WHAT IS THE MEANING OF FAITH?
A. The Bible defines faith in Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Faith is agreeing with God’s Word through our verbal confession and by a lifestyle of obedience to it.
B. The dictionary defines faith as a “trust, firm persuasion, assurance, firm conviction, confidence in another and another’s word.”
C. Charles Finney put it this way: Faith is “a receiving of Christ for just what He is represented to be in His Gospel, and an unqualified surrender of the will and of the whole being to Him.” The Christian life is a life of faith—not a dead faith, but a faith that is alive and active. It is a faith that responds quickly to the Word of the Lord. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Hebrews 11:6
D. R.A. Torrey states, “To believe God is to rely upon or have unhesitating assurance of the truth of God’s testimony, even though it is unsupported by any other evidence, and to rely upon or have unfaltering assurance of the fulfillment of His promises, even though everything seen seems against fulfillment.”