Day 18: No Alternative to Faith

If you were asked what we need to do to please God, what would you say? I guess few of us would offer the answer that Scripture gives in Hebrews:

“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6)

More often, people try to please God on some basis other than faith: by morality, by good works, by church membership, by charitable contributions, by prayer, or by other religious activities. But without faith, none of these is acceptable to God. Without faith, we cannot please God. It is impossible!

There are two things that we are required to believe. First, we must believe that God exists. Most people believe that He exists, but that by itself is not sufficient. We must also believe that God is the “rewarder of those who seek Him”. This goes beyond the fact of God’s existence to His nature. We are required to believe in the essential goodness of God—His faithfulness and dependability. Believing in God in this way takes us beyond mere doctrine or theology. It establishes a direct, personal relationship between God and the one who believes.

The ultimate object of faith is none other than God Himself. It is true that we believe in God’s Word, but we do so because His Word is an extension of Himself. Our confidence in His Word rests on our confidence in Him as a person. If we ever cease to believe in God, we will eventually cease to believe His Word, also. His final purpose is to bring us into an immediate, intimate, person-to-person relationship with Himself.