Why do many people find it so hard to believe that God really loves them and wants to care for them? It may seem like a risky venture to put our faith in God, but it’s not intended to be a leap in the dark while hoping for a soft landing. True faith in Him is capable of both trusting and believing in God.

Believing in God Is Not Following a Path of Confusing Unbelief

When we say we are believing in God, it means that we’re following the straight and simple path that He’s laid out for us. This kind of belief won’t be overwhelmed once we see what God can bring to pass in our life. But the only path many people follow is the one of rambling, meandering and confusing unbelief. Those who exercise true faith in God believe that He truly loves them and will somehow turn every situation to their advantage.

Jesus Was the Perfect Example of Faith

Jesus followed the whole course of faith from start to finish. He had to endure every trial that came His way without being protected or excused from any of them. When He totally submitted to the will of His Heavenly Father as the Perfecter of faith, He won the ultimate victory. Jesus was therefore qualified to give a testimony that was didn’t lack in perfection in any way. The glory that He was then qualified to rest in was far higher than all the lowness of His humiliation.

Our Old Faith Is of Little Help in New Crises

Jesus became the only true Perfecter of faith, while our human faith can be considered nothing more than pitiful by comparison. Our problem is that our natural heart doesn’t learn from our victories in the spirit. Calling the old faith that we used to have to mind doesn’t guarantee that we’ll be able to achieve new victories. Any time we have to face a new time of crises, we have to have a fresh amount of faith in God.

Israel Was Forced to Depend on God While in the Desert

God said that He loved Israel—yet He led them into a desert where there wasn’t any food or water! This must have seemed very strange to them. Why did He lead them there? He wanted to give them an opportunity to discover just how hopeless the unbelief of their hearts was, and how the faithfulness of God’s heart never changes. While Israel was in the desert, they were forced to depend on Him for everything they needed. There was no other suitable place where God would be able to disclose what He can be to all who willingly put their trust in Him.

If God wasn’t there in the desert, they’d have nothing. But He was there, and they were able to have everything! All that He wanted them to do was to have faith in Him, trust in Him and continue to believe in Him. Then He’d be able to carry them safely through the wilderness and lead them out! This illustrates that we need to have faith in God, or more accurately, have the faith of God, which is divine faith.

All of Job’s Own Efforts to be Right With God Were Useless

Job had to consider all of his personal uprightness as worthless, and put an end to it, and the same with his unrighteousness. It was necessary for him, like Israel in the desert, to reach his own end. He had to learn the lesson that his own attempts at being right in God’s sight were no better than filthy rags. He also needed to learn to not put his trust in himself, no matter how much moral refinement he might have. The only way He could find genuine perfection was in God. The same is true with all the people of God. For all who consider their moral conduct to be perfect, like Job, this lesson is hard to take.

Jesus Had No Trust in Man

The true Job was Jesus, Who declared over and over in the Psalms that He trusted no man, but God alone. “…Jesus did not commit Himself unto them, because He knew all men…” (John 2:24). He was already aware that all people, whether they’re good or bad, are liars. He didn’t even trust Himself to those claiming to have faith in Him, since He knew that all men cannot be trusted ultimately. Nevertheless, He keeps on extending His love and concern to everyone who has faith in Him and His Word.

We Can’t Work for Our Uprightness

There’s only one way that people can acquire the virtue of Christ. We must believe that He’s righteous, and trust God for our own uprightness. We can’t have right-mindedness toward God merely by working for it. To continue to maintain faith in Him we have to be believing in God. No one can enter the Kingdom of God through righteous works alone, but only through having faith in Christ. This is also the only way to be born into His coming kingdom. Our solemn declaration should be that we can receive Christ’s righteousness only by having faith and trust in Him by the power of His shed blood.

The More Jesus Was Attacked the More He Trusted in God

Jesus’ faith as man was perfect, no matter what kind of hatred, distress or adversity He was required to go through. The more brutal the violent attacks on Him became, the more He continued to trust in God. As God’s Servant, He has a righteous glory which kept on shining during everything He had to endure. He voluntarily took on this position of dependence and suffering because He represented, and was united with, His people. And if we hope to have what is in Christ, then, by faith, we have to enter into living union with Him.

“For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus”(Galatians 3:26). Knowing this will encourage us during our own trials. We keep our faith up through situations like these, because they’re proof that our Savior already walked down the same difficult paths that we’ll be required to take. Jesus put His total trust in God, and God delivered Him. And He has made a similar deliverance available for all humanity.

