Summary:
Simple faith in God is foundational - to just believe in God for who He is, which is just His existence, and how He rewards those who diligently seek Him. Why is having a simple faith important and how does it help us?

1. Simple faith can lead us to the correct understanding of Scripture and a closer relationship with God
2. Simple faith in God can get us through trials and storms in life
3. Simple unwavering faith in God is what God requires of us

What is simple faith? The speaker thought of it with relation to first principles.

When faced with a new situation or problem, you don’t immediately make assumptions/a call that seems most obvious right away. Instead, what you do is take a step back and base it on things that you’re absolutely sure are true. Things that you’re sure are absolutely true are foundational truths, which cannot be broken down further.

With regards to faith and our belief in God, what is simple faith?

Heb 11:6
But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

This verse is a very simple faith in God. It’s not talking about whether we have the ability to explain a doctrine, or a very hard to understand prophecy in the Bible. Not that those things aren’t important, but simple faith in God is foundational - to just believe in God for who He is, which is just His existence and how He rewards those who diligently seek Him; to believe in His nature, who God is.

We take a look at some examples of what God is.

1 John 4:8
He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

God is love. That is who God is! He’s the very definition of love. Hence when we want to talk/discuss about love, we must refer to God. It’s not the other way round where we talk about love and say, “God has no love.” God IS the very definition of love.

Deut 32:4
He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.

All the terms here are absolute. God is simply perfect, and all His ways are justice. His nature itself is righteousness. In other words here tells us God canNOT do injustice.

All these simple absolute beliefs in God. Besides believing in how He’s love and how He’s just, we also believe in other things like how His understanding is infinite.

Simple faith in God can also manifest on a more personal note. Based on our understanding of the Bible and that God is love, we can say with faith, “God loves me.”

But many a times, simple is by no means easy. Often it is easier to complicate things than to keep things simple. Because so many things happen in our lives. We learn new things, we see things, and we also think about things. We will also go through things personally. It may be to our family or friends as well. They can be good or bad, or things that are unbelievable. All these things affect us; it affects our thoughts and emotions, and can even be something that has a big impact on our lives. All these affect our faith. Just like the parable of the sower. There was seed that fell on stony ground, and some that fell on thorny ground. Likewise, our faith can be lost due to trials and persecutions. That is the seed that fell on stony ground. Or our faith can be choked by the cares and distractions of this world. That is the seed that fell on thorny ground.

“We walk by faith and not by sight” (2 Cor 5:7)

It’s easy to say but not to do.

If you look at the verse another way, it means to tell us faith is to walk contrary to our sight.

So, what is the simple faith that we have? What is our own set of unshakable truths towards God?

This sermon will examine its importance and how it helps us using some examples in the Bible.

1. Simple faith can lead us to the correct understanding of Scripture and a closer relationship with God.

1 Sam 15:3
Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them. But kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.

This is a verse critics of the Bible often cherry pick. They use it as a verse against Christianity. They like to talk about how God is one who condones violent practices and injustice. Why did God command to destroy everything? Including infants and nursing children! Even the animals. For us Christians, we too may find it hard to explain what is going on here.

The reason for God’s command to destroy Amalek is actually in v2. It was to punish them for what they did to Israel; for ambushing him on the way when he came up from Egypt.

Even so, we may say, “It’s nothing to do with the infants, nursing children and animals right??”

If we come across this without a set of genuine simple faith with God, we may start to question. By extension, it’s also not hard to think of many hard questions that may make us stumble. But having simple faith will determine whether we question and doubt God, or whether we will remain steadfast when we meet with hard questions.

When we remain steadfast, we will be able to come to a conclusion that it is us men. It is us who lack perfect understanding and knowledge, unlike God.

Psa 147:5
Great is our Lord, and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite.

Rom 11:33
Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

Deut 32:4
He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.

With regards to the hard questions posed when reading 1 Sam, the speaker can’t say he can give a very convincing explanation to a non-believer on why God commanded to kill everything. But for us Christians, when we say we believe in God and put the above verses together - on how God’s understanding is infinite and recognise our own understanding, wisdom and knowledge is nothing like God’s - because our understanding is limited while God’s is unlimited, when we judge something we can only base it on what our eyes see and ears hear. But God sees the heart directly and nothing escapes from His sight, whilst we often lack wisdom and knowledge. And even the knowledge we have is imperfect. But God is the source of wisdom and has perfect knowledge. That’s why His judgments are perfect.

Just as earlier read in Romans, Paul puts it as we cannot fully understand what God does. His judgements are unsearchable and His ways past finding out. At times, we question God in our hearts wondering why God is unfair. But in those times, having faith in God will help us realise it’s our understanding that is insufficient.

With simple faith, we can come to accept God’s command to destroy Amalek heartily, just by simply understanding God’s nature and trusting Him. Of course, by searching the Bible, often we can find a reasonable explanation to the hard questions. But the premise here is that the Bible must be read with faith. Simple faith and belief in God leads us to a better and correct understanding of the Bible. That helps us with building a relationship with God.

