Do I have the God Kind of faith? It is critical for a Christian to know what kind of faith they have. Our entire existence and lifestyle depends on faith. We are saved through faith. (Ephesians 2:8) It is impossible to please God without faith. (Hebrews 11:6)
Therefore we have to ask ourselves, “What is my faith?” There is more than one kind of faith in the world. The faith we want as a Christian is the God kind of faith. What is the God kind of faith?
Most Bibles render Mark 11:22, “Jesus replied to them, “Have faith in God.” A more accurate translation is found in Young’s Literal translation. “And Jesus answering saith to them, ‘Have faith of God.” Or the “God kind of faith,” which is where my title for this article came from.
Different Kinds of Faith
There are six different kinds of faith. You can see them listed in the table below with their description and scripture reference.
| Kinds of Faith | Description | Scripture Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Human Faith | This is natural faith. | Acts 19:11-16 |
| Religious Faith | Faith based upon rituals and ordinances. |
Matthew 23:33 |
| Experiential Faith | Faith based on experience and observation. |
John 20:25 |
| Intellectual Faith | Agreement with an idea of faith. Simply mental assent. |
James 2:19 |
| Temporary Faith | Faith is accepted with joy. Later doubt steals the faith. |
Mark 4:16-17 |
| The God Kind of Faith | Heartfelt faith based on revelation. |
Matthew 8:10 |
What Is Human Faith
This is our natural human faith. Even an unbeliever has faith. Their faith is based upon repetitive learning. They have faith in a chair, because they know similar chairs have held their weight previously.
They can have faith in their own abilities, in a doctor, or mentor. All this is learned behavior. Human faith works in the physical realm, but has no power in the spiritual realm. Using natural human faith for spiritual situations can have disastrous results.
We see this when the seven sons of Sceva tried to cast out a demon using human faith. They went in the house to cast out a demon without the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
Now some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists also attempted to pronounce the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I command you by the Jesus that Paul preaches!” Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish high priest, were doing this. The evil spirit answered them, “I know Jesus, and I recognize Paul—but who are you?” Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them, overpowered them all, and prevailed against them, so that they ran out of that house naked and wounded. (Acts 19:11-16 CSB)
All they had was their natural human faith based on what they have seen others do. The result was catastrophic and embarrassing for them. Our natural human faith is designed for the natural world; not the spiritual world.
Religious Faith
This is faith in a creed, organization, or denomination. It is faith based upon man-made ordinances and rituals. Sometimes these ordinances have little or no basis in scripture. This faith is a works-based faith, with the person hoping their works will make them worthy to enter heaven.
Religious faith has no substance to it. It causes people to place their faith in their religious works instead of what truly pleases God. Jesus pointed out the Pharisee’s religious faith that caused them to neglect the more important things of God.
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You pay a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, and yet you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy, and faithfulness. These things should have been done without neglecting the others. Blind guides! You strain out a gnat, but gulp down a camel!” (Matthew 23:23-24 CSB)
This is only two verses of the word lashing Jesus gives the Pharisees. The Pharisees were so intent in following the rules down to the most minute detail. This isn’t bad. Where they erred was in not doing the heart matters of the law. Things such as justice, mercy, and faithfulness.
Those are much more important than the rules they were following. Good works will not save us. Good works are the evidence we are saved.
For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do. (Ephesians 2:8-10 CSB)
Experiential Faith
This is faith based upon experience or observation. It often is accompanied by the remark, “If I can’t touch, I can’t believe it.” Or, “I have to see it with my own eyes to believe it.”
This is the faith Thomas, the Apostle, had after Jesus resurrection. He said, “If I don’t see the mark of the nails in his hands, put my finger into the mark of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will never believe.” (John 20:24-25 CSB)
After Jesus let Thomas see and feel, Jesus said, “Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Don’t be faithless, but believe.” (John 20:27 CSB)
Jesus called Thomas’ experiential faith, spiritually faithless. Thomas doubted the truth until he could see it. It is my personal belief Thomas never did that again. That this incident ended his “Doubting Thomas” days.
True faith, the God kind of faith, believes before it sees. True faith believes based on the fact God said it and promised it to us. That is the faith we desire.
Intellectual Faith
This agrees with an idea of faith from the mind instead of the heart. It is called mental assent. It is all mind based and not heart based. The demons believe in God, but it is all an intellectual faith based in the mind. Their belief in God can’t save them.
You believe that God is one. Good! Even the demons believe—and they shudder. (James 2:19 CSB)
The demons belief causes fear in them. They have the intellectual knowledge that God will eventually put them in the lake of fire along with their leader, satan.
True faith is different. True faith puts all of its trust, confidence, and reliance upon God. Belief in God is based on heart and not mind. I wrote more about what the Bible word “believe” means HERE.
Temporary Faith
This is when someone hears the Word. Immediately they get excited. “This is the best thing I have ever heard,” they say. Later, doubt comes and steals their faith. Their faith was only temporary.
This doubt is caused when trials and tribulations come. Temporary faith is based upon emotions. It causes great excitement but has no solid foundation in the heart. We see this in the parable of The Sower Sows the Word.
And others are like seed sown on rocky ground. When they hear the word, immediately they receive it with joy. But they have no root; they are short-lived. When distress or persecution comes because of the word, they immediately fall away. (Mark 4:16-17 CSB)
Why did trials and tribulations come? Because satan wanted to steal the Word sown into their heart. It happens to those who allow doubt to enter. Satan steals the Word to stop their faith from growing.
