No term is more familiar to Christians than faith. Faith is discussed in association with Divine healing, financial need, and success in living the Christian life. It is important we understand the difference between mental faith and scriptural faith and how to apply scriptural faith in our hour of need.

When we think of "faith" there often comes into our mind a kind of magic. "If I had faith I could move my mountain, or heal myself, or get more money, or work some other miracle."

Sometimes we have tried a kind of mental faith. "I believe! I believe! I believe!" Then we open our eyes briefly to see if the lump has disappeared.

There has been a "word of faith" teaching, the idea being if we "speak the word," creative energy will be released that will arrange or change our environment as we desire. This is to have faith in faith instead of in the Lord Jesus. It is actually a metaphysical practice, as we see it, and not Christian at all.

There has been the teaching that faith is merely confidence in experience. "If I sit down in a chair I have faith it will support me."

Faith often gets confused with presumption. "If I smash my glasses God will heal my eyes. If I cash a check with no money in the bank God will deposit the money. If I refuse to take my medicine God will heal me." If you have tried one of these you now are a sadder but wiser person if you lived and are not in prison!

There is a modern concept that faith is a spiritual force we can use to manipulate our surroundings. We can learn to use faith to get what we want. We can command the angels. This is the spirit of religious delusion that has "two horns like a lamb" and that speaks "as a dragon" (Revelation 13:11). It is to attempt to use the power (the horns) of Christ (the Lamb) apart from entering into the death and resurrection of Christ. It is to remain a spiritual single and yet try to draw on the bank account of Christ.

Perhaps the most common use of the word faith is to refer to a doctrinal position or denominational affiliation, for example the Catholic faith, the Episcopal faith, the Pentecostal faith. "The just shall live by faith" (sometimes used today to mean stedfast belief in one's doctrinal faith) was the cry of the Protestant Reformers. However, doctrinal faith is not the "faith" of the Scriptures, of the eleventh chapter of the Book of Hebrews. "The just shall live by faith" has little to do with a confession of faith in theological facts.

There is a "gift of faith" that the Holy Spirit gives to some Christians. Smith-Wigglesworth of England apparently possessed the gift of faith.

Sometimes God gives us special faith for our own need. Such extraordinary faith is quite different from "trying to believe," as every person knows who has experienced a special gift of faith to solve a certain problem.

We are commanded by the Apostle to not step beyond the actual confidence God has given us.

It is God who gives one individual a certain amount of faith and another individual a different degree of faith. We must use the faith we have but not attempt to force results when we do not have enough God-given faith to accomplish our goals.

We must learn to distinguish between what we as a person can do and what only God can do. When we are sick we are commanded to call for the elders of the church. This we can do. Only God can heal us, but we are directed to call for the elders of the church. We must do what has been commanded if we expect God to do His part.

The Lord Jesus invited us to ask in His name for whatever we desire. This we are to do but only the Lord Jesus can grant our request.

We are not to place our faith in faith but in the Lord Jesus. It is the Lord who grants our request. It is not that our imagination or spoken word sets in motion "spiritual forces" that bring the answer. (from The Exercise of Faith)