What is faith?

He can’t he has hatred so severe for one group, he can’t control himself

Yeah I meant ' some think '

That having Assurance is having faith .

I understand what you’re saying but you didn’t answer the question. What method do you use to get to your system of beliefs?

If your asking about epistemology. The method i try to approach the scriptures would be starting with .
God exists
The bible comes from God .
God cannot lie .

Faith is believing God's word is true and acting accordingly.

I am Not sure what you mean I thought your question was what is faith,

faith is assurance, the question we need to ask is what is our assurance in,

is it in God

is it in god and other things

is it in self

find out what we trust, and you will figure out what your faith is in.

the two groups you have faith in works, their belief in god is just that belief, if there faith was in God, they would NOT add works

Faith is a gift of God enabling us fallen critters to walk by God's Word rather than by sight, feelings, reasonings etc.

1 ¶ Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Heb 11:1, 3, 6)

Hello @timps, the little Latin phrase which is most associated with the Protestant Reformation of the church is "sola fide" (by which the Reformers meant that our salvation is "by faith alone" in the Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore in the meritorious works that He performed on our behalf, when He lived among us, 2,000+ years ago). IOW, our salvation is by faith (alone) in,


Since the Biblical doctrine (of sola fide) was at the very heart of the Protestant Reformation, the Reformers felt that a detailed explanation of what "saving faith" is was important, so I thought that you might be interested in reading a short summation of their thoughts about the three components (so to speak) of saving faith (as defined by the Reformers).

BTW, I know that this may be a lot to consider, so if you have questions about any of this, please don't hesitate to ask them





~Deut

Hmm, I don't know why, but some of the formatting of the text in my post (above) ended up being incorrect (backwards actually). Oh well, it's still readable, and the 5 minute editing time is over in any case.

Blame it on COVID. When words are infected with viruses all kind of strange things happen.

The Greek word pistis has several meanings in Scripture depending on the context: faith, belief, trust, confidence; fidelity, faithfulness. Some have come along to deny that faith and belief are the same, but they are simply trying to be controversial.

I see faith as a form of stoicism: to be unaffected by bad times, to hold that all is going according to God's plan, to hold that all is good even when times are painful and uncertain, to be spiritually tough/resistant to dread, worry, and woe. Job was faithful.

Hi, timps.

You've already been given some good answers here, and my hope is to somehow add to the same.

Sometimes, when we're trying to understand the meaning of a particular word or teaching, it helps to see where it first appears in scripture, and then work our way forwards from there.

Unless I'm mistaken (and, believe me, somebody will bite my head off if I am...lol), then faith is first applied to Abel in scripture, so let's see if we can determine what it first meant in relation to him.

"By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. " (Hebrews 11:4)

It seems to me, others may disagree, that Abel's faith pertained to three different things:

1. The "more excellent sacrifice" that he "offered".
2. The "God" to whom he offered it.
3. His desire to be deemed "righteous" via his "sacrifice" in God's eyes.

Here's the actual account:

Genesis chapter 4

[1] And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.
[2] And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
[3] And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
[4] And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
[5] But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
[6] And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
[7] If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
[8] And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

When we read the above, one of the first questions that we should ask ourselves is this:

How did both Cain and Abel know that they needed to make an offering or a sacrifice unto the LORD.

Well, for one thing, when Cain and Abel's parents, Adam and Eve, sinned, God, while pronouncing a curse upon the serpent, said the following:

Genesis chapter 3

[14] And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
[15] And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

I bold-faced verse 15 because this is what is commonly known as the "protevangelium", which translates into English as "the first gospel" or the first proclamation of the good news.

In other words, here, God, for the first time, prophesies or foretells of the Messiah or Christ, "her seed", which shall "bruise thy", the serpent's, "head" whereas the serpent "shalt bruise his heel".

