Faith Is a Gift of God
This article discusses faith as a gift of God.
"The greatest of all Protestant heresies?"
Cardinal Robert Bellarmine (1542–1621), Pope Clement VIII’s personal theologian and one of the most able figures in the Counter-Reformation movement within sixteenth-century Roman Catholicism, once wrote: “The greatest of all Protestant heresies is _______ .” What do you think he said? This article is about assurance of faith (assurance of salvation).
Not All Faith Is Saving Faith
As a further consideration of James 2:14-26, this article draws a helpful analogy to explain that not all faith is a saving faith.
A Firm Confidence
Saving Faith
What Does It Mean to Believe?
This article considers what it means to believe in Christ. Biblical belief means that one no longer believes or trusts in himself, but has moved that trust "into" Jesus.
The Christian: A Believer Second in Series: What Is a Christian?
The Life of Faith
How do we live by faith? Faith sustains us and creates godliness and a desire to produce good fruit.
The Nature of Faith
What is faith? How do we receive faith? What does faith mean for us? This article addresses questions like these.
Pistis Christou in Galatians: The Connection to Habakkuk 2:4
What is the function of the phrases that refer to faith in Paul's argument in Galatians 2-Galatians 3? This essay considers how the way that Habakkuk 2:4 refers to faith can inform our understanding of Galatians and the "pistis Christou" debate.
Repentance and Faith
True Assurance
True assurance of salvation is rooted in the work of Christ, the experience of salvation, and the testimony of the Holy Spirit.
The Life of Faith
In this article the author looks at the relation of faith and trust, faith and obedience, faith and hope, and faith and the promises of God. Hebrews 11 is also discussed.
The Character of a True and Living Faith
Faith that Justifies Never Stands Alone
Confidence in Christ
This article discusses assurance of faith, faith in the promises of God, and faith as confidence in Christ.
Foundations
Faith Assurance
Faith is a Means
How God Sees Me
Where do you find your identity? The gospel tells us that because of our union with Christ we are no longer defined by sin. We are called according to God’s purpose and given a secure future where we shall enjoy an endless fellowship with God.
Three Questions about What It Means to Be in Christ
What does it mean to be in Christ? This article raises a few important questions to help you understand the significance of this doctrine of union with Christ.
What to Do with Your Wavering Faith
What do you do when you experience wavering or failing faith? Many people go through this challenge, and it can lead to despair. This article descibes three important facts to remember when you feel your faith is wavering: your faith is a gift of God, the object of faith is Christ, and the guarantee of our faith is the gospel.
Justified by "Thirst" Alone!
When the Bible explains our need for Christ it uses the analogy of thirst and desire. This article explains that thirsting for Christ and desiring Christ are what lie at the heart of faith.
Practical Aspects of Repentance
Improving the Life of Faith
The Life of Faith
Christ-Centered Faith
Faith and the Promises of God
What Do Feelings Have to Do with Faith?
What is the place of emotions in the Christian faith? This article looks at the place of feelings and their expression in the Christian faith based on creation, Jesus Christ, and the relationship between faith and emotions.
What Is True, Saving Faith?
What is saving faith? From James 2:18-19 this article explains that true faith is trust in who Christ is and what he has done, which spills out in love for God and love for neighbour.
What Actually Happens at the Gate (Conversion)?
This article considers what happens when someone is converted. God fundamentally changes the person, also to prepare them for the path ahead.
The Basics of Christianity
This article considers Acts 17:22-31 with a view to discussing six elements of biblical faith.
Why Are Stories in the Bible?
The purpose of stories in the Bible is to point us to Christ, in whom our faith needs to reside. After giving a definition of faith, this article gives from Acts 17 three elements of the faith that acknowledges the existence of God.
Justified Only by an Assured Faith?
Reasonable Limits Reason, a Great Gift, Nevertheless is Imperfect
Authentic Faith
Single-Minded Two Minds are not Better than One when it Comes to Faith
The Most Glorious Doctrine Every Spiritual Blessing comes to Us in Christ
How Our Union with Christ Defines Us
This article gives ten ways to show how our union with Christ defines our identity. It draws implications for the Christian life.
One among Many
Where should Christians find their identity? This article argues that Christian identity is found in union with Christ. This union that also constitutes unity among believers is demonstrated in 1 Corinthians.
Saving Faith – An Assured Confidence
There are two elements of saving faith: certain knowledge and assured confidence. This article discusses the assurance of faith. It points out why assured confidence is an essential part of true faith, and that this confidence can only be given by God.
