What is faith?

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1

Faith is one common word. Many people with different traditions and culture have different kinds of faith in them. We all believe in something, some people share such common ground and others don't, just to point out to some being called Christians yet they embrace different kind of doctrines in Christianity. They vary as traditions and culture vary in different parts of the world. But the faith I am trying to mention is the one that is able to save and there is only one. We all have faith but not all is able to save.

What is confidence? In other words a firm and complete trust, a faith is a firm and complete trust on a deity. When we believe in something, it would mean we firmly and completely trust that "something". As a Christian we firmly and completely trust Jesus Christ, in whom our faith is grounded to, the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). Such faith would mean unshakable and without a doubt trust Jesus- that statement openly say that no circumstances or person or emotion or accident or reason can utterly lead me astray from my trust in Him. Let's be honest, one cannot question God about His way and will in times of blessing but it is a challenge to firmly and completely trust in Him during setbacks and sorrows because doubt will start to creep in (and know that doubt is the opposite of faith). But it is possible to the one, who is confident in God, to still hold on to Him though there may be darkness because you have known and have embrace that a dawn of new day will soon arise. There is hope and so you are confident.

What is it that you hope for? What is it that you hope for that makes you so confident? "faith...the substance of the things hoped for..." The importance, the body, the backbone of what we hoped for is the one we firmly and completely trust, Jesus Christ. He is not just the dawn of the new day we desperately need in times of trouble, importantly He is the light, who will help us overcome the trouble we face. He is the answered prayer, our salvation and much more. We know that the battles we face in this life, He has already won them and the things we enjoy are a blood bought gift from above. Jesus is what we have hoped for in this life and our hope itself.

Is there such thing as an "evidence of the things not seen"? Can a thing not seen leave an evidence? We might not see the air but its existence is so clear reaching out to the living, thus, the living becomes the evidence. We cannot see God but have seen Him in His Son, Jesus Christ and so, Yes! There's such evidence of the things not seen. The evidence is the cross, the virgin birth, the dead being raised to life, healings and many more miracles that are written in the Scripture and those that are yet to come and be seen through the lives of those witness God has called. The evidence is Jesus Christ. All wrapped up in one body, a completely man who is also completely God. He is the evidence of God's existence and love towards mankind. And the cross is the evidence of God's intention towards man an expression of grace and power. Jesus is the proof of reconciliation with God for a future fellowship in His Kingdom as His beloved children through adoption, the greatest of grace indeed (As J.I. Packer said). When God has done the cross, He will faithfully carry out what He has written in His Word for no words of Him will ever be in vain. That is something we hoped for.

Faith (as mentioned in the dictionary) is complete trust or confidence in someone or something. The Bible states that "Now faith is the substance of the things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

Christian Faith is complete trust or confidence in Christ Jesus, who is the substance of the things hoped for and the evidence of the great things not seen.