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have found the distinguishing characteristic of faith in the lesser degree of certainty which it
yields—Locke, Hume, Kant, and others.
2. FAITH AS IMMEDIATE CERTAINTY.
In connection with science faith is often spoken of as
immediate certainty. There is a certainty which man obtains by means of perception,
experience, and logical deduction, but there is also an intuitive certainty. In every science there
are axioms that cannot be demonstrated and intuitive convictions that are not acquired by
perception or logical deduction. Dr. Bavinck says “Het gebied der onmiddelijke zekerheid is veel
grooter dan dat der demonstratieve, en deze laatste is altijd weer op de eerste gebouwd, en
staat en valt met deze. Ook is deze intuitieve zekerheid niet minder maar grooter dan die,
welke langs den weg van waarneming en logische demonstratie verkregen wordt.” The sphere
of immediate certainty is greater than that of demonstrative certainty. In both cases now
mentioned faith is regarded exclusively as an activity of the intellect.
3. FAITH AS A CONVICTION BASED ON TESTIMONY AND INCLUDING TRUST.
In common
parlance the word “faith” is often used to denote the conviction that the testimony of another
is true, and that what he promises will be done; a conviction based only on his recognized
veracity and fidelity. It is really a believing acceptance of what another says on the basis of the
confidence which he inspires. And this faith, this conviction based on confidence, often leads to
a further confidence: trust in a friend in time of need, in the ability of a doctor to give aid in
times of sickness, and in that of a pilot to guide the vessel into the harbor, and so on. In this
case faith is more than a mere matter of the intellect. The will is brought into play, and the
element of trust comes to the foreground.
F. FAITH IN THE RELIGIOUS SENSE AND PARTICULARLY SAVING FAITH.
The distinguishing characteristics of faith in the theological sense have not always been stated
in the same way. This will become evident, when we consider the concept, the elements, the
object, and the ground of faith.
1. THE CONCEPT OF FAITH: FOUR KINDS OF FAITH DISTINGUISHED.
As a psychological
phenomenon faith in the religious sense does not differ from faith in general. If faith in general
is a persuasion of the truth founded on the testimony of one in whom we have confidence and
on whom we rely, and therefore rests on authority, Christian faith in the most comprehensive
sense is man’s persuasion of the truth of Scripture on the basis of the authority of God. The
Bible does not always speak of religious faith in the same sense, and this gave rise to the
following distinctions in theology.
a. Historical faith.
This is a purely intellectual apprehension of the truth, devoid of any moral or
spiritual purpose. The name does not imply that it embraces only historical facts and events to