“When Jesus heard this, He was amazed. Turning to those who were following Him, He said, ‘I tell you the truth, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!’”(Matthew 8:10 NLT)
Faith is a non-religious word. The conversation that led to the above response wasn’t about following Jesus, it was a declaration of an officer’s authority which he was under, as a soldier, and had over his men, as an officer. But Jesus marveled because the proverbial “light” had come on in his mind and spirit that enabled him to recognize that Jesus had authority that was not of human origin. That insight created the foundation for his faith in Jesus.
We exercise faith every day as we push the buttons on the microwave, open the frig expecting food and drinks to still be cold, or take prescription medication to heal or help what’s wrong with our body or mind. As a rule, those decisions have nothing to do with what kind of mood we’re in, whether we’re happy or sad.
Our faith is based on expectations that may or may not be based on anything related to religion of any kind. Faith is a function of our daily existence. We have the right of way at a 4-way stop, but we may or may not proceed, depending on how much faith we have that the driver of the approaching vehicle will stop.
For someone to place their faith in the God of the Bible is, on some levels, no different than choosing white bread over wheat, it’s a personal choice. A decision. An activity of our mind, heart, and, perhaps, our emotion. Toby Mckeehan (also known as TobyMac) wrote: “Faith isn’t a feeling; it’s a choice to trust God even when the road ahead seems uncertain.”
Some people say they are not a person of “faith,” and while I may understand their intent, that is not a statement of fact. They may not be “religious,” whether that faith is in Jesus or UFO’s, but EVERY person is a person of faith. You can’t be a resident of planet earth and not have faith in something. The only question is: On what will your faith be focused?
Faith is a decision based on our consideration of the facts. We’ll either have faith our car will start, or we won’t. We’ll have faith our spouse will be faithful, or we won’t. We’ll have faith the degree will help us find fulfilling employment, or it won’t. Our mind is involved as well as our heart.
Life’s experiences will affect the decisions we make. If we’ve taken our car to a certain mechanic and gotten burned, we likely won’t take it back or recommend them to anyone else. If, on the other hand, we find a restaurant we dearly love, we’ll tell everyone we see they should try it. Why should it be any different in our relationship with Jesus?
When I tell someone about my Savior, I’m simply responding as a very satisfied “customer” recommending they should check Him out for themselves. It’s no different than bragging on my wife or telling someone I have the smartest kid in the world. On some levels it has nothing to do with emotion, it’s a decision based on experience.
And yes, of course, something I believe with such certainty is going to affect my emotions, but the “faith” decision doesn’t grow out of my emotion, it grows out of my intelligent decision to act on what I’ve seen and experienced for myself. Realizing the same people can have the same experience and respond to it in completely different ways.
Food for thought.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 