Saturday, March 19, 2011

Why is Faith so important to God?

In order to address this question, we first should understand what is meant by faith? Faith, in the general sense is simply “trust.” When someone says, “I have faith in you” they are in effect saying that they trust you; they have confidence in you. The Bible applies the same basic meaning. It’s a matter of trust. We trust what God’s tells us. We accept who Jesus claims to be and believe what He accomplished on the cross. One who exercises faith in Jesus Christ believes that He is the Son of God because the Bible claims that He is. For the same reason, he believes that Jesus died on a cross almost 2000 years ago for our sins and that He rose from the dead.

It all seems so very simple but the implications for the one who takes God at His Word are profound. Sin is forgiven, guilt is removed and the believer is given a standing of complete acceptance before God! Listen to what Paul wrote in his letter to the Romans:

“Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1)

In short, God does not condemn us. Rather, He will love and bless us and will do so forever.

So we return to our question, “Why is Faith so important to God?” The answer is actually rather straightforward. When are believe God we are, by implication, making an important statement.  To believe God is to acknowledge that He tells the truth and, is to recognise Him for all that He is

Consider God’s command to Adam?

“And the LORD God commanded the Man saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:15, 16)

Does this seem an excessively severe penalty for a single act of disobedience? It may appear so at first glace, but in God’s eyes it is a just penalty, “a penalty that meets the crime.” Not to believe God and consequently disobey is to reject His authority to issue such a command. It is in effect a refusal to acknowledge God as God. It is the exultation of self to the position of God. It is to regard God as an equal rather than a sovereign. This is the real issue. This is why the penalty is so severe.

When a man, woman or child exercises faith they are likewise, making a statement. The act of faith declares a heart attitude toward God. It is an acknowledgment that God is God and, that He has all authority. This is why faith is so important.