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We believe in one God, the Father Almighty . . .
So begins the Nicene Creed, which we recite every Sunday at Mass. With these words, we announce the truths that are central to our faith.
It’s such a common thing that it’s easy to overlook the first two words: “I believe.” In one sense, when we say that we believe, we are saying, “I accept these statements to be true.” It’s like saying, “I believe that the laws of gravity are accurate,” or, “I believe that water condenses into steam.” But there is a lot more to the life of faith, or to a living faith, than simply agreeing to a set of theological statements.
Not Again! At this point, you might start thinking, “Oh no, not another article telling me what to do! Not another set of rules that will make me pleasing to God!”
Don’t worry. That’s not our goal. Rather than talk about everything we have to do, we want to talk about what God has already done in us, as well as what he still wants to do in us. For at its heart, faith is a gift from God that we simply need to receive. As we examine this topic, we will discover some of the amazing things that can happen as we say “yes” to this gift of faith that God planted in our hearts when we were baptized.
When it comes to understanding faith as a gift from God, a good place to start is in the First Letter to the Corinthians. The Corinthian Christians were a vibrant community, but they had some troubles as well. It seems that many of them had experienced a powerful outpouring of spiritual gifts such as tongues, prophecy, and healing—and they were judging each other based on how spectacular their gifts were. This led to divisions within the church, as well as a tendency to overlook obvious sins among those who were considered to be more “spiritual” because of the gifts they wielded.
As he learned about these problems, Paul could tell that the Corinthians’ focus on gifts like tongues and discernment was distracting them from the more important gifts they had received. He told them that these spiritual gifts were good and helpful, but they should never be emphasized over the central gifts of faith, hope, and love (13:13). These were the gifts that the Corinthians should have been pursuing first and foremost, so that their exercise of the other gifts would build them up and not tear them down.
Habits of the Heart. While gifts like prophecy and healing focus on specific acts, the gift of faith—along with hope and love—is a disposition of the heart, a virtue meant to shape every aspect of our lives. Faith is not limited to the moments during which we are prophesying or trying to discern something. Rather, it is a permanent attitude that God has placed in us—an attitude that he wants us to embrace.
Isn’t it amazing how generous God is? He never intended living by faith to be something we do on our own. He never intended belief to be something we drum up out of our own resources or hold onto with the force of human stubbornness. No, living by faith is based upon God’s desire to reveal his truths to us, so that we don’t have to convince ourselves to believe in mysteries we will never fully understand.
So what exactly is this faith that our Father has freely given to us? According to the Letter to the Hebrews, faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). Let’s unpack this sentence.
Faith, Hopes, and Dreams. First, it is through faith that we come to realize what we are hoping for. What is it that we all hope for and long for, deep down in our hearts? Eternal life with Jesus. And it is by faith that we begin to realize that Jesus is the answer to all our hopes and dreams. It is also through faith that we begin to taste that eternal life here and now.
We may think that we’re supposed to put our faith in the promise of eternal life. That is partially true, but it is also true that we can begin to taste that promise here and now. We shouldn’t think that faith is only an intellectual endeavor, in which we work hard to trust in a mysterious afterlife. The fuller picture of faith includes God’s revelation to us—his gradual unfolding of the very truths and promises that he invites us to believe in.
As we surrender to God’s revelation, we also begin to get a sense of what heaven is going to be like. We begin to look forward to a life where fear and sadness are banished, a life where there is no darkness or anxiety; a life of loving intimacy with Jesus. All this expectation softens our hearts. It makes us more disposed to trusting in God—more disposed to believing in him, even in the most challenging of situations.
What Do We Hope For? We know what it is like to hope for something. We all have promises and future achievements that tend to fire our imaginations and motivate us. For some, it is the hope that we see in our children—the prospect of seeing them reach their full potential and make even better lives for themselves than we have made. For others, it is the hope of meeting the challenges of our job or the hope of deepening our relationship with our husband or wife.
All of these are beautiful, wonderful things to look forward to. It is both encouraging and amazing at times to watch each of these potentials unfold in our lives, and we should be proud when we have reached our goals. But in the final analysis, the hope of heaven is the greatest of all. It is the one goal that is meant to take precedence over all the others in our lives.
That doesn’t mean that we should ignore our other hopes and dreams. For the truth is that as we begin to experience the fulfillment of our eternal hopes, our desires and hopes for life in this world take on an even greater value. Every aspect of our lives that is good and wholesome takes on new meaning, because it is being filled with God’s own love and grace. Our desire to do well in work is injected with a desire to develop our God-given talents. Our desire to see our children do well is filled with a taste of the way God rejoices in all his children. Even our times of recreation are transformed into opportunities to enjoy God’s goodness in creation and the people he has placed in our lives. All this happens because heaven has become real to us, and we begin to catch glimpses of heaven everywhere we look on earth.
Living, Life-Giving Proof. As for evidence of things not seen, this is a direct result of what happens as we come to taste the eternal life that Jesus has won for us. Through faith, we begin to accumulate the evidence that God is a loving Father and not a harsh judge. We begin to see proof that Jesus really has forgiven us and rescued us from the power of sin. And we become convinced that the Holy Spirit wants to empower us to live a life of humility, purity, and love.
Of course, we have the “exterior” evidence of the history of the church, of the lives of the saints, of Scripture and Tradition. All of these testimonies offer proof that God is real and that he rewards everyone who comes to him in trust. But this external evidence is only part of what God wants to give us. He also wants us to have personal, interior, intimate proof. He wants to give us the same inner convictions—the same experiences of his holiness, love, and power—that Abraham, Moses, Joshua, and all the other heroes and heroines of the Old Testament had. He wants to speak to our hearts and show us that all the truths we proclaim in the creed are more than theological propositions. They are all life-giving realities that have the power to change hearts, overcome sin, and open heaven’s doors to us.
This, brothers and sisters, is the evidence that faith provides for us. As we unpack God’s gift of faith, truths that cannot be proven scientifically begin to unfold in us, giving us a foundation for our lives that only grows more and more solid. As we take up a disposition of trust and reliance on God, we find our doubts slipping away and being replaced by a firmness of conviction that can withstand any challenge.
Fix Your Eyes on Jesus. So do you want your faith to grow? Then look to Jesus, the “leader and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12:2). Ask him to reveal himself to you more fully, so that the faith that he has placed in you can come alive. Ask him to show you how much he loves you and what a marvelous plan he has for your life. As you do, you will find it easier to live out his teachings. You will find yourself living with a disposition of openness to his word, openness to his love, and openness to his way of life. In other words, you will find yourself believing in a whole new way.
Exelent article!!
People are often commenting on my God given ability to be happy and joyful almost always. They have often questioned my stability. They do not seem to grasp the concept of simplicity of faith.
Truth be told I am not always happy. I struggle with my own imperfections and sinfullnes. With world and family issues just like anyone else. But God has blessed me with a true gift of faith in that I have that inner peace from knowing in my heart that Christ has overcome the world and that all the pain and suffering that goes on in the world today is but a stepping stone to the glory of Heaven. Life is still worth living.!
I’ve been subscribing to WAU almost since your beginning. I’ve just now tried out your web site - thanks - I’ve been sending my current issue to my “fallen away” sister hoping she’ll come back - so I just realized that I can access all the articles on the Web until I feel she’s ready for me to send her a subscription of her own.
Good article. I especially liked the part about faith being a habit of the heart, not just something we believe in. It makes it so much more immediate for me, not just something for the future. Thanks so much for this!