A friend of mine, who is also a retired pastor, has shared this story several times. He has a friend who was a missionary who worked among a tribe of people who did not have a written language. One of the strategies of working with such people was to develop a written language for them so that they could have the Word of God in their own tongue.

This can prove to be a challenging endeavor because you will often have trouble finding the proper word to express a certain thought or concept. This missionary was having a hard time finding a word in this tribe’s language for “faith.” They did not seem to have any word that he could use to convey the thought of putting your complete trust and confidence in what God has done for us in Jesus Christ. This is a crucial word if you are going to put the Scriptures into another language. Faith in the death of Jesus to pay for your sin is what gives you the forgiveness He earned for you. Faith in His resurrection from the dead is what assures you that you also have eternal life.

As the missionary continued to live among these people and interact with them daily, he continued searching for the word for “faith.” One day he was walking with them and they came to a very rickety looking suspension bridge. One by one the members of the tribe walked across the bridge, but the missionary was reluctant to do so. The tribal members all encouraged him by shouting a word to him, a word he was not familiar with. He finally walked across the bridge, and then asked them what that word was they were shouting. They explained that it meant “to put your full weight on it.” He had discovered the word he needed for “faith.”

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

We all put our faith in things on a daily basis. We trust that our car will start, that the lights in our home will come on when we flip a switch, that our home will be standing when we return to it. Most of the time, those things are true, but not always. That is why it is hard for some folks to believe something that sounds too good to be true. Can I really be forgiven for all the wrong I have done in my life, and even get a reward I did not earn?

That is exactly what God promises you in His Word. Jesus earned your forgiveness, not you. Jesus gives you the reward of heaven as a gift. You can put your full weight on that.

Psalm 22:5 They cried to you and were saved; in you they trusted and were not disappointed.