A very important subject. This theme describes what Christians need in the end time and most probably don't have. We find the expression `the faith of Jesus' in one text in the Bible, only one other text uses a similar expression where we read,

"He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints." Rev. 13:10.

The other scripture speaks of the same group of people but it delineates the kind of faith they have. The big question, what type of faith the saints have, will become clearer in our mind.

We read,

"Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 14:12.

Therefore, we are told here that the kind of faith God's people will have is `the faith of Jesus.' How awesome that faith is we shall present now.

First we want to study the Biblical concept of faith.

What is faith?

Let us begin with the genealogy of God's faithful people in Genesis .

We read about nine times in there,

"And all the days of ... was ... years and he died." Gen. 5:5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 27, 31; 9:29.

Nine of the antideluvian patriarchs passed through the experience of death. But the list admits one exception. Let us look at that exception.

We read,

"And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters: And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years: And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him." Gen. 5: 22-24.

Why did God take Enoch?

Because `he walked with God.'

That does not need to mean that the other heroes of faith in this list did not walk with God, it just means that Enoch `walked with God' in a special sense, and because of that `God took him.'

What do these expressions `walk with God and `God took him' mean?

The text does not tell us to where God took him. Actually, it does not say here that Enoch did not die.

To find the answer let us read another scripture. We read here,

"By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God." Hebr. 11:5.

We notice that the Bible says, that Enoch had "faith". Then it says, he was translated which ought to mean that he was transfered from one place to another. Then it says, that he did `not see death.'

Did Enoch die? No!

Did all of the other pre-Flood hereos of faith die? Yes!

Enoch was the singular exception.

Genesis tells us that God `translated' him and then gives an explanation, saying Enoch had this testimony, ... that `he pleased God.'

What does it mean to walk with God? It means to `please God.'

What does it mean to `please God?'

The next verse explains the meaning.

We read,

"But without faith it is impossible to please [...God]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." Hebr. 11:6.

We may therefore know, that it is impossible to `please' God without faith in God.

Evidently Enoch had great faith in God, a special type of faith, which evidently sets him appart from all the other patriarchs in Genesis 5. That is what we want to look into.

So what is faith? This is a question we want to explore so we can understand what `the faith of Jesus is.'

One scripture gives us a negative definition of what faith is, where its says,

". . . whatsoever is not of faith is sin." Romans 14:23.

The other positive answer to what faith is, gives us the following comprehensive `faith defining' scripture,

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Hebr. 11:1.

Let us ask, `Are the things we hope for future or are they present?'

They are future.

What about the words `substance' and `evidence', what do they mean?

Let us consider a more accurate translation.

The word `substance' really means assurance.

The text would then say, `Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for.'

It is the assurance we may have now, that the things you hoped for, will actually happen.

It is the present surety of a future hope.

The word `evidence' is better translated as `proof.'

The text would read then, so `faith is the proof' of the things that you cannot see.

The Bible says, faith makes invisible things real, and it makes future things present.

That is the message we find here in Hebrews 11 verse 1.

The Bible is Future Oriented

The Bible is future oriented and it is oriented towards the invisible world, - things that happen, happen, and looking toward things that you cannot see - faith makes them real.

Faith is then all about things that you cannot see, which have not yet happened, as if they happened already.

What are the dynamics of that kind of faith? What is the `make-up' of faith?

Through study you can find that "faith" is really clustered around at least six principle ideas.

You can never speak about faith, for example, without saying at the same time

1. Faith is about the Word of God, God is speaking through His Word.

   Because "faith" is fundamentally faith in what God says. When God speaks, we believe it. There cannot be a disconnect between the two.

2. Faith is about hope

   ... as we saw in Hebrews 11 verse 1, where it says, `faith is the substance of things hoped for.'

   It means, what we have "faith" about is going to happen.

