Download The Meaning of Faith

June 8th, 2013
REPENTANCE & FAITH
“Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go
on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of:
1. repentance from dead works and of
2. faith toward God, and of
3. instruction about washings,
4. the laying on of hands,
5. the resurrection of the dead, and
6. eternal judgment.
(Hebrews 6:1-2)
PART II: THE DOCTRINE OF FAITH IN GOD
Prepared by: Jean-Louis Kaliningondo – [email protected] - 0738302925
Outline
• The Meaning of Faith (Lexical approach)
– In the Old Testament
– In the New Testament
• The Meaning of Faith (NT Description)
• Truth Nuggets about Faith
• References & Resources for further study
The Meaning of Faith (Lexical Approach)
1. In the Old Testament (Vine’s Expository Dictionary)
Faithfulness
A. Noun.
'emunah (H530), "faithfulness." In the Hebrew Old Testament, the noun
occurs 49 times, mainly in the Book of Psalms (22 times). The basic meaning
of 'emunah is "certainty" and "faithfulness." ...
The Septuagint translations are: aletheia ("truthfulness; dependability;
uprightness; truth; reality") and pistos ("trustworthy; faithfulness; reliability;
rest; confidence; faith"). The KJV gives these translations: "faithfulness;
truth; set office; faithfully; faithful. “
B. Verb.
'aman (H539), "to be certain, enduring; to trust, believe." In the Old
Testament, the word occurs fewer than 100 times.
Three words are derived from this verb: 'amen ("amen"—30 times; e.g., Psa
106:48), 'emet ("true"—127 times; e.g., Isa 38:18), and 'emunah
("faithfulness").
The Meaning of Faith (Lexical Approach)
1. In the Old Testament (Vine’s Expository Dictionary-OT)
Believe
A. Verb.
'aman (H539), "to be firm, endure, be faithful, be true, stand fast, trust, have
belief, believe." It appears in all periods of biblical Hebrew (about 96 times)
and only in the causative and passive stems.
B. Nouns.
'emunah (H530), "firmness; faithfulness; truth; honesty; official obligation."
In Exo. 17:12 (the first biblical occurrence), the word means "to remain in one
place": "And his [Moses'] hands were steady until the going down of the sun."
'emet (H571), "truth; right; faithful." This word appears 127 times in the
Bible. The Septuagint translates it in 100 occurrences as "truth" (aletheia) or
some form using this basic root.
C. Adverb.
'amen (H543), "truly; genuinely; amen; so be it." The term 'amen is used 30
times as an adverb. The Septuagint renders it as "truly" (lethinos) once;
transliterates it as "amen" three times; and translates it as "so be it" (genoito)
the rest of the time.
The Meaning of Faith (Lexical Approach)
2. In the New Testament (Vine’s Expository Dictionary-NT)
Faith
pistis (G4102), primarily, "firm persuasion," a conviction based upon hearing
(akin to peitho, "to persuade"), is used in the NT always of "faith in God or
Christ, or things spiritual.“
The word is used of:
(a) trust, e.g., Rom 3:25 [see Note (4) below]; 1Co 2:5; 1Co 15:14, 1Co 15:17;
2Co 1:24; Gal 3:23 [see Note (5) below]; Php 1:25; Php 2:17; 1Th 3:2; 2Th
1:3; 2Th 3:2;
(b) (b) trust-worthiness, e.g., Mat 23:23; Rom 3:3, RV, "the faithfulness of
God"; Gal 5:22 (RV, "faithfulness"); Tit 2:10, "fidelity";
(c) (c) by metonymy, what is believed, the contents of belief, the "faith," Act
6:7; Act 14:22; Gal 1:23; Gal 3:25 [contrast Gal 3:23, under (a)]; Gal 6:10;
Php 1:27; 1Th 3:10; Jud 1:3, Jud 1:20 (and perhaps 2Th 3:2);
(d) (d) a ground for "faith," an assurance, Act 17:31 (not as in KJV, marg.,
"offered faith"); (e) a pledge of fidelity, plighted "faith," 1Ti 5:12.
