In this episode of A Better Bible Study Podcast ,we share the ninth in our  online Bible study series dubbed The Gospel and Spiritual Growth . Today,  we touch on how faith comes about and the instructive implications of the Gospel.

This online Bible study was conducted by several friends from the Church of Christ. They have been doing this for over 10 years and are happy to bring this study to a wider audience.

 

Implications of the Gospel

            The implications of the gospel have been previously discussed in past episodes of this online bible study. As a recap, they are divided into three tiers, argumentative, instructive and revelatory.

The argumentative implications of the gospel appeal to the human intellect. It is rooted on evidences that Jesus was the Christ and he fulfilled all that was prophesied the messiah will fulfill. One such powerful evidence is the events of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection. We recall that there were attempts of the Jews and Romans at that time to guard the body or Christ but Christ appeared alive to multitudes including Paul.

The resurrection of Christ is one particular event that a lot of non-believers will try to discredit. They argue that either Christ must have been dead and buried, or he did not die at all. But the fact that Christ indeed died and was resurrected can be proven. This alone should appeal to the intellectual mind. It is the argumentative implication of the gospel. Only God has the power to raise the dead, and He raised Jesus and therefore Jesus is the messiah.

The argumentative implication of the gospel compels the intellectually honest mind. This logical implication then forces the transition of the person accepting these implications into preparedness for the instructive implication of the gospel.

A matter of Faith

            As the person logically arrives at the acceptance of the gospel, what is revealed next is the instructional implication of the gospel. However, at this point, a discussion of faith becomes necessary. Perceiving the instructive implication of the gospel requires that we he must first suspend or put aside the mortal limitations in order to see realities that are beyond logic and beyond the comprehension of our senses.

This is so because what God wants us to see are realities that are eternal, and hence, invisible.  The wisdom of the world is in itself a limitation because it does not permit man to see what God wants us to see.

In order to perceive these invisible things that God wants us to see, we have to start somewhere. This is where faith comes in. We have to have this additional faculty that suspends limitations and allows us to see eternal realities.

The word faith is often misused and one such misuse is construing it as equivalent to trust.  With this definition, the things written in Hebrews 11:1-3 would not make sense.

[1] Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. [2] For by it the men of old gained approval. [3] By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible. (Hbr 11:1-3 NASB)

Faith starts from at least those who hear the gospel, develops some faith and obeys the gospel. These are the ones able to  suspend the wisdom of the world and proceed on.

However, not all will accept this. So it is for these people that it is written that he effects of the gospel are for all those who believe.

 

Faith come from hearing

17] So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. (Rom 10:17 NASB)

The verse above is one among the most mistaken texts in the Bible. It is often shortened to “faith comes from hearing the word of Christ.†This is a very important verse, indispensable to us Christians because we want to grow in faith. We want to achieve spiritual growth and become like Christ so it is imperative that we understand this progression.

The bible teaches that faith comes from hearing. Hearing, in this passage, is not the auditory sense. It is not literal hearing with one’s ears.  Although, we first believe by auditory perception of the gospel , this is not what the “hearing†means in this case.

Hearing here denotes understanding or comprehension. As we open our mind, and suspend all logical limitations, we hear more. This means that we understand more about the conflicting realities. We comprehend the eternal things that God reveals to us in the scriptures.

Faith which comes from hearing liberates the mind to the possibility of a new dimension of reality-the dimension that Paul speaks of in 1 Corinthians. The hearer of the gospel must conclude that the weight of the gospel is more compelling than what he sees and all the logical assumptions that are based on what he has experienced.

It is the beginning of faith that ignites the process of spiritual growth in us and eventually leads us to obey the gospel. The increase in faith is triggered and nursed by the gospel from faith to faith.

Faith answers

For the longest time, humans have hoped for tranquility, deliverance from evil, answers to questions about life, death and afterlife. Man has continually hoped for something better than the evils of this world such as pestilence and impermanence.

Impermanence meaning that life is destined to end in death and no one  is exempt to it. The Greeks call this the tragedy of life.

The world cannot deliver to that what we hoped. Faith brings us to a position to view things in a whole new dimension. Faith through the gospel grows our vision and recognition of eternal things.

[22] For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; [23] but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, [24] but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. [25] Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. [26] For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; [27] but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, [28] and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, (1Cr 1:22-28 NASB)

It is a reality that a vast number of the population of the world is locked into their worldly wisdom even though it does not give them what they hope for.

We consider the passages in 1Corinthians 1:22-28 and see how worldly wisdom becomes a stumbling block and how it brings even more foolishness.

When a person is logically convinced of the gospel, it opens his mind and prepares him to receive the instructions of God. These instructions will not make sense to people who do not believe the gospel, whose faith have not been ignited by the word of God.

The  instructive implications of the gospel will set those who have faith on a path towards a greater understanding  of what God wants us to know. These realities and facts that are revealed to us through faith. As what Paul said,

[7] for we walk by faith, not by sight— (2Cr 5:7 NASB).

By obeying the gospel, we know that we have allowed God to work His power in us.

Faith delivers

            When our minds are opened, the faculty of faith will begin to work in us. Faith here has become something beyond trust. We begin to know and fully grasp what God wants us to see. The things revealed in Hebrews 11:1-33 will make more sense. Faith delivers to us the things that worldly wisdom cannot.

Going back to hearing, although irrelevant to salvation, the emphasis here is the process. The word of Christ leads to hearing, hearing being understanding, and hearing brings about faith. The word of Christ, the gospel, is the starting point. The word of God will create faith, if we open our minds to it. The  gospel will cause a transformation in us ,opening the faculty of faith.

This study on the understanding of faith allows us to further understand the gospel and what it does to us. In effect, it will help us glean more from the gospel and we understand the power of the gospel.