Faith is not about turning off the brain and merely relying on the heart, or squashing reason in favor of emotion. No, Christian faith is about seeking and knowing Jesus with all facets of the human character. It's not a "blind faith" as I once thought... It's a "calculated faith" based on a preponderance of the evidence. Well, I've collected the evidence, and I've put it on trial... After a number of months in the jury room, I have returned with my personal verdict... Jesus Christ is who he claims to be... the Son of God who came to this earth about 2,000 years ago to offer true and lasting hope for mankind.
OK, now what...? I intellectually believe, by a preponderance of the evidence, that God exists, that the Bible is true, and that Jesus is his Son... How does this affect me? What is faith, as far as it concerns me?
I love the metaphor of a chair... Find the chair closest to you. Look at it closely. Examine its design. Is it structurally sound? Is it sufficiently engineered? Will the materials chosen by the manufacturer support your weight?
Most likely, you picked a chair that you believe will support you. That's belief. You applied logic, knowledge and experience to make an informed intellectual decision.
Now sit in the chair... That's faith! At one point, intellectual assent only goes so far. True living requires that we put our beliefs into action. Intellectual belief without actionable faith is hollow and meaningless...
2007-01-01 10:36:23 · 19 answers · asked by ? 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
"Faith is the assured expectation of things hoped for, the evident demonstration of realities though not beheld." (Hebrews 11:1)
"This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ”.
(John 17:3)
"You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:32)
Faith goes hand in hand with the knowledge about the TRUTH. I say I found the truth that the bible talks about by gaining knowledge in learning the bible itself and thats how my faith about God and Jesus was built.
2007-01-01 10:44:41 · answer #1 · answered by Tomoyo K 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
>> Faith is not about turning off the brain and merely relying on the heart, or squashing reason in favor of emotion.
Faith:
2.belief that is not based on proof
Seems like your dictionary is broken.
>> It's not a "blind faith" as I once thought... It's a "calculated faith" based on a preponderance of the evidence.
If you have no proof, what exactly are you calculating?
>> Well, I've collected the evidence, and I've put it on trial
Really? And truly? Which evidence do you have per se? It's interesting that many secular historians wrote down things about Julius Caesar and Caesar Augustus, but neglected Jesus who lived in the same time period. So, I ask again, what evidence did you calculate against exactly?
>> preponderance of the evidence
You keep mentioning this stuff called 'evidence', but you don't provide it in your tirelessly long tirade. Isn't that an interesting point in itself?
>> I love the metaphor of a chair... Find the chair closest to you.
Found it - oh wait, I'm sitting in it. What a crazy idea.
>> Is it structurally sound? Is it sufficiently engineered? Will the materials chosen by the manufacturer support your weight?
Seems like.
>> That's belief. You applied logic, knowledge and experience to make an informed intellectual decision.
If I've sat in the chair before, it's a belief. If I've never sat in the chair before, it's faith. Stop messing around with your definitions.
>> Now sit in the chair... That's faith!
Actually, that's not faith at all. Faith is belief not based on proof. I have proof the chair is supporting me (i.e. I can observe that the chair isn't falling apart). It's not faith at this point - it's knowledge.
A better anaology for your next tirade: *Faith* is assuming before I sit in the chair that it will hold me, despite it never holding me before. I have *faith* it will do it. I *believe* that through my experience of similar chairs in the past that this one will support me as well. Once I sit in the chair, my *faith* turns into *belief* - I experience the facts that the chair has not collapsed, and I accept those facts as real and true. Thus my faith from lack of evidence, turns into belief - an acceptance of truth of facts.
... Go read a dictionary and go do this exercise again. Then read some Plato.
2007-01-01 10:49:14 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
When you look at the fire from a distance, you feel it is bright, then it may be hot too, this is your belief, then you walk towards and reach near a point where you can feel the warmth, now you have confirmed your belief that it is hot, you don't just stop here, you walk even closer and try to touch the source of fire, it burns your hand, now your belief is strong enough to become faith that Fire is Hot.
