1997年6月1日 的講道《Faith: The Assurance of Things Hoped For》（信心：所盼望之事的實底，基於希伯來書11:1）中，用「信心是一種靈性的理解或感受或品嚐上帝的應許」來解釋「信就是所望之事的實底」這節經文。
Piper 的重點是：
- 信心不是自我安慰的幻想（不是“心靈遊戲”）。
- 信心是一種屬靈的感知，能「提前」在靈裡享受上帝應許的美善。
- 信心是實質性的首付，讓信徒在現今就能嚐到將來要完全實現的真實。
換句話說，他強調 信心不是單單“盼望有一天會實現”，而是現今就能真實地感受和品嚐到上帝應許的甘甜。
John Piper 在 1997 年 6 月 1 日的講道 “Faith: The Assurance of Things Hoped For”（希伯來書 11:1）。這段的英文原文是：
“Faith is the spiritual apprehending, or perceiving, or tasting, or sensing of the beauty and sweetness and preciousness and goodness of what God promises — especially his own fellowship and the enjoyment of his own presence.
Faith does not create what we hope for — that would be a mere mind-game.
Faith is a kind of spiritual tasting of the reality of what God promises, especially the enjoyment of God himself. And this tasting is a kind of substantial down payment of the reality that is coming.”
出處：John Piper, Faith: The Assurance of Things Hoped For, sermon on Hebrews 11:1, June 1, 1997.