Elsewhere in scripture, the Devil or Satan is referred to as being "that old serpent" (Revelation 12:9, 20:2), so we need to understand that this is who "the serpent" (Gen. 3:14) represents.

Whereas "seed" in normally attributed to men in scripture, this prophetic utterance spoke of "her seed", and Jesus was ultimately born of a virgin, and he is the one whom God foretold would ultimately "bruise" the serpent's or Satan's "head".

This, of course, was accomplished via Christ's crucifixion, burial, resurrection from the dead, ascension back to heaven, and glorification at the Father's right hand by which he delivers those who believe in him from Satan's power.

Anyhow, I said all of that to say this:

When Adam and Eve sinned, they sought to cover their nakedness with fig leaves (Gen. 3:7), but God had an entirely different covering in mind.

We read:

"Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them." (Genesis 3:21)

Well, if God clothed them with "coats of skins", then he had to get those "skins" from somewhere, and most, if not all, Bible commentators agree that God killed an animal, a type of Christ who would ultimately be slain for the forgiveness of our sins, and clothed them with the "skins" of the same.

In other words, God not only foretold of a coming Messiah or Christ, but he also killed an animal as a type of the same.

In fact, if we go back even further than "Genesis" or "the beginning", then we learn the following:

I Peter chapter 1

[18] Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
[19] But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
[20] Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,
[21] Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

Before the foundation of the world, Jesus Christ was "foreordained...as of a lamb without blemish and without spot".

In other words, he was foreordained to be the sacrificial "Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29), and the things that we're presently reading about in the book of Genesis in relation to Adam and Eve, and Cain and Abel, are directly related to this reality.

So, how did both Cain and Abel know that they needed to bring offerings or sacrifices unto the LORD?

Well, although the Bible doesn't specifically tell us, it seems rather apparent that either their parents told them because of what God said to them in relation to the coming Messiah or Christ and the animal that he killed as a type thereof to provide them with coats of skins, or that God told them directly, or that an angel revealed it to them.

Whatever the case actually was, they both apparently knew what type of offering or sacrifice was acceptable unto the LORD because of what we read earlier:

Genesis chapter 4

[3] And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
[4] And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
[5] But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
[6] And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
[7] If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

The LORD had respect unto Abel and his offering: but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect.

Furthermore, the LORD told Cain, "If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?", and this leads us to believe that both Cain and Abel knew what type of offering or sacrifice was acceptable unto the LORD.

Which brings us full-circle back to what I suggested earlier in relation to Abel's faith.

It seems to me, others may disagree, that Abel's faith pertained to three different things:

1. The "more excellent sacrifice" that he "offered".
2. The "God" to whom he offered it.
3. His desire to be deemed "righteous" via his "sacrifice" in God's eyes.

In relation to point #1, Abel's "more excellent sacrifice" was "the firstlings of his flock" (Gen. 4:4).

If you understood what I said earlier in relation to Christ being foreordained before the foundation of the world as the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world, the seed of the woman or the Messiah/Christ who would bruise the serpent's head, and the skins of a slain animal by which the LORD himself clothed Adam and Eve which foreshadowed Christ's own sacrifice on our behalves, then you should also be able to understand why Abel's sacrifice of the firstlings of his flock perfectly aligns itself with all of these things in that it too prefigures the Messiah or Christ who would ultimately be slain.

That said, I personally believe that part of Abel's faith pertained to his "more excellent sacrifice or, more specifically, to the Messiah or Christ to which it pointed.

As far as point #2 is concerned, I also believe that part of Abel's "faith" pertained to the God to whom he made the sacrifice or that it showed his belief in the reality that the only acceptable sacrifice in God's eyes is the Messiah or Christ who Abel's sacrifice prefigured.

As far as point #3 is concerned, I also most definitely believe that part of Abel's "faith" pertained to his desire to be deemed righteous in God's eyes, and, Biblically speaking, there is no way to be made righteous in God's eyes other than through the sacrifice of Christ on our behalves.

