What is 'Faith'?

The definition of Faith from Webster's Dictionary is: "(a) unquestionable belief that does not require proof or evidence. (b) Complete trust, confidence, or reliance." Not too many of us can say that we even have this kind of Faith.

The following are some examples of Faith from the Bible.
1. Matthew 9:22 tells of the woman who touched Jesus garment, and He said, "thy faith hath made thee well."
2. Also in Matthew 9, verse 29, two blind men followed Jesus and He touched their eyes and said "according to your faith be it unto you."
3. Matthew 17:20 tells us that all we need is 'faith as a grain of mustard seed' to remove mountains, or the huge difficulties in our lives.
4. Mark 9:24 tells the story of the father whose son had been possessed by an evil spirit. The father cried to Jesus "Lord, I believe, help my unbelief."
5. Hebrews 11:6 says "without faith it is impossible to please Him."

As Christians, we seem to get the idea that if we have enough faith, we will be rewarded, and if things don't work out we didn't have enough faith. (i.e. a friend dying of cancer and having friends tell her she would be healed if she had more faith.) I know I have felt this way, and I have wept and prayed for more faith, saying "Lord, my faith is so weak, help me to have more faith, help my unbelief."

Some time ago I was reading the biography of Hudson Taylor, the founder of the China Inland Mission. He was a great man of God who gave his life to Christ for China, and to help in sending others to China. He was what we call "literally "living by faith." His Mission (CIM) also 'lived by faith'. Yet he never felt he had enough 'faith'. The more he would see the grace of Jesus, the more his helplessness increased. He felt he was burdened by the sin of unbelief in not being able to have faith enough for joy in the Lord. One day he received a letter from a fellow missionary who had been struggling with this same question. The missionary, John McCarthy, wrote of his struggling and what he had been learning. In short, he said he had found how to have his faith increased--by thinking of all that Jesus is and all He is for us, His life, His death, His work, He Himself as revealed to us in the Word, to be the subject of constant thoughts. Not a striving to have faith...but a looking off to the Faithful One seems all we need; and resting in the Loved One entirely, for time and for eternity. As Mr. Taylor read this he says he saw it all! Not by striving after faith, but by resting on the Faithful One. If we believe not, he still abides faithful. Jesus has said "I will never leave thee."

This sounded like what I, myself, was looking for, but I still found myself struggling with this simple insight. I thought, "well that was good for Hudson Taylor and John McCarthy, they were both great men of God, and were so learned in the Scripture. I asked: "Lord, how do I have this faith? How do I feel this rest in You?" One morning during my devotions as I was reading and praying and, yes, weeping over this very question, the Lord seemed to give me a flash of a vision, (if I may call it such) but it was just enough for me to understand. I like to write down thoughts and insights that come to me, and this is what I wrote that morning:
"Dear Faithful Lord--It suddenly came to me! I have been trying for
weeks to grasp Hudson Taylor's insight of not struggling with "Faith" but to rest on the Faithful one. Just this morning as I was praying, I saw myself
lean over on Jesus and His arms went around me and I felt Peace. Now I
know, Lord, what he meant! Oh Jesus, thank you! Now I know--I who am
weak in my faith--have only to lean on and rest on You--the ever-faithful
one. This means literally, physically, spiritually, emotionally, just lean on
Jesus." Andrew Murray puts it this way: "Faith will find its strength..in the
changeless faithfulness and love of Christ." Amen

And I have proven this to be the key for me, when I am troubled or find I am fearful or doubting, I just visualize myself leaning over on Jesus--He is then between me and the problem, and I have peace.

This to me is FAITH.