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Faith and Understanding

Every once in a while, some jasper drag this swayback out of the corral: "Faith is believing in something you know isn't true". Great. Now give it a sugar cube and put it back. Such an insult has nothing to do with Christian faith, and also shows ignorance of the real meaning of the word.


Christians must live by faith.
Credit: Freeimages / V Fouche
Everyone has faith in something to one degree or another, but the important thing is where our faith is placed. Christians know (or should know) that it is impossible to please God without faith (Heb. 11:6). Some folks think that faith is blind, or believing for its own sake, but that's not the case. Our faith is supported by evidence, and God's Word is self-attesting as well as supported by evidence. With God's help, we can persevere in an unbelieving culture.
The ‘hall of faith’ in Hebrews 11 is one of the passages that Christians are most familiar with. It is inspiring to look at the recounting of the biblical heroes, and spurs us on to greater faith. But the first example of faith that the author recounts is one practised by all believers.
Hebrews 11:3 tells us:

    “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.”

There is a lot of content packed in one small verse which is worth looking at in more detail.
To read the rest, click on "By faith … we understand!"