what is faith?

You hear it all the time. “Have faith.” “You gotta believe.” “Keep the faith.” But what is faith, and what is it that we are supposed to keep?

In its most basic sense, faith involves believers–those individuals who express faith–and something (or Someone) in which (in Whom) to believe. Men and women, young and old, rich and poor–we are all called to faith. And this faith is a personal thing, entailing belief in the only ultimate object of faith, the living God. This God, according to Christian teaching, created human beings to know him. We, for our part, have abandoned our created purpose, which is why this same God–seeking to rescue us from ourselves and reestablish a relationship with us–has intervened in human affairs on numerous occasions, most profoundly in His unique emissary and Son, Jesus. At its core, then, our faith looks to Him. But not all people believe, and even those who do, often demonstrate varying degrees of faith. Perhaps an illustration will help to clarify these matters.

Each year, my family travels from our home in Pennsylvania to Cape May, New Jersey, our usual vacation destination. On the way to Cape May, we travel through Philadelphia and across the Walt Whitman Bridge. It is obviously possible to know about this particular bridge without having seen it. In other words you can read about the bridge or acquire knowledge of it from someone familiar with the Walt Whitman. Assuming reliable resources, you would be fairly confident about the existence of bridge and perhaps certain facts about it. Then, if someone were to ask you about the bridge, you would be able to provide a measure of useful information. This type of knowledge constitutes a type of faith. In other words you would have faith that there is such a bridge as the Walt Whitman.

Of course it is also possible travel to Philadelphia to catch a glimpse of the bridge for yourself. You might park your car near the bridge and observe its sturdiness and how well it supports the many automobiles that traverse it each day. Not only would you know about the bridge, having heard of it from others, but you’d be convinced that it is durable and provides a safe connection between Pennsylvania and New Jersey. After all, you would have seen how well it worked for others. Again, you awareness of the bridge and its capabilities is a kind of faith.

But all that you’ve done so far is only preliminary to the much more personal use of the Walt Whitman Bridge. If you really want to make use of the bridge, you have to traverse it yourself. This involves more than facts (There is a bridge called Walt Whitman.) and even more than acceptance of those facts (The Walt Whitman bridge is safe and travel worthy.). It requires trust, actual personal commitment, in this case, to the Walt Whitman Bridge.

True faith is a lot like this. While it surely benefits from research (learning about faith) and is motivated by what it sees around it (paying attention to faith in others and in the world), it also goes to the next level, resting in faith’s object, relying on God’s promises, and trusting (even amid doubt) in God’s reliability.

Faith, then, is trust in the truth of God (whatever He’s revealed) and in the God of truth. To believe is to cast your hopes, day by day and sometimes moment by moment, on the One who has pledged His love to those in need. Given that we are the ones who must believe, and recognizing how fickle and foolish we can be, it is not at all surprising that faith tends to fluctuate. But the issue is not how much faith we have (Jesus mentioned that faith the size of a mustard seed could move a mountain!) or how impressive it looks to others (the pursuit of which can lead to hypocrisy). What truly matters is that our faith is in One who does not fluctuate and who promises to travel with us through this world.

Is your faith wavering? Ask for more. Are you filled with uncertainty and doubt? Look through the doubt to the One who can counter incredulity. Do you want more faith? Ask, for “He is a Rewarder of those who–even when plagued with uncertainty and confusion–seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Learn about the bridge, observe others who travel across it, and drive across it yourself. As you do, you will sometimes waver, no doubt. But you may also find your soul strengthened as you trust in the One who can keep you from falling and guide you successfully through this life. Keep the faith.