The Difference Between Trust And Faith

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1).

There's a hymn I love and part of the wordings teach us the importance of trusting in the Lord; it goes thus:
"Trust and obey, for there's no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey."
Trusting in the Lord is one of the bedrocks of the Christian faith. Trust is that confident assurance in God's personality, that He is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do. Trust is for all-time, and every Christian must learn to trust the Lord with whole-hearted devotion. It's trust that'll keep you hoping for a brighter tomorrow in the darkest of nights. Trust in God will keep you standing and expecting that your miracle will eventually come to pass. Trust is so important, for without it there can be no basis for faith.

However, even though trust is the foundation of faith, faith is different from trust.
The Bible defines faith as the "evidence" of unseen realities; meaning faith is the "proof" that what you were hoping for is yours now. That means faith is not futuristic--faith is for now: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Therefore, faith dictates the pace and the terms. Faith doesn't say "God is going to do it"; faith says "God has done it." So for the guy who is operating in trust, he will say "I know my redeemer lives; He will not disappoint me" and that's great. But the guy who is operating in faith will say, "I thank you father, for you have answered my prayer and have granted me everything my heart desires. Amen."

So, if what you desire is a "now-change" in your situation, then you have to convert your "trust" into "faith." You must move from believing that God will answer you some day to acting on the Word NOW! Make a demand, believing that you've received what you asked for. Trust has no time-limit and you can reap benefits of trust for as long as you live, even to generations after you. But faith is a now-possessor.

PRAYER

Dear Father, thank you for enlightening the eyes of my understanding to know the difference between faith and trust. I trust you totally and unreservedly and I declare that my faith is working and producing results today, in the Name of Jesus. Amen.


Rhapsody of Realities March 26, 2009
-Pastor Chris Oyakhilome