Three Words

There are 3 words that seem to cause no end of confusion in the word of God. They are trust, faith, and belief. Now when you translate from one language to another it can get confusing. If I say “to” do I really mean to, too, or two. It depends on the context and content of the sentence it is used in. Mark does that mean mark or does it mean Mark? It can be determined by the sentence. You can see why at times there may be confusion because of the words used.

In English sometimes it is determined by is this a noun or is this a verb or some other kind of word preposition, adjective or something else. So let’s see if we get any help there.

Let’s start with the word trust here is how Webster’s defines it

Here are its synonyms:

It is a noun. That means it is a thing not something where you take action.

Okay so let’s see it from the word. This is just a few times from the word of God.

2Samuel 22:3 The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation,my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence

As you can see these are weapons as well as a shield

2 Samuel 22:31 As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust in him.

God way is perfect. Sometimes when God gives us direction it may seem crazy wrong at the time.

Jonah God told him:

Jonah 1:2 Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me.

3 But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.

So you have some idea what is involved here is a graphic.

You can see they are on opposite of the Mediterranean.

Look at this response.

Act 9:10 And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord.

11 And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth,

12 And hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight.

Okay so he got his instruction let’s see how he responds.

Act 9:13 Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem:

14 And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name.

Well God tells him GO. We know he goes and ministers to Paul who gets his site back and goes and writes most of the Greek scriptures. Jonah knew there was a prophecy that Nineveh would overrun Israel and thought if he didn’t go it might not happen. Well he did go they changed their ways and repented and several years later Israel got over run. At times it is hard to do what God wants us to do. We just have to trust what God says I’d like to finish up trust with one of my favorite verses it is used in.

Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

It can be very hard at times to do what God says to do. At times it can be very easy. Trust is built. Every time you do something God says to do that trust is built. If you have never done that ask God for something to do, don’t be surprised when he tells you do this. If you do what he says to do it builds your trust and confidence in the lord.

There is one more thing there are several words translated trust each having it’s meaning. There are 9 Hebrew/Aramaic Results and

6 Greek Results. This of course requires a great deal of work that you can follow up with. It can be difficult to translate some words there are Greek and Hebrew words that are almost impossible to translate because there is no English word it could be like when God said to Joshua Moses my servant is dead. That word dead is the most intense word in the bible there is no way to accurately translate it. It is if God is shouting it so it resounds through the earth.

FAITH

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Faith again is a noun.

Faith is not used very much in the Hebrew scriptures or the Greek Many times it would better be translated faithfulness, hope, trust, it just generally leads to confusion especially since religion has gotten in and muddied the meanings of words.  Faith does not mean we accept blindly things that are ridiculous to begin with like Friday At about 6PM to Sunday at sunrise is 3 days and 3 nights. The three in one wrench theory is another thing we are told we must blindly accept on faith. Don’t try and make God look like a fool just because so many religious types says we have to accept it on faith. The word trinity never is used in the bible once it is a word man made up the same with God the son. Son of God appears many times but God the son never made up by man.

This is why many people don’t listen to Christians they think they are idiots because they make no sense with good cause because they don’t.

Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

We have been justified by faith. Our trust in what God accomplished in Jesus Christ and what he did and the promise which God made:

Believe

Romans 10:9-10 English Standard Version (ESV)

9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

We have trust or faith in the promise made we take action and believe and we are saved. How do I know it is that simple because of what Ephesians says:

2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

2:8, 9 For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

God has to do this at times because men tend to think of themselves as God remember Gideon? He was taking on an enemy and God says you have too many men. He reduced the size of Gideon’s force down to 300 from thousands because he knew if he didn’t man would get puffed up and thought it was all him. Gideon trusted the promise God made and believed what God said to do and they took the action and believed and they defeated their enemy.

Remember Naaman he wanted healing and he went to Elisha and he got a promise andthe action he needed to take the believing he did that which he was told to do and he he was healed after he took that action believing always means an action taken based upon trust in what God says.

One last example of believing Here it is all tied up in a bow in one verse.

John 9:7 And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.

Okay Jesus gave the promise Go wash in the pool of Siloam the blind man trusted or had faith in what Jesus said to do. He took the action he believed by taking the action washing and he recieved his sight. My heart leaps with joy when I read records like this sometimes I well up with tears because the blind saw who else but God could pull that one off. He will do the same for us we find the promise we build our faith (Jude 1:20) we take the action God says to take either by doing what the word says or by what God has said via revelation.

I want to close by looking at John 9

Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind

1 As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. 5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

6 After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. 7 “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

8 His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, “Isn’t this the same man who used to sit and beg?” 9 Some claimed that he was.

Others said, “No, he only looks like him.”

But he himself insisted, “I am the man.”

10 “How then were your eyes opened?” they asked.

11 He replied, “The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see.”

12 “Where is this man?” they asked him.

“I don’t know,” he said.

The Pharisees Investigate the Healing

13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. 14 Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man’s eyes was a Sabbath. 15 Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. “He put mud on my eyes,” the man replied, “and I washed, and now I see.”

16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.”

But others asked, “How can a sinner perform such signs?” So they were divided.

17Then they turned again to the blind man, “What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened.”

The man replied, “He is a prophet.”

18 They still did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man’s parents. 19 “Is this your son?” they asked. “Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?”

20 “We know he is our son,” the parents answered, “and we know he was born blind. 21 But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don’t know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself.” 22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders, who already had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue. 23 That was why his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”

24 A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. “Give glory to God by telling the truth,” they said. “We know this man is a sinner.”

25 He replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!”

26 Then they asked him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?”

27 He answered, “I have told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?”

28 Then they hurled insults at him and said, “You are this fellow’s disciple! We are disciples of Moses! 29 We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don’t even know where he comes from.”

30 The man answered, “Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. 32 Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”

34 To this they replied, “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” And they threw him out.

Spiritual Blindness

35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”

36 “Who is he, sir?” the man asked. “Tell me so that I may believe in him.”

37 Jesus said, “You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.”

38 Then the man said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him.

39 Jesus said,a “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.”

40 Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, “What? Are we blind too?”

41 Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.

Lord I Trust and believe!!!!