What Is Faith
A: Faith must be the
first principle in revealed religion. As soon as truth is revealed and proclaimed, men are to
adhere to it by acquiring faith in this revealed truth. With no such faith there
can be no righteousness. Thus, it is also the very foundation of righteousness. Acts that looks
like righteous acts will not be rewarded as righteous if the motivating factor
behind them is anything but faith, exercised in free agency. Q: What is faith? A: Paul affirmed; 1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things
not seen (Hebrews 11:1). From this we learn that faith is the assurance which men have of the existence of things which they have not seen. This
assurance is sent by God to the individual through the Holy Spirit, and it is
the result that comes from asking God for a witness of the truth. Q: What is Faith? A: Faith is the principle of action in all intelligent
beings. And as it is the moving cause of all action
in temporal concerns, so it is in spiritual. An example of faith in temporal
things is when the farmer prepares the soil for planting, and then throws seeds
into the ground, whereupon he waters the fields and gives them proper
nourishment. All this work, filled with faith that comes fall, he will have a
crop to bring home. Q: What is Faith? A: Faith is also a principle of power. When Jesus created the universe he commanded the elements, filled with
faith that they would obey him then, and forever. In that, and every other
situation where the outcome of an action is critical, it is important to
differentiate “faith” from “hope”. “Take up thy bed and walk into thine house” would have been
something of a fiasco if Jesus would not have had the power of faith. The same
would have been true with every act of power that have accompanied the apostles
and prophets ever since. Faith, then, is the first great governing principle which
has power, dominion, and authority over all things;
by it all things exist, by it they are upheld, by it they are changed, or by it
they remain, agreeable to the will of God. Without faith there is no power, and
without power there could be neither creation nor existence Q: What is Faith? A: Faith is based on truth
and is preceded by knowledge. Until a person gains knowledge of the truth he can have no faith. Faith to harvest in the
fall is centered in basic knowledge in biology. By understanding what happens when
seeds are placed in the soil at the right time of the year, a soil that has
been properly prepared, and understanding what needs to be done all the way up
to, and through, the harvest, causes millions of men and women all over the
world to perform what would have been miracles a few thousand years ago. To
their aid they have scientists who have learned how to make the old plants
become new and improved, and yield abundantly more than before. It is by their
faith that this could be accomplished that this has been done. Faith to be successful in
worldly matters does not necessarily require knowledge of, or a belief in God! Knowledge in film-making can be
sufficient to give a director faith enough to make a great film. Knowledge in
financial matters can give me faith enough to run a bank with great success. But
knowledge and faith in God can make that film-maker so much more successful, if
that is the will of the Lord! Faith unto life and
salvation centers in Christ. There is no salvation in that general principle of faith alone, that
moving cause of action, which causes the farmer to plant his seed with the
unseen hope that it will bear grain. But there is faith unto salvation when
Christ is the focal point in which the unseen hope centers. Take away the knowledge from the farmer, and he will have no crop. Take away his faith in the process, and he will not plant. Take away his seeds, and he has no principle of truth to build upon. Everything works on the principles of faith!
|
