There is more to walking by faith than going to heaven

For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. ² For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, ³ if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. ⁴ For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. ⁵ He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

⁶ So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, ⁷ for we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸ Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. ⁹ So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. ¹⁰ For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

2 Corinthians 5:1-10

There is a lot more to walking by faith than getting to heaven. For many Christians, believing the Biblical proposition that salvation is by faith alone through grace alone in Christ alone is the definition of walking by faith. That is a very feeble understanding of walking by faith. It is true as far as it goes, but it leaves the walk of faith without substance other than going to heaven when I die.

Excitement in the Christian life is found in walking by faith in every area of life and living in a way that requires that God be active in our life. Sometimes it will mean that we do things that we wouldn’t normally do without the prompting of the Spirit and the word to lead us through this life in a God-honoring way. Sometimes it actually requires miracles. I know that is a controversial statement in some circles, but it is true.

Abram, later to become Abraham, is the quintessential example of a man who walked by faith. As far as we know, he may have been a pagan at the time God called him to leave his home and go to a place God had chosen for him. He didn’t know where that place was. He didn’t even know its name, so he couldn’t use Google maps to lead him on his way. Think about his example. Abram heard God’s voice telling him to leave his home. He packed up his family, including his nephew, and off they went. That call to “go” included the promise that his name would be great and that all the nations would be blessed in him. We know that Abram believed God because he obeyed God and left Haran to go where God was sending him. Abram was literally walking by faith.

It was several years later before Abram was declared righteous by God. This righteousness that comes through faith is the linchpin of the Christian faith. It was by grace that God chose and called Abram. It was by faith that God declared Abram to be righteous. Abram had been walking by faith for years before he was declared righteous by God. He had allowed Lot to choose the land he wanted to live in after the two households became too large for them to stay together. It was after Abram rescued Lot and his family from Chedorlaomer and the other three kings who had kidnapped him. It was after Abram had paid tithes to Melchizedek and refused to take booty for himself. God then promised him that he would be Abram’s shield and exceeding great reward.

Abram was still troubled by the fact that God had promised him his own seed, and yet he had no children of his own. In this state, God restated his promise that Abram would have a child from his own loins, and Abram’s offspring would be innumerable as the stars of the heavens. It was only after these many events of Abram’s life that Scripture says. “And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.” God then gave Abram confirmation of his promise by cutting a covenant with Abram, the covenant we now refer to as the Abrahamic covenant.

Again, time marches on, and Abram has no heir. Abram continues to believe God, although he believes God imperfectly. He gave in to Sarai’s doubts and sired a son with her servant, Hagar. This departure from faithful action produced a result that still plagues Abram’s descendants today. Many of the descendants of Ishmael are among Israel’s greatest enemies and have been since Abram’s day. This part of the story depicts what happens when we choose to walk in the flesh rather than walking by faith in the Spirit.

When Abram was ninety-nine years old and still without his own child, the LORD appeared to Abram again and gave him the sign of the covenant, circumcision. The cutting off of the flesh. God’s covenant with Abram was to be a covenant of faith by the Spirit, not a covenant of the flesh and human effort. After these many years and faith experiences, God changed Abram’s name to Abraham. Then Isaac was conceived. It was the beginning of the fulfillment of the promise that Abraham’s offspring would be like the stars of the sky.

Abraham now faces the greatest test of his faith so far. He finally has his son, Isaac. The child of laughter and joy. Now God speaks to Abraham again. This time his faith is stretched about as far as it could be. If Abraham didn’t understand or believe in the resurrection before this time, he did now. The LORD commanded Abraham to sacrifice his only son, an action that would thwart God’s promise that his offspring would be innumerable. Abram walked by faith and obeyed God. At the last second, the angel of the Lord brought to a halt the sacrifice of Isaac and introduced the idea of substitutionary sacrifice. God himself provided the sacrifice of a ram caught in the thicket prefiguring Christ, who would become the sacrifice for all who would put their trust in him as Abraham had done. And, we who trust him would be able to hear that we are righteous by faith in the finished work of Christ alone.

 And the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven ¹⁶ and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, ¹⁷ I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, ¹⁸ and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.” 

Genesis 22:15-18

God again reiterates the promise of offspring as the stars of heaven and the sand on the seashore. But why did God restate his promise? “Because you have obeyed my voice.”

Walking by faith is an exciting life of hearing the voice of God and obeying it. Walking by faith is not making a profession of faith and going on with life looking forward to heaven someday. Yes, it does include that tremendous future hope, but it is also a life of faithful obedience that takes us through twists and turns in life that we did not expect. It entails supernatural provision from God. It includes glorious intimacy with God in Christ. It produces a joy that cannot be expressed. It may well entail packing up and going somewhere that wasn’t in your life plan…but it was in God’s plan for you.

A life lived by faith is so much more than waiting to go to heaven when we die. It is an exciting life. It is sometimes a fearful life that turns into an abundance of joy when we obey in the face of fear. It is a life of courage. It is a life of love. If you find your life as a Christian boring and mundane, then I suggest you are not walking by faith. What is the solution if that is the case? Repentance and turning to Jesus. Ask him to forgive you for walking in the flesh. Ask for a renewal of faith and infilling of the Holy Spirit.

Walking by faith is so much more than waiting to go the heaven.