How can Faith be both Substance and Evidence?

Now, Contending for the Faith. In this regular feature Dave and Tom respond to questions from listeners and readers of The Berean Call. Here is this week’s question. Dear Dave and Tom, I’ve been going through the great faith chapter, Hebrews 11, and I would like to hear your comments on some of the passages that I don’t quite get. Start with verse one.How can faith be substance or evidence? Then it seems that most of the following verses imply that faith is synonymous with obedience. Isn’t that works? Finally, I thought Sarah was hardly faithful to God because she laughed when she heard that she would become pregnant and then came up with her own plan when it didn’t take place according to her expectation. How does she end up as an example of those strong in the faith?

Tom:

Okay Dave, well, let’s begin with, faith is–

Dave:

–the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Well, there are some things that you cannot handle, some things that you’re going to have to take by faith. By faith we understand, it goes on in verse 3, that the worlds were framed by the word of God.

Tom:

Yeah, we weren’t there.

Dave:

So the things which are seen were not made of things that do appear. Well, how do I know that? I mean, you cannot understand that, that is beyond my comprehension. I don’t know what energy is, nobody knows what gravity is, nobody knows what anything is in this universe. So, but God has proved enough to me, more than enough, that which I can verify has turned out to be true. Now I trust him for what I can’t understand and faith gives substance to this. This is all the evidence that I need is my trust in God because he has proved himself to be faithful.

Tom:

Then it seems, going on with the question, that most of the following verses imply that faith is synonymous with obedience, isn’t that works? Well, it is true that faith if you look at those verses they believed God they did what he said, they took him up on what he uh, on his promises and other things.

Dave:

Well James said, faith without works is dead, show me your faith without your works, I’ll show you my faith by my works. The works are not producing salvation but it is the faith that produces the works. Faith that worketh by love, Paul talks about in Galatians. So, when I believe God and he tells me to do something, then I will do it. Jesus said, Why call ye me Lord and do not the things that I say? So, faith and works are separate. Faith is not works and works is not faith, but faith will produce works if I trust God. Tom, if you said, Hey, this place is about to burn down, there’s a fire, you know, in the next room, let’s get out of here! Well, if I believe what you say I will act upon it and if we believe what God says—that’s one of the big hypocrisies in the church, in all of our lives, Tom, I would have to say. If we believe that time is very short, could end at any moment for each of us—well, at the most you might live to be 80, 90, 100. What was it? Senator Thurman just celebrated his 100^th birthday.

Tom:

100^th birthday. I saw him on C-Span, he doesn’t look like he’s a hundred. I don’t know what kind of a diet that guy’s on but he’s doing all right.

Dave:

Is he? But even if you live to be a hundred and fifty, it ends, okay? Well, why don’t we recognize—I mean, we say we believe it, eternity is forever, time is short, but it seems as though most Christians live more for time than they do for eternity. They are more concerned about feathering their nest in this life than preparing for eternity.

Tom:

Dave, I looked up—and I was a little under conviction here, he said, I thought Sarah was hardly faithful to God because she laughed, which she did, but then it says that when she heard that she would become pregnant and then came up with her own plan when it didn’t take place, well that’s not exactly—

Dave:

She didn’t laugh at that time.

Tom:

No, this was the idea of turning Abraham over to Hagar to have Ishmael, that happened previous to that. But you know, I made that mistake thinking that she did come up with her own plan but it wasn’t—God had spoken to Abraham and said that his offspring were going to be multitudes. So, all of that preceded God telling Abraham and Sarah that Sarah would become pregnant and have a child.

Dave:

Yeah, see Tom, I didn’t have the Bible in front of me but I remember it quite well. It doesn’t deny Sarah laughed, Hebrews 11, but it says by faith she received strength to give birth and so forth. So she did laugh, she did doubt but then, she must have believed God after that. So, the Bible gives her credit for that.

Tom:

Well, it also tells us about our own walk of faith. Yeah, we may stumble at times, we may doubt God but he is faithful and he will do—and that’s where our trust, our encouragement comes back. Recognizing what God has done and what he continues to do in our lives.

Dave:

In 1 Corinthians 4 Paul makes an amazing statement. He says every one—at the judgment seat of Christ, everyone will receive praise of God. Isn’t that wonderful? No matter what failures we’ve been there is some little spark of faith in there, I guess, somewhere that the Lord will give us credit for, and it does come from our hearts.

Tom:

And again, he enables, it’s by grace.

Dave:

Right.