Where does faith come from?

[Guest Happy]

How do you get faith? Does God have to give it to you? And how do you increase it? Is to believe and have faith the same thing?

[Dad Ernie]

Greetings Happy,

Let's first see what the scripture defines as "faith":

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

4102 pistis {pis'-tis}

from 3982; TDNT - 6:174,849; n f

AV - faith 239, assurance 1, believe + 1537 1, belief 1,

them that believe 1, fidelity 1; 244

1) conviction of the truth of anything, belief; in the NT of a

conviction or belief respecting man's relationship to God and

divine things, generally with the included idea of trust and

holy fervour born of faith and joined with it

1a) relating to God

1a1) the conviction that God exists and is the creator and

ruler of all things, the provider and bestower of eternal

salvation through Christ

1b) relating to Christ

1b1) a strong and welcome conviction or belief that Jesus is

the Messiah, through whom we obtain eternal salvation in

the kingdom of God

1c) the religious beliefs of Christians

1d) belief with the predominate idea of trust (or confidence)

whether in God or in Christ, springing from faith in the same

2) fidelity, faithfulness

2a) the character of one who can be relied on

According to Heb 11:1, faith as defined therein is applicable to EVERYONE, believer & non-believer. A person can have faith in themselves, things, events, or even false gods. Mainly though when the Bible speaks of "faith", you can add the words: "in God" to them, and truly that is the ONLY faith that WORKS!

To prove that EVERYONE has some measure of faith, here is the scripture:

Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Adam was created a "living soul" by the "breath of God" breathed into him. Before that he was just a lump of clay. So any attributes that Adam had such as love, hope, charity, faithfulness, and FAITH, (et al?) came from God at the point of man's creation.

So now we find that "faith" is like a mustard seed:

Matthew 17:20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

To remind us of the power of the "mustard seed":

Mark 4:31-32 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: 32 But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.

We see varying degrees of faith expressed in the Gospels. Some had little: "Oh ye of little faith", some had lots: "What great faith". Those who trusted more in their surroundings (such as Peter walking on AND SINKING in the water), had LITTLE faith, but those who were not even considered WORTHY, such as the Centurion, had GREAT faith.

So GREAT "faith" is that which is solely placed in God. And like I said, it is like a seed. At first maybe all you can do is "believe that God exists":

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Then as you put into practice, this newly found "faith" by exercising it more and more frequently, your faith INCREASES, as you see God performing His mighty works and REWARDING you for your diligence in seeking HIM!

Does that help?

Blessings,

Dad Ernie

[Catsmeow]

You always ask the best questions, Happy...

I personally believe faith is a wonderful gift God gives us...I remember writing God a letter and storing it onto my harddrive. I was NOT a believer at the time.

I wrote a "Letter to God" and said something like, "I don't know if you're real so I may be writing this letter to nobody but if you're real...I would like to know. I may be poor in faith but I'm rich in hope...and sometimes that's all we have."

I wrote that to God and I have it somewhere around here...BEFORE I was saved. I told Him that I hoped he was real but didn't have the faith to believe it. I just had "hope". I hoped he was real but didn't know.

He answered my letter loud and clear. Today ....I have all the faith I'll ever need...Praise His Name!

[Lanakila]

I am not a Calvinist and therefore don't think faith is all up to God. We have to seek him with a small mustard seed of faith, and then the Holy Spirit will reveal the truth. Remember the man who's son was possessed by a demon who said to the Savior: "Lord I believe, help me overcome my unbelief!!". Just the mustard seed is all Jesus needs, and he takes that and mountains can be moved into the sea.

[JesusisGod2]

To prove that EVERYONE has some measure of faith, here is the scripture:

Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Adam was created a "living soul" by the "breath of God" breathed into him. Before that he was just a lump of clay. So any attributes that Adam had such as love, hope, charity, faithfulness, and FAITH, (et al?) came from God at the point of man's creation.

:

-Blessings,

Dad Ernie

Hi Dad E,

I'm not so sure that this is saying that all men have faith before they are saved, and Paul here is addressing believers here:

Rom 12:1 "...I beseech you brethren,..."