   The kind of `hope' is not like any kind of expression like when we say, `I hope so.' The kind of hope the Bible refers to, is the hope which is firmly established as a reality because faith makes it real, even though it hasn't come about yet.

   "Faith" makes what you `hope' real.

   "Faith" is not connected with something you merely `believe in your head,' but rather,

3. faith is responding actively to God's Word.

   The type of "faith" the Bible talks about is a type of faith that you will do something about. In the world it is like seeing the plans of a new invention and you get to work on it because you believe it will be a success. Bible faith is even more goal oriented.

   This type of "faith" is active; it moves; it is dynamic. It has to do with believing God's Word enough to do what God's Word tells you to do.

   That makes Bible faith to be a dynamic, active concept rather than a static, largely inactive concept.

   Another concept that is connected with the cluster of faith is the idea, that

4. faith makes the invisible visible.

   In other words, people who have faith see things, that others don't see.

   This type of "faith" allows people to see that which is invisible. It gives you keen discernment to see things, that normal, everyday people, cannot see.

   This concept is in the definition of Hebrews chapter 11, verse 1, where it says,

   `... faith is the evidence or proof of things that you cannot see.'

   So, if you read, `Jesus created the world in six days, and he rested on the seventh day,' how do you know that to be true?

   Was anyone there to witness it? No! Only Jesus, the eyewitness, was there.

   That means we can `know that it is true, because God says so; and when God says so, you can take it to the bank.'

   Even though no one saw it, it is true, because God's Word makes it to be true.

   That is why "faith" makes it possible for people to `see' spiritually speaking, the invisible.

   Another portion of the cluster is, that

5. faith makes the impossible possible.

   Why? Because with God all things are possible. That is why many things we find in the Bible spoken about, seem humanly speaking, to be impossible, and yet, when people have faith, impossibilities take place - because with God all things are possible, Mt. 19:26.

   Lastly,

6. faith is always rewarded.

   In other words, what you cannot see now, if you have faith, some day you will see it.

   What you accept by faith now, some day your physical eye will clearly grasp and see it.

   That is how faith will always be rewarded in the end, Rev. 22:12; Lk. 6:23. God will always recompense your faith.

Key Observations: Faith is always connected with these six ideas: the Word of God, hope, being active, it makes the invisible visible, it makes the impossible possible and it is always rewarded.

Study in More Detail

Let us study each of these six elements in more detail.

How is the Word of God connected with faith?

We want to mention that we find the story of the great heroes of faith in Hebrews chapter 11.

It is an honor role of the greatest heroes that lived in the Old Testament period - probably up to the time of Christ.

Almost in every case, God spoke to an individual and that individual believed what God said, and acted upon it.

One example is Noah. Did God talk to Noah? Yes!

What did God say to Noah?

God said, `It is going to rain.'

Before that it had never rained, because God's Word says so, Gen. 2:5.

Noah believed God's Word on this basis. Faith is always trusting God's Word, on what God says. The two cannot be disconnected.

How was it with Abraham when God said, `Get thee out of thy country?'

What did Abraham do? He knew God spoke, so he started packing. It was based on faith in what God said.

So too was the birth of Isaac. When informed of God, Abraham and Sarah realized they had to do something about it to make that become true - their active faith. And it was so in their old age.

So too it was with Moses. God said, `Moses, I want you to lead this rebellious people out of Egypt.'

What did Moses do? He says, `God says it, I believe it, and that settles it for me.'

From the Bible we know, that faith is always linked with God speaking and the hearer believing implicitly what God says.

That is why we read,

"For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." Isaiah 55:10,11.

God's Word will never return empty. All His prophecies are fulfilled exactly once it is all over. There is no word of God, that will not come about. If it seems something did not come about, look for faulty human understanding.

When God sends His word, it will always accomplish what it says to do. His word, as we read, has power, for he says,

"... my word ... shall accomplish that which I please and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I send it." Isa. 55:10,11.

Whenever we respond to the Word of God in faith, we will experience that it has tremendous power.

