What is Faith?

Elder David A. Bednar said,

“The Apostle Paul defined faith as ‘the substance of things hoped for, [and] the evidence of things not seen’ (Hebrews 11:1). Alma declared that faith is not a perfect knowledge; rather, if we have faith, we ‘hope for things which are not seen, [but] are true’(Alma 32:21). Additionally, we learn in the Lectures on Faith that faith is ‘the first principle in revealed religion, and the foundation of all righteousness’ and that it is also ‘the principle of action in all intelligent beings’ [Lectures on Faith (1985), 1].

“These teachings of Paul and of Alma and from the Lectures on Faith highlight three basic elements of faith: (1) faith as the assurance of things hoped for which are true, (2) faith as the evidence of things not seen, and (3) faith as the principle of action in all intelligent beings. I describe these three components of faith in the Savior as simultaneously facing the future, looking to the past, and initiating action in the present.”

Going back to Hebrews 11, we see that Paul gives us examples of people that had lived before him and that demonstrated great faith.

ENOCH

"By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony,    that he pleased God." (verse 5)

NOAH

"By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear,  prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith." (verse 9)

ABRAHAM

 "By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son," (verse 17)

MOSES

 "By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned." (verse 29)

In the video below, Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin talks about what faith is. Hebrews 11:1 ("Shall He Find Faith on the Earth?," Ensign, Nov. 2002, 82.)

Video's Transcript:

Faith, on the other hand, is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Faith has eyes that penetrate the darkness, seeing into the light beyond.

Your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. Too often today, we do not rely on faith as much as on our own ability to reason and solve problems. If we become ill, modern medicine can work healing miracles. We can travel great distances in a short time. We have at our fingertips information 500 years ago would have made the poorest man a prince.

The just shall live by faith, we're told in holy writ. I ask again, what is faith? Faith exists when absolute confidence in that which we cannot see combines with the action that is in absolute conformity to the will of our Heavenly Father. Without all three-- first, absolute confidence, second, action, and third, absolute conformity-- without these three, all we have is a counterfeit, a weak and watered-down faith.

Ephesians

Bruce R. McConkie said, 

“Ephesians is an epistle for all the world, for Jew and Gentile, for husband and wife, for parent and child, for master and servant. It was the mind and will of God in Paul’s day; it is the voice of inspiration in our day; it is an epistle of universal appeal and application.

“… It contains some of Paul’s best writing, and is a document that deals with fundamentals, with the gospel of God in all its saving glory”

As I read the six chapters in this epistle, I can see that Heavenly Father, through Paul, was teaching the members of the church how to be spiritually strong, how to be aware of the teaching of the world. I believe we the message in these chapters can be applied in our lives today.

Two of the messages I found in Ephesians are:

1   1 -  We have been chosen “before the foundation of the world” to be participants of the gospel of Christ on this earth. What a great blessing! There is a talk given by Neal A. Maxwell entitled “Called and Prepared from the Foundation of the World”, that I would like for you to read, as to learn more about our purpose here on earth.

     2 -  We live in the dispensation of the fullness of times. This is a time where not only we have a prophet of God on earth to reveal His will to us, but we also have the chance to see many prophecies being fulfilled. Elder B. H. Roberts has said: “This is the dispensation of the fullness of times, and we see running into it, as mighty streams rush into the ocean, all the former dispensations, putting us in touch with them, putting them in touch with us; and we see that God has had but one great purpose in view from the beginning, and that has been the salvation of His children. And now has come the final day, the final dispensation, when truth and light and righteousness must flood the earth”
Elder David A. Bednar talks about this dispensation in which we live in this a short video. I invite you you to watch. Please click on this link .

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"...we glory in tribulations..."

In the epistle of Paul to the Romans, chapter 5 verses 3 to 5, we read: 

"3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”

Since a young age I have been taught that tribulations are blessings, that we should be thanking Heavenly Father for them, and that we need them to learn and grow. I believe that is true. But I also believe that that is easier said than done. It is especially hard to “glory in tribulation” right in the middle of our suffering.

As I try to follow the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ, that are things I can do that I find helpful as we strive to be thankful for our challenges in life.

First, I believe that as we pray often and study the scriptures daily, we will invite the company of the Holy Ghost into our days, and that will not only helps us make good decisions, including the ones involving our feelings towards hard time, but it will also bring us peace and understanding.

Second, we need to make a habit of counting our blessings. As we go about our days, driving places, working, showering, etc, we can make a mental list of the things we are thankful for. I would even encourage you to write down those blessings you are thinking about. Anyway you choose to do it, it will help you recognize the Lord’s hand in your life.

And lastly, we should develop and nurture a positive attitude towards the experiences we have in life. Being positive helps us see the problem in a better perspective. We could even ask ourselves, “What can I learn from this?” 

I know that we came to this earth to learn and grow, and that our trials are simply tools that will help us become better. I am thankful for the sacrifice Christ has made for all of us. We can go to Him to find comfort. Elder Henry B. Eyring said, “We have the gospel of Jesus Christ shape and guide our lives if we choose it. We never need to feel that we are alone or unloved in the Lord's service because we never are. We can feel the love of God. The Savior has promised angels are on our left and on our right to bear us up, and He always keeps His word.”

I invite you this watch this video that teaches us that “Finding faith in the Lord Jesus Christ will help us have the power to endure and overcome challenges in life.”

Images and video found on lds.org