The Way - Faith

Faith is at the beginning of The Way. To be more specific, “faith in the Lord Jesus Christ” (4^th Article of Faith) is the beginning of The Way. The word ‘faith’ seems to take on different meanings in the scriptures. Joseph Smith understood that the word ‘faith’ has a spectrum of meaning, as implied in his statement about a man who “arrives at that point of faith where he is wrapped in the power and glory of his Maker and is caught up to dwell with Him” (TJPS, p. 51) and in this statement in Lectures on Faith – “And what constitutes the real difference between a saved person and one not saved, is the difference in the degree of their faith: one's faith has become perfect enough to lay hold upon eternal life, and the other's has not” (Lectures on Faith 7:9). The scriptures make some attempts to differentiate these different degrees, points, or levels of faith. For example, in addition to plain faith, they talk about “a particle of faith” (Alma 32:27), “exceeding faith” and “exceedingly great faith” (Alma 13:3), and “strong faith” (Moroni 7:30).

At a very basic level, faith means belief – a mental and perhaps also an emotional acceptance of some principle. If the principle is true, then our belief would be rooted in some sort of spiritual confirmation. In other words, the work of the spirit is involved in acquiring belief in truth. In our case here, the principle of faith, or truth, would be that Jesus is the Christ and has power to redeem us from the fall. In the church, we would call this level of faith or belief a testimony. A more advanced level of faith can be called a “principle of action” (Lectures on Faith 1:6). This is where belief motivates us to action or works, because “faith without works is dead” (James 2:20). This level of faith is where we make lifestyle changes. It is fairly physical in nature. We physically begin to do things to keep “thou-shalt” commandments and we physically stop doing other things to keep “thou-shalt-not” commandments. This type of faith is observable and even quantifiable. Another, even more advanced, level of faith can be called a “principle of power” (Lectures on Faith 1:19). This level of faith is almost indistinguishable from power of the priesthood. Faith as a principle of power is where we work with our minds, hearts, and words. It is fairly spiritual in nature and requires a high degree of familiarity and alignment with God and the power of his spirit. This type of faith is not easily observable and is more qualitative. Another level of faith, which could be thought of as being at least equivalent to, or else as a part of, faith as a principle of power, is faith “to lay hold upon eternal life” and to be “wrapped in the power and glory of his Maker and [be] caught up to dwell with him.”

My friend LeGrand Baker has explained how the word ‘faith’ can also mean covenant or the process of entering into and fulfilling a covenant.

In the New Testament, “faith” is translated from the Greek word pistis, which is all about making and keeping covenants. In Paul’s time, pistis was not a religious term. It was used either as a diplomatic word that had to do with making a treaty, or else as an economic term that had to do with securing the validity of a contract. The closest modern English equivalent in meaning is probably “contract”— a legally binding contract.

Early Christians shifted the focus of pistis to a religious term, and in time reduced it to mean simply believing without any further reference to the covenant, its object, or its evidence. Consequently, in today’s common usage the meaning of “faith” often slides along a continuum that ranges from wishing hard to just anticipating without any substantiating covenant to support the anticipation.

Paul defined pistis with succinct precision when he wrote:

11) Now pistis [our Bible translation reads “faith”] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1).

The closest English equivalent to pistis is “contract.” Just as with a legal contract, there are five parts of Paul’s definition of pistis. Three are stated. Two are implied because they are obviously so necessary that they are simply presupposed.

1. (presupposed by Paul) There must be a covenant or contract that defines the agreement and the methodology by which it will be accomplished.

 2. There must be a mutually understood “substance,” that is the object, objective, purpose, assurance, or intent of the covenant.

 3. There must be binding “evidence” (a handshake, signature, or appropriate other token or tokens) that validates the agreement and guarantees the fulfillment of the covenant.

 4. The next is a functional “hope.” That is, taking the covenant at full value and acting or living as though the terms of the covenant were already fulfilled.

 5. (implied by Paul) Finally, the conclusion or fulfillment of the terms of the covenant.

Pistis (faith) always indicates such a covenant and the covenantal process—whether formal and explicit, or informal and implicit— because a covenant is the foundation of pistis. Were it not for the covenant, “faith” would only be acting on prior experience, or just wishing. But with the covenant “faith” is power. (http://www.legrandlbaker.org/2014/02/12/1-nephi-219-legrand-baker-a-meaning-of-faith/)

One other aspect of “faith unto salvation” (1 Peter 1:5), or pistis, which ought to be mentioned, is the “trial of your faith” (1 Peter 1:9). Once a covenant of faith has been entered into with God, there is a period of trial before the covenant is fulfilled and God bestows the previously conditionally-promised gift. This period of trial is analogous to the 4^th part of a Paul’s definition of pistis above – “acting or living as though the terms of the covenant were already fulfilled.” Moroni commented that “you receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.” (Ether 12:6). ‘Witness’ means attestation of fact from personal knowledge, a person who knows or sees anything, and it comes from the Germanic root word ‘wit’, which means to know. When the process of a faith-covenant is fulfilled, knowledge or even perfect knowledge is what is gained. With that in mind, Moroni could have said, “you do not receive perfect knowledge until after the trial period of the process of your faith-covenant.” A new and higher degree of faith-covenant may then begin.

 Alma the Younger explained how a faith-covenant becomes perfect knowledge by comparing the object of the faith covenant to a seed. He said that the object of the faith-covenant is to “believe in the Son of God, that he will come come to redeem his people, and that he shall suffer and die to atone for their sins” (Alma 33:22). Through a process of experimenting with the idea, fact, belief or truth, by letting it set in your heart, allowing the Spirit of the Lord to work with you, feeling the truth grow and recognizing it (see Alma 32:27-33), then you reach a point where your “knowledge is perfect in that thing, and your faith is dormant” (Alma 32:34). The covenant process of faith has been fulfilled in this one thing, which is to know whether or not Jesus is truly the Christ. However, there is more work to do and a greater faith-covenant process to complete in order to be fully converted to Christ and fully developed spiritually, such that you have within you “a tree springing up unto everlasting life” (Alma 32:41).

 
In The Book of Mormon, we are told how the brother of Jared completed a faith-covenant process that resulted in knowledge. After he had climbed up to the top of a mountain with 16 stones in his hands, he prayed, asking the Lord to touch the stones in order to light them up. “[A]nd he saw the finger of Jesus, which, when he saw, he fell with fear; for he knew that it was the finger of the Lord; and he had faith no longer, for he knew, nothing doubting.” (Ether 3:19).