Faith and Hope

But we also learned that faith is connected with hope.

We read,

"For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?" Romans 8:24.

Here Paul states the obvious. But how many times is it that we haven't seen the obvious?

So, are you saved in Jesus? Yes?

Are you in heaven yet? ... in a certain sense you may think so. Are you physically in heaven yet? No.

So, even though you are saved, do you still have hope?

What are you hoping for?

You are hoping that eventually Jesus will come to bring ultimate salvation - bring you into the kingdom. You believe, because of what He did, He is not wasting all that but will come again and get you to be where He is, forevermore.

That is why we sing, `We have this hope, which burns in our hearts ...'

But, what does Paul mean with, `hope that is seen, is not hope?'

How can we understand that? If you already got what you hoped for, why do you need to still have hope?

Example: Someone may say, `Oh, brothers and sisters, I hope that we can preach the gospel in all the world someday.'

Will you reply, `But we do that already. So what are you hoping for?'

We said, `We hope ...', in other words, we do not yet have arrived at the moment when we are going to be with Jesus.

We have that guaranteed hope, and by faith we know it is true. We know its coming, but it is not yet here.

We see, therefore, that faith is linked with hope.

Hope in something that has not taken place yet, but hope makes that faith real now. Because when Jesus came, he gave a down payment, and he is not going to waste his down payment.

Faith is Active

We also learned that faith is also active. We read,

"Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." James 2:17.

Imagine God saying, `Noah, I am going to send a flood,' and Noah saying, `Yes, Lord, yes, Lord, Hallelujah, Praise the Lord,' without ever doing anything about it.

God says, `I am going to send a flood, Noah.'

And Noah says, `Thanks for letting me know, I will sit right here and watch it come down.'

But, what did Noah do as soon as God said there is a flood coming?

He got out his tools and started working.

Noah showed his faith by his actions.

His faith was manifested in his works, even though it had never rained.

So, when you read Hebrews chapter 11, you will notice that everybody is doing something. Those who have faith are not only believing something, they are believing and doing something about it.

For example:

1. Enoch pleased God
   
2. Abel offered a better sacrifice
   
3. Noah built an ark
   
4. Abraham left his place of abode
   
5. Abraham offered his only son
   
6. Moses chose affliction
   
7. By faith Israel compassed Jericho
   
8. By faith Rahab received the spies
   
9. God revealed to Elias the secret words of the King of Israel.[150]

In all these accounts we see the common factor that faith is responding to what God says and believing it enough to do something about it.

So when God says, `Bring all the tithes and offerings into the store house, that is a hard word for many. Many say, `How can I pay my tithe, I don't even have enough money to eat with.'

Are we to think that God will ask us to do something and not provide for us? Do we really believe that all His biddings are enablings? Do we believe that, what God asks for He gives?

How do we know?

On the matter of the tithe, God says, if you invest in the kingdom of God and His righteousness first, then I am going to open up the windows of heaven and I am going to pour out my blessings till there is not enough room for it to receive it.

So, we know that the word faith does not have anything to do with intellectual assent. Faith is an action word.

People who have faith do things . . . do great things for God.

Invisible Realities

We also said, that faith allows people to see the invisible.

But what does invisible mean?

It means that you cannot see something. The following, therefore, is a paradoxical statement. Moses is a good example. He saw the invisible.

"By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible." Hebr. 11:27.

So, we read that Moses acted based on his faith. Moses `forsook', he left Egypt for he saw that which was invisible.

What allowed Moses to see the invisible? It was faith that allowed for that.

For many of us today, was it humanly speaking absurd to leave Egypt?

What was Moses going to be if he had stayed in Egypt?

Yes, he would have become king. He would have become one of the pharaohs.

All of the gold, silver, and treasures would have been his. Also the pyramids, the prestige and honor, the power and servants on every side, riches without limits ... But God said, `I want you to go out into the desert, to Canaan.