We need a permanent, unshakable faith. Faith that is built on the Rock – Jesus.
The God Kind of Faith
The God Kind of faith is a gift from God. “…as God has distributed a measure of faith to each one.” (Romans 12:3 CSB) This faith is always based on the Word of God. The God Kind of faith is the result of the Holy Spirit providing revelation knowledge of God’s Word.
This is why the promise is by faith, so that it may be according to grace, to guarantee it to all the descendants—not only to the one who is of the law but also to the one who is of Abraham’s faith. He is the father of us all. As it is written: I have made you the father of many nations— in the presence of the God in whom he believed, the one who gives life to the dead and calls things into existence that do not exist. He believed, hoping against hope, so that he became the father of many nations according to what had been spoken: So will your descendants be. He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body to be already dead (since he was about a hundred years old) and also the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, because he was fully convinced that what God had promised, he was also able to do. Therefore, it was credited to him for righteousness. Now it was credited to him was not written for Abraham alone, but also for us. It will be credited to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. (Romans 4:16-24 CSB)
Read the passage from Romans 4 very carefully. I highlighted some of the important points. Abraham had the God kind of faith based upon God’s covenant promise to him.
This is the faith we are to have.
What Is Faith According to the Bible
If we are to operate in the God Kind of faith, we need to understand what this faith is according to the Bible. We find the Bible definition of faith in Paul’s letter to the Hebrew Christians.
Here is Hebrews 11:1 in four different translations:
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (NKJV)
Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see. (NLT)
Now faith is a well-grounded assurance of that for which we hope, and a conviction of the reality of things which we do not see. (Weymouth)
NOW FAITH is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses]. (Classic Amplified)
Faith is knowing for fact what you believe will happen based solely on God’s promises. God said it; I believe it; and that settles it.
This is the faith we are capable of. A faith that believes what God says and grasps it as real before it ever physically manifests. This is the God Kind of faith God placed in you and me the moment we were born again. Let me show you.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come! Everything is from God… (2 Corinthians 5:17-18a CSB)
Take special notice of the highlighted phrase. Everything is from God. When we are born again and become a new creation, everything deposited in our spirit is from God. This includes our faith. The faith deposited in our spirit is from God and it is His faith we receive.
(Did you know there is a spiritual law of faith? You can learn more about the Law of Faith in my article HERE.)
Using the God Kind of Faith
How do we know what faith we are using? Is there a way to tell? The answer is yes. Listen to the words coming out of your mouth.
Remember what Jesus said, “Brood of vipers! How can you speak good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart. A good person produces good things from his storeroom of good, and an evil person produces evil things from his storeroom of evil.” (Matthew 12:34-35 CSB)
Our mouth speaks from whatever is stored in our heart. If there is doubt, we will speak that doubt. “I know God says I am healed, but…” Anything that is said after the ‘but’ will be unbelief.
Faith from the heart says, “Body, I don’t care if you are in pain. I don’t care what symptoms you have. God says I am healed, and I declare I am healed.”
(Do you need healing in your body? You can find my article about healing HERE.)
This is how you know you are operating in the God kind of faith: You will speak the faith you believe before you ever see it.
How Do You Grow Your Faith
We know that we are operating in faith. We are sure it is the God Kind of faith. But I need to believe for bigger things.
How do I grow my faith? How do I make my faith bigger? There are five steps you do to grow your faith.
Here are the 5 steps to have growing faith:
- Daily Bible Study
- Daily Prayer
- Daily obedience
- Daily exercising your faith
- Daily pray in the spirit
Notice each of the five steps are done daily. Why daily? Because God commands us to live by faith. We live daily, so we are using our faith daily. If we are using our faith daily, we are depleting our faith. If we are to grow our faith, we need to put in more each day than we are using.
Doing all five steps daily will not only keep your faith strong, but it will also grow your faith.
We Have the God Kind of Faith – Now Let’s Use It
Now that you are assured of having the God kind of faith, it is time to use your faith. How do we use our faith? The same way God uses His faith.
By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible. (Hebrews 11:3 CSB)
God created the world by speaking words of faith. God spoke, and the world leapt into existence because of the power of His faith. Our world wasn’t made out of nothing, it was made from things that are not visible. God’s power, His faith, caused the things in the spiritual world that are unseen to come into our physical world.
As it is written: I have made you the father of many nations— in the presence of the God in whom he believed, the one who gives life to the dead and calls things into existence that do not exist. (Romans 4:17 CSB)
God calls things into existence. We can operate in the same way. Not on God’s creative level, but on our God given level. We speak of things that are not as if they are. This causes what we can’t see to move into the seen realm.
Just like God, we speak our faith. That is how we operate in faith. We speak what God promises us into existence.
(Faith is a way of life for the Christian. You can read more about this in my article HERE.)
We Have the God Kind of Faith
Now we know we have the God kind of faith, how to grow our faith, and how to use our faith. The more we use our faith, the better we become in using our faith. It becomes better with use. It becomes more efficient and effective with use.
Faith is much like a muscle. The more it is used and stressed, the bigger it becomes.
Take your faith and use it. Dare to believe the impossible promises of God.
The Challenge
I challenge you to use your faith daily. But, not only use it – stretch it. Believe God for the impossible. Take the biggest problem in your life. Find the promises of God that address that problem. Meditate on those promises until you are sure they will come to pass.
Then speak your faith without doubt. Watch what God does in response to your radical faith.
If you would like to know more about living by faith, you can read my article:
Live By Faith: Your Bold Call to Live A Wild And Courageous Life
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