What does a faithful man believe?
A faithful man believes:
(a) The promises of God on Earth:
(1) You may see promise fulfillment:
Through faith also Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. Hebrews 11:11
Abraham and Sarah saw the fulfilled promise of the Lord during their life on earth. To see this, they waited a long time when there was no hope for them. The promises of the Lord are fulfilled in their own time for which faith is required. If there is evident hope for you what is reason there for you to believe and have faith?
(2) You may not see its’(promise) fulfillment:
By faith Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel;
The Bible says-
“And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them ; and they shall afflict them four hundred years ; and also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge : and afterward shall they come out with great substance “.
Genesis 16:13-14
Joseph believed that Lord would deliver the people of Israel out of bondage of Egypt. This was the promise given to Abraham which neither Abraham nor Joseph saw with their eyes. But this promise was fulfilled as it is evident in the history. Some promises may be fulfilled after your life time but still you should believe that the Lord is just and faithful one.
(b) The promises of God in Heaven:
For example consider the following instance from the Bible:
And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. Genesis 50:25
The promise of the Lord is to give the salvation to mankind after death. The importance of bones at the time of resurrection was clearly understood by Joseph. The reason for his saying is his belief in resurrection of the dead. And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him. Exodus 14:19. You may also see-when Jesus told Thomas –“Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.” Luke 24: 40. This surely tells us the importance of bones in the resurrection of the dead. People of this world may not believe and understand this. But this is what the Bible says. A faithful man should believe the things of heaven. Joseph believed the things of heaven and was reckoned as faithful man. Our faith is to have the everlasting life with the Lord!