Many Christians mistakenly define faith as “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” That definition, which is a quote of Hebrews 11:1, doesn’t really tell you what faith is, rather it tells you what faith does.
Faith is a deep-rooted trust in the Lord and a deeply held conviction of His truth. Faith means having a belief that cannot be deterred by circumstance, blessing or curse.
When you hold this level of faith in the Lord, the intangible things of God no longer cause you to question His existence or goodness.
That’s why Hebrews 11:1, which kicks off an entire chapter demonstrating faith through the lives of the Old Testament saints, states that “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Because we strongly believe in the Lord, He is real to us.
It’s not that faith can create a being and alter reality, but rather, because of our faith, we can see the unseen God move. We can see His work. And because we see His work and the effects of His working, we see further evidence of His existence, power and goodness.
It’s like Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:8, “The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”
We don’t see the wind, but we know it exists because we feel its presence and we see the effects of its movements. Likewise, because we believe in God, we can feel His presence and see the effects of His movements.
This faith, in turn, shapes our worldview, which then influences our actions and our choices. It’s this faith that pleases God and guides us to where He wants us to be and what He wants us to do.
It’s this faith that gives substance (tangibility) to the things that we hope for, like Heaven, healing and peace. It’s this faith that shows us the proof (evidence) of the things of God that we do not see. And it’s this faith that helps us understand that God created all things by His word (Hebrews 11:3).
And it’s this faith that pleases God (Hebrews 11:2, 6) and brings us salvation (John 3:16, Romans 5:1, Ephesians 2:8-9).
Do you trust the Lord? Do you have this level of faith?
John 12 records the powerful moment that Mary anointed the feet of Jesus with the expensive spikenard ointment, which John records was worth about 300 pence, approximately a year’s wage for a laborer.
Why would Mary pour such an expensive ointment on Jesus’ feet? That was the question posed by Judas, who noted that the ointment could have been sold and the proceeds given to the poor. While John notes that Judas was being dishonest about his intentions, Jesus answers the question.
“Against the day of my burying has she done this.”
This is Mary, the same Mary who sat at the feet of Jesus as He taught, while her sister Martha served dinner. This is Mary, who fell at the feet of Jesus when Lazarus died. And here is Mary, anointing the feet of Jesus.
It seems that every time we see Mary in the scripture, she is at the feet of Jesus. And why wouldn’t she be?
Jesus had given her hope. Jesus had given her redemption. Jesus had lifted her from a life of want, hopelessness and despair to a life of hope, fulness and meaning. Mary was truly living now that she met Jesus, even though her social and financial situation hadn’t changed.
So, since Jesus gave Mary everything that was dear to her, and since He became everything she was about, it makes sense that she worshipped Him with everything that she was, and everything that she had.
Do we see Jesus the same way that Mary does? And do we look to Him for hope, fulfillment and meaning? Or are we still looking to ourselves?
Check out Pastor Leland Acker’s sermon, posted above via YouTube, or below via Soundcloud, and reflect on whether you have the love and faith toward Jesus that Mary had, or whether you are looking for something for this world like Judas was.
Here’s a challenge for you… go to any Bible study, Sunday School class, or online Bible forum, and ask the question, “What is faith?”
You will get a variety of answers. One common answer is, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, thge evidence of things not seen.” That answer is a quotation of Hebrews 11:1. Your next step is to ask, “What does that mean?”
The tragedy of modern Western Christianity is that salvation comes by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), but most don’t even know what faith is.
If we don’t know what faith is, how can we be saved? If we don’t understand faith, can we truly experience redemption and reconciliation?
In John 3, Jesus is approached by Nicodemus, who recognizes that Jesus was sent by God, but the Lord’s radical teaching of repentance and faith did not always line up with the religious traditions that Nicodemus followed.
Nicodemus, unlike his fellow Pharisees, wanted the truth. Recognizing that Jesus came from God, and that what Nicodemus believed didn’t line up with what Jesus taught, Nicodemus came to Jesus to reconcile his personal belief system with what God actually wanted.
