Faith Does Not Make Life Easy But It Does Make All Things Possible!

By Dr. Martin G Tharp PhD

How do you describe faith or explain faith that is intangible? The purpose of this book is not to define faith in such a way that it becomes a simple matter to understand or acquire, but rather an attempt to address the fact that although your faith may be exceptional, it certainly does NOT make life easy. However, it DOES make ALL THINGS POSSIBlE!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dr. Martin G Tharp PhD
• Release date: Mar 8, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301661237

Dr. Martin G Tharp PhD

Dr. Martin Tharp has been an avid student of the Bible for many years and holds a Bachelor, Master and eight Doctorates, one honorary and seven earned, including a Doctor. of Literature and two PhDs. He has been in full time ministry for over fifty-seven years and has authored forty-nine books to date, many of which are being used as curriculum in Bible colleges around the United States and abroad. He has also penned a number of gospel songs and recorded thirty-three albums as well as being actively involved in a school ministry to Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom for the past thirty-eight years, and Dr. Tharp has been honored twice by members of parliament in Ireland for their work in the Protestant and Catholic schools. He and his wife, Sharon, along with Maranda Howells, travel extensively across the USA and the whole of the British Isles holding evangelistic crusades in the churches of both countries.

Book preview

Faith

Does NOT Make Life Easy....

But It Does

Make ALL Things Possible!

By Martin G. Tharp Ph.D.

Copyright 2013 Martin Tharp Ph.D.

Smashwords edition

Smashwords Edition, License Notes; This ebook is licensed for your own personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this ebook with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.. Scripture quotations identified KJV are from the Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible, King James Version. Copyright 1984, 1991 by AMG International, INC and the Living Bible Copyright 1971, 1986 by Tyndale House Publishers INC

Table of Contents

Introduction

1. What Is Faith?

2. A Personal Walk Of Faith; A Trilogy Of Miracles

3. The Coronary in 1961

4. A Personal Walk of Faith; A Trilogy Of Miracles

5. The Walk Of Faith; Abel

6. The Walk Of Faith; Enoch

7. The Power Of Faith; Abraham

8. Faith And Works; Abraham and Isaac

9. The Courage Of Faith

10. The Walk Of Faith; Barak

11. The Walk Of Faith; Gideon

12. The Walk Of Faith; Jephthah

13. The Walk Of Faith; Samson

14. The Walk Of Faith; Jericho and Rahab

15. The Theology Of Faith; Ratified By Works

16. The Measure Of Faith

17. The Theology Of Faith

18. Faith And Sin Cannot Co-exist

19. The Walk Of Faith

20. A Personal Faith

21. Walking By Faith; Living in Doubt

22. It’s All In The Mind

23. Fear And Faith Cannot Live In The Same Heart

24. Faith & Disobedience Cannot Co-exist

Study Questions

Bibliography

About The Author

Introduction

How would you describe faith which is the indescribable? Or, how would you explain faith that is intangible? Yet faith (the indescribable and intangible) is the only mandatory reaction as well as the essential response of man to the grace of God. According to the book of Hebrews, a man who is void of faith cannot please God.

"Without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him" (Hebrews 11:6).

Faith is the nominal form of the verb to believe. Faith is "pistis" in the Greek, while to believe is "pisteuein". Both words represent the idea of trust and confidence.

Justification is the result of the believer’s faith in the grace of God and provision for salvation. The lives of the Biblical heroes and heroines which are enumerated within the book of Hebrews as well as in this book, are an apt reflection of the behavior which God approves of.

There are four primary characteristics of faith;

1. Faith is the substance "hupostasts", (Greek) or foundation of things for which we hope. The meaning is that faith is the solid, unshakable confidence in God which is built upon the assurance that He will be faithful to His promises.

2. Faith is the evidence at work in life itself that God and other unseen things do in fact subsist.

This is not to imply that faith is a blind leap in the dark, but rather, faith is a confident commitment to One about whom abundant evidence bears ample testimony.

3. Faith is a leap forward into the incomparable light of spiritual comprehension.

4. Faith does Not Make Life Easy, But It Does Make All Things Possible!

At the outset of this book it was a temptation to simply concentrate on events which occurred in our own ministry over the past fifty years and even though I resisted the urge, I did include a few of the personal reasons why I am so positive and adamant about the fact that Faith does not make life easy, but I am just as positive and adamant that Faith does make all things possible!

