ODJ: Real Faith
September 10, 2016
READ: Hebrews 11:6,24-29
It is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him (v.6).
I attended a boarding school in Nigeria where the older students ruled over all of us younger students. Once, I misplaced a bowl that belonged to a rather cranky older student. Having been given the ultimatum to find and return the bowl by the next morning, I crawled into bed with a heart full of dread. I whispered a prayer asking God for help before dropping into a troubled sleep. Imagine my awe the next day when the bowl mysteriously showed up in the student’s drawer!
The Israelites must have experienced far greater awe when God parted the Red Sea for them to walk through and then defeated Pharaoh and his army by means of the same waters (Exodus 14:15-28; Hebrews 11:29). They sang to the Lord with joy-filled hearts about the glorious triumph they had witnessed (Exodus 15:1-21). For the first time, they must have embraced their freedom, knowing that slavery was now truly in their past. Yet in a short while they were complaining about bitter water (v.24), and later they worshiped a golden calf instead of God as their deliverer (32:4).
Encountering God’s intervention in life can be a thrilling experience. I couldn’t wait to tell everyone about my “miracle” bowl, just as the Israelites broke out in song over God’s greatness. But what happens when answers to prayer aren’t so rapid or visible? Does God seem just as reliable, and are we still willing to trust Him—or do we seek other gods?
True faith can be enhanced by mountaintop experiences. And as the writer of Hebrews wrote, “It is impossible to please God without faith” (Hebrews 11:6). But the faith that pleases God is based on things that aren’t visible (v.1). Real faith helps us trust in the God who holds on to us.
—Remi Oyedele
365-day plan: Matthew 25:31-46
Read 1 Peter 1:6-9 and consider how real faith is tested and refined.
How has God grown your faith through mountaintop experiences as well as difficult times in life? How can you seek to know God more intimately—to revel in His presence regardless of circumstances?