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a great deal on Christ as the object of faith, since it is from this object only that faith derives its
efficacy. Faith justifies and saves only because it lays hold on Jesus Christ.
e. In the Epistle to the Hebrews.
The writer of Hebrews also regards Christ as the proper object
of saving faith, and teaches that there is no right-eousness except through faith, 10:38; 11:7.
But the danger against which the writer of this letter had to guard was not that of falling from
faith into works, but rather that of falling from faith into despair. He speaks of faith as “the
assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen,” 11:1. He exhorts the readers
to an attitude of faith, which will enable them to rise from the seen to the unseen, from the
present to the future, from the temporal to the eternal, and which will enable them to be
patient in the midst of sufferings.
f. In the Epistles of Peter.
Peter also writes to readers that were in danger of becoming
discouraged, though not of falling back into Judaism. The circumstances in which they found
themselves prompted him to lay special emphasis on the relation of faith to the consummated
salvation, in order to quicken within their hearts the hope that would sustain them in their
present trials, the hope of an unseen and eternal glory. The Second Epistle stresses the
importance of the knowledge of faith as a safeguard against prevailing errors.
g. In the Writings of John.
John had to contend with an incipient Gnosticism, which falsely
emphasized knowledge (gnosis) and despised simple faith. The former was supposed to carry
with it a far greater degree of blessedness than the latter. Hence John makes it a point to
magnify the blessings of faith. He insists, not so much on the certainty and glory of the future
inheritance which faith secures, as on the fulness of the present enjoyment of salvation which it
brings. Faith embraces knowledge as a firm conviction and makes believers at once possessors
of the new life and of eternal salvation. Meanwhile John does not neglect the fact that it also
reaches out into the future.
E. FAITH IN GENERAL.
The word “faith” is not exclusively a religious and theological term. It is often used in a general
and non-religious sense, and even so has more than one connotation. The following uses of the
term deserve particular attention. It may denote:
1. FAITH AS LITTLE MORE THAN MERE OPINION.
The word “faith” is sometimes used in a
rather loose and popular sense, to denote a persuasion of the truth which is stronger than
mere opinion, and yet weaker than knowledge. Even Locke defined faith as “the assent of the
mind to propositions which are probably, but not certainly, true.” In popular language we often
say of that of which we are not absolutely sure, but which we at the same time feel constrained
to recognize as true: “I believe that, but I am not sure of it.” Consequently some philosophers