083 The Fundamentals: Faith

The Fundamentals: Faith 2 Cor 5 5 Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.6 Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight— 8 we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. Notes: These verses and especially this chapter are strictly about what is impermanent and what is eternal. These specific verses are telling us about how we would much rather be at home with the Lord, than at home in our own bodies, and verse 7 states, “for we walk by faith and not by sight”. It is because we have faith that we are able to know that we are going home to be with God, and it because of this that we have courage. Without faith, we would not have the courage to die, and would we not fear death? Therefore, those who do not know faith fear death. Ephesians 2 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ephesians 3 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man,17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and groun