The Apostle Paul - “Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6 NIV)
Freddy grew up in church. He learned all of the Bible stories in Sunday School and attended worship services with his mother. Freddy’s mother often read to him from a big book of Bible stories. He loved learning the stories and amazed those in his church with his Bible knowledge as he grew. However, to him the stories in the Bible were simply stories. He felt as if he had learned them as moral lessons to help him be a good boy and grow to be a good man. In truth, however, Freddy did not truly believe God existed.
In order for us to relate to God, we must have faith in Him. The Apostle Paul writes, “Without faith no one can please God. Anyone who comes to God must believe that He is real and He rewards those who truly want to find Him.” (Hebrews 11:6 ICB) In other words, Faith is required to accept the existence and reality of God. This doesn’t make sense to those who deny His existence. King David once wrote, “The fool says in his heart, ‘there is no God.’ They are corrupt, and their ways are vile; there is no one who does good. God looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, and any who seek God. Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.” (Psalm 53:1-3)
When Freddy was in elementary school, he was in a musical about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He learned the story of their faith in the Lord. He heard them cry out to Nebuchadnezzar “We do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and He will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if He does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.’” (Daniel 3:16-18 NIV). Freddy was impressed by this story, but in his mind, it was only a story.
However, when Freddy was sixteen, something changed. He realized that the stories he read were about a real God who sent His real Son who died a real death on a real cross to show the real world of the real love He had for them. On that day, Freddy went from having knowledge about God to having faith in God. He confessed his sins and surrendered His life to Jesus. He now has a real relationship with God.
Followup Activity - In your journal or on a piece of paper, write out Hebrews 11:6. Read it over several times today, doing your best to memorize the verse. If you’re leading your family through this devotion, lead everyone to write out the verse, then try to quote it as a family during your next meal time together.
Prayer for Today - Lord, I believe that You are real and desire to have a strong relationship with me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.