Faith – Overview
“Look at the proud: he is inwardly not upright;
but the righteous will attain life through trusting faithfulness.”
Habakkuk 2:4.
Many of us, believers and non-believers alike, often wrestle with the notion of ‘faith’. In this teaching, I want to focus on the meaning of faith and why it is important for all of us. Our first question: What is faith?
Why is it that the simplest questions have the most complicated answers? To understand faith, we first have to examine its origins in both Greek and Hebrew, as both languages have explained faith in different ways.
Faith, in Greek, is πίστις, pistis, and it means a vow to faithfulness. This phrase carries with it the understanding of being loyal to the one for whom we have taken a vow. Thus, if we have taken a vow of faithfulness to Adonai/God, then we have faith in Him. Therefore, everything we do, say or think will have a focus on Him. Similarly, if we have taken a vow of faithfulness to satan or any other false god, we will have faith in that false god.
Faith, in Hebrew, is אֱמוּנָה, emunah, and it means trust-in-action. The fundamental principle of faith, then, is putting our trust into action. Thus, if we have trust in our behaviour towards Adonai/God, a reflection of our thoughts, then we move in faith of Him. Likewise, if we have trust in our behaviour towards any false god, we have faith in that false god.
Abba B’Shamayim, Heavenly Father, thank you for placing trust in You in my heart. I will always be loyal to You and to no other. B’Shem Adonai Yeshua, Mashichainu, Our Messiah, Amen.
