Message from Scripture: 12/2/2020

 

Our message from Scripture today is Heb. 11:1. “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

 

Paul spoke of living by faith, not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7), meaning the course of our lives should be determined by our faith in God, by spiritual values, not just what is seen or experienced in the visible world. For some in our society today, faith in the unseen seems foolish, out of touch with reality. The question really is, “What is reality?” Since the physical universe is to be destroyed and will cease to exist (2 Pet. 3:10a), is not the spiritual the reality that we should believe in and live for?

 

There are two things the Hebrew writer assures us about our faith in God. First, it is the assurance we have that what we hope for will come to pass. People can hope for all kinds of things, but many times the hope is a wish that may not be grounded in what can or will happen. It is logical to believe in the evidence God provides for His existence, seen in creation itself and the reliable and verifiable message He offers in Scripture. It is the ground of confidence, assurance, guarantee, or proof that what we hope for is real and genuine.

 

Not only this, but faith offers us conviction in the unseen realm of the spiritual. It is the basis on which we can accept the truthfulness of God’s testimony. Some might ask where this conviction comes from. From fables or stories handed down from long ago? That which is simply myth or legend? No, from verifiable truth that assures us the basis of our faith is real, that ordering our lives by its precepts and principles offers something that endures beyond the fragile world of the flesh we live in today.

 

The fleeting nature of the physical tells us there is more to life than just today. It is our faith that gives purpose and meaning to life, that which endures. May we, by faith, live for the eternal, and know the best God has waiting for us beyond this veil of tears. God bless.

 

Robert