What, then, does any of this mean to you?

Well, if you want to similarly be made righteous in God's eyes, then you need to put your own saving faith in Jesus Christ in order to do so.

Sorry for such a long response, but I want to make sure that you understand what I am attempting to say to you.

I hope that this helps.

2 Corinthians 5:6-7
6Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: 7(For we walk by faith, not by sight

What is your spiritual sight? Jesus says the following:

John 3:3
3Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

What is spiritual rebirth? It is the unseen spiritual world. Faith effects the spiritual world.

Luke 15:7
7I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

It's about the changing of the immaterial inner person. Not just an outward show, but an inward change. Heaven literally celebrates when you have faith to change your mind (repent.)

Faith is expectation in an image or name you have about something or someone.

For example if your teeth are messed up you would go to a dentist because you'd expect them to be able to treat whatever your tooth issue was. Their title/ label/image and definition of what they are is in the name of what they are to be expected to be able to do. You just go and expect and allow them to do as their name (dentist) implies.

Hello again Timps, there is true story (that I remember from years ago and found to be useful .. perhaps you've heard it) that illustrates the differences between what might be referred to as simple faith and saving faith in Jesus. Here it is.


Saving faith is the kind of faith that enables someone to jump right into that wheelbarrow (w/Jesus) and take even the most harrowing of rides across the Falls with Him.

Saving faith is the kind of faith that allows us/causes us to want to surrender the reins of our life to the Object of our faith, the Lord Jesus Christ, trusting that He alone can save us, and that it is He alone Who also knows what is truly best for us, both in the balance of our present life, and also in the eternity to come.

~Deut
p.s. - here's a short passage to consider about Abraham's faith in God. He is called "the father of all who believe" in Romans 4:11, and referred to often as "the father of faith" (or "of the faithful"), because of it.

Faith is a gift from God to those who are baptized in the name of the Father, and in the name of Jesus Christ, and in the name of the Holy Spirit. You are baptized in the name of the Father when He chooses you to receive His grace. You are baptized in the name of Jesus Christ when you put your trust in His death for the forgiveness of sins. And you get baptized in the name of the Holy Spirit of God when the Holy Spirit enters your body and you are born again with a new heart filled with love for God and man. The Holy Spirit seals us as the elect of God, makes us part of Jesus' body , we become One with the Father and Son, opens our eyes to understanding scripture, and strengthens and guides our lives to do the Father's will. Faith is not just a mental thing. It is also an experience that can be felt through introspection of the mind and heart. You will notice the change in you and this change will confirm and strengthen your faith that all of this is real. I suggest praying to God thanking Him for His blessings and for help in strengthening your faith and in doing His will.

This is one of the dictionary definitions:

Faith

2. belief that is not based on proof

It also gives the obvious one about "religious faith." But I don't think that is what you are asking here. You want something more pragmatic. And I don't think there is anything wrong with that.

This cold, unfeeling definition I've held out here is the rawest I could find. It is a hard-hitting, factually-based interpretation of a word that could ever be dredged up. And as Christians, it makes us cringe.

After all, in our hearts, God is real. He lives in each one of us, and therefore we are the embodiment of His glorious church. But tell that to an atheist, the one who wants proof that God exists.

Of course, we as Christ-followers will never be able to provide that proof. And that's okay. That's where our faith comes in.

Jesus thought faith was important, too. He was constantly rebuking his disciples for not having any. And he was always saying, "You of little faith." So, that kind of hits it on the head. God wants us to have faith in Him.

So, now that we have the secular definition of faith, let's see what God's word has to say. Here in Hebrews chapter 11, we read:

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Heb 11:1.

Dr. Thomas Constable gives us his thoughtful interpretation of the above scripture:

"Essentially faith is confidence that things yet future and unseen will happen as God has revealed they will. "

I think I will give Dr. Constable the last word on that.

The same thing we all must ' get out of it '