Jesus knew this, which is why Jesus said that a man “must be born again” in order to be saved.
The rest of the conversation in John 3 is about how to be born again, that is, how to be saved, or how to be redeemed and reconciled to God. John 3 is one of the most important passages of scripture, because it is here that Jesus, the only Begotten Son of God who went to the cross to pay for our sins, tells us how to be saved.
These instructions on how to be saved are as valid and true to us today as they were to Nicodemus. Nothing has been added or changed since, for if it were, this passage would not have been recorded in scripture.
In John 3, telling us how to be born again, Jesus tells us that “whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” And just in case we confuse ourselves on what it means to believe, Jesus tells us (and Nicodemus) and Old Testament Bible story.
In John 3:14, Jesus said, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”
In this verse, Jesus references an incident from the book of Numbers, where Israel complained and rebelled against God. Because of the severity of their rebellion, the LORD sent what the King James Version refers to as “fiery serpents” into the camp. Fiery serpents were more than likely poisonous snakes, as the scripture described how they bit the people, and the people began dying.
As they died, they cried out to Moses for help. Moses prayed to God, and God told Moses to make a bronze serpent, place it on a pole, and set it up in the middle of camp. If anyone is bitten, they can look at that bronze serpent and live.
Being saved from the snake bites in Numbers was as simple as looking to that serpent on the pole. No sacrifices, no offerings, no religious works. Just a simple look.
In John 3, Jesus said in the same way, He was to be lifted up on the cross. And in the same way, if people look to Him on the cross, they will be saved. Looking to Jesus on the cross constitutes belief, because that is what you are depending on for your forgiveness and salvation. Because Jesus went to the cross, you know you have been redeemed and reconciled to God.
Belief in Jesus is as simple as looking to Jesus and remembering that He redeemed you through His death on the cross. And that belief is the ONLY condition that must be met in order to be saved.
Faith and belief are used interchangeably in the New Testament. They are both translated from the same Greek word. So, with that in mind, we conclude that faith simply means a belief, a trust in the Lord. We have faith because we believe that Jesus will receive us into Heaven, because He paid for our sins on the cross. That’s faith. Nothing more. Nothing less.
Faith is not a religious system. Faith is not an expression of religious works (on the contrary, your works reveal whether or not you have faith.) Faith is belief.
Do you believe in Jesus? Do you believe that He died on the cross for your sins? Can you look to Him on that cross and know that because of His death and resurrection, you are going to Heaven? If you can, and if you have done that, you have been saved, and you have become a Christian.
While that faith will change the way you live and think, please know and be assured that it is the faith that has saved you.
The Soul Asylum hit, “Runaway Train,” is synonymous with 90s music, and is best known for its music video featuring photos of kids who had been reported missing or who had turned homeless.
While the stories of the kids featured in the video defined the video and raised awareness of the plight of runaway/homeless kids, the true story of the song stems from a major bout with mental illness suffered by Davd Pirner, lead singer of Soul Asylum.
Pirner began suffering hearing loss, and upon learning that his music career may soon be ending, suffered an emotional and mental breakdown. Pirner discussed his mental illness as being on a runaway train, and would go on to refer to his condition as his “runaway train.”
Pirner captured the essence of the song in the lyrics:
It seems no one can help me now I’m in too deep There’s no way out This time I have really led myself astray
Runaway train never going back Wrong way on a one way track Seems like I should be getting somewhere Somehow I’m neither here nor there
Can you help me remember how to smile? Make it somehow all seem worthwhile How on earth did I get so jaded? Life’s mystery seems so faded
Essentially, Pirner described his battle as being on a train that was speeding down a track to a location that he didn’t want to go.
As anyone who has ever ridden a train can attest, once you’re on the train and it’s moving, it’s near impossible to get off the train.
With that imagery, we see that Pirner found himself in a hopeless place, facing a crisis for which there was no solution.
Perhaps you can relate. Maybe you feel that your life is spinning out of control, headed to an inevitable conclusion that you would have never wanted.
