowing, eternal God, who Created everything out of nothing. “Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable” (Psalm 145:3). When THAT God is holding our “rope,” then we don’t have to worry that He will let us down. “The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed” (Deuteronomy 31:8).
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