28 April 2008

A Small Note on Belief/Faith

In a recent conversation with Dr. John Robbins, he provided me with the following information regarding the nature of belief/faith:

"There is only one Greek word in the NT for belief: pistis.

It would have been far less confusing if the English translators had used only belief, not faith, in translating the Greek. If the translators had used one word, not two, to translate one Greek word, it probably would have been less confusing. The translators should not have used 'faith,' with its Latin, not Greek, roots.

Trust or confidence (which has 'fide' right there in the middle) are best understood as synonyms for belief. They are not parts or components as many say, equalling 1/3 of faith. If I trust a person, I believe what he says; if I believe him, I trust him.

All examples of belief in the Bible are examples of understanding and assent."

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Recommended:

1. What Is Saving Faith? (Gordon H. Clark)

2. http://godshammer.wordpress.com/2007/09/17/demonic-theology/

Belief/Faith, pt. 1 of 2

I believe that understanding + assent (both intellectual processes) = faith/belief. It's that simple, in my opinion.

If I ask you whether or not you believe the following proposition - 2+2=4 - and you said yes, what are you telling me? You are telling me that 1) you understand what I mean by that statement - you understand numbers, basic addition, basic mathematical equations, etc.; & 2) you agree that the proposition in question is true - you assent to it. When these two things are present, it can be rightly said that belief/faith is present there. You can't believe what you do not understand, and even though you may understand something (say, Communism), it still cannot be said that you believe it if assent is not present.

As for saving faith in particular, which I believe is in view, this would have to do with believing certain "salvation-type" propositions . . . believe on the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved, etc.

This is no easy believism, for faith/belief is a gift from God to be dispensed in His timing to those who He has been pleased to elect unto salvation. Stated another way, assent is a gift from God, and the only reason as to why some believe is because God actively causes them to do so. Many miss that faith is actually of God, but take a close look:


Eph 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own
doing; it is the gift of God
, Eph 2:9 not a result of works, so that no one may
boast. Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good
works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.


Acts 16:13 On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. 14One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul's message.

An additional point . . . if you believe that 2+2=4, then you won't write down 5 when balancing your checkbook. The point? What you believe necessarily translates into your actions. Somewhat analogous to that - saving faith results in a changed walk/life (see James 2:14-26). If someone claims to believe 'X', yet his lifestyle pattern is consistently contrary to that, then it is likely that they do not believe what they think they believe. Self-deception is strong and commonplace. So, you can believe that you believe something but your actions reveal that you probably don't!?!?

Jam 2:14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not
have works? Can that faith save him?

Now, outward actions that conform to Biblical precepts - in themselves - are not a sure sign of saving faith (they could arise from impure motivations), but true saving faith necessarily results in true outward transformation.

Belief/Faith, pt. 2 of 2

From Vincent Cheung's Systematic Theology, p. 193-194:

However, there are conclusive reasons to reject this distinction between assent and trust, and instead to affirm that faith consists only of knowledge and assent.

First, the Bible does not exclusively use the "believe in" type of language when referring to faith. For example, Hebrews 11:6 says, "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 11:6). The verse demands that one who comes to God must give assent to two propositions. He must believe that (1) "God exists," and that (2) "God rewards those who earnestly seek him." The writer says that such faith can "please God," and that "the ancients were commended for" having it (v. 2).

Second, the New Testament indicates that to believe in Christ means to believe that certain propositions are true:







For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died
for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised
on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and
then to the Twelve. (1 Corinthians 15:3-5)


Third, we may demonstrate by an analysis of language that to believe in (or "trust") a person is simply shorthand for believing that (or "assent") certain propositions about him are true.

For example, there are two ways to understand the question, "Do you believe in the devil?" The question may either be asking whether one believes that the devil exists, or whether he believes that the devil is worthy of worship. That is, the question implies one of the two propositions, and asks the hearer to affirm or deny it. A Christian would affirm the first and deny the second. However, unless the context of the conversation establishes the meaning of the question, or unless the hearer makes an assumption as to the meaning of the question if the context does not provide it, it is impossible to tell which of the two propositions the hearer is being asked to affirm or deny.

If D = "the devil," e = "exists," and w = "worthy of worship," then "I believe in D" may mean either "I believe that De" or "I believe that Dw." Either way, "I believe in D" must represent either of the two "believe that" statements, and thus it is nothing more than a shorthand for one of them.

Likewise, "I believe in God" is a meaningless statement unless it is reducible to one or more "believe that" propositions. In the context of Hebrews 11:6, if G = "God," e = "exists," and r = "rewarder," then "I believe in G" appears to have three possible meanings:




1. "I believe that Ge"

2. "I believe that Gr"

3. "I believe that Ge + Gr"


Hebrews 11:6 calls for a faith that affirms (3), without which one cannot please God; it is a "believe that" kind of faith. Also, note that to believe in X may imply a "believe that" faith in more than one proposition. In Hebrews 11:6, to have faith means to believe that Ge + Gr.

Therefore, we may conclude that "I believe in X" is simply shorthand for "I believe that X1 + X2 + X3…Xn." This means that to believe or have faith in something or someone is to believe or have faith that one or more propositions about that something or someone are true. To have faith in God and in Christ is precisely to believe something about them – to have a "believe that" faith. To say that faith is belief or trust in a person instead of assent to propositions and that faith must go beyond the intellectual may sound more pious or intimate to some people, but this kind of faith is a meaningless concept. A faith that does not "believe that" certain propositions are true does not believe anything at all; the content of this so-called faith is undefined.