The Faith and Our Faith I. Introduction A. Many times matters of faith are discussed B. What is faith? 1. Hebrews 11:1: assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen 2. Faith as mental assent to a proposition, yet more than that 3. Faith as confidence/trust in object of faith (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:7, Hebrews 11, etc.) C. Yet what is it that we are to be confident in? In what do we trust? D. A major conundrum for our time 1. Many people have strong confidence in God, at least by their profession, yet they believe and conduct themselves differently from others 2. One's faith in terms of trust and confidence is really completely subjective 3. How can there be any "disputes" about faith if that is what faith is about? 4. If faith is all about one's trust in God, then does not ecumenism have a point? E. But "faith" has always involved both the subject and the object! 1. The New Testament speaks of "the" faith and "our" faith 2. Related, yet distinct, elements! F. Let us consider, from Scripture, the faith and our faith II. The Faith A. The New Testament frequently speaks of "the faith," using the definite article 1. Acts 6:7, 13:8, 14:22, 16:5 2. Romans 14:1, 1 Corinthians 16:13, 2 Corinthians 13:5, Galatians 1:23, Ephesians 4:13, Philippians 1:25, 27, Colossians 1:23, 2:7, 1 Timothy 1:2, 3:9, 3:13, 1 Timothy 4:1, 4:6, 5:8, 6:10, 6:12, 6:21, 2 Timothy 3:8, 4:7, Titus 1:13, 3:15 3. James 2:1 4. Jude 1:3 B. These passages are evidently not talking about one's individual faith 1. Delivered once for all the saints-- Jude 1:3 2. Something to be obedient to-- Acts 6:7 3. One can be "in" it or "out of" it (2 Corinthians 13:5) 4. One can gain confidence in it (1 Timothy 3:13) 5. People can depart from it, deny it, fall away from it, or be disqualified from it-- 1 Timothy 4:1, 5:8, 6:21, 2 Timothy 3:8 C. "The Faith," then, a separate entity-- something to be believed! D. What is "the faith"? 1. The precise contours of "the faith" have been argued about for generations 2. "The faith" involves Jesus, the Gospel, and the Kingdom 3. Acts 2:22-36: Jesus' life, death, resurrection-- His Lordship and Kingdom 4. 1 Corinthians 15:1-8: Jesus' death, burial, resurrection 5. 2 John 1:7-11: Jesus as the Incarnate Christ, Son of God 6. Galatians 1:6-9, rest of Galatians: Jesus' Kingdom as including Jews and Gentiles; Law of Moses not to be imposed on Gentiles 7. Adherence to beliefs about Jesus and His position, our position before God, moral and ethical requirements manifestly represent "the faith" (cf. also 1 Timothy 4:1, 5:8, etc.) E. "The faith," then, an objective standard that must be accepted if one will follow Jesus 1. As Jude 1:3 establishes, "the faith" a set, already defined matter 2. It is something that can be fought for or against (Acts 13:8 vs. 1 Timothy 6:12) 3. One can be sound in it or depart from it (Titus 1:13 vs. 1 Timothy 4:1) 4. If we depart from it, grave consequences await (cf. 2 Peter 2:20-22, etc.)! III. Our Faith A. The New Testament also speaks of "our" faith, the personal confidence/devotion we have 1. Men as full of faith: Stephen (Acts 6:5), Barnabas (Acts 11:24), a cripple from birth (Acts 14:8-9) 2. Encouragement from mutual faith: Romans 1:12 3. Faith as means of life, righteousness: Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11 4. Growth in faith: Romans 4:20, 2 Corinthians 10:15 5. Exhortation about personal faith: Romans 14:2-23 6. Faith in God and not world: 1 Corinthians 2:5, 2 Corinthians 5:7 7. Hyperbole of having "all faith" (1 Corinthians 13:2) 8. Life to live by faith (Galatians 2:20) 9. Examples of faith (Hebrews 11:1-40) 10. Many, many other aspects to faith B. This faith is our personal confidence/trust 1. Our own, placed in whatever we decide (Matthew 6:19-21, 2 Corinthians 5:7) 2. Ought to be directed toward God in Christ (Galatians 