Stepping Out in Faith: Trusting God's Promises

So in the Bible, faith always comes as a response to promise, to the word that God gives. So Romans chapter 10, verse 17 says, faith comes by hearing. And what is it that we hear? The word, the promise, the word of Christ. This is also one reason why sometimes I think people get confused about this. Like I could wake up one morning and say, God, I'm going to really believe today for a blue Corvette because I really want one, you know, but you can read through the Bible. There is no verse in there where God promises me a blue Corvette. That would be faith. It's not based on a promise, not based on anything, but what I want, right? Faith comes in response to promises that God has given. [00:36:17] (42 seconds)  #FaithNeedsRepetition

And if that's true for Abraham, you know, it's got to be true for you and me. We need to hear the promises again and again. That's why it's so important to open up your Bible and read God's word day by day. That's why it's so important to gather together week by week, Sunday by Sunday, and hear the word proclaimed and preached. [00:38:07] (21 seconds)  #RighteousByFaith

Romans chapter four tells us the same is true for us. We sinners hear that word of the gospel, that word of Christ, and we trust the one who gives the promise and the Lord counts us as righteous, even though we haven't always lived righteous. He counts us as righteous by faith, faith in the promise. Faith is what makes us right with God. [00:39:33] (22 seconds)  #VoicesOfFaith

And faith also protects us from being overwhelmed by fear. And trust the one who's giving us promises, and that saves us from fear. In Genesis 15, Abraham really is in a dark place. I mean, it's literally dark and he goes outside and sees the stars, but that's really symbolic of what's going on in his life because he's in the dark. He doesn't know what's going on. He's had this promise given. It's been all these years. And as he complains very, very personally to the Lord, he says, you have not yet given me a child. What's going on? Eliezer of Damascus is going to inherit my house, right? He's in the dark. He doesn't know what's going on. He's in confusion. That's where he is. And in that moment, the Lord speaks to him and he says, don't be afraid. Don't be afraid. And he reaffirms the promise to scatter Abraham's fears. [00:39:55] (55 seconds)  #EmbracedByFaith

There's so many voices in our world that speak fear and anxiety into our lives. Some of them are just well -meaning people who are themselves full of fears and anxieties. Some of them get paid and they do this for a living to speak fear and anxiety into the world. We know what makes the algorithms go and what gets lots of clicks, right? There's so many voices that speak that. But Jesus speaks hope. He speaks of a future with hope. He says, don't be afraid. Your father wants to give you what you really need. So you don't have to live with that tight -fisted anxiety. You can live openly and generously with the people around you because you know who your father is. You know he's going to take care of you. Don't live from that fear, that scarcity. Live from that trust and that hope. [00:41:21] (56 seconds)  #TransientWorldSolidFaith

When we respond to God's word, God's promise with faith, we are embraced into the heart of things. We are brought to him who is the living source of all the good, all the beautiful, all the captivating things that have ever caught our heart and attention, all the joys. By faith, we're not only forgiven our sins and accounted righteous like Abraham, but we're also brought into that rest that our hearts have been aching after. [00:43:02] (32 seconds)  #CalledToFaithJourney

We know, and we talked about this last week, everything that we experience in this world, every good thing, every bad thing, it's all transient, it's all temporary. This world is fleeting, but there is a true home. There is a true rest, a true promised land, and we begin to experience that when we turn to him, to our savior, with faith. And it is more solid than this transitory world. [00:43:34] (26 seconds)  #FaithInChaos

Now, every one of us, like Abraham, in our own way, in our own life, every one of us is going to be called to leave behind the home that we have known here, and to step out in faith into that heavenly city. Every one of us is going to receive that call. [00:44:31] (22 seconds)  #FaithInspiresHope

``And when we do that, like Abraham, like the widow woman who was coming to the end of her days with faith, like the martyrs and like all the faithful, quiet, simple people who have simply lived out their vocation without making a big deal about it. When we walk by faith, that can become an inspiration to the people around us, giving them courage, giving them hope in the midst of darkness. God uses our faith to bless others. That's what he did with Abraham. And that's how our lives get drawn up into the big, greater story of God's unfolding purposes for us, for our family, for our friends, for our neighbors, for our world. [00:48:11] (45 seconds)