Monday, January 16, 2006
More About Faith
"Now faith (pistis) is being sure of what we hope (elpizo-verb form of elpis) for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. … And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Hebrews 11:1-3, 6 NIV)
"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Hebrews 12:2)
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." (Ephesians 2:8-10)
"… faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, 'You have faith; I have deeds.' Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do." (James 2:17-18)
Faith and works might be like stepping on a sharp object (Warning: Like every analogy or model, they do not represent reality perfectly. C.S. Lewis said—when talking about his analogies—if the picture does not help you see reality better, forget it! The same goes with my analogies.) Faith is the action of stepping on the sharp object; works is the yell or sound that follows. If a person steps on the object, it is given he will make some sound—probably profane. If a person does not step on the object, he barely misses it, there will be no sound. But a trickster or someone who wants attention (for good or for bad) might make a sound without stepping on the sharp object. However, only one of the three actually stepped on the sharp item.
"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Hebrews 12:2)
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." (Ephesians 2:8-10)
"… faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, 'You have faith; I have deeds.' Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do." (James 2:17-18)
Faith and works might be like stepping on a sharp object (Warning: Like every analogy or model, they do not represent reality perfectly. C.S. Lewis said—when talking about his analogies—if the picture does not help you see reality better, forget it! The same goes with my analogies.) Faith is the action of stepping on the sharp object; works is the yell or sound that follows. If a person steps on the object, it is given he will make some sound—probably profane. If a person does not step on the object, he barely misses it, there will be no sound. But a trickster or someone who wants attention (for good or for bad) might make a sound without stepping on the sharp object. However, only one of the three actually stepped on the sharp item.
# posted by Wesley Son of Cornelius @ 10:50 PM 
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