Walking by Faith

Introduction

It's the last episode of On s'y retrouve for season 4, and the host has gathered the longest-serving members of the team to talk about a subject that runs through the whole of Christian life: walking by faith. Around the table, Jean-Marie Ribay, Patrice Martorano, and Bertrand Huetz discuss three themes that structure the episode — what faith is, faith in the face of sin, and faith in the face of need. Without faith it is impossible to please God. So how do you actually walk by faith today, in your everyday life? That's what this conversation invites you to dig into.

Episode outline

1. What is faith?

• Jean-Marie opens the discussion by distinguishing between two things people often confuse: believing that God exists, and having faith. "The devil himself knows God exists, and that doesn't make him a believer." Faith is not mere intellectual assent to certain truths; it is a living relationship with God, grounded in particular in the resurrection of Christ.
• Faith is also not human trust. Going through a green light assuming others will stop at the red isn't faith, it's empirical knowledge. True faith transcends the natural realm: it is directed toward God, it has God as its object.
• Faith comes from the Word of God. "Faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the word of God." It does not find its source in human speech, but in what God himself has revealed.
• Faith is a gift from God, but it does not remove our responsibility. Each person chooses whether or not to believe — we see this in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus: the rich man wants someone raised from the dead sent to his brothers so they will believe, but Abraham answers that they have Moses and the prophets, and that those who do not listen to them would not believe even if someone rose from the dead. The responsibility to believe is truly individual.
• Faith can grow. Paul speaks of "the proportion of faith": as your faith is strengthened, God may ask of you things he would not have asked before. Job is the champion of this: he loses everything but his life, and he keeps speaking well of God.

2. Faith in the face of sin

• Patrice puts forward a strong conviction: there is something greater than being forgiven for sin, and that is being able to live without falling into it. Too often we settle for a "bare minimum" — we're on earth, we're going to sin, we ask forgiveness. But Christ's model is something else entirely.
• David himself, in the psalms, speaks of his sins and ends up saying, "forgive me for those I am unaware of." Awareness of sin runs very deep, even for a man after God's own heart.
• Living free from sin is not having the strength to resist it every day. It is no longer wanting to, no longer being interested in it. Like a stranger before something that no longer concerns you. It's not the struggle, it's the freedom.
• This freedom takes concrete shape: Jean-Marie shares his own story. A smoker at the time of his conversion, while doing his military service, someone prays for him — the person, without knowing he smokes, tells him: "The Lord is showing me that you smoke, but don't worry, it will stop on its own." Two months later, one morning, he takes out a cigarette, puts it out, goes back to his room, tears up his four remaining packs, and throws them away. No more craving, no withdrawal. A deliverance that, later on, would also require real effort on his part to maintain — but which shows that God can act in an instant.
• Paul explains in Romans 6 and 7 how to walk according to the Spirit. Faith leads us to put into practice the new kingdom to which we belong; the choices it requires become, over time, complete freedom.

3. Faith in the face of need

• Bertrand approaches the third theme through peace. The first blessing of faith on earth is this serenity that goes beyond our own circumstances — whether physical or material needs.
• Jesus, in Matthew 6, returns to the subject of worry five times in nine verses. He reminds us that he clothes the lilies of the field and feeds the birds of the sky; how much more will he take care of you.
• Faith is not just "I believe and God will act." It is something that moves into action. In Matthew 17, Jesus asks Peter to go catch a fish to pay the tax: he asks him to use something he already knows how to do. God performs his miracle right where we ourselves are limited.
• Second lesson from this passage: inside that fish is enough to pay both Jesus's tax and Peter's — even though Peter had asked for nothing for himself. God provides beyond even what we know to ask for.
• In John 21, the disciples catch 153 fish. Bertrand draws this prayer from it: "Lord, help me count your blessings, so that in times of need I don't forget that you have already stepped in and that you can step in again."

4. Faith and healing: do your part, let God do his

• Facing illness, faith is neither magic nor a source of guilt. "Your lack of healing is not because you don't have enough faith." What matters is doing your part: the Word says to pray for the sick, to lay hands on them — which is what the church does on Tuesday evenings.
• After doing your part, the rest belongs to God. Bertrand insists: "I don't take on what isn't my responsibility. I do what God asks me to do, and I trust him for the rest."
• There are also genuine words of knowledge, genuine healings received within the congregation — but these are not rules, it is as God sees fit.

5. The right word: trust

• Jean-Marie admits he would almost prefer using a different word than "faith." The word "faith" is a religious word, it has no traction in everyday language. Its real content is trust.
• The more you trust someone, the more you surrender to them. Like very young children who can't even imagine that mom or dad might not do what's needed. They simply trust.
• Psalm 37:5 says it in simple words: "Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in him, and he will act." Walking by faith does not always mean knowing where you're going, how you're getting there, or in what way. It means trusting.

Key takeaways

• Faith is not believing that God exists — even demons know that. It is entering into a living, trusting relationship with him.
• Faith comes from the Word of God, it transcends the natural realm, and it is meant to grow throughout the whole of the Christian life.
• Facing sin, there is something greater than forgiveness: living free. Not resisting every day, but no longer wanting to sin.
• Facing need, the first blessing is peace. God provides, often beyond even what we dare to ask.
• The true name of faith is trust. Commit your way to the Lord, trust in him, and he will act.

Personal application

1. Does your faith come down to believing God exists, or has it become a daily relationship with him?
2. Is there a sin you've been making peace with for a long time, telling yourself "well, we're only human"? Do you dare believe that God can truly deliver you from it?
3. What concrete need is stealing your peace today? Are you ready to do your part and leave the rest to God?
4. When was the last time you took a moment to "count your blessings" — what God has already done in your life?
5. If you replaced the word "faith" with the word "trust" when you pray, what would that change about how you address God?

Verses cited

• Romans 10:17 — Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of God.
• Hebrews 11:6 — Without faith it is impossible to please God.
• Romans 6 – 7 — Walking according to the Spirit, free from sin.
• Matthew 6:25-34 — Do not worry; the birds of the sky and the lilies of the field.
• Matthew 17:24-27 — Peter catches the fish containing the tax money.
• John 21 — The miraculous catch of 153 fish.
• Psalm 37:5 — Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in him, and he will act.

Further reading

• What Is Christian Service?
• What Is Biblical Hermeneutics?
• What Is a Home Group? Definition and Role

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between believing in God and having faith?

Believing that God exists is an intellectual statement: it can be held by anyone, including people who don't love him. As Jean-Marie points out in the episode, the devil himself knows that God exists. Biblical faith is something else: it is a living, trusting relationship with God, grounded in the revelation of his Word and in the resurrection of Christ. It engages the whole person, not just the mind.

Can a Christian really live without sinning?

Patrice answers with nuance: we will live in the flesh to the very end, and therefore face temptation to the very end. But he does not accept the "bare minimum" that says "we're on earth, we're bound to sin, too bad." His conviction is that a person sincerely attached to the Lord, giving more and more room to the new nature, progressively comes to no longer want to sin. Living free from sin isn't resisting every day what you'd want to do, it's no longer wanting it.

If my prayer isn't answered, does that mean my faith is too weak?

Bertrand is very clear on this: no. The reading that makes the believer guilty for their own lack of healing is false. Our part is to put into practice what the Word says — to pray, to lay on hands, to bring our needs to God. After that, the rest belongs to him. Faith also means accepting that we don't take on what isn't our responsibility. The peace that surpasses our circumstances is already, in itself, the first blessing of faith on earth.