And the faith spoken of here is the measure of faith God gives according each one's gift. (vs4-8) and each and every believer is given thier own measure of faith according to what God has dealt them. (also notice that even this faith God gives us, its not natural. or something we are born with, but God deals it to them)

As far as saving faith goes I believe that the scripture teach that the very faith to go to God is a gift

Eph 2:8 " for by grace are ye saved through faith and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God not of works lest any man should boast"

I believe that this is saying the very faith for salvation is a gift from God so that no man can claim they were saved through works including independant faith apart from God.

even unbelievers have a faith of sorts but not a faith that will bring them to God, only God can instill that faith in man that answers Gods call. We had all these attributes before the fall, as you have mentioned.

but when we sinned we hid from God and have been hiding ever since.

To answer the question of how do we increase our faith? I believe the answer

is found in Romans 10:17

"so then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God"

So I do agree that every man has a measure of faith but that measure is according to what God has given them. which is why Paul says that we are not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think.

Now what we do with that faith that God has freely given us is up to the individual believer---either bury it or invest in the Lords work and increase it.

all it takes is to invest a little (mustard seed) and the return is huge (a tree)

God bless you dad E and I am open to correction.

[tsth]

Yes, this is an excellent question! Dad Ernie I believe expressed the answer most accurately. Here's some passages to go along, although I believe 1 has already been posted.

Mark 11:22 So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.

Luke 17:5 And the apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."

Lu 17:6 So the Lord said, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.

But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."

Jude 1:20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,

1 John 5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith.

Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.

2Co 10:15 not boasting of things beyond measure, that is, in other men's labors, but having hope, that as your faith is increased, we shall be greatly enlarged by you in our sphere,

Eph 4:13 - till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;

Rev. 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

In His Love,

Suzanne

[Catsmeow]

Lana: I guess when I told God that I was poor in faith but rich in hope, that "hope" constituted the mustard seed of faith needed ....but after that letter, God seemed to multiply that seed many fold...

[jesusson]

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them, EPH 2:8-10.

Faith is numbered among the gracious gifts that God gives. The faith that will prevail unto eternity is not man's work but God's bestowed blessing. Faith is not a conscious decision of man but a gracious benediction of and from God.

[Guest shadow2b]

Very good DAD---- you always explain things very well--this "faith" is no different---you got it again---

GOD gives "THE" measure of "faith"----and as {jg2} pointed out ROM.10.vs.17----kind-a--wraps "faith" all up into a nice little package,don't ya think?????????----

YA--KNOW-since "faith" comes by "hearing" & hearing comes by "THE WORD" of GOD--"IF" we doNOT "hear" the WORD, we certainly canNOT even "have" a faith IN GOD unless we "hear" "the word" of GOD, let alone "increase" that "faith"-----THAT is MOST interesting----YOU guys/gals are doing an excellant job--------- :il:

KEEP it up i'm learning quite a lot on these hyar boards of "worthy-teaching"---GOD-BLESS---Gary----

[Guest Happy]

Dad Earnie, thank you for your great post. I only have couple of questions:

according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Did God gave every man the same measure or a measure to every man, it's not really clear.

And the second question: Do you increase the faith by excercising it, and God rewards you with more faith after the measure He already gave you?

catwmeow, are you talking about belief or faith or do you think they are the same?

lanakila,

I am not a Calvinist and therefore don't think faith is all up to God. We have to seek him with a small mustard seed of faith, and then the Holy Spirit will reveal the truth.

I didn't understand what you said. Faith is not up to God, is it up to the person then? And what would Holy Spirit reveal? Remember, I am seeking the answer to as faith and belief being the same or different. The same question to you as to catsmeow, do you think they are the same?

Jesusisgod2, I guess you answered the question I asked Dad Earnie, but I want to see what he says. I do have a question about "faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God" verse, it doesn't say anywhere that you increase it by hearing, only that it cometh by hearing. Do you think it implies it?

tsth,

Luke 17:5 And the apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."

Lu 17:6 So the Lord said, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.

I am very interested in these verses, because here the apostles cleary saying that God increases the faith. Bur what did the Lord say: you already have enough to move the mountains? So if we already have that much, how do we access it??? And what prevents us from exercising it? I am not just talking about why we can't move the mountains, I want to know how faith works.

jesusson, so you believe that God gave you the faith at sulvation as a gift and that's it, there is not increase required after that?