Heb 6:1 Wherefore leaving the doctrine of the first principles of Christ, let us press on unto perfection; not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, 2 of the teaching of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3 And this will we do, if God permit.
The second foundational element of Christianity is faith towards God. Without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6). The path of sin was begun when Eve first began to listen when the serpent said, "Did God really say…?" It is our faith that overcomes the world (1 John 5:4). If we doubt that God really commanded something or if we doubt that He will be faithful to reward us for our obedience we will be far more likely to disobey than if we trust these two things. The world lives for this life because they have no hope in the next, but Christians through faith can live an eternal life now - a life which looks beyond temporary happiness, prosperity, and enjoyment and is willing to forgo it for greater eternal rewards. Even now by faith we build our relationship with the living God that we will continue to develop through all eternity, this is eternal life to know the Father and the Son.
For faith to be valid the object of faith must be right. Weak faith in a strong tree limb might keep you from falling, but strong faith in a weak tree limb is downright hazardous. Throughout their history Israel had faith in many wrong places. Sometimes it was in false gods. Sometimes it was in their own power, wealth and abilities. Sometimes it was in foreign nations. Worst of all sometimes they had a faith in the presence of God's temple in Jerusalem rather than in God Himself (Jer. 7:3-4). Even today people can have a faith in many things other than God, even in things of God rather than God Himself. Church attendance, ministry, good deeds are all good things, but bad things to rely on. In the Church today, people sometimes have more faith in the minister than in God. If a miracle is needed they run to a certain well known minister to be prayed for, or buy some special anointing oil. Their faith is more in the method than in the God who can use whatever method He wants to bring about His purposes. Often the problem is that God has requirements that must be met for His working, but all that the snakeoil-peddlars, by whatever name they go by, want is money. God meets with people in spite of this, but some of what goes on in the Church now is bordering on relic worship, and invocation of the saints. There is only one Mediator between God and man and that is Jesus Christ.
It is also not enough for the faith to be in God, but the faith must be in God through Christ. It is not necessary to understand or have a doctrinal grasp of the Trinity to be born again. It is however essential to have some realization that Jesus is God, who came and died in our place, bore our sins and rose again. This realization is not only a head-knowledge, but it is a knowledge made real by the Spirit of God. This is saving faith. It is believing into the Son, where somehow our faith joins us with Christ in His death and resurrection as we realize that He bore not just sins, but our sins, died not just for the world, but for us. It is the Spirit that imparts this knowledge and as we believe it we are saved. Salvation and all blessings are in Christ and when we are dwelling in Christ by faith these become ours.
From our identification with Christ's crucifixion for our sins also comes the next doctrine we will study, which is baptisms, because as we accept His death for our sins, we also desire to follow Him in the likeness of that death and into the new resurrection life.
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