The Nuts & Bolts of the Bible Message

Seventh Basic Concept

In the Bible, Abraham represented the living by faith "type" of individual. When GOD told him he would be the father of nations and his seed would be as the stars of heaven (Genesis 22:17), he was not talking about his physical descendants but spiritual descendants of which he was the "type". Spiritually, everyone who has lived according to faith is a child of Abraham because he was the one GOD chose to illustrate the concept of living by faith to Mankind. We are told in Galatians 4:24 that at least a part of Abraham's life is an allegory. Most likely it is fully a living allegory; but even if there was never a living Abraham, the "type" Abraham is becomes all important for all who have and do live. There are many examples of individuals who were accepted by GOD before Abraham was to have lived. Therefore, there were individuals before Abraham who lived by faith also.

GOD's Truth for the created spiritual reality expresses the "way" it will be. The created spiritual reality is currently in transition toward that eventuality. Man living by faith is a necessary component of that transition. Contrary to modern Man's view of the nature of Biblical faith, Biblical faith is not an insubstantial or abstract aspect of a Child of GOD as implied by Hebrew 11.1 in the New International Version of the Bible. This subject is explained in the document "Faith" (PDF file). Therefore, our faith results in the expression of our certainty for what has not been experienced in a life situation as true, but what we have experienced and "confirmed" is the substance of the certainty, or faith, we have. Faith results in certainty for our feminine side just as knowledge results in knowing for our masculine side. It is not a belief; but a belief that has been confirmed as true and then becomes the substance of our faith just as confirmed knowledge becomes the substance of what we know. Faith is essentially our ability to express GOD's Truth for us.

Faith becomes especially important when we strive to understand the spiritual reality and our eternal purpose. The only way any of us can really know GOD is by loving the qualities we can assimilate that are of GOD. We can have intellectual knowledge of HIS Unlimited Qualities/Aspects, such as Infinite; but we can only know HIS Living Qualities/Aspects by assimilating them. Those Living Qualities/Aspects then become the way we are and determine the way we respond to and express living situations. Since each of us will have a different eternal purpose, the Living Qualities/Aspects we assimilate will not be the same for everyone. There will be much that is in common, but the differences are what is needed for each to contribute uniquely in the body of Christ.

The faith view of Christ is described in the document "How Do We Accept Christ--Is It All Faith and No Works?"

The ideal environment for practicing the faith approach to spiritual growth is the "community" of Man.