2:20, Hebrews 11:1-2, 6) 3. Our faith can be strong or weak (cf. 1 Corinthians 8), strengthened or weakened (Romans 4:19-20)-- each granted a measure (Romans 12:3) 4. Comes from hearing the message of God (Romans 10:17) 5. Acting without faith considered sinful (Romans 14:23) 6. This faith is to "work" and to do so in love (Galatians 5:6) 7. Faith to be established, exhortations made concerning it (1 Thessalonians 3:2) C. Our faith, then, a more subjective matter, yet incredibly necessary for a life pleasing to God 1. Our faith represents our belief, trust, devotion in life 2. When directed properly, fully in God in Christ, serving His principles, strengthened constantly 3. Improper directions include faith in material goods or things of this life, false teachings, in oneself, and when faith is allowed to remain or grow weak IV. The Faith and Our Faith A. The faith is the objective standards of beliefs to be accepted by those who would be Christians; our faith is our personal trust in life B. In a sense, our faith must be in the faith! 1. Acceptance, promotion of "the faith" critical for Christians (1 Corinthians 16:13, 2 Corinthians 13:5, Philippians 1:27) 2. We can only accept "the faith" through our own personal faith-- we must have conviction that "the faith" is true 3. One indicator of our strength in faith involves how well we understand and affirm the faith C. Nevertheless, our faith must involve more than "the faith"! 1. The faith of the believer is not designed to just be in a certain set of principles or axioms-- it is designed to be in God in Christ Himself (1 Corinthians 2:5, Galatians 2:20) 2. After all, the principles of "the faith" can only be true if God and Jesus are true! 3. We are not called to have faith in Christianity per se, but to believe in God who delivered us from our sins through His Son Jesus Christ! D. Yet our faith that is not according to "the faith" is not acceptable! 1. While it is right and good to put the primacy of faith on God in Christ, it is not as if we can "get away" with having faith in God that is not according to "the faith" 2. Plenty, after all, have departed from "the faith" yet still have some kind of "faith" in God (1 Timothy 4:1ff, 6:20-21, 2 Timothy 3:8) 3. Thus, our faith in God must be informed and directed according to "the faith" as revealed in the New Testament (2 Timothy 3:16-17) E. Our faith must be genuine and in deed 1. Furthermore, it is not enough to just mentally depend on God 2. Faith is made evident in action-- James 2:14-26! 3. Jesus provides a message of condemnation for those who believe in Him and yet do not accomplish God's will (Matthew 7:21-23) 4. Without love, faith can do nothing (1 Corinthians 13:2, Galatians 5:6) F. Thus we can see how "the faith" and "our faith" remain distinct yet interconnected 1. "The faith" represent objective principles and beliefs that are consistent throughout time (Jude 1:3) 2. Our faith ideally would perfectly reflect the faith 3. Yet we are all growing in faith, and while we may have a good handle on the basic elements of the faith, there is always more growth to be had in understanding and accepting the mysteries of the faith (Philippians 1:25, 2 Peter 3:18) 4. While our faith ultimately rests in God, matters of faith can be disputed as they relate to the faith and adherence to its claims 5. Ecumenism, therefore, is not the appropriate option-- people can have sincere faith that is sincerely misdirected (1 Timothy 4:1, etc.)! 6. Those who truly live in faith will accept and abide in the faith! V. Conclusion A. Thus we have investigated the faith and our faith 1. The faith the objective truths of Jesus, the Gospel, and the Kingdom 2. Our faith our trust and confidence in the faith and the Author of that faith B. Let us strive to be strengthened in our faith in God and the faith! C. Invitation/songbook