You can keep your faith ever growing! The simple dictionary meaning of faith includes “confidence”, “trust”, “reliance”, “conviction”, “assurance”, “buoyancy”, “coolness”. The most famous biblical description of faith is found in the New Testament: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) This is living faith, or the faith of Christ. It is marked by childlike obedience, utmost service unto God and agape love. Before we go into details about this kind of faith, let us observe that there are other types of faith in Scripture, for instance, self-kind faith, spurious faith and presumptuous faith. The Faith of Christ or Living Faith Living faith is faith in the living God. This is the great teaching of the Bible, it is personalised in the life of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus the Christ. Access to this faith is free to all who believe in the Lord, and without this faith there is no salvation. Jesus’ teachings on faith emphasise three key principles – childlike obedience to God, utmost service and agape love. It is faith in Christ that can uproot mulberry trees (Luke 17:6) and move mountains (Matthew 17:20; 21:21). It is this kind of faith that can believe and act on the principle that nothing is impossible with God. (Luke 1:37; Jeremiah 32:17; Matthew 19:26; Mark 10:27) Similarly, everything is possible to those who believe! (Matthew 17:20; Mark 9:23) “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith." (Romans 1:16-17) Hebrews 4:2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. Heb 12:2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. In Hebrews 11:1-40, the Bible recalls men and women of God who kept their faith alive in God despite the odds stacked against them. These people are pillars of faith, and they show us how we can keep our faith growing in the face of adversity. The word “pillar” is used several times in scripture to refer to columns or posts. In early times “pillar” was associated with God’s presence, as in the pillar of fire and the pillar of cloud that guided the Israelites on their way out of Egypt and in the wilderness: “And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and night. He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people.” (Ex 13:21-22) In the times of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, setting up a “sacred” pillar was a sign that they wanted to worship God in the place where the pillar was sited: “Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it… "And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God's house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You." (Gen 28:18, 22) And also: 'I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and where you made a vow to Me. Now arise, get out of this land, and return to the land of your family.' (Genesis 31:13) Of course, “pillar” is also used in other ways to symbolise strength, majesty and beauty. In most of the references, a “pillar” must have an appropriate location, be able to carry the required weight, and satisfy a particular function. In the Letter to the Hebrews, we come across a list of believers in Chapter 11 who can be described as heroes of faith, or “pillars” of faith. They were ordinary people who discovered their place in God, served Him in certain particular ways, and their lifestyle glorified God. These were people who responded to the call of God, and chose to remain in their calling to the very end. To be a “pillar” in this sense is the work of God. For instance, when God called Jeremiah, this was recorded about him: “For behold, I have made you this day a fortified city and an iron pillar, and bronze walls against the whole land - against the kings of Judah, against its princes, against its priests, and against the people of the land.” (Jeremiah 1:18) A similar statement in the book of Revelation shows that all who choose to remain in Christ Jesus to the very end are destined to be pillars in the temple of God: "He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. And I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name.” (Revelation 3:12) In short, “pillars” of faith are the plantings of God: “Also your people shall all be righteous; they shall inherit the land forever, the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I may be glorified.” (Isaiah 60:21) Also, Scriptures point out that God desires “to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified." (Isaiah 61:3)

Self-Kind Faith Faith in one’s self, one’s abilities or in other people in terms of depending on them for obligations or help can either be healthy or unhealthy. Self-kind faith is important and useful as long as it does not promote pride and over-confidence; and as long as it does not lead to focussing on human beings exclusively and primarily for help. (Jeremiah 9:23-24; 17:5-8; Psalm 20:7-8; 121:1-2) Spurious Faith Spurious faith means counterfeit faith, false faith, bogus faith: it is faith placed in gods and idols. Faith in witchcraft and the occult is spurious faith: it has the appearance of power but fails miserably when it is put to rigorous test, or challenged by the power of the living God. Anything in which a person puts their faith and draws away from the true God is an idol. Anything in which a person trusts more than they trust the true God is their little god. Faith in little gods and idols is spurious faith. (Genesis 35:2-4; Exodus 12:12; 18:11; 203, 23; 23:13, 24; 32-33; Leviticus 19:4; Deuteronomy 13:1-18; Judges 18:1-31; 1Kings 18:20-40; Jeremiah 10:1-11) Presumptuous Faith Deuteronomy 1:41-46 "Then you answered and said to me, 'We have sinned against the LORD; we will go up and fight, just as the LORD our God commanded us.' And when everyone of you had girded on his weapons of war, you were ready to go up into the mountain. "And the LORD said to me, 'Tell them, "Do not go up nor fight, for I am not among you; lest you be defeated before your enemies." ' "So I spoke to you; yet you would not listen, but rebelled against the command of the LORD, and presumptuously went up into the mountain. "And the Amorites who dwelt in that mountain came out against you and chased you as bees do, and drove you back from Seir to Hormah. "Then you returned and wept before the LORD, but the LORD would not listen to your voice nor give ear to you. "So you remained in Kadesh many days, according to the days that you spent there. It is easy to fall into presumptuous faith when we are ignorant of the Word of God, or deliberately choose to ignore it. (Numbers 15:30-31; Psalm 19:12-13; Matthew 4:3-11) In Hebrews 11, we are looking at some of the accomplishments of the “pillars” of faith: 1. Abel offered to God an excellent sacrifice – Hebrews 11:4 2. Enoch pleased God – believed that God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him – Hebrews 11:6 3. Noah moved with Godly fear, prepared an ark – Hebrews 11:7 4. Abraham and Sarah obeyed to go into a foreign land, lived in tents until God fulfilled His promise – (11:8) 5. Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come – Hebrews 11:20 6. Jacob blessed the sons of Joseph, worshipped – Hebrews 11:21 7. Joseph made mention of the departure of the children of Israel – Hebrews 11:22 8. Moses’s parents hid Moses from destruction – Hebrews 11:23 9. Moses refused Egypt’s glory, preferred to suffer with God’s people – Hebrews 11:24-25 10. Rahab received spies with peace – Hebrews 11:31 The principle of their life is that they concentrated on God’s kingdom, and became part of His plan of salvation. Your faith can grow if you have a similar attitude. Matthew 6:33 "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”