Skip to main content

Trusting, Not Seeing


“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1).

It was at a Bible conference in Japan in 1956 where I heard Bill Pape teach on faith. One of his statements stayed with me over these many years. It was, “Faith requires ignorance.”

Recently,* I received a letter from a man named Gary, a Young Life staffer in San Jose.

Let me quote them both, starting with Gary.

“It became quickly apparent that I had indeed relied very heavily on clarity and detail when it came to seeking God’s answers. Whether for myself or for those I work with, I was guilty of wanting clear answers and direction as the ultimate assurance of God’s will.

“I began to consider people in the Bible that God directed. It seemed that in almost all cases He gave them only enough information to take the next step. ‘Leave your family and go to a far country that I will show you,’ ‘Stay in the city for three days until I send someone to you,’ ‘Stay in Jerusalem until I send the Holy Spirit,’ ‘I will tell you what to say when you need it,’ ‘Do not concern yourself with him; follow Me.’ I wonder how many of Jesus’ disciples would have followed Him if He gave them details of what would happen if they did. Perhaps it is out of love that He spares us many details.

“On my last Beyond Hiking trip, we had to cross a steep glacier field. It was very foggy, and in fact we could only see the person directly ahead of us. In spite of the conditions, we trusted the guides and the ropes that connected us. It was enough to follow in the steps of the one leading. On our return trip, it had cleared, and I was very glad that I had been unaware of the crevasses and other dangers that surrounded us on that trip up. It was clarity in this case that produced fear and doubt and made it harder to focus on the path. Why then, are we so concerned with clarity when we pray?

“We do not always know where the road will lead, but it is enough to know the One who leads!”

Back to Bill Pape on faith: “Suppose Daniel had the book of Daniel for reading the night he spent in the lions’ den. ‘I’m glad this is going to turn out all right!’”

Trusting requires not knowing, not seeing.


*Written October 1999.

This post coordinates with today's reading in the Same Page Summer Bible Reading Challenge. If you are not in a daily reading plan, please join us at TotheWord.com. We would love to have you reading with us.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ripe for Harvest: Prepared to Give an Answer

As you read through the book of Acts, look at every conversion, and see what happened right before it: what was said, who said it. The situations are the same today.     A long time ago, my duty in the Officer’s Christian Fellowship was the east coast of the United States. I went to an officer’s office at Fort Lee, VA, and stayed overnight, then I went on to Norfolk and Fort Bragg.    Forty years later, I was no longer on the staff of OCF, but I had to go to Denver. While I was in Denver, I checked in at the OCF offices. There was the same Air Force officer I had met in Fort Lee, retired now, a colonel. I had stayed in his house when he was a first lieutenant. He asked me, “Do you know what happened when you stayed overnight?” I said, “No, I just remember staying in your home.” He said, “You led the next-door neighbor to Christ.” I had no memory of it.    Ten years after that, I was speaking at a banquet at the Hotel Salisbury, and who was th...
Post a Comment
Read more

Why Is Obedience So Hard?

There are several reasons why obedience seems hard. I will comment on some of them and then speak positively on how obedience is easy. We think: 1) Obedience is an infringement on freedom. Since we are free in Christ, and obedience is somehow contrary to that freedom, we conclude that obedience is not good. Yet we know it is good. Thus, we become confused about obedience and are not single-minded. 2) Obedience is works. We who have been justified by grace through faith are opposed to works; therefore, we are opposed to obedience. 3) We have tried to obey and have failed—frequently. Therefore, the only solution is to disobey and later confess to receive forgiveness. It is easier to be forgiven by grace than to obey by effort. 4) We confuse obedience to men with obedience to God. Although these are sometimes one and the same (see Romans 13, 1 Peter 2-3, Ephesians 5-6, Colossians 3, and Titus 2), sometimes they are not the same (see Colossians 2:20-23, Mark 7, 1 Timothy 4:1-5, a...
7 comments
Read more

Joy

Here are five biblical passages on joy: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness” (Galatians 5:22). “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior” (Habakkuk 3:17-18). “The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). “Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you” (Psalms 51:12-13). “The seventy-two returned with joy and said, ‘Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.’ He replied, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have give...
Post a Comment
Read more