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Old 12-31-2019, 08:13 AM   #42
Sons to Glory!
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Default Re: The Speciality, Generality, and Practicality of the Church Life

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Originally Posted by JJ View Post
I’m glad you brought this topic up. I’ve been wrestling with that question “what is the faith?” and what I thought about Lee’s definition of it in the book discussed here. So, before my thoughts I’ve put links to the only verses in the New Testament that actually use those two words (based on look into Greek Interlinear, not Just English versions that sometimes add or delete “the” to faith.

Jude 1:3 https://biblehub.com/jude/1-3.htm

Colossians 1:4-8 https://biblehub.com/bsb/colossians/1.htm

Acts 3:16 https://biblehub.com/bsb/acts/3.htm

1 Timothy 1:19 https://biblehub.com/blb/1_timothy/1.htm

So, it seems “the faith”:
Was once delivered to the saints and is something we are urged to contend for.

Is in Christ Jesus and together with love for all saints proceeds out from the hope that is stored up for us in heaven, about which we heard in the word of truth, the gospel that came to us through faithful ministers of the gospel and is bearing fruit and growing all over the world where it has been announced.

Is about Jesus Christ, the Author of life, who was killed after being delivered to death by his own people, but God raised Him from the dead, and the apostles were witnesses of the fact. It is by faith in the name of Jesus, crippled men are made whole and strong (not by the apostles own power or holiness).

Is pretty well spelled out (as well as what it is not) in Chapter 1 of 1 Timothy. Read the whole chapter. I won’t summarize, give critical points, give conclusions, crystallize, make outlines for training, put my digest (regurg?) in a HWFMR, or well you get the point.

Again, I end up much preferring what the Bible actually says, versus what Lee says. Dump Lee’s book, it didn’t produce the fruit the apostles say the the faith does.
Not going to dump the book bro, but I understand if it's quite tainted for many. We may not agree with all the specific particulars, but the basic thought is good as far as I'm concerned. (again, very sad the overall concept wasn't practiced in the LC)

Looking through the verses you cited, including 1st Timothy 1, I see very general references to "the faith." Are there more specific things we can pick-up regarding what the faith is, and what would those references be? Perhaps I am missing something in those verses . . .

Let me take a stab at this - if someone were to ask me what I thought the essentials of the faith were, I might say the following:
  1. Jesus Christ is the Son of God; God came in the flesh
  2. He lived on earth, died on the cross and God raised Him from the dead, to live forever more
  3. On the cross God put all our sins on Christ and paid the price for us to be fully reconciled to God
  4. If a person accepts God's free gift of reconciliation in Christ, they are saved and regenerated with a new life
So how's that? Do you think there's good scriptural backing for saying these are essentials we shouldn't compromise on? I thought of various things that could be added, but I don't know I would call them "essentials of the faith."
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