Chapter One

What Is Faith?

The title to this first chapter is a question which has been asked for centuries! I am personally convinced that an explanation given by me or anyone else will never be completely satisfactory. Those who have not experienced the new birth could never fully understand no matter how crystal clear the commentary may be.

The actual purpose of this book is not an attempt to define faith in such a way that it becomes a simple matter to understand or acquire, but rather an attempt to address the fact that although your faith or my faith may be exceptional, it has certainly not made my life easy! However, it has indeed made all things possible!

Now having said that, may we begin by an examination of the single most quoted Scripture in the entire Bible, with the possible exception of John 3:16;

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear" (Hebrews 11:1-3).

Faith, which is utilized a total of two hundred and thirty-three times in the Bible, is the word that has been the accepted translation of the Greek word Pistis, pronounced pis'-tis; which means persuasion, that is, credence; moral conviction (of religious truth, or the truthfulness of God or a religious teacher), especially reliance upon Christ for salvation; abstractly constancy in such profession; by extension the system of religious (Gospel) truth itself:—assurance, belief, believe, faith, fidelity. (Strong’s Exhaustive Hebrew-Greek Concordance Of The Bible).

Faith gives reality or substance to things hoped for!

The word which has been properly translated substance, comes from the Greek word Hupostasis, pronounced hoop-os'-tas-is, is from a compound of two Greek words Hupo, and histemi; a setting under or a support, that is, (figuratively) concretely essence, or abstractly assurance objectively or subjectively: confidence, confident, person, substance. It simply means that which is placed under then ground, or basis, foundation, support. It also indicates a reality, substance, or existence. In other words, a contradistinction from what is unreal, imaginary, or deceptive .

Consider this; it would seem to me that the word substance, has reference to something which imparts the reality of faith into full view of the mind, those things which are not seen, but which serve to distinguish them from those things which are unreal and illusive. It is also what enables us to feel and act as if the things hoped for are already a reality! Perhaps put another way; that which causes the things hoped for, to exert an influence over us, urging us to act as if we have actually seen or possessed them. Faith has the capability of accomplishing this action on other subjects as well as religion.

For example;

1. Even in the event that you have personally never been a visitor there, a belief or faith that there is such a place as New York City, leads you to act as if it is true, then if you have an occasion to visit, faith encourages you to buy a ticket!

2. A belief or faith that an investment which may be made in a certain product or market will become lucrative, leads people to release the funds necessary to acquire that which they are convinced is a good investment, but it is faith which provides the impetus necessary to provoke an action, investing as if its success were already an established fact.

3. A belief in the honesty or sincerity of someone else leads us to act as if it is an already proven fact. As long as that faith continues, whether it be well-founded or not, faith gives it all the force of reality in what is believed.

4. There are myriads of things which we may believe in but faith makes us feel and act as if we are already witnesses to their validity.

5. Although we do not see the things of eternity yet, our faith believes the words of Paul that we shall be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye!

6. With the exception of a very small percentage of people on this earth, the remainder would readily agree that we do not see, nor have we ever seen God with our natural eyes, yet our faith urges us to pray, believing that He whom we have not seen hears and answers our prayers!

7. Although we have never seen or visited Heaven, because of our faith, we are all making plans to go there!

8. There are very few individuals recorded in the Bible who have ever seen an Angel, yet by faith, we accept their word for the concept that there is a distinct possibility of Angels watching over us, and the fact that we may at some point in our lives entertain Angels unawares, yet our faith speaks for us as we accept what we have never seen or experienced!

9. We have never viewed the redeemed in glory, or seen the place where Moses and Elias appeared from on the Mount of Transfiguration, yet our faith refuses to doubt that they were there and indeed seen by Peter, James and John!

10. We accept as fact the miraculous salvation experience of all who live by faith and who act as if they are under its influence.

11. Faith provides the reality Of things hoped for in the view of the mind. The great hope of the Christian which can only be acquired through faith, is that one day we are to be admitted into Heaven, to be raised up in that last great day from the slumbers of the tomb and made perfectly free from the ravages of sickness or sin.