The Pain and Suffering in His Children is to Bring Them Into a Greater Trust in Him

God isn’t unconcerned about the pain and suffering His children have to endure. He permits them for our own good. Someday, all evil workers will be destroyed, and even evil itself will be also. Then the righteousness of God will ultimately reign. In the meantime, all with true faith are waiting patiently and continuing to trust in God. Jesus has already gone ahead of us as the forerunner for all who continue to trust in Him. This provides our guarantee that we’ll be saved for all eternity. He makes this guarantee personally to fulfill the promises made to all the brokenhearted. They can therefore go to Him for protection, and can hang onto Him as their only hope.   

Though Forsaken on the Cross Jesus Still Trusted God

The only righteous Man Who ever lived declared that God had forsaken Him, even though Christ had led a morally perfect life of total obedience. It’s hard for the people of God to understand why Jesus said this. He was forsaken on the Cross, yet He never stopped maintaining trust and belief in the endless and unwavering love of His Heavenly Father. This is where we can see the triumph of true faith. The only way faith in God can be put into practice is through Christ.

But all those who don’t believe in the Divine Savior aren’t truly believing in God, “for he that hath not the Son hath not the Father” (1 John 2:23). Faith and hope that are alive are established on God Himself, not simply on statements about Him. No matter what condition the people of God may be in, we can put our faith in Him to work, and He’ll always honor it.

Even though Christ was in the presence of His Heavenly Father, He was made sin. He cried out in vain to the One Who left Him helpless and without protection, despite the fact that Christ’s perfect faith and trust were totally centered in Him. He suffered yet He believed God. Then He was able to overcome in a manner that no one else could. The entire time of His life on earth, Christ put His trust in God. When He was hanging on the Cross, He trusted God. And now that He’s on His throne, He’s still trusting God.

Christ accomplished more than completing God’s salvation plan, because He’s both the Author and the Finisher of our faith. All who put their trust in Him will discover that the One who completed His own ministry on the Cross is more than able to offer help for us to finish ours.

Jesus Wants to Find Those Who Will Trust in Him

Faith in God means that we maintain confident trust in His character and saving work through His Son, Jesus Christ, and His finished work on the Cross. What is Christ looking for in return? People who’ll believe and trust in Him! The only thing He asked His disciples to do was believe.

Faith, Trust, and Belief in Christ Doesn’t Come Naturally

Now He wants us to take up His Cross, to give it honor, and to receive victory by faith in the overcoming power of His shed blood. This kind of faith, trust and belief isn’t normally in us, but is only in the Lord! Self-righteous people get offended when they’re told that “without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6). But God requires us to have faith in His Beloved Son Whom He sent to save mankind! Regardless of how “devout” they may be, man’s works are “dead works” otherwise.

Man Is Not Born Upright Morally

The true, original nature of man is not morally upright—it’s sinful, which makes man subject to God’s wrath. Man therefore needs to have strict regard for moral principles in which God can’t find any defect. Only the Gospel of Christ offers this, and it’s only on the principle of faith in a Savior Who was willing to shed His blood for our sake.

We Can’t Make Ourselves God’s Children

People can’t become a child of God by natural birth, by willpower or by personal determination. We can only become a child of God by having personal, living faith in Jesus Christ. “…ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:26). But merely hearing and understanding the good news about Jesus Christ (the Gospel) is not the same as being saved by God. It also has to be obeyed.

It Takes True Surrender and Repentance

We need to make a definite and complete surrender of our heart and life to God. We also need to have faith in the precious blood His Son shed on the Cross as a covering for our sin. The Only ones who can truly worship God are those who have become children of God by a spiritual birth through faith in Jesus Christ. All people who are willing to repent of their sins and have faith in Him will be saved. But those who refuse these requirements (regardless of how morally right they may otherwise be) will be lost.

We Are Both Saved and Preserved by Faith

How can we know if we’re saved? We can’t judge by trusting in our own work, no matter how good or even perfect it may be—but only by having faith and trust as we believe in the work of Jesus when He died on the Cross in our place. “For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). We’re not only saved by faith, but are also preserved by faith.

Faith Trusts and Believes in an Unseen God

Faith is completely trusting and believing in God and being totally loyal to Him, even if we can’t see Him or what He’s doing. Whatever storms or sufferings may come in our lives, maintaining faith and trust in God will lead us to firmly believe continually that He’ll be there to see us through it all to the end. Then we’ll be with Him forever!

He has a specific plan for everyone on Earth who truly believes in Him. We therefore need to trust Him by faith, and believe and obey whatever He says to our heart. The whole goal of faith is to trust God with our life and everything in it. Our challenge is to stand fast and strong in faith, and to continue to trust and believe in God. Then He’ll take care of us in more ways than we can ever imagine!

[Additional image credits: Featured image (when applicable) by Joey Velasquez from Pixabay; Opening image by image by Alem Coksa from Pixabay]