Strengthening Your Faith

Introduction

How can you sing “Victory in Jesus” the right way if you don’t have any?

You’ve heard it—people smiling and clapping through the song, but if you could look inside, the victory light is barely flickering.

Life has a way of testing whether the words we sing are the life we live.

Some of you have been rowing hard against winds that never seem to change. You’re doing what’s right—going to church, praying, paying the bills, trying to love difficult people—but it feels like survival mode. You’re exhausted from rowing.

The disciples knew that feeling. They were obeying Jesus—He had constrained them to get into the boat—but the wind was contrary. They were doing exactly what He said, and still the storm came. That’s where most Christians live—obedient, yet weary.

But Scripture shows that there’s a level beyond just surviving storms. There’s a faith that walks on water—and another that speaks to the storm and commands it to cease.

Today, we’re going to talk about Strengthening Your Faith.

Faith isn’t a mystical fog that floats through your heart when you hear a gospel song. Faith is not a feeling you chase; it’s a conviction you choose. It’s confidence in the character of God when circumstances make no sense. It’s belief with legs—agreement, attitude, and action all moving in the same direction.

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I. The Definition of Faith

Hebrews 11 opens with one of the most quoted lines in Scripture:

“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

Let’s unpack that.

The word substance in Greek is hupostasis. It literally means “that which stands under”—a foundation, something solid that supports what rests upon it. Faith isn’t wishful thinking; it’s the undergirding confidence that God’s promises are more real than visible facts.

And evidence—that’s elegchos, meaning proof or conviction. Faith is the inner proof that unseen realities are more certain than what your eyes can measure.

Put simply: faith is confidence in God’s Word that results in obedience to God’s will.

It begins with agreement—you hear what God says and acknowledge it as truth.

Then comes attitude—you start trusting that Word as dependable.

Finally comes action—you step out and live by it.

Agreement + Attitude + Action = True Bible Faith.

That’s why faith can never remain theoretical. Every story in Hebrews 11 begins with two words: “By faith…” and is followed by a verb—by faith Abel offered, by faith Noah prepared, by faith Abraham obeyed. Faith always does something.

Faith is belief with legs.

You might say, “Pastor, I’m not sure I have that kind of faith.”

Scripture says you do. Romans 12 : 3 declares that God has given to every man a measure of faith. You were created with it. But like a muscle, it has to be activated and developed.

That’s why child-like faith seems so natural. A child believes without arguing. But as we age, cynicism builds calluses over trust. So the older we get, the more intentional we must be to exercise faith again—until trust becomes second nature.

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II. The Disclosure of Faith

Hebrews 11 : 6 says, “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.”

Two verbs frame that verse—believe and seek.

Faith believes that God is real, and then seeks Him as reliable.

The word please in Greek (euaresteo) means to gratify entirely—to bring joy to God’s heart. Think about that: your trust delights Him. When you believe, you bless God.

And the word rewarder (misthapodotes) literally means a remunerator—one who pays back in kind. In other words, when you satisfy God with faith, He satisfies you with Himself.

That’s why the most satisfied life is the faith life.

Without faith, life becomes reaction; with faith, life becomes participation—God working through you, not just around you.

Faith isn’t magic; it’s relationship. The same God who invites you to trust Him also shapes your circumstances to teach you trust. Which leads to the next section—how faith develops.

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III. The Development of Faith

Second Corinthians 10 : 15 speaks of “when your faith is increased.” Faith can grow. You can go from knee-deep belief to walking-on-water confidence. But it doesn’t happen automatically.

1. Adversity — Faith Refined

Peter says, “the trial of your faith is more precious than gold.”

Gold is purified by fire, and so is faith. God doesn’t test you to break you but to burn away impurities of self-reliance. Every storm is either a faith-destroyer or a faith-developer—your choice decides which.

2. Evidence — Faith Remembered

Hebrews 11 : 1 calls faith “the evidence of things not seen.”

One way to strengthen it is by remembering past evidence. Keep a journal of answered prayers. Throughout Scripture, God commands His people, “Don’t forget.” Build memorials—stones of remembrance—because memory fuels momentum. What you record you can recall, and what you recall you can rely on when new storms come.