Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

• Hebrews 11:1

“We who are Jews by birth and not sinful Gentiles know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.

• Galatians 2:15-16

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

• Ephesians 2:8-10

“ ‘Faith is, then, a lively and steadfast trust in the favour of God, wherewith we commit ourselves altogether unto God. And that trust is so surely grounded and sticks so fast in our hearts, that a man would not once doubt of it, although he should die a thousand times therefore. And such trust, wrought by the Holy Ghost through faith, makes a man glad, lusty, cheerful and true-hearted unto God and unto all creatures.’ (A Prologue upon the Epistle of St Paul to the Romans [1526]).”

• Tony Lane, A Concise History of Christian Thought

William Tyndale (1494-1536) was a Bible scholar and linguist.  Affected by Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation, he set out to translate the Bible into English.  While John Wyclif translated from the Latin vulgate and was allowed to live out his days as pastor of a small church, Tyndale’s translation was banned, and the government set out to destroy him and his work.  Tyndale escaped to the mainland of Europe but was betrayed by someone he trusted.  He was strangled and burned at the stake.  His last words are reported as being “Lord, open the king of England’s eyes.”  With the influence of Thomas Cranmer, Henry VIII permitted English translations.  And less than one hundred years after his death, a very large portion, 70% or more, of the King James Version of the Bible was the words William Tyndale had used in his translation.

The quote from Tyndale is in the forward to the book of Romans.  He basically answers, “What is Faith?”

Faith is lively.  Too often, people quote Ephesians 2:8-9 without going on to Ephesians 2:10.  We were chosen by God to love one another.  Loving someone is an action verb.  While romance should be between a man and a woman in marriage or the pursuit thereof, loving someone by feeding them and clothing them and telling them about Jesus is something we can do with anyone in need of those things.

Faith is trust in God.  John 3:16 says for all those who believe, but that word should have an element of trust included.  As C. S. Lewis noted, you have a greater trust in a rope that is keeping you from falling down a cliff than you do with a cord that ties up a box.  Trust in God is a large element of faith.  We can trust in God because God keeps His promises.

And for a true believer, they cannot lose their faith.  It sticks to us.

And the Holy Spirit gives us Love, Joy, and Hope.

Tyndale, in this brief introduction, has covered the basics of Faith.  And he lived out this introduction in that he died doing what he felt God had led him to do.

If you like these Tuesday morning essays about philosophy and other “heavy topics,” but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Tuesday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.