Heb 11:6
But without faith it is impossible to please him [God]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Have you ever heard that, friend?  That without faith it is impossible to please God?  Think on that for just a moment: ‘Without faith, it is impossible to please God…’

I may be speaking to people who do not know God, or to people who do.  The fact is, however, that no matter who you are, you are not able to please God without faith.

Think on that.  God is perfectly good.  God is love, itself (1 John 4:8 & 16).  Would you please God?  Would you know, and please love?  It is impossible without faith.

What is faith, then?  What is this thing that we must have in order to please God?  Is it a creed, of some kind?  Some opinion that we can adhere to?  No doubt most of us have out own definition of what faith is… but if it is impossible to please God without it, then wouldn’t we like to know for sure?  Wouldn’t we like to know faith by God’s definition?

The rest of the verse gives us an hint at what ‘faith’ actually is let’s look at it again:

But without faith it is impossible to please him [God]: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

There are two defining characteristics for the nature of biblical, or ‘God-defined’ faith.

  1. We MUST believe that He exists.
    This, obviously is pre-requisite, for if we do not believe that He exists, we obviously will not come to Him.  God WANTS you to come to Him; it is pleasing to Him when you come because He is LOVE: He loves you.  God desires your presence, not just mine, or some minister, or Christians, but YOU personally.  Have you ever felt unwanted?  You need not to before God, God WANTS you to come to Him.
  2. We MUST believer that He REWARDS people who seek Him.

This, of course, should seem a natural conclusion for us if we believe that God desires our presence, but for many – even for many Christians – it is not something automatically believe.  Yet right here we can see that part of the biblical definition of faith is a belief that God is a REWARDER.  He will reward those who seek Him.

God is good, and His rewards are good.

In Matthew 7:11, Jesus said:
If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

We are not good, indeed, Jesus also said that no one is good, but God alone (Mark 10:18).  For this reason, also, we cannot please God by our own goodness – because we all, every one of us, sin.  But Jesus says above, even though we are sinners, still we know how to treat our children well, and give them good things.  How much more, then, will God – who is perfectly good – give good things to those who ask Him?

God is a rewarder.  He will reward those who diligently seek Him.  The greatest reward of all is eternal life.  God has promised to give eternal life to those who repent of their sins, and diligently seek God!

You have probably read, or heard someone quote at some point John 3:16 – it says this:

John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

You can have eternal life through Jesus, the Son of God, who took your sins upon Himself when He died on the cross.  He did this because He is good, and because He wants you to come to Him, and receive His rewards.

But isn’t Christianity about so much guilt, and condemnation?  I will also quote the lesser known John 3:17

For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

God wants YOU to be ‘saved’ that means, He wants to retrieve you from the death sentence that is upon the whole human race because of our sins – He will do this if you repent of your sins, and diligently seek Him!

But, Why Faith?