Was Moses sure that Israel was going to enter Canaan?

Yes, he was. How did he know?

He knew, because God said so.

Yes, we may have said, `Oh, I better wait and see.' But in the Bible, people who have faith, see it before it happens because they have faith.

So it was, God says to Moses, `Moses, you either choose to be the greatest pharaoh probably of all history in the world, or else, you believe that we are going to Canaan and you are going to spend 40 years during which the children of Israel will murmur against you, they will want to stone you ... it is going to be hot, there will be serpents ... make your choice Moses.'

Either burnt in the hand or dew in the bush.

What was Moses choice? He decided to leave with the people of God and go to Canaan, for he believed God.

Was that a good choice?

Where is Moses today?

The Bible teaches, that today, Moses is in heaven because he was resurrected, Jude 9. He appeared with Elijah to Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration some 1400 years later.

Where would Moses be today, if he had chosen to be pharaoh in Egypt? He probably would be either in the basement of the British Museum, or else as a mummy in some lost grave in Egypt.

Was the choice of Moses the right choice? Yes, it was.

Did he know in the moment of his decision that he was going to enter into the heavenly Canaan? No, he did not, he knew what he knew only by faith, because he trusted what God said.

We may say, Moses was able to see what had not taken place yet, and he made his choice based on that.

How About Thomas?

How about the experience of doubting Thomas? He was not present after the resurrection when Jesus presented himself to the disciples, the first evening. When he got there, the other disciples told him, `We have seen the Lord.'

What did Thomas say? He said, `Yeah, right. He was dead.' `What do you mean you have seen the Lord?'

`Yes, we have seen the Lord!'

What did Thomas say? He said, `Unless I can see it, I will not believe it. To see is to believe.'

That is the philosophy of many in the world today. Many say they believe only what they can see. They say, `I do not believe in the past, because it is gone; I don't believe in the future, because it is not here yet. I believe only in the now. What I can see. They believe only in the present.

Eight days after Thomas spoke with the disciples, he is with them again in the upper room and Jesus comes in, and Jesus says to Thomas, `Here, touch my hands. Touch my side. It is me.'

Let us read the words,

"Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." John 20:29.[200]

Jesus, therefore, says, `You have seen me, but the others have not seen me, and yet believe.'

While much of the world says, to see is to believe, God's Word teaches, it is more correct to say, `To believe is to see.'

So, when we think back, `Was the faith of Moses rewarded?'

We read, Moses

"Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward." Hebr. 11:26.

The Rewards of Faith

How about Noah, was the faith of Noah rewarded?

A man, who built a TransAtlantic on dry land, when it had never rained before. And there were all these people, the best thinkers and scientists around seeing him build this huge, heavy structure, and they were just wagging their heads in disbelief.

How could anyone do such a strange thing. All their historians, scientists, psychologists, physicists and experts didn't even know what he was talking about, when he said it would rain.

Its like us saying Jesus is coming down from heaven and we are going to be raised up to meet Him in the sky.

Many, when they hear that think we are lunatics. But, a flood there was. The evidence is all around the world.

Let us examine the evidence in this account.

Was the faith of Noah connected with God's word? Yes.

Did Noah have a firm hope (an assurance) that a flood was coming? Yes.

Did the faith of Noah reveal itself in action? Yes, he built.

Was Noah allowed to see the invisible? Did he see rain before it rained? Yes.

Can we tell when it really started `to rain' in the mind of Noah? It started when God said it was going to rain.

Most people in his days said, `Lets wait and see. To see is to believe.'

But when they saw it was too late, they were outside of the boat.

Noah saw the invisible and he went into the ark.

From that we can say, `To believe is to see.'

Noah invested everything he had into the ark while everybody else was saving for a rainy day.

Was the faith of Noah waiting for something that appeared to be impossible?

So, when it happened, was the impossible made possible? Yes, it rained when it had never rained up to that time.