The Meaning of Faith (Lexical Approach)
2. In the New Testament (Vine’s Expository Dictionary-NT)
Belief, Believe, Believers
A. Verbs.
1. pisteuo (G4100), "to believe," also "to be persuaded of," and hence, "to
place confidence in, to trust," signifies, in this sense of the word, reliance
upon, not mere credence. It is most frequent in the writings of the apostle
John, esp. the Gospel. Usage:Matthew (10 ), Mark (10), Luke (9), John (99).
2. peitho (G3982), "to persuade," in the middle and passive voices signifies "to
suffer oneself to be persuaded," e.g., Luk 16:31; Heb 13:18; Act 17:4, Act
27:11, in Act 28:24.
B. Noun.
pistis (G4102), (see preceding slide)
C. Adjective.
pistos (G4103), (a) in the active sense means "believing, trusting"; (b) in the
passive sense, "trusty, faithful, trustworthy."
The Meaning of Faith (NT Description)
Hebrews 11 – The Greatest Chapter about Faith
“Now faith is the substantiating of things hoped for, the conviction of things
not seen.” (Darby)
“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not
seen.” (MKJV)
“Or la foi est une ferme assurance des choses qu'on espère, une
démonstration de celles qu'on ne voit pas. ” (FLS)
Truth Nuggets about Faith
1. Faith in Jesus-Christ is the sole condition for Eternal Salvation
Rom. 1:16-17 “For I am not ashamed of the glad tidings; for it is God's power to
salvation, to every one that believes, both to Jew first and to Greek: for righteousness
of God is revealed therein, on the principle of faith, to faith: according as it is written,
But the just shall live by faith.”
ESV, Romans 3:21-27 “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart
from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—the righteousness
of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for
all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift,
through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation
by his blood, to be received by faith. …It was to show his righteousness at the present
time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”
Romans 5:1-2 “Therefore having been justified on the principle of faith, we have peace
towards God through our Lord Jesus Christ; by whom we have also access by faith into
this favour in which we stand, and we boast in hope of the glory of God.”
Eph. 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own
doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
2. Faith is the basis for pleasing God
Mat. 8:10 When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him,
"Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.
Heb 10:38 Now, "the Just shall live by faith. But if he draws back, My soul shall have no
pleasure in him."
ESV, Heb. 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please him (God), for whoever
would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who
seek him. .”
3. Faith is a living principle, it produces fruits (good works)
ESV, James 2:14, 17 “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but
does not have works? Can that faith save him? ... So also faith by itself, if it does not
have works, is dead.”
Eph 2:10 “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which
God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
4. Faith opens the way for our Healing
Mat 8:13 And to the centurion Jesus said, "Go; let it be done for you as you have
believed." And the servant was healed at that very moment.
Mat 9:29 Then he touched their eyes, saying, "According to your faith be it done to
you."
Mar 5:34 And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and
be healed of your disease."
5. Faith is our only option in Tribulations
Dan 3:17-18 ”If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning
fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thy hand, O king. But if not, be it known
unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image that
thou hast set up.”
1Pe 1:6-7 “[salvation]..in which you greatly rejoice, yet a little while, if need be,
grieving in manifold temptations; so that the trial of your faith (being much more
precious than that of gold that perishes, but being proven through fire) might be found
to praise and honor and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,”
6. Faith is our defense against the Enemy of our souls
Eph 6:16 “besides all these , having taken the shield of faith with which ye will be able
to quench all the inflamed darts of the wicked one.
MKJV, 1Pe 5:8-9 Be sensible and vigilant, because your adversary the Devil walks
about like a roaring lion, seeking someone he may devour; whom firmly resist in the
faith, knowing that the same afflictions in the world are being completed in your
brotherhood.
7. Faith is our Victory over the world
1Jn 5:4-5 For everything that has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is
the victory that overcomes the world, our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world,
but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
Further Study Resources
Questions
• How can we strengthen our faith in God?
• What about other faiths (religions)?
• Can someone lose faith?