Faith Is Given By God

Dear faith! You give me constant confidence
And keep me strong in life's stormy fray;
Whether in the iron grip of improvidence,
Buffeted by gale, or grief's blackest day,
I think on Jesus and find assurance!
There was a dark time when I stood alone,
My hopes resting but on self endurance,
Facing assailants on my very own.
Then, like manna fed Israel's starving tribe,
Came Jesus' saving words, "Faith comes from Me;
You can't make it; or buy it with a bribe;
Trust in Me; I give you faith; it's free!"
His to provide the faith; mine, to believe!

Faith, the Bible says, is necessary for salvation. The problems are, How does one get faith?, and once got, How can we make faith grow?

I think the most difficult concept most non-believers face is to make themselves believe in a supernatural world that they can neither see, hear, feel, taste or smell. Nobody wants to go to hell when he dies, even if he doesn't believe in it now, in this life. He would accept Jesus just for insurance, rather than take a chance on the other. But it's just plain hard to believe that angels live in and around us. Then, how is such a one to gain faith, which means to believe in this unseen world?

You can't gain it for yourself; it is a gift of God (See Ephesians 2:8-9). Well, then, how can I get God to give it to me? The very first 'grain' of faith any Christian was ever given, was by hearing the gospel words of Jesus. Everyone who ever lived has heard it in at least one of several ways, and no one has an excuse for saying he had no chance (See Romans 1:20).

The person who has never heard of Jesus has seen the awesome power of God in creating the universe and the wonders of nature, and a still, small voice of God has whispered in his brain, "What about God?" If His voice has not been heard or has been ignored, there are Christian churches on almost every street, anyone of which testifies every Sunday of Jesus. Television and radio has spread the gospel non-stop since their creation. Someone you know is a Christian, and he may have tried to tell you the good news many times. You receive the first 'grain' of faith as a gift from words or actions or nature testifying of God; your faith then grows from one 'grain' to two or two dozen or two million by hearing, reading, praying, meditating. or talking about the message of Jesus.

"Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17)

So, if you are one of those who claim "Church-going is not my cup of tea", your faith may not grow, and life's awful trials can overcome you.