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What Kind of Faith Do You Have?
Introduction There are several definitions of faith depending upon the source you consult. However, if one pays attention to most of them, there is a common denominator in the language used to define faith. The following are a few examples of how this word is defined by several sources: Faith is confidence or trust in a particular system of religious belief, in which faith may equate to confidence based on some perceived degree of warrant. Complete trust or confidence in someone or something. Strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof. Confidence or trust in a person or thing. Belief that is not based on proof. Belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion. Belief in anything, as a code of ethics, standards of merit, etc. A system of religious belief. The obligation of loyalty or fidelity to a person, promise, engagement, etc. Faith is to believe in something or in someone. Regardless of the source, the definitions of faith, they convey these principles: It is a belief, It involves religion, It does not required proof, It is personal and it is learned or developed by our own will, and Faith is not forced to anyone. If we observe our daily routines, we do exercise faith in many situations regardless to our religious affiliation, it is not required for an individual to believe in the existence of God to exhibit faith. Faith displayed in our daily experience has nothing to do with God or with our view of God. In our daily experience for example, we face many situations in which we exercise faith. We seat on a chair without reasoning about the construction of the chair. Similarly, we board an airplane without entertaining our reasoning wondering on the proper calculations made of the wingspan of the aircraft. We believe the chair will support our body as we believe in the airplane and in the bicycle and in everything else we face in our daily experience. We exercise our faith on all those things. This is an empirical faith. Once we learn to believe in those many things around us, we no longer question them or their ability to serve us. The object of our faith becomes our blind faith. We no longer need any form of proof for us to be comfortably interacting with the object of our faith. Our Faith as Christians When it comes to our faith as Christians, is it fine to have a blind faith in Jesus or in Jehovah God? Is this kind of faith what Jesus expects from His followers? As one of the definitions listed above reads: Belief that is not based on proof. Is this the kind of faith you have? As Christians, we ought to experience our faith in the same way Jesus experience His faith. When Jesus walked the earth in human flesh, He possessed faith! Please observe what the scripture says about this. Jesus said the following: John 5:19  Jesus told the people: I tell you for certain that the Son cannot do anything on his own. He can do only what he sees the Father doing, and he does exactly what he sees the Father do. John 14:10  Don't you believe that I am one with the Father and that the Father is one with me? What I say isn't said on my own. The Father who lives in me does these things. Few people realize that all Jesus did, the miracles He performed, He did not do by exercising a supernatural power of His own. Everything He did was done literally through FAITH. He set this as an example for us. Not only that but He said the following: Matthew 17:20  Jesus replied: It is because you don't have enough faith! But I can promise you this. If you had faith no larger than a mustard seed, you could tell this mountain to move from here to there. And it would. Everything would be possible for you. Luke 17:6  Jesus replied: If you had faith no bigger than a tiny mustard seed, you could tell this mulberry tree to pull itself up, roots and all, and to plant itself in the ocean. And it would! The question today is this: Do we have faith? Do we live in faith? Naturally faith in God. This is what Jesus said: Mark 11:22  Jesus told his disciples: Have faith in God! Mark 11:23  If you have faith in God and don't doubt, you can tell this mountain to get up and jump into the sea, and it will. Jesus was literally filled with God’s Holy Spirit. This is God’s supernatural power. God’s supernatural power was in Jesus. The matter is that the same identical supernatural power of God can be in us, you and me and many more Christians. Please see the life of the apostles of the first century, the folks that follow Jesus. They all performed miracles in the same way Jesus did. We are talking about Peter, Stephen, Philip, Paul. All common, humble ordinary men. Remember that even Peter’s shadow would heal the sick when passing over them. They all had the same power Jesus did because they walked and lived close to God and were filled with the Holy Spirit of God. Have you and I see that power today in any Christian? No, we have not. Not because God denies us the power, His power, but because we are not even close to Him.  Instead we are close to the world dominated by Satan. We seek materialistic abundance and we seek material rewards. This positions our mind and our heart far from God. Most people do not have time to study Scripture, to meditate in God, to hear His voice through His Word. As individuals we are not submissive, humble and constant in an earnest prayer. This are the reasons Christians today are not filled with the Holy Spirit of God. Because of this lack of His Holy Spirit in us, is that we cannot perform the same or other miracles as Jesus did and as He said we could do. We do not have faith. The sad part of this is that many do not really care about it. The Most Important Question Coming back to the beginning of this article, the question still is: What is faith? We will pay attention to what the Scripture says faith is, not to the worldly sources defining faith for us. Please see what the book of Hebrews teaches on this subject. Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is assurance of things hoped for, a conviction of things not seen. According to this, Faith is the substance of things hoped for. This means that faith comes before possession. Once you have received the possession you no longer hope for the possession. This is clear, right? Think about it for a moment. Now, before you receive the possession, you have it in substance. But, what is this substance, you may ask? This substance is the assurance that you shall possess the possession. That is FAITH. Think about it. If you need to read again the verses Mateo 17:20, Lucas 17:6 and Marcos 11:23, please go back and read them. Produce and analysis of what they say. You can find in them precisely what you have read in the last paragraph. Here we go again, faith is an evidence. The “evidence of things not seen.” Faith precedes the actual receiving of what you ask for. Is this clear? And faith is the evidence you shall have it, before you even see it. Is this also clear? Again, for more clarity on this subject. FAITH is the evidence of things not yet seen. You do not have it. You do not see it, or feel it—yet faith is your evidence that you have, or shall have it. Faith is the substance—the assurance if you will— of receiving that which you still hope for. Now here you have another important component of your FAITH. Faith is not a physical item, it is spiritual. This completely changes the view of what you may have thought faith is. Here you have another important component when we talk about faith. If you do not walk with God, you will never have faith. The kind of faith we are talking about, this is, the faith exhibit by Jesus Christ. The faith that stops a storm in the sea, that raises a dead friends like Lazarus or Peter’s Mother in-law, the faith that cures a paralytic and more.  That FAITH! But, again. FAITH in GOD! Mark 11:22  Jesus told his disciples: Have faith in God! A great number of folks calling themselves Christians do not have a clear notion of what FAITH is in the life of a Christian and at the same time they have a wrong understanding of God. How many times have you heard folks telling others to have faith in God while asking Him for things like a car or a job or a trip or money and many more things. God is not a gigantic Cosmic Gene granting whishes like cars or money of trips to anyone! In our modern era of media platforms, others ask you to send a given text to friends for God to grant you a present or possession. As noted in early paragraphs, many so called Christians exhibit a dramatic level of ignorance in that they negate study of scripture principles. Clearly a result of Satan’s planning and management of the dominion of this world given to him. Luke 4:5  Then the devil led Jesus up to a high place and quickly showed him all the nations on earth. Luke 4:6  The devil said, "I will give all this power and glory to you. It has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to.