Besides difficult things to explain in the Bible, we can also apply this in reconciling and understanding doctrine questions. We know after baptism we must have our feet washed to have a part with Jesus, because it is the command of Jesus. But if we do not have simple faith in God’s perfect judgement and wisdom, we may reject this command just on the basis that someone may be born without feet! We may come up with our own conclusion that it is therefore not necessary for salvation. There are many many more questions we can raise and have perhaps heard before that are similar.

When, even we, can judge something to not be possible in a certain situation, will God not all the more have the wisdom and ability to judge all kinds of situations?

Holding on to simple faith, we’ll be able to reconcile these things. Then we will all just keep His commandments to the best of our ability and leave the rest to God.

2. Simple faith in God can get us through trials and storms in life

These storms and trials help us to experience God even more. We all face trials and storms in life; they come in all shapes and forms. Maybe it’s failing a very important exam we worked very very hard for. Or perhaps it’s facing the consequences of a mistake we made. Or perhaps a failed relationship. Maybe we’re facing difficulties at our job. Or maybe we’re put in a difficult financial situation. Maybe your loved one falls ill and we lose someone we love. Or maybe our own health takes a downturn. This list can go on and on.

We can consider the life of Joseph. He was born in the house of Israel. He is in a household that is well-to-do. But he was hated by his brothers. So strong was the hatred that they wanted to kill him! In the end they sold him as a slave. From the son of a rich man, he became a slave in Egypt, sold by his brothers.

None of us here have experienced something as terrible as Joseph did - he was almost killed and sold as a slave to a foreign land. But we know throughout it all, Joseph kept his faith in God strong. He never forsook God.

Gen 39:9b
How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?

Despite suffering alone in a foreign land away from his family, Joseph kept and practised his faith by not committing wickedness and sinning against God. This makes it evident to us God was always close to his heart. He practised his faith, and in the whole chapter 39, it repeatedly says the Lord was with Joseph (v2, 3, 21, 23). In v21 and 23, Joseph was falsely accused. But the verses tell us repeatedly that God was with him. Joseph kept his faith in God no matter what happened and no matter what life threw at him. As a result, God accompanied him through it all. Joseph’s faith in God allowed him to personally experience God. In the sufferings he experienced, just as Paul says in 2 Cor 12:9-10. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Likewise in all the persecution and distress Joseph went through, it was an opportunity for him to experience the power of God. God made Joseph’s hand prosper and gain favour everywhere. Even as a prisoner, God preserved Joseph from sinning and God worked to reveal Pharaoh’s dream through him. God made him second to Pharaoh, administering the land and bringing glory to God. God even brought His impossibly broken family together; uniting his family and even mending his relationship with his brothers.

As readers of the Bible, we are aware of the happy ending just by reading it. But as for Joseph, he knew nothing going through it all. How did he keep his faith in God through it all? What was his simple faith and belief in God?

Gen 50:20
But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.

His faith in God was holding on to the belief that God’s intentions towards him are good. He believes every evil thing he encountered was meant for good by God. That enabled him to always keep his faith regardless of the environment he was in. So God loved him and accomplished great things through him.

Jer 29:11
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

These are God’s intentions towards us. Do we have this faith? The same faith that Joseph had; that the thoughts God has towards us are always good and never evil. This will allow us to always stand fast in faith, and emerge stronger no matter what we encounter. Even when we meet with injustice and can’t find out why something happens, we will still be able to see things through the eyes of faith, and experience God by believing in His good intentions; that He tests us for our sake; to refine our faith. He allows us to experience Him through trials. At times He may chasten us just as a father chastens the children he loves. Faith will carry us through this.

3. Simple unwavering faith in God is what God requires of us

Rom 4:3
For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Because Abraham believed in God, it was accounted to him for righteousness. This is a verse not easy to understand, perhaps because it’s so simple. Abraham believed in God, so it was accounted to him for righteousness.

What is this righteousness? v5-8 explains it.

But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, And whose sins are covered; Blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.”

This is righteousness imputed by God which is accounted apart from works. This person is one who God forgives. The righteousness that is apart from works is the righteousness that is simply believing in God.

v19-21 talks about the full extent of Abraham’s belief in God.

And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.

Despite what reality was - the deadness of his body and Sarah’s womb - he didn’t waver in unbelief. He simply believed in God and was fully convinced that God would perform what He promised.

v22 God hence accounted him to righteousness.

And therefore “it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Likewise, we must simply believe in God and His promises. To believe entirely in God’s words. Despite whatever the situation may tell us, or what other people may tell us, or even what our own eyes tell us, we still give glory to the power of God. Because we walk by faith and not by sight.

Abraham demonstrated this by walking contrary to his sight.

Conclusion

Eph 2:8
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God

We are all saved through having faith with God. May God grant us all a simple and unwavering faith in Him.