What is "Faith"

What is "Faith"?
I realized as I was writing about the subject that we might not all have the same definition for this word. For some people faith seems to be a feeling; to these faith comes from the heart. For others faith is a mental process, and can be reasoned out.

Many believe that faith is "blind".

People have faith in God, in other people, in things, or even ideas. The concept of faith in Faith itself seems to be catching on.

Believers claim that all belief is faith, and say things like, "I can't be an atheist; I don't have that much faith". The atheists claim that faith is only for the religious.

So what is "faith"?

"Faith" in the Bible
No Biblical passage better describes faith than Hebrews 11 - known by many as "The Faith chapter".

Heb 11:1 "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

The word substance means foundation, as in the foundation of a house, and the idea is that faith is solid, reliable, substantive. It indicates that faith is not wishing or hoping, but is the sure and certain foundation for those things we hope for. Like the foundation of a building, faith supports those things that are built on it. Faith, as used in this verse, is unshakeable.

Four other times this word substance is used in the New Testament. Three of those it is translated confident or confidence, and the other time it is used to express the very essence or nature of God!

The word hope in the phrase "things hoped for" is stronger in the original language than in English, and in other passages it is translated trust more often than hope. A better word might be expectation or anticipation.

So, a loose paraphrase of this verse might be, "Faith is what we base our hopes/expectations on and the evidence of things we cannot see".

Faith fills the gaps.

The "Hope" of Salvation
That same word used in Hebrews 11 for hope is also used in Romans 8:

Rom 8:24-25 "For we are saved by hope. But hope that is seen is not hope; for what anyone sees, why does he also hope for it? But if we hope for that which we do not see, then we wait for it with patience."

As in Hebrews 11, hope is tied to things we cannot see. If we can see it or otherwise experience it with our natural senses, then it is not hope - it is reality. Hope has to do with expectation; thus "we wait for it".

I guess, when people talk about blind faith, what they are talking about is hope.

Faith as a way of life
I would venture that faith is a way of life. It's more than just believing or trusting in someone or something; it's living out what you beleive.

In Habakkuk 2:4, we are told that "the just shall live by his faith". This is such an important concept that it is quoted in three different places in the New Testament (Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11, and Hebrews 10:38). I don't know of any other Old Testament phrase quoted more often in the New Testament.

The same thought is behind II Corinthians 5:7, "for we walk by faith, not by sight;"

When Peter walked by faith onto the stormy sea, he demonstrated this concept. It was belief lived out. Belief + Action = Faith.

When Peter looked around and started believing the power of the world around him, his actions followed his beliefs, and he started sinking. Jesus grabbed hold of him and told Peter, "Oh ye of little faith" (in the MKJV He called Peter "Little-faith").

I wonder if James was remembering this incident when he wrote,

James 1:6 "But let him ask in faith, doubting nothing. For he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven by the wind and tossed."

Was James remembering Peter's moment of doubt that caused him to start sinking, or his own for not even making the attempt?

Faith vs Works
The book of James deals extensively with the concept of Faith and Works.

James 2:14 "My brothers, what profit is it if a man says he has faith and does not have works? Can faith save him?"

James 2:24, "You see then how a man is justified by works, and not by faith only."

But, in Ephesians we read,

Eph 2:8-9 "For by grace you are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast."

These passages appear to contradict each other, and have been misused and taken out of context so often and so badly, it's no wonder people argue about Faith!

I believe that "All scr i pture is God-breathed" (II Tim 3:16), that "God is not the author of confusion" (I Cor 14:33) and that "it is impossible for God to lie" (Num 23:19, Tit 1:2, Heb 6:18) Therefore, when I see passages in scr i pture that appear to contradict each other, I know that the problem is not in the scr i ptures, but in my understanding of them.

Assuming both passages contain God's word, then the only way I can reconcile these is to say that faith, through which we are saved, is not simply belief but belief that results in action (i.e. works). James indicates that belief, alone, is not enough because even the demons believe.

James 2:19 "You believe that there is one God, you do well; even the demons believe and tremble"

Faith is an action word. Back in Ephesians 2 we read that salvation was not "of ourselves", meaning that the works that faith produces are not our own works. In the very next verse, we are told that the works are the result of God's handiwork in our new lives.

Ephesians 2:10 "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to good works, which God has before ordained that we should walk in them."

Again in Phillipians, we read that work is involved in our salvation, but that it is God who "works in us".

Phil 2:12&13 "Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, cultivate your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. "

Faith vs Sin
The very first sin was when Adam and Eve chose to act outside of God's plan. When God told them, "If you eat of the fruit, you will die", and they chose instead to believe the serpent who said, "If you eat of the fruit, you will not really die", it was the action they took, based on what they chose to believe, that condemned them and all of humanity to death.

We read about a different kind of sin from eating in Romans

Rom 14:23 "But, the one doubting, if he eats, he has been condemned, because it is not of faith; and all that is not of faith is sin."

It is not just the doubt (lack of believing); it is doubting that leads to action ("the one doubting, if he eats") that is sin. In the same way, it is not just believing; it is believing that leads to action (i.e. works) that is Faith.

Conclusion
It would be easy to take an extreme position on this subject, but we must take into account all of God's Word. Faith requires follow-through; faith requires action; faith requires work, but it's not our work. Living by faith is doing what God said and watching God work!

Faith is hard. In fact, faith would be impossible without God; but just as faith is the basis of what we expect from God; faith is also what God expects from us.

Heb 11:6 "But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."

Nothing is possible without God; nothing is impossible with God.

That's Faith.