FAITH IN WHOM?

“SO THEN, FAITH COMES BY HEARING, AND HEARING BY THE WORD OF GOD.” ROMANS 10:17


While at the recent Organic Church Conference, God opened this verse to me in a way I had never seen before; a favorite verse of Preachers who like to use it as a hammer of legalism, it is usually preached as a way to compel people to read their Bibles or to “faithfully” attend their local congregations (based upon whatever the local pastor determines “faithful” to be).

It is, in fact saying so much more; “SO THEN, FAITH COMES BY HEARING AND HEARING BY THE WORD OF GOD”, This passage has so much more to do with “WHO” than it does with “WHAT”, it begs the question, “Who” is The Word of God?

Faith can only come through relationship with Jesus Christ. This verse is prefaced by the Apostle saying, “FOR WHOSOEVER SHALL CALL UPON THE NAME OF THE LORD SHALL BE SAVED.” ROMANS 10:13 Paul was saying much more than we need to hear a lot of preaching. We can hear preaching our entire lives and yet experience true faith. We know by context that He was not saying you need to read your Bibles, because they didn’t yet have The Bible and yet how many times have we hear this verse preached that way?

No! “FAITH COMES BY HEARING AND HEARING BY THE WORD OF GOD”; Jesus said over and over, “HE THAT HATH EARS TO HEAR, LET HIM HEAR.” MATTHEW 11:15 Frail man, cannot upon his own, see God or find God or know God; thus we have all the man-made religions that worship man-made gods, they are born of the feeble attempt of the carnal to experience the spiritual. However Jesus IS The Word of God and He is The Light; He expels our darkness that we might see God, Jesus is The Way, The Door, He said “NO MAN COMES TO THE FATHER EXCEPT THROUGH ME.” Jesus is The Truth; We can only See, Hear and Know the Father in as much as we SEE, HEAR and KNOW The One who is The Truth; Jesus said, “HE THAT HAS SEEN ME HAS SEEN THE FATHER” JOHN 14:9 The Apostle Paul was saying so much more about knowing Jesus; being in relationship with Jesus, experiencing life in Jesus than he was enforcing religious dogma.

“SO THEN, FAITH COMES BY HEARING AND HEARING BY JESUS (who IS THE Word of God) ”; KNOWING HIM (not merely knowing about Him), EXPERIENCING HIM (having relationship as a brother and friend), living now and forever through Him for as Paul says, “FOR IN HIM WE LIVE, AND MOVE, AND HAVE OUR BEING” ACT 17:28 Not only is Christ the Word; He is also the “Preacher” of the Word, “SO THEN, FAITH COMES BY HEARING AND HEARING BY THE WORD OF GOD” AMEN!