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 Undertanding Faith " F aith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God" - Rom. 10:17 There are many kinds of faith. The kind that is used most frequently is natural faith; it is exhibited and used by everyone on a daily bases; for instance, when one sits in a chair he or she is using natural faith to believe the chair will be there when they land, also that it will hold them. No one attempts to sit on anything believing they will fall or else the attempt is worthless. This point carries over to one's life in Christ; doubt should not be allowed. Scripture directs " If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God......But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose tht he will receive anything from the Lord; -James 1:5-7 In order to use faith of any kind, you must believe in God and the finished work of Christ! Now faith is faith in what has already been done opposed to what will be done in the future. The God we serve is a right-now omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient Spiritual being of whom mankind is made in the image of (Gen. 1:27). " Now, faith is the subtance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen".-Heb. 11:1; Substance as defined by Webster is " the most important part" or the "material belongings". Restating that same verse it will read, " Now, faith is the most important part of things hoped for .......! How Awesome is that? The Holy Spirit again tells us of the importance of faith when He states: "But without faith its impossible to please God; for those who come to Him must believe that He is and He is a rewarder of them that diligenltly seek Him". -Heb 11:6 Therefore, having a clear understanding of faith is pivotal to one's Christian development and growth. God rewards them that diligently seek Him. The Covenant of Faith Established Abraham, called the Father of Faith, is spoken of from the Old Testament through the New. The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Roman church uses the Patriarch for validity because of the respect and reverence the Jews have for him; Paul, through a God given desire, wanted to communicate to them the doctrines of Grace that had been revealed to him. He wanted to show that Abraham was declared righteousness before he was circumcised (Rom. 4:10) and before inauguration of the Law. God made a covenant with Abraham to solidify the promise he had made. All believers are heirs to that promise, nonetheless, must activate it by faith in Abraham’s seed, Christ. Normally, according to the ancient customs when a covenant or agreement was made between two or more parties both parties were to participate in the ceremony. The ceremony consisted of them splitting one animal in half and the two who were apart of the agreement would walk between the halves holding hands. Each person was required to hold up their end of the bargain in order for it to be binding. In contrast, Abraham and God’s agreement was carried out differently. In their case, God instructed Abraham to gather the animals and slice them all in half except for the birds (Gen. 15:9). The Patriarch did as he was commanded then fell into a deep sleep (Gen 15:12). It is then we are told that the Lord came down and passed between the halves alone (Gen. 15:17-18). He, instead of making the covenant conditional upon both,He and Abraham , passed between the halves alone. This action consummated a covenant based upon God alone, negating any of man’s input or merit as a source of justification (Gen 22:16). From there forward the Covenant of Faith is established along with the standards of meritless Salvation; hence Grace/ justification. Land is given in return as external evidence of a Spiritual deed. This external evidence demonstrated God’s commitment to keep His promise to Abraham, which meant that it would belong to Abraham’s descendants forever [3] The descendants spoken of here were not to those of natural descent, stately, the Jews (Gen 22:18). The promise is to all nations, those who are of Abraham’s spiritual seed Christ Jesus, are heirs to the promise, not those to of Isaac (Gal. 3:16). Saving Faith Saving faith is another kind of faith discussed in scripture. This form of faith is that which secures the believer eternally [9]. Paul, by the Holy Spirit, penned “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom 10:9). Saving faith is denoted as the true faith due to its proper placement in the correct object, Christ Jesus. This faith, which is produced by the Holy Spirit, is the only faith that leads to a life of obedience and good works. The Holy Spirit produces saving faith and guarantees that a believer’s faith to grow; “For the gifts and callings of God are irrevocable” (Rom. 11:29). |
Dead Faith Dead faith is inactive faith. God has dealt to each one a measure of faith (Rom. 12:3). Faith in an object,other than Christ, negates truth all together. Jesus encountered those with disguised faith during his day. “Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did. But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men” (Jn 2:23-24). The Jews who followed Jesus at that time did so because of the miracles not because of who He is. These Jews were trusting in what they saw, not in what He said; when they perceived the signs they wanted to make Him king (Jn 6:15), however Jesus departed to prevent such action. |
Other kinds of Faith The Bible also describes people who had other kinds of faith. In the parable of the sower, temporary faith is exposed: “But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for awhile. For when tribulation or persecution arise because of the word immediately he stumbles” (Mt. 13:20-21). Luke’s account says “they believe for awhile” (Lk. 8:13). There are many who hear the gospel and receive it with joy. They appear very excited about Jesus; they go to Church and even get involved in good works and evangelizing others, but after a period of time they eventually return to their sinful life. The problem was that the people had no root.” Till strong hearts are changed it must always be so. We meet with many who are soon hot and as soon cold. They receive the Gospel, anon, and leave it by and by. Everything is on the surface, therefore is hasty and unreal.”[10] |
Bibliography Arnold, Bill T. and Beyer, Bryan E. Encountering the Old Testament: A Christian Survey. 2 ed. 2008 [4] Clark, Gordon. Todays Evangelism: Counterfeit or Genuine? Jefferson, MD: Trinity Foundation, 1990. p. 34 [8] Dake, Finis J. Dakes i Reference Bible.1999.2010. Lawrenceville, GA 30046 [2] George, Bob. A Closer look at Law and Grace.2003. Carrollton, TX 75007[3] Gutierrez, Ben. After Three. 2010. Virginia Beach, VA [7] Luther, Martin, Galatians (Cambridge: James Clarke, [1535] 1953). p. 145 [5] Spurgeon, Charles Haddon. Mathew (Grand Rapids: Fleming H. Revell, 1995), p. 171.[10] Swaggart, Jimmy. Hebrews Bible Commentary. World Evangelism Press. 2001. Baton Rouge, Louisianna [9] Towns, Elmer L., and David Brown. Theology for Today.2001 [1] Westminister Confession of Faith. 14:2 [6] |
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