Saving Faith – A Certain Knowledge
There are two elements of saving faith: certain knowledge and a sure confidence. This article discusses the knowledge of saving faith. It points out the nature of it, the need of it, and fruits of it.
A Picture of Saving Faith
What characterizes saving faith? True, saving faith is intellectual, relational, and trusting.
Weak and Strong Faith
Strong faith is characterized by humility and meekness, repentance, obedience out of love for God, and love for God’s people. This faith acts like this because it is a gift from God.
The Assuring Spirit
Assurance is the certainty that belongs to faith. This article proves this claim by looking at the work of the Holy Spirit in relation to the assurance of faith. It shows that assurance of salvation is the work of the Holy Spirit.
Faith Is Assurance: Scripture
Assurance is the certainty that belongs to faith. This article gives the biblical basis for the assurance of faith.
Faith’s Assurance
Assurance of salvation is an aspect of true faith. This article shows how this is so by looking at faith as union with Christ, as knowledge, and as certainty. Then it discusses the relationship between faith and assurance of salvation.
Faith-Ful Exegesis
This article is a word study on the word faith in Scripture. It shows how someone can be saved by faith, can explain the faith, and yet be of little faith. The article then makes some applications regarding faith-ful exegesis.
Why Not Sin?
What is stopping you as a Christian from sinning? One of the best answers is given by Paul in Romans 6. There he points out that our sanctification cannot be separated from our justification. This article shows that Paul would have us realize that our union with Christ marks every aspect of our salvation, including our justification, sanctification, and glorification.
Pop Culture’s View of Faith
In Christianity, faith is a confident and certain knowledge of God and trust in the person and work of Jesus Christ on our behalf and in our place. This understanding of faith is different from that of pop culture. This article explains the difference.
Weak and Strong Faith
Faith is God’s gift; it is not something one can produce in himself. This article shows that though this is true, a Christian has the responsibility to actively exercise his faith. This article looks at what characterizes weak faith and strong faith.
Weak and Strong Faith
Faith is God’s gift; it is not something one can produce in himself. This article shows that though this is true, a Christian has the responsibility to actively live as a child of God. The author shows that weak faith is something Christians must be ashamed of.
Union with Christ
This article explains what the doctrine of union with Christ means. It shows the relationship between union with Christ and conversion, justification, sanctification, and the church.
Ten Things You Should Know about Union with Christ
This article considers ten things the believer should know about his union with Christ.
Justification by Faith Alone
Why is justification ours by faith alone? The imputed righteousness of Christ we receive can only be received by faith. This article explains the nature of this faith to point out why it is by faith alone that we are justified.
Perfect Faith
What is perfect faith, how do we arrive there, and what is its result? This article offers biblical reflection on this question.
Do You Have the Faith to Be Faithful?
The Christian faith is not something private. Christians ought to show exemplary faith. This is what Paul asked Timothy to show in 1 Timothy 4:12. Let the article explain.
The Crucial Role of Union with Christ in Understanding the Gospel
Without understanding the biblical teaching of the believer's union with Christ, justification will lose its meaning. This article looks at the meaning of justification in relation to the believer being in Christ.
Faith in Christ
How We Are and Remain United with Christ by Faith Alone
How to Live by Faith in Our Glorious Christ
How Faith Is a Gift of God
The truth that faith is a gift of God is a clear biblical teaching. How does God give this faith? This article answers this question.
What Does It Mean to Put Your Faith in Jesus Christ?
God’s Secrets – The Believer’s Comforts
Walking by Faith
True Faith
The characteristics of true faith are: grief over sin, living under the Lordship of Christ, dependance upon Christ, perseverance, and love for God's people.
We Know... We Know...
Faith and Assurance
No Separation From God's Love
John 10 presents Christ as the Shepherd. This article shows that Christians are assured of their salvation because the Father has given the sheep to the Son, and the Son gave His life for the sheep. Also, the Father and Son are one, so no one can snatch you away from the Father's hand. This is our assurance.
How to Confirm Your Call and Election
Sola Fide
Can the Church be the Enemy of Faith?
Thomas Boston on 'Why Men Do Not Believe the Gospel'
"Thou Shalt Not Be Certain"
Is it a sin to be certain of Jesus? This article looks at the so-called sin of certainty, and explains that while it is not a virtue when attached to extremism and fundamentalism, it is not a sin to be certain of Jesus.
Authority and Faith
This article demonstrates how faith includes not only believing but also submitting to authority.
