Faith Comes From Hearing The Word

I. EXORDIUM:

Do you have faith?

II. AUDIENCE PROFILE:

Believers

III. OBJECTIVES:

To show that we need to "hear" the Word frequently for our faith.

IV. TEXT:

Romans 10:17 (New Living Translation, Second Edition)

So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.

V. THESIS:

Our faith came from the WORD.

VI. TITLE:

Faith comes from hearing the Word

VII. EXPLICATION:

A. Author: Apostle Paul

B. Date written: 57 A.D.

C. Place written: From Corinth

D. Purpose: To prepare Roman believers for his long awaited visit.

E. To whom written: Roman Christians

VIII. MAIN BODY:

A. Faith comes

"So faith comes"

The word "faith" came from the Greek word:"pistis" meaning assurance, belief, believe, especially "reliance upon CHRIST for salvation"

1. What is faith?

Hebrews 11:1 (Phillips NT Bible)

Now faith means putting our full confidence in the things we hope for, it means being certain of things we cannot see. It was this kind of faith that won their reputation for the saints of old. And it is after all only by faith that our minds accept as fact that the whole scheme of time and space was created by God's command - that the world which we can see has come into being through principles which are invisible.

Hebrews 11:1 (Amplified Bible)

NOW FAITH is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses].

a. Full confidence (confirmation, title deed) in things we hope for

b. Certain (proof of things + conviction of their reality) of things we cannot see.

The world says "to see is to believe", but Hebrews 11:1 says "believe and you'll see"

c. Faith is what we need to please GOD.

Hebrews 11:6 (Phillips NT Bible)

And without faith it is impossible to please him. The man who approaches God must have faith in two things, first that God exists and secondly that it is worth a man's while to try to find God.

Hebrews 11:6 (Amplified Bible)

But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out].

We approach GOD in faith.

Two things we need to have faith for:

(1) GOD exists

(2) GOD is the Rewarder of those who seek Him

Deuteronomy 16:16 (Amplified Bible)

Three times a year shall all your males appear before the Lord your God in the place which He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles or Booths. They shall not appear before the Lord empty-handed:

"They shall not appear before the Lord empty-handed"

In those Old Testament times, leaders need to appear before the King of kings and they can't appear before GOD empty-handed. We bring faith with us in our hands. Every person has the capacity to have faith, to believe and he needs to bring that with him when he appear,commune or meet before GOD.

B. Hearing the message

"from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News"

1. Hearing came from the Greek word:"akoe" meaning "hearing"

Matthew 13:11 (Phillips NT Bible)

"Because you have been given the chance to understand the secrets of the kingdom of Heaven," replied Jesus, "but they have not. For when a man has something, more is given to him till he has plenty. But if he has nothing even his nothing will be taken away from him. This is why I speak to them in these parables; because they go through life with their eyes open, but see nothing, and with their ears open, but understand nothing of what they hear. They are the living fulfilment of Isaiah's prophecy which says: 'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; for the heart of this people has grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their heart and turn, so that I should heal them'.

Matthew 13:13 (Amplified Bible)

This is the reason that I speak to them in parables: because having the power of seeing, they do not see; and having the power of hearing, they do not hear, nor do they grasp and understand.

2. Hearing then uses our spiritual ears to hear spiritual truths from GOD. We need to "turn on" our spiritual ears to accept and receive from the spiritual GOD.

1 Thessalonians 2:13 (New Living Translation, Second Edition)