Day 29

Faith is only as valid as the object in which it is placed.

‘Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations.’ (Romans 4:18)

Faith is not a Christian or religious word; it is an everyday activity. Faith is a disposition of trust in an object that lets the object do something for us. When I get in a car I place faith in the ability of the car to take me down the road. Faith in God is trusting God to work.

How did Abraham exercise his faith? While God promised him that he would be the father of many nations, he and Sarah were long past child bearing age and knew that this was a human impossibility. So, ‘Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations’ (Romans 4:18). Believed what? That God was as good as His word and as He had made the promise, it was He who would bring it about. Now it’s true, Abraham wobbled after 10 years of waiting with nothing happening but eventually the God he trusted to intervene did so in His own time and in His own way.

Faith is not evidenced by our doing our best to bring about what God has promised, but by our trust in Him exclusively to do what he has promised. Sometimes it may involve ‘against all hope…believing in hope,’ but the object of the hope is not wishful thinking. It is the promise and ability of God.

Lord, I put my faith in You alone.