Was the faith of Noah rewarded?

Yes, because he was saved with his family.

That is why Jesus said,

"And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you." Matthew 17:20.

Even a little faith the size of a mustard seed, is enough for a mountain to move from one place to another.

Jesus says, with man this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.

Therefore, when God asks you to do something that seems impossible, don't believe it is impossible, for He says, it is possible.

Because God can do all things.

That is why we read,

"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." Phil. 4:13.

Or is it, `I can do some things?'

No. `I can do all things...', it says.

That is why we find in Hebrews chapter 11 one impossible thing after another happening - humanly speaking - to these heroes of faith. That is so, because they stepped out in faith. They walked by faith and not by sight.

What kind of faith do we need today?

Why will the endtime saints not only have the faith of the saints, but the faith of Jesus?

We need to understand the type of faith Jesus had particularly toward the end of his life, because God's people will go through a similar experience that Jesus went through.

Remember the article on the patience of the saints?

Will God's people go through a sever time of trouble in this world? Are they going to loose everything? Are you going to be able to depend on your feelings or emotions to know that God is there?

No, we will not be able to depend on feelings and emotions, neither can we depend on our family, friends, money, houses, or any such things.

The only thing we will be able to depend upon is God's naked Word.

That was the experience of Jesus. There was nothing else left at all for him to rely on.

Jesus would feel the presence of His Father all the way to the very end, and His Father bailed Him out of a lot of problems during His ministry: When they wanted to stone him he disppeared, when they wanted to throw him over a cliff he also disappeared. ...

Many times the Father protected Him from harm and danger during His ministry. Did the Father reveal to Jesus what He needed to teach? Yes, he did. In fact Jesus did what pleased His Father. He said, `I always do what pleases my Father.'

"And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him." John 8:29.

But what would happen if at some point, the Father doesn't bail Jesus out?

When the Father doesn't appear to be there?

Will Jesus still trust in His Father when He can't see Him, when He can't feel Him, ... when it appears that His Father is not there, that He has forsaken Him; will Jesus then still have faith and trust in His Father?

That is the question we want to ask. Will He still have that kind of faith.

Did He?

Yes! We find it here,

"And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, . . . My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" Matth. 27:46.

We ask, did Jesus have anything in this world to lean upon?

No, he did not even have any cloths on.

His disciples and friends forsook him.

The Jews railed at him and the Romans nailed him to the cross.

He had no gold or silver. He had nothing. And it appeared his Father had forsaken him.

But Jesus was just like Job, `Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.'

That is why we read,

"Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered." Hebr. 5:7,8.

Was Jesus saved from death? - No, he was not.

Was the Father there listening? Yes.

---

Times of Hardship

When God's people go through the terrible time of trouble, will God be there? Or will they seem to sense that God is not there? Will they feel it? Will they hear him? Will they have any earthly support? No, none of this.

How must they live? They must live by faith.

You see, Jesus hung in there, because He knew His Father's Word.

His Father said, `You are going to go to Jerusalem; You are going to die voluntarily; You are going to hang on a cross, and I am going to resurrect you the third day. (Mt. 16:21; Zech. 9:9; Isa. 62:11; Dt. 21:22,23; Jonah 2:1,2)

When Jesus was hanging on the cross, he could not see beyond the portals of the tomb. He thought that he would be a prisoner of the tomb forever. - Even though His Father had said, `You are going to come out.'

How did Jesus get by that moment?

When his feelings told him, `You are going to be separated from the Father forever,' how did he get through that and still preserve his loyalty to His Father?

He got through it, because His Father had said, that if he was faithful and he died, his father would resurrect him and be able to bring all his people home.

And Jesus, depending on faith while on the cross, setting aside his feelings, his emotions and his thoughts, trusted in his Father. He exercised naked faith in the Word of God. That is the faith of Jesus. - And that is the fully mature faith that God's people will have at the end of time. - And when will we develop that kind of faith? Next year? No, we must develop it now!