We can relate, and most of us have been there. Mental illness, depression, and trauma response are complex issues. We are here to tell you that not only is there hope, but you can stop the train and get off, finding a path to a destination that you want.
And we can help. Please contact us via the contact tab on this site, visit our services, or reach out via social media (facebook.com/pointtolife). While we are not mental health professionals, we can connect you with community resources, licensed therapists, and we can assist with Spiritual coping mechanisms including prayer and active listening.
Most of all, we can introduce you to Jesus, who can heal your pain as powerfully as He healed the blind and the deaf in the Bible.
Please reach out. There’s no shame in getting help. God heals the broken, and makes us strong when we are weak. May God bless you.
Are the things you are doing bringing you peace and fulfillment? Do you find purpose in those things, and are they rewarding? If not, why do you continue to do those things?
It is those questions and more that the Lord poses as He issues a great invitation to Israel in Isaiah 55.
In Isaiah 53, the Lord showed how Israel’s sin led them astray, but how God would redeem and restore them through Christ, who would give His life as a sacrificial lamb to satisfy the judgment and wrath of God.
Following that message of salvation, the Lord calls the nation to break forth into singing, because He would bring in a time of everlasting blessing. That promise was made in Isaiah 54. In Isaiah 55, the Lord invites the people to come, and to inherit that blessing by repenting of their sins and trusting in Him for salvation.
The picture the Lord paints in Isaiah 55 is of a benefactor offering water, wine and milk to the thirsty, and food to the hungry. He then questions why anyone would work for, or spend their money on anything less.
In the message posted above, Pastor Leland Acker addresses God’s invitation, and discusses what it means to “come to the waters.”
The Christian faith is the fabric with which Western literature is woven. Great writers like Andrew Klavan and philosophers like Jordan B. Peterson clearly see it.
The classic, Pinocchio, is no different. The classic 1940 Disney animated movie, based on a classic novel, centered on Pinocchio, a wooden puppet who was given life at the request of his creator, Geppetto.
Geppetto loved Pinocchio, and Pinocchio loved Geppetto. At the very outset, you see a parallel with scripture, where God created Adam and gave him life. God loved Adam and Adam loved God.
Had Pinocchio been content to be loved by Geppetto, and to find his value there, Pinocchio’s story would have been one of endless bliss. Alas, Pinocchio wasn’t satisfied with Geppetto’s love.
Pinocchio had an intense desire to become a real boy. This desire, coupled with his desire to be like all the other boys, would lead Pinocchio down a path of misadventures which would separate him from Geppetto and create unnecessary suffering.
The first misadventure happened when Pinocchio was lured away from his walk to school by a character named Honest John, who persuaded Pinocchio to join his puppet show. Pinocchio’s decision to follow John’s temptation landed him in the show, but also a bird cage, and set up a chain of events that would see Pinocchio on a ship to Pleasure Island.
On Pleasure Island, Pinocchio befriends Lampwick and begins to indulge in bad behavior on the false promise that there would be no consequences for such behavior. When Jiminy Cricket tries to intervene, Pinocchio spurns him, prompting Jiminy Cricket to leave.
However, once Cricket discovers the horrible truth of what is going on at Pleasure Island, he returns to deliver Pinocchio right as the curse was beginning to turn him into a donkey.
At this point, Pinocchio realizes he had it good all along and sets out to reunite with Geppetto, a journey that takes him back home, and even into the belly of a whale. (Shadows of Jonah in that scene.)
What we learn from Pinocchio is that our downfall is often caused by unthankfulness, our desire to find meaning and pleasure apart from our creator, and our misplaced pride in ourselves.
Pinocchio loved Geppetto, but wanted more. Likewise, Adam and Eve loved God, but didn’t want to live under His authority. Their decision to seek their own divine nature by eating the forbidden fruit saw them expelled from the garden, and rendered as mere mortals who would have to face death.
