May 26, 2023
Stewardship: Of Faith
The apostle Paul wrote, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9). When introducing the concept of salvation by grace through faith to our confirmands, we revised this statement to say, “You are saved by Faith through faith”; which at first blush seems to be a bit nonsensical. The distinction between “Faith” and “faith” is vitally important, however.
“Faith” is the Christian Faith, the teachings and beliefs of Christian Church, as interpreted by the many churches within the Church universal. This is distinct from “faith,” an individual’s subjective assent to belief in the Christian Faith. Believing isn’t enough; whatone believes is crucial. Paul was a faithful Jew, but he had come to realize that his belief was based on earning God’s favor by obedience. His encounter with Christ and subsequent conversion and baptism redirected his faith to a new Faith in God’s grace through Christ.
For the past two years in our confirmation program, we have presented the Christian Faith as interpreted by the Covenant Church to Axel, Catelyn, Elsie, Jonah, Phia, Signe, andWes. We systematically worked our way through the Old Testament, New Testament, and the histories of Christian churches. Along the way key themes were summarized in Catechisms which were illustrated by a verse or verses from the Scriptures, modeling that Christian belief is ultimately rooted in the Bible, the foundation of our Faith.
In our service last Sunday, Pastor Steve and I asked the catechism questions, the confirmands responded with the catechism responses, and you all followed with the attending scriptures. In this way we all together affirmed our common Faith. We then invited our confirmands to affirm their faith in the Christian Faith at this point in their lives; something we do throughout our lifetime in worship. We then asked God’s blessings on these young women and men on the threshold of adulthood that their faith would endure all of life’s challenges, and their knowledge of our Faith would deepen through both their questions and their affirmations.
In 1976, Christian theologian and educator John Westerhoff asked the question “Will our children have faith?” He based this question on the early Christian theologian Tertullian’s assertion that Christians are made, not born. They need to be formed in the Faith. Westerhoff then raised the stakes of this question, observing that if we fail to pass the Faith along to the next generation, Christianity will become extinct. More recently we have come to understand that humans are born with faith: the faith that someone will love and care for them, and teach them how to be human. The question then is not “will our children have faith?” but “in what will our children have faith?”
For the past two years we have offered the Christian Faith as the object of the faith of our young people. We will do this again with another cohort of confirmands in two years. We will do this as well for those who enter our church doors, for seekers of all sorts, and for those whose faith has waned. As a church, we are stewards of the Christian Faith. May we be generous in sharing this Faith with all people seeking a source of life, hope, and redemption, offering them a living relationship with the living God, a gift God extends to all who are faithful. And may it begin with the children of our church.
With confidence in Christ,
~ Pastor Todd