True Faith—an Introduction
Photo by Tim Wildsmith on Unsplash
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth… But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven…
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also…
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness“ (Matthew 6:19-21, 33 NIV84) [see full text in button/link below]
Introduction to True Faith
In the first part of Matthew 6, Jesus reveals the nature of true religion. Religion often gravitates to a human view of how to reach God, which leads to ritualism and a false sense of righteousness, which often leads to hypocrisy. Faith is frequently defined in terms of belief. Not only what we believe but how we are to believe.
In the latter part of Matthew 6, Jesus reveals the nature of true faith. It’s far more than a set of beliefs and a person’s adherence and obedience to these beliefs.
True faith is a matter of trust—a personal trust in God. God birthed Israel as a nation to be a people who trusted in and worshipped a Living God rather than deaf and dumb idols.
Pagans, non-believers in the Living God of Israel, worshipped idols. They put their trust in inanimate objects that represented various gods to appease. They did so to gain blessings and avoid curses and destruction.
When I was a young believer and a new dad-to-be, I needed to learn to trust God. Shortly after my wife and I married, my construction job on a custom home ended after the house was ready for the owner to move into. It was a good job while it lasted. Then, I needed to find a new job. One week turned into many, but I couldn’t find work to support my wife and soon-to-be-born son. A few weeks turned into months. It was depressing.
After each day of beating the bushes for work, I came home and plopped down into what I came to call my “worry chair.” It was a nice, comfy, turquoise, Scandinavian modern wingback chair. On the opposite wall of our small living room was a custom calligraphy of Proverbs 3:5-6 in the King James Version—
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart;
And lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him,
And he shall direct thy paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV
I would sit in that chair, sometimes for up to an hour or more, worrying about where I could find a job and how to pay our bills. When I got up from the chair, I was more depressed than when I had first sat down. Gradually, through the weeks of searching for work, God worked in my heart and taught me to trust in Him with all my heart.
I’ve written about this a few times, but the simple point is this—trust is the heart of true faith. If our faith is not grounded in the Lord, it is built on shaky ground.
Jesus reminds the people of Israel of the personal nature of their relationship with God. Faith in God isn’t transactional but relational (see Hebrews 11:6).
True faith is more about whom we trust in our hearts than what we believe in our minds. Even what we believe needs to be grounded in whom we trust. If not, we will drift into a human-based form of religion, which displaces our trust in God.
We trust God for His provision rather than in what He provides. Our hope and confidence are in the Lord, not in our efforts to gain what we think we need.
Take some time to read through Matthew 6:19-34 in one sitting (see the text link or use your own Bible).
• As you read, consider what Jesus says we are not to do and what we are to do.
• Also, note His warnings about where we place our trust and why this is so.
This is an excerpt from a soon-to-be-published book called The Heart and Soul of God’s Kingdom. Look for it on Amazon with my other books— Trip Kimball on Amazon
