"Faith is not a leap in the dark. It is a step in the light (Heb 11:1)." ~ Adrian Rogers
What is Faith?
Response to
comment [from a Christian]: "There are some on the forum that are teaching
that faith is a work. This article refutes that belief.
Funk & Wagnalls Dictionary says that faith is, 1. Confidence or dependence on a
person, statement, or thing as trustworthy. 2. Belief without need of certain
proof. 3. Belief in God or in scripture or other religious writings.
Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen."
The following was taken from my Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary.
In contrast with the extreme rarity with which the terms "faith" and "believe"
are used in the OT, they accur with great frequency in the NT, almost 500 times.
A principal reason for this is that the NT makes the claim that the promised
Messiah had finally come, and, to the bewilderment of many, the form of
fulfillment did not correspond to the Messianic promise. It required a real act
of faith to believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the promised Messiah. It was not
long before "to believe" meant to become a Christian. In the NT, faith therefore
becomes supreme of all acts and experiences.
In His miracles and teachings Jesus aimed at creating in His disciples a
complete trust in Himself as the Messiah and savior of men. Everywhere He
offered himself as the object of faith, and made it plain that faith in Him is
nescessary for eternal life, that it is the certain outcome of faith in the OT
scriptures that God requires it of men, and that refusal to accept His claims
will bring eternal ruin. His primary concern with His own disciples was to build
up their faith in Him.
The record in Acts shows that the first Christians called themselves "the
believers" Acts 2:44, and that they went everywhere persuading men and bringing
them unto obedience to the faith that is in Jesus, Acts 6:7, 17:4, 28:24. Before
long as communities arose in various parts of the Mediterranean world, the
meaning and implications of the Christian faith had to be taught them in
considerable fullness by the apostolic leaders, and so the NT books appeared.
It is in Paul's epistles that the meaning of faith is most clearly and fully set
forth. Faith is trust in the person of Jesus, the truth of His teaching and the
redemptive work He accomplished at Calvary, and as a result a total submission
to Him and His message, which are accepted as from God. Faith in His person is
faith in Him as the eternal Son of God, the God-man, the second man Adam, who
died in man's stead, making possible justification with God, adoption unto His
family, sanctification and ultimately glorification. His death brings redemption
from sin in all its aspects. The truth of His claims is attested by God's
raising Him from the dead. Someday He will judge the quick and the dead. Faith
is not to be confused with a mere intellectual assent to the doctrinal teachings
of Christianity, though that is necessary. It includes a radical and total
commitment to Him as Lord of one's life.
Unbelief or lack of faith in the Christian Gospels, appear everywhere in the NT
as the supreme evil. Not to make a decisive response to God's offer in Christ
means that the individual remains in his sins and is eternally lost. Faith alone
can save Him."
"Faith
is belief with legs on." ~ Adrian Rogers
Response to comment [from a Jehovah's Witness]: "Faith (spiritual strength)..."
Ever get the feeling that no one is paying attention to
you?
"Faith is not a leap in the dark. It is a step in the light (Heb
11:1)." ~ Adrian Rogers
