Our Undergirding

[Van]

Pistis is the transliteration of the Greek term translated in the KJV as "faith" Pistis is formed from two roots, "Piq" meaning bind, and "tis" having the same function as "er" in English. So fundamentally, the Greek term means "binder" or that which binds.

Now lets look at how the Bible defines the term contextually. Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." The word translated "substance" comes from the Greek hupostatis, which means "under" "stand" having nothing to do with comprehension, but rather with what undergirds what we stand for. So "faith" is what undergirds our hope for the realization of the promises of God. The next word of interest, "evidence" comes from the Greek elegchos, which means that which brings to light what is not easily seen. For example, in 2 Timothy 3:16, the AV translates it "reproof" indicating scripture is profitable because it brings to light our sins.

In summary, Faith (Pistis) refers our heart-felt conviction that Jesus is the Son of God and the Messiah sent from God, and this conviction binds us such that our subsequent attitudes, hopes and deeds are tied to the reality of Jesus as our Savior.

As Paul liked to say, referring to Habakkuk, the righteous person lives by faith. Do we live like someone indebted to the one who saved us, a bondservant of Christ, or like some ungrateful twit? Do we have a faith like Abraham's, and live our lives based on fully expecting the reality of God and the fulfillment of His every promise? Does our "binder" produce faithfulness or are we lacking in adhesion? Might Jesus say "Oh ye of little faith?

 

[Van]

Romans 1:17, "For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.” Here we see Paul, referring to Habakkuk 2:4. An interesting tidbit is the "by" faith. The Greek word, transliterated "ek" means out of or from and indicates origin. Thus the way a righteous man lives has its origin and comes from his faith, how he is bound by his love for Christ and his indebtedness to Christ's love because Christ removed his sin burden, by giving His life.

Paul presents this idea many times, it is central to his inspired teachings. It undergirds everything he teaches in the Pauline letters.

 

[Van]

The word transliterated as Pistis, and translated as faith in Hebrews 11:1 comes from the root word G3982. Strong's Lexicon G4102. (from the root meaning "to bind;")

What grows in the garden of faith? Love, devotion, trust, expectation, commitment!

Does our faith bind us to Christ, as to someone we owe everything to and thus we are willingly serve Him? Our answer should be Yes, but if our faith does not bind us as strongly as it should, we may be lacking in love, devotion, trust, expectant living and commitment of our Savior.

Thus faith, meaning to trust fully in Christ, contains the idea that we are bound to Christ by the strength of that faith. Hence, born again believers are bondservants of Christ, striving to become like Him, and to serve Him in the ministry of reconciliation.

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Hebrews 11:1 teaches that our faith undergirds our hope and trust in the promises of God, and
fuels how well we follow Christ in His paths of righteousness.

 

[percho]

Rom 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
Isa 64::6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

Now I have a question.

For the righteousness of God in it is revealed from faith to faith, according as it hath been written, 'And the righteous one by faith shall live,'

Who exactly was, "the righteous one," who by faith shall live? The one spoken of in the following?

Acts 7:52 NIV Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him—

Here is to, my knowledge, the only righteous man to have lived and died.

Titus 1:2 in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before the ages of time,
Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Then by faith received the promise of God. For us Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Hab 2:4 ESV
“Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith.[fn]
Heb 5:7-9 YLT who in the days of his flesh both prayers and supplications unto Him who was able to save him from death -- with strong crying and tears -- having offered up, and having been heard in respect to that which he feared, through being a Son, did learn by the things which he suffered -- the obedience, and having been made perfect, he did become to all those obeying him a cause of salvation age-during, [eternal life]

Methinks Hab 2:4 is a prophecy of the faith of Christ. The righteous one who died yet after three days lives again.

 

[Van]

Rom 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
Isa 64::6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

Now I have a question.

For the righteousness of God in it is revealed from faith to faith, according as it hath been written, 'And the righteous one by faith shall live,'

Who exactly was, "the righteous one," who by faith shall live? The one spoken of in the following?

Acts 7:52 NIV Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him—

Here is to, my knowledge, the only righteous man to have lived and died.

Titus 1:2 in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before the ages of time,
Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Then by faith received the promise of God. For us Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Hab 2:4 ESV
“Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith.[fn]
Heb 5:7-9 YLT who in the days of his flesh both prayers and supplications unto Him who was able to save him from death -- with strong crying and tears -- having offered up, and having been heard in respect to that which he feared, through being a Son, did learn by the things which he suffered -- the obedience, and having been made perfect, he did become to all those obeying him a cause of salvation age-during, [eternal life]

Methinks Hab 2:4 is a prophecy of the faith of Christ. The righteous one who died yet after three days lives again.

1) As initially conceived, as made sinners, no one is righteous. Further, if we live long enough to sin, we all have fallen short of the glory of God.