We also say we love God, but all too often we seek pleasure and fulfillment everywhere but God, and often, we wish to cast His authority off from our lives. Our consequence is destruction in this life, and absent from repentance and faith, eternal condemnation before God.
As Pinocchio faced excruciating consequences as a result of seemingly harmless choices, we often find ourselves in bad situations caused by seemingly insignificant choices that took us further from God’s presence. Thus, scripture compares us to sheep, saying that “all we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his on way, and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:6)
And finally, as Pinocchio found healing and reunification by turning his heart back to Geppetto, we find healing and reconciliation with God by turning from our sinful ways and trusting Him for salvation.
The Christian faith really shapes Western Literature, and why shouldn’t it? Both Christianity and literature contain the stories of who we are.
So, when you find yourself dissatisfied with life and wanting more, be careful. Seek healing and fulfillment with God, and not from the pleasures of this world. Otherwise, you may turn into a donkey and find yourself in the belly of a whale.
But seriously, we forfeit so much peace and endure so much unnecessary suffering simply because we don’t trust God enough. Have faith. Turn to the Lord. And find fulfillment in Him.
In this message, Pastor Leland Acker discusses how multiple, seemingly small decisions made to please ourselves lead us away from God. Scripture reference is Isaiah 53:6, which says, “All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way, and the LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”
Some of the most intelligent people in the world subscribe to “The Butterfly Effect” theory. The theory goes as follows: One insignificant event can create a chain reaction that results in major events down the road.
To illustrate this, the statement is made that a butterfly flapping its wings in South America can create inclement weather in New England. Profound? Yes. True? Absolutely not.
First, the scientific aspects of the illustration do not work. The idea that a butterfly flapping its wings creates a series of disturbances in its airspace that send ripple effects through the atmosphere not only violates the laws of physics, nothing like that has ever been observed.
Furthermore, the idea that one small insignificant incident in your day created a chain reaction that set off a life changing catastrophe later also flies in the face of logic. Rather, the consequences that impact our lives are more routinely caused by a series of decisions that led to their inevitable conclusion.
So, what’s impacting your life is not so much the butterfly effect, but rather the domino effect, where one decision leads to another, which leads to another, which ultimately leads you to the place you are… whether good or bad.
It’s that concept that the prophet Isaiah spoke to when he said, “All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way, and the LORD hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”
Going astray, turning each one to his own way, is the process of our making a series of sometimes inter-related decisions that lead us away from God and down the path to destruction. No one sets out to destroy their lives, but through these decisions, destruction results.
No one sets out to gain 300 pounds, but a series of inter-related bad diet choices leads us there.
No one sets out to declare bankruptcy, but a series of bad financial moves will land you there.
No one sets out to destroy their marriage, but a series of selfish choices will lead you to divorce.
No one aims to go to Hell, but a life of living for self and rejecting God will leave you there.
The good news that Isaiah 53:6 presents is that God redeemed us from the destruction our sin brings by laying the judgment of sin on Jesus Christ. In essence, God is stopping the next domino from falling through Jesus who stood in the gap when He went to the cross.
Wherever you are in life, God can redeem you from it, setting the stage to welcome you into His perfect Kingdom. The question is, will you set up a new line of dominoes, a series of good decisions borne out of faith in God and not your own rebellion?
Ancient Israel was falling apart. Their kingdom had split into two kingdoms, the economy and military strength were declining, and the culture was rotting from the inside out.
As Israel addressed their problems, they looked to everything but God for the solutions. In Isaiah 40, God asked, “Have you forgotten Who I am?”
All too often, we look to everything but God for the answers to the problems in our lives. Have we forgotten Him too?
In Isaish 7, the Lord promised Ahaz, an unGodly king, that He would protect the him and his kingdom from a pending invasion. The Lord then invited Ahaz to ask Him for a sign. In essence, God extended His grace and provision to Ahaz, who rejected it out of his own pride.
In this message, Pastor Leland Acker shows how this fits into Isaiah’s theme of reasoning with God, and how we can align ourselves with God in our lives so we can experience the peace He offers.
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