12. Under the influence of faith we allow those concepts to control our minds, embracing them as if they were already an accepted reality as;

The evidence of things not seen.

13. Our faith accepts and believes in the existence of God, Heaven and Angels, as well as the glories of another world suited and prepared especially for the redeemed.

I find it interesting that the word rendered evidence occurs in the New Testament only in Hebrews, chapter eleven and in 2 Timothy chapter three;

"All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works" (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

The word reproof, is translated in 2 Timothy from the same Greek word that is translated evidence, in the eleventh chapter of the book of Hebrews. Both words are derived from a single Greek word; Elegchos; pronounced el'-eng-khos, meaning proof, conviction, evidence, or reproof.

Where it is rendered reproof, in the King James Bible, it simply means proof, the means of proving, or evidence. Proof which convinces another of error or guilt, vindication or defense; then summary or contents. The idea of evidence which determines or demonstrates the guilt or innocence in the matter under consideration, seems to be the elementary idea in the Word of God.

14. Faith in the spiritual realm is a declaration which answers all the objectives of a convincing argument, or is within itself a convincing debate in the mind of the real existence of; The evidence of things not seen.

Here are some questions which we should be obliged to answer;

1. Is faith alone a solid argument within itself?

YES! When that faith is based on the Word of God!

2. Is it reasonable to rely totally on faith as a means of being convinced of a matter?

YES! When that faith is based on the Word of God!

3. Is mere faith a consideration which could ever convince a rational mind?

YES! When that faith is based on the Word of God!

To the nonbeliever, faith is no argument for the truth of what is believed, but when a man who has never seen it believes that there is such a place as New York City, because of his belief in the numerous testimonies in regard to it which he has heard and read, it is to his mind a sufficient, rational proof of its existence, therefore by faith he would act on that belief without hesitation.

A son who gives credence to the declaration or the promise of his father who has never deceived him, that declaration and promise is duly accepted by faith and is without question accepted as truth! Faith in his father is to him grounds for an unswerving conviction and he will act as if those promises were already a fact.

Just a thought;

In dealing with my youngest son who was six or seven at the time, when he requested something which he either did not need or created a problem for his mom or me, I had a habit of telling him I will think about it. On one of those occasions I heard him ask his mother for the same thing he had just requested of me.

When she said; Tony, why don’t you go ask your dad? His response was; I already did mom! And what did he say? He said NO! At that point I entered the conversation; Tony, I did not say no, I said I would think about it! He just turned and walked away, but I heard him mumble these words in disgust as he went; I will think about it, means NO!

I discovered that I had indeed unintentionally instilled a faith of a sorts in the mind of my small son, his faith was strong that when he received the response of; I’ll think about it, he was certain that those words meant NO!

I once wondered if our Heavenly Father has ever patiently listened to our requests and thought about saying; I WILL THINK ABOUT IT! Unlike you and I, the answers from our Heavenly Father are yea or nay, with no shadow of turning!

To the Christian who believes what God says, although he has never seen Heaven, or an Angel; and though he has never seen with his natural eyes his Redeemer, nor a body raised from the dead, faith provides the evidence which is acceptable and satisfactory to his mind that in regard to what God has spoken on these subjects, faith will not allow them to be doubted!

The Word of God spoken through the study of the Scriptures on virtually any subject is a far more convincing argument than the deductions of a man’s own reasoning. The object of the Apostle, in Hebrews chapter eleven, is not to illustrate the nature of saving faith, but rather to describe the power of faith which will produce an unwavering confidence in God.

At this juncture I would like to state in this very first chapter that for me or anyone else to undertake a project the magnitude which the subject of this book represents, is either foolhardy or an act of courage. I would like to believe that for me it is an extreme act of courage, since there are no doubt, thousands of books in print on the subject of faith by authors of far greater ability than I, whose nomenclature far exceeds my own.

Although all of my thirty-four books prior to this point, were revelations to me, inspired by the anointing of the Holy Spirit, I feel quite certain that the subject matter of all those books including this one, has also been addressed by myriads of others. Therefore, it is my sincere desire that a different point of view may open an avenue to you, dear reader, that will stir something in your spirit which will be of benefit to you in your Christian walk.

