A Virtuous LifeNäide

Faithfulness

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Galatians 5:22-23 NLT

As we follow Jesus, the Holy Spirit makes us more like Jesus. As our devotion to Him grows, the virtues that set Him apart start to show up in our lives. Over time, we become less and less of who we used to be, and more and more of who we are made to be.

… And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. 2 Corinthians 3:18 NLT

This is the journey all of us have been invited to take. Becoming like Jesus as we trust and follow Him. It’s a journey that starts with faith and runs on faith. So, what exactly does that word mean? And how do we cultivate the fruit of faith in our lives?

In the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, the phrase “by faith” shows up twenty times as the author describes heroes from biblical history whose lives were defined by faithfulness. Because of that, this chapter is often called the Hall of Faith. And right at the very beginning of this chapter, we get a clue as to what faith is really about.

Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. Hebrews 11:1 NLT

What we see with our eyes is not all that there is. In God’s creation, there are things that we cannot detect with our senses, but they are just as real as what we can see and hear. Faith gives us the ability to see that reality, the unseen world, that we hope and long for. But it’s important that we understand that faith isn’t only believing in what we cannot see.

Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation. Hebrews 11:2 NLT

If faith were simply believing something is true, or agreeing that God exists, would that really have earned someone a good reputation? Probably not. Our reputation is built, one brick at a time, by the decisions that we make—not just the beliefs that we hold. That means, there was something about the people in this chapter, and their faith in God, that went beyond their thoughts and beliefs and carried into their actions and decisions.

By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen. Hebrews 11:3 NLT

Something doesn't come from nothing. And yet, the entire universe exists. How? Can a universe bring itself into being? That’s kind of like asking, “Can you give birth to yourself?” Of course not. This is why, throughout the ages, the existence of everything has served as evidence for the existence of our Creator.

Because if something begins to exist, then it has to have a beginning. And if something has a beginning, then something (or someone) must have created it.

At this point, you may be wondering—who or what created God? Nothing and no one. How does that work? God doesn’t have a beginning. He is eternal. That means He has always existed and He will always exist. God is infinite. He is bigger and better and more powerful and wonderful than we can ever fully understand. But just because we can’t understand Him fully, that doesn’t mean we can’t know Him truly.

We absolutely can. And that’s why He gave us His Word. So we could know the truth of who He is, what He’s like, how much He loves us, and how we are meant to live as His people.

Now, let’s look at a few more examples from Hebrews 11 to help us wrap our minds around what faith really is and how to cultivate it in our lives.

It was by faith that Noah built a large boat to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about things that had never happened before. …Hebrews 11:7 NLT

It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. … Hebrews 11:8 NLT

It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months when he was born. They saw that God had given them an unusual child, and they were not afraid to disobey the king’s command. Hebrews 11:23 NLT

So, what is faith, really? Faith is trust, based on evidence, that leads to obedience.

• Noah trusted God, based on the evidence of God calling him and speaking to him, and chose to respond with obedience by building the ark.
• Abraham trusted God, based on the evidence of God appearing to him and inviting him to follow him, and he responded with obedience by leaving his home.
• Moses’ parents trusted God, based on the evidence of their son being special, and they responded in obedience to God by disobeying Pharaoh.

If you read the rest of this chapter, you’ll see this pattern show up over and over again.

Faith is trust. It’s more than intellectual; it’s relational. We don’t just agree with the idea that God exists; we commit ourselves to Him because He is good, He loves us, and He cares about the details of our lives.

Faith is based on evidence. Whether through Scripture, science, or our personal experience, God is kind enough to give us evidence to believe that He is who He says He is and that life with Him is far better than life without. This doesn’t mean there won’t be questions we have a hard time answering, or doubts that send us spinning. That’s bound to happen. It means that, in spite of those questions and doubts, there will always be more good reasons to keep trusting and following Jesus than to walk away.

Faith leads to obedience. What we believe most deeply always reveals itself in the way we live. And real, genuine faith in Jesus is demonstrated when our actions align with His commands.

Here’s what’s really cool about following Jesus, though: The more we live the way He tells us to, the more we see and experience how much better His way of life is than the way the rest of the world operates. In other words, our obedience to Jesus, through our own experiences, provides evidence that God is trustworthy.

So, how do you cultivate faith? Ask the Holy Spirit to grow your trust in Him. Seek evidence for the truth of Christianity in the places where you’re wrestling with doubts. Live in obedience to Jesus and His commands. When you do these things, your faith will grow, and the Holy Spirit will produce the fruit of faithfulness in your life.