The term faith is sometimes used to mean the practice of metaphysical magic. This is soulish faith and it is exercised as its proponents seek to change the physical world to their advantage by positive thinking, or imaging, or stating what they want, or by some similar device.

Superficially the Scriptures appear to endorse the employment of soulish faith in order to manipulate the environment according to the will of the believer. But true scriptural faith always comes from God into the spirit of the believer; it does not proceed from the mental and soulish efforts of the individual.

True faith is always employed to find the will of God and to do it, not to direct God to do whatever the Christian desires.

Many believers of our day do not know the difference between true scriptural faith and soulish faith. They are attempting to acquire riches, to be healed, to rule their environment by affirming various passages of the Scriptures. Soulish faith is not endorsed by the Scriptures but is regarded as presumption (as in the case of the Lord being tempted to leap from the gable of the Temple). Soulish faith leads to arrogance and presumption and finally to destruction.

Another application of the term faith has to do with our acceptance and confession of the theological facts pertaining to the existence of God, and to the Deity, atonement, and bodily resurrection of Christ. "The just shall live by faith" has come to mean if I subscribe to correct theology relating to Christ I will go to Heaven when I die. This appears to be the prevailing concept of the Christian redemption.

While the holding of a correct viewpoint concerning the facts of the Divine redemption may be close to true faith, this interpretation of "the just shall live by faith" is incorrect in its method and its goal. Also, it includes an assumption that has created havoc in the Church, the Wife of the Lamb, the center of government of the Kingdom of God.

It is incorrect in its method in that living by faith does not mean continuing in mental assent to the theological facts concerning Jesus.

It is customary for the Christian ministry to labor diligently to persuade people to adopt the thought structure, the philosophy of a particular denomination. But there is little benefit in adopting a particular thought structure. A thought structure, a religious philosophy, is useful only as it brings us to Him who is the Resurrection and the Life.

The prevailing concept is incorrect in its goal because the goal of redemption is not eternal residence in Heaven but the redemption of our body.

Its destructive assumption is that we enter Paradise on the basis of forgiveness and are given to eat of the tree of life on the basis of forgiveness. It envisions the Christian redemption as primarily the forgiveness of our sins rather than what it is—the conversion of our personality from the adamic nature to the life-giving spirit (I Corinthians 15:45).

To be continued.