FAITH AND FAITH
just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”? (Galatians 3:6 ESV)
I receive emails from the deposed Crown Prince of Nigeria. He offers me a wonderful deal. All I need to do is send him my financial information, and he will deposit a King’s Ransom in my account. Most of which I can keep. For some reason, I doubt the veracity of this offer.
It is too good to be true.
The gospel also seems too good to be true. Someone ELSE paid my ticket to heaven? God loves me in SPITE of my sin? Forgiveness does not require equaling the balance between good and evil in my life? The gospel is offered to me, freely?
Rationally, the gospel is too good to be true.
But I have chosen to believe it. Because God has enabled me to have faith. To accept Him as He declares Himself to be.
And His offer of salvation through faith is not a new thing offered uniquely to me. But God has given faith to His people from the beginning. Faith, given to us by God, has always been the pathway to heaven.
Abraham believed, and God chose to count that belief as righteousness. Faith alone was enough. Faith, given by God, was all Abraham needed, way back then.
And it is true for us, too.
Take the faith God grants us.