Faith Is Assurance: The Reformation Gospel
Assurance is the certainty that belongs to faith. This article compares Martin Luther’s and John Calvin’s teaching on assurance of faith, showing that they maintained the biblical teaching. It then evaluates the teaching of the Puritans on assurance compared to that of the Reformers.
Assurance
Uncertainty and doubt are also part of the life of a Christian. This article wants to reflect on the nature of faith and assurance in the Christian's experience.
Taking God Seriously – Taking Faith Seriously
What did the biblical writers mean when they spoke of faith? In Chapter 1 the author reflects on what the character and nature of this faith in the prophets, apostles, and other writers refers to. He also includes some questions for study and discussion.
Faith
The Devils Believe and Shudder
Devils and damned men have knowledge of God, and yet this knowledge is different from the saving faith of the righteous.
Faith That Sees Christ
This article shows that faith find its rest in the completed work of Christ.
Precious Faith
The faith possessed by Christians is precious because through it they gain right standing before God in Christ. Christian faith was secured by the blood of Christ, and it is through it that God's promises can be accepted. Therefore, view your faith as precious.
Is Faith What We Do to Be Saved?
Many believe that the act of faith is that which saves instead of faith in Christ. The article clarifies how anyone can truly be saved, so that you can rest in Christ.
How Do You Know If You Have Saving Faith?
What exactly is saving faith, and how do you know whether you have it? Many people try to work their way into salvation and entry into the kingdom of God through good works. The Bible teaches that saving faith is a gift of God in Christ Jesus. Read this article for a discussion on this point.
Is Jesus Precious to Your Soul?
What is saving faith all about? This article explains that saving faith is the embracing of Jesus as precious.
Not Faith, But Christ
The author here takes time to explain the difference between faith and the righteousness that results from having faith in Jesus Christ. This is done chiefly by defining what faith is and what it is not. For example, faith is not righteousness, it is not Christ, nor satisfaction to God. Further, Christ himself as the atonement sacrifice is the one who is presented as the ground of our justification.
Saving Faith
In this article the subject of saving faith is investigated. The aim is to be able to identify and distinguish between faith that is genuine and leads to salvation and those kinds of faith that do not lead to salvation. By references to various texts in Scripture, the article deals with many of the faiths that do not lead to salvation.
Faith and Repentance: Which Comes First?
When the gospel is preached, which response comes first, faith or repentance? This article weighs in, revealing that each implies the other.
A Puritan Theology – The Puritans on Union with Christ, Justification, and Regeneration
How does regeneration and the believer’s justification by faith relate to the believer’s union with Christ? Chapter 30 explores how the Puritans answered this question. The authors consider the chief blessing that Christians receive, faith, and thus union with Christ as it relates to the ordo salutis (order of salvation).
The Nature of Faith
The concern of this paper is with the Christian faith in its theological formulation. All attention is focused on the analysis of faith made by Soren Kierkegaard. The author considers also the nature of faith in the theology of Protestant orthodoxy and gives an orthodox critique of Kierkegaard.
Faith and Assurance
Understanding Assurance
Certain Faith: What Kind of Certainty?
Is there a dichotomy between fact and faith? A frequent cause of mutual alienation among Christians is the charge of too much certainty on the one hand and too little certainty on the other. Is it possible to find a kind of certainty that is confident and yet humble and teachable? We live after the Enlightenment, which looked for the ideal of knowledge in an "objectivity" that pretended to eliminate all the subjective factors in human knowledge and to provide undisputed certainty.
Union with Christ – Creation
This is a volume on believers’ union with Christ. Letham argues that union with God is founded in the very being of God as Trinity and relational. Man being made in the image of God reflects this characteristic. First Letham looks at the Trinitarian basis of creation. Next he notes the role of the Son of God as the mediator of creation. Man as one created in Christ is to be recognized as image of God.
Benjamin B. Warfield's View of Faith and History - A Critique in the Light of the New Testament
How should faith and history be related? The author believes that the views of B.B. Warfield on this relationship are very helpful. However, he also proposes a corrective to Warfield.
William Perkins on the Presumption of Salvation
Pistis Christou in Galatians 2:16: Clarification from 3:1-6
Grammar alone is inadequate to determine the meaning of "pistis Christou" in the letter to the Galatians. Does it mean "faith in Christ" or "faithfulness of Christ"? This article wants to offer an exegesis of Galatians 3:1-6 to better understand its meaning in Galatians 2:16. The conclusion of the author is that it refers to the faith of men in Christ.