Faith has been the vehicle which has carried me personally, through my entire Christian life. This year I will celebrate my fiftieth year in the Ministry and it has certainly not passed without challenges! Some of those challenges have proven to me over and over again, that Faith Does Not Make Life Easy!

During those fifty years of ministry, I have suffered eighteen coronaries which have been verified by physicians, plus seven strokes. The seventh ultimately left my body debilitated to the point that even though I could close both of my eyes, I could still see from my right eye.

My left hand and arm refused to cooperate in even the smallest task and the feeling in the right side of my face along with my right leg continued to deteriorate in spite of the affirmations of my faith, coupled with my faithful and strong proclamations of faith!

On no less than seven occasions during that last period, I was rushed to the hospital and after an extensive examination, the prognosis was clear! I was informed that if I should live for the next forty-eight hours, that would be a miracle! The fact that I am very much alive and all my facilities are once again in working order in spite of their dire predictions, I am a living testimonial that; Faith Does Not Make Life Easy, But It Does, Make All Things Possible!

The eleventh chapter of the book of Hebrews has been described in a wide variety of forms such as the following;

1. Now Faith,

2. The Saints’ Hall of faith fame,

3. A chronicle of the heroes of Faith,

4. The Faith honor roll of the Old Testament Saints,

5. The Creme de la creme of the New Testament Testimonials, of faith and simply as;

6. The Faith Chapter.

These are but a few of the titles that have been given to Hebrews eleven, but I feel certain that possibly you may be able to add others to my list. To say that this chapter deals with the preeminence and the excellency of faith, would be a gross understatement. Although it fits perfectly into the stream and ideology of the Epistle, in turn it affirms that the present is undoubtedly an improvement over the old.

According to the writings of the Apostle Paul, the first century Israelite basically saw everything as a matter of works. Even after being shown the basic truths of the New Covenant, they had a disturbing tendency to attempt to fit those new principles into the old mold of works which they accepted as proof of righteousness.

At the time of Christ, Judaism no longer contained the supernatural system which God had originally instituted, for it had been twisted into a system of works, with myriads of legalistic requirements. Unfortunately, it had become a system of human endeavors, based on egotism, self-deliverance, self-justification and self-glorification, basically omitting God from the process and replacing Him with a humanistic dependence on self.

It was appallingly far removed from the faith system that God had originally instituted and in many ways Judaism had become basically a religious cult built on works and questionable ethics, for even the divinely ordained religion of Judaism was falsified without recognition that its fulfillment could only be accomplished in the person of Jesus Christ.

As with all systems which find their fulfillment in works, it was despised by God, specifically because it was an adulteration of the true system which He Himself had instituted. The Scriptures are crystal clear on this fact that God has never redeemed man by works, but always by faith.

The eleventh chapter of the book of Hebrews makes it clear, that from the time of Adam onward, God has honored and recognized faith, never works as a vehicle which would or could produce salvation! Paul makes it clear that although works are a by-product of faith, works alone can never be an acceptable means of acquiring salvation. God has never encouraged nor tolerated a self-imposed ethical system as a means of reaching Him.

Faith, the theme of chapter eleven, connects with the previous chapter, where the writer has presented the principle of salvation by faith. The saints which are named in chapter eleven serve as everlasting examples of living by faith.

Habakkuk, who was a Jewish prophet, spoke these words, reinforcing the truth that faith was the principle plan of redemption that God had always honored.

"Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith" (Habukkuk. 2:4).

The writer of the book of Hebrews has not only agreed with that Jewish Prophet, who reinforces the concept that faith is not only the way to life, by faith is also the only way to live.

"Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him" (Hebrews 10:28).

Faith, was not a principle which originated in the New Testament, it was also very much in operation in the Old. Faith became activated the moment man transgressed through disobedience and found himself requiring a means whereby he could return to God!

In actuality, faith originated before the world as we know it began, since the Scriptures are crystal clear that God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world!

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will (Ephesians 1:3-5).

The only means which guarantees our acceptance in Christ is faith in the redemptive power of the blood of our risen Savior, activated by the demonstration of our faith! The pathway to God is clearly marked faith! It has always been and shall forever be!

Between the statement of the faith principle and the long list of Old Testament men and women who illustrated it, chapter eleven of the book of Hebrews is