Don't think we will have that kind of faith then, unless we exercise it now.

That is why, when Revelation speaks of the faith of the saints, and the faith of Jesus, it is talking about a generation that will have implicit and absolute trust in God, even if they don't feel His presence.

That is going to happen and come about.

Do not believe in that idea that the Christians will be raptured out of the world unscathed before the time of tribulation.

That is the devils trap, because if you don't have developed the kind of faith that you need to go through the time of trouble, Satan knows, he has you in his pocket.

Now is it that we need to learn how to pray, study God's Word and to trust in His power.

Now we need to go back to Enoch one more time.

Enoch was translated from among the living without seeing death.

We read those comments about Enoch,

"The men of that generation had mocked the folly of him who sought not to gather gold or silver or to build up possessions here. But Enoch's heart was upon eternal treasures. He had looked upon the celestial city. He had seen the King in His glory in the midst of Zion. His mind, his heart, his conversation, were in heaven. The greater the existing iniquity, the more earnest was his longing for the home of God. While still on earth, he dwelt, by faith, in the realms of light." {PP 87.2}

His contemporaries joked, `Hey, you are crazy. Get yourself some money.'

But Enoch had a better goal. He saw it all by faith while still on earth.

`Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face, and the things on earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace.'

Then we read,

"The godly character of this prophet represents the state of holiness which must be attained by those who shall be "redeemed from the earth" (Revelation 14:3) at the time of Christ's second advent." {PP 88, 89}

Who does Enoch represent? He represents the final generation.

Then,

"Then, as in the world before the Flood, iniquity will prevail. Following the promptings of their corrupt hearts and the teachings of a deceptive philosophy, men will rebel against the authority of Heaven. But like Enoch, God's people will seek for purity of heart and conformity to His will, until they shall reflect the likeness of Christ. Like Enoch, they will warn the world of the Lord's second coming and of the judgments to be visited upon transgression, and by their holy conversation and example they will condemn the sins of the ungodly. As Enoch was translated to heaven before the destruction of the world by water, so the living righteous will be translated from the earth before its destruction by fire." {PP 88.3}

Whom does Enoch represent? He represents the final generation which will live on planet earth like he himself was part of the final generation which lived on planet earth some time before the great Flood.

The final generation will have such a close and intimate relationship with Jesus, that Jesus is going to say, `You have nothing more to do down there, come up to heaven and lets walk together down the streets of gold. How about that?

Are you making plans to be there?

How do we develop that faith of Jesus?

We read,

"So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Romans 10:17.

So, when God asks you to do something as you read His word, do it, and when you do it, your faith is stronger!

For example, God says, `You come to church, but you feel like sleeping in on Sabbath morning. - Every time that God says, `Come to church,' and you get up and you come to church, your faith will be stronger for next time - because you are acting on God's Word. And then for that faith necessary for the time of trouble, like the three young man, who saw that furnace. ... They said, `Listen, our God is able to deliver us and if he doesn't, we don't care.'

Was that faith, or what.

But they developed it before they needed it. Are you understanding what we are trying to say? Is it clear to you, what the faith of Jesus is?

Are God's people going to have the kind of faith that Jesus had in his final crisis? Yes! Absolutely, yes!

And they will have the patience of the saints and they will keep the commandments of God.

All we can say is, `Wow, what a generation.'

I certainly want to be part of that generation.

How about you?

Let us read these words,

"For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory," In other words what you see now is nothing compared to what is coming, "While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen":, the paradox, "for the things which are seen are temporal; The things of this world which will pass away, "but the things which are not seen are eternal." 2.Cor. 4:17,18.

Paul is saying, `Which things are more real, the things which you see, or those which you can't see?'

This reverses the way we always viewed the world we live in.

The Bible says, it is not the things which you see that are real, but those things that you do not see are real.

Why? Because they are eternal.