I believe in God ... - 4 July 2023

I am one of the lucky ones where God, the Bible and the church were very important in my parent’s house. When I think back to the church I grew up in, I must confess that I do not remember much of the minister’s sermons. I do remember memorising some Bible passages such as Psalm 23, Psalm 121 and John 3:16, and also the Apostles’ Creed that we heard every Sunday, as is the case in many Christian churches around the world.

Only later in my life did I really start to think about what we were actually saying. What it means when I say, “I believe”? During this month, I hope to share some of my discoveries with you.

Everyone believes, even if people say they believe in nothing, they still believe in nothing. I think it is extremely important to know what we believe and what faith means to us. We need look no further than the story of Abraham and Sarah in the Bible. If we read what Paul says about them, one realises that they believed in a powerful Person and had full trust in him. In Romans 4:17b, we read: “So the promise is good in the sight of God, in whom Abraham believed – the God who brings the dead to life and whose command brings into being what did not exist.” It is the most important part of our faith that we can say we believe in God, the same God in whom Abraham believed.

In Romans 4:18, we see that faith in the midst of pain and hardship brought comfort and hope to Abraham. “Abraham believed and hoped, even when there was no reason for hoping, and so became ‘the father of many nations’.” Abraham and Sarah’s dream for a child was shattered again and again over many years, but Abraham believed God and continued hoping that he would fulfil his promise. Life is not easy, but God says he is always there, even in the midst of all our hardships and pain. We just have to believe.

There is still a lot to be said about faith and tomorrow we will see what more we can learn from this elderly couple.

Prayer: Lord, thank you that I can say with confidence that I believe, but please help me when I sometimes fall into unbelief. Amen