Those who are believers of any religion, can't become faithful until they do some practice of that faith, and all the religions provide some sort of instructions to follow like in form of the Holy Bible and Qurran. It is practice in a religion that converts a believer to a faithful, Christian or Muslim or Jew.
2015-03-31 01:27:26 · answer #3 · answered by Kashmiri 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have faith that my team is going to win the league, it loses its first game, I still have faith they are going to win after all its a long season. Half way through they have not won a game and are still firmly at the bottom, I still have faith they will win the league, is my sanity in question yet?
At the end of the year they did not win a game but I still believe they will win it all next year.
Where do you fit in? The faith at the start or at the end?
As a species we were in the position I described vis a vis god at the start of the season, we have now collected real evidence, all the games played have not shown a shred of evidence for god, as we find out more the gaps for god to fit in are shrinking and we are now in the final weeks of the season, you are displaying the blind sort of faith.
2007-01-01 10:42:43 · answer #4 · answered by fourmorebeers 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Faith is accepting the truth and the person the truth actually represents. Faith is trusting entirely on that truth and that person alone forever. It might also be described as a clinging to the truth; embracing the truth; committing to the truth.
While blind faith is just believing the person beyond any reasoning.
2007-01-01 15:55:36 · answer #5 · answered by aalen a 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Faith is faith, and is based on the belief what other person said, while knowledge is knowledge, and is based on personal experience.
These concepts are contradictory by definition, so please don't twist things up.
Faith and belief are blind because they don't rely on experience. They only rely on trust.
If such knowledge depended on experience, it would then be wisdom.
It's OK if you believe what you want to believe, just don't try to find a dialectic justification for it by trying to convert faith into a synonym of wisdom, which is something that even etymologically is incorrect.
2007-01-01 11:22:28 · answer #6 · answered by Aritmentor 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Faith is belief with the lack of evidence...I have more than enough evidence to know that my chair will support my weight....
I think we would all look at the same chair and agree, it will probably support my weight...But if you tell me that the chair is from Heaven, can walk on water, and heal the sick, we might begin to disagree...
Blind faith is more like belief despite evidence to the contrary...
2007-01-01 10:41:21 · answer #7 · answered by Eleventy 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
There is a higher level of faith than this. When Peter confessed that Jesus was Messiah, His response was "blessed are you Simon, BarJona, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 16:17)
In Ephesians we read "For by grace are you saved through faith; and that salvation does not arise from yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast" (Ephesians 2:8,9)
In Galatians it says "But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, in order that He might redeem those who were under law, that we might receive the installing as sons, and because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our HEARTS, crying "Abba! Father!"
(Galatians 4:4-6)
In Hebrews 11:1, the KJV reads "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen"; but I prefer the NASB which says "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen"
"Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - of whom I am the worst" (I Timothy 1:15)
He said "Everyone therefore who will confess Me before men, I will confess him before My Father in heaven" (Matthew 10:32)
So, "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful" (Hebrews 10:23)
Shalom!
2007-01-01 11:03:06 · answer #8 · answered by wefmeister 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Hebrews 11:1-Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen
Faith is believing God will provide what you ask, evan befor you see or percieve the physical manifestation of it.
And after yuo've accepted Christ;you need to continue in faith,prayer,and patience.
A relationship with God is not once and your done;but it's a prolonged continous relationship of having fait,and praying and waiting for God to answer te prayer(s).
So,keep your faith in Christ
Engage in prayer
you need to remember to actually do what God ask for in his word.
James 2:18-Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.
James 2:20-But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
2007-01-01 10:47:30 · answer #9 · answered by Maurice H 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I think that blind faith is a faith based on what you can see physically with the eye and what can be explained by such. I am not sure on this one but that is what I always thought of it :)
2007-01-01 10:53:29 · answer #10 · answered by jessicatemple1979 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