2) Romans1:17 says that in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed The phrase "from faith to faith" seems a poor translation to me. The Greek word translated "from" is "ek" and means out of, so out of faith, and the Greek word translated as "to" is "eis" and means into. so out of what we had believed and into belief in the gospel.

3) Habakkuk 2:4 "But the righteous will live by their faithfulness. Whether saved or not, if a person is striving to be righteous is the eyes of God, they faithfully strive to adhere to God' will. This is a fundamental truth presented again and again by Paul. To actually understand the concept, read Galatians 3:10-14.

4) Paul is NOT referring to Christ, but to the truth of the gospel when he cites Habakkuk 2:4. Since no one can keep the whole Law, the lost become righteous not by trying to keep the law, which would be a works salvation, but believers become righteous and gain life out of death through faith in the gospel.

5) Fundamentally I think the rest of your post misses the mark totally.

 

[Van]

Hebrews 11:1 NASB
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

Hebrews 11:1 can be interpreted as meaning:
Now faith affirms the reality of the promises expected, the conviction of the reality not seen. With faith, people act according to the certainty of their expectations, for example Noah built the Ark because by faith he was certain the flood was coming.

Faith produces faithfulness because of our certainty of the promises of God. It is what binds us to the paths of righteousness.

 

[canadyjd]

You almost understand it.

Pistis is usually a verb (in context could be a noun ie “The Faith”)

In denotes action. You mentioned “binder”. It denotes actions taken, based on the reality of our relationship with Jesus,…. His sacrafice, …..His resurrection. We are “bound” to Jesus in all we do, every action taken, for better or worse.

We “faith” Jesus. Our actions (faith) reveal what we believe, but “faith” is not “heartfelt conviction”. Faith without works is a dead faith.

Our actions (faith) are the hope of things not seen.

Peace to you

 

[Van]

I think the Greek word transliterated as "Pistis" is always a noun, and appears about 244 times in the New Testament. The associated verb form of Pistis is "Pisteuō" and appears about 248 times in our New Testament. The verb is usually translated as "believe." The word in Hebrews 11:1 is the noun.

A person can have "faith" in anything, that her car will start, or the chair will not collapse. It is not the product of a relationship with Christ, it is the means of access to His grace. Our faith in Christ must include our "heartfelt conviction" otherwise it would mirror the superficial "faith" of Soil #2 of Matthew 13. Lip service faith lacks "heartfelt conviction" and is "dead faith."

Our faithful actions are the result of heartfelt conviction that God exists and rewards those who seek Him, not only for salvation, but also for the purpose of worship and service as Ambassadors of Christ.

 

[Ascetic X]

Faith, pistis, conviction, believing is as substantial as any concrete reality.

Faith is certain, hefty, nearly tangible, though it is an invisible metaphysical force. This solidity enables it to be called evidence to prove as inexorable things that are currently unseen, that have not yet happened. Trusting God for something is a guarantee that it must and will come to pass, if our faith is unwavering and based on a promise of God.

Hebrews 11:1 NASB

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

 

[Van]

Faith is believing something unseen and and not in evidence, is if fact a certainty because God is faithful, something He has proved again and again. Therefore faith accepts His future promises on the evidence of His past accomplishments. For example, God raised Jesus from the dead, so we have faith God will keep His promise and also raise us from the dead.

 

[Van]

The stair-steps of faith.

Our faith is based on God's faithfulness

Our faithfulness is based on our heartfelt faith.

We believe everyone believing into Christ will not perish but have everlasting life.

We have faith God keeps His promises. Of this we are certain.

We know our faith provides or provided our access to God's saving grace.

Because we are or will be saved by grace through faith.

This undergirds our whole life in Christ.

 

[Ascetic X]

Faith is believing something unseen and and not in evidence, is if fact a certainty because God is faithful, something He has proved again and again. Therefore faith accepts His future promises on the evidence of His past accomplishments. For example, God raised Jesus from the dead, so we have faith God will keep His promise and also raise us from the dead.

Faith itself is all the evidence we need, it is substantial and metaphysically concrete — but it is fortified by remembering God’s past accomplishments for us.

We expect something to happen, like healing or having other needs met, and the literal evidence that it already exists, though we do not yet see it, is our faith. Believing it is as good as having already received it.

Hebrews 11:1 NASB

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Matthew 21:22

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

 

[canadyjd]

Faith, as a verb, is outward action. English really has no word that encompasses the meaning of “faith” in the Greek language, so we use “believe”, which is an inward action instead of an outward action.

In the 1st century culture, to say you “faith” someone, especially a Rabbi, meant you are living your life according to their teachings, their expectations.

My only point is to recognize the verb “faith” has at its core meaning, outward actions not inward actions.

Peace to you

 

[Ascetic X]

Faith, as a verb, is outward action. English really has no word that encompasses the meaning of “faith” in the Greek language, so we use “believe”, which is an inward action instead of an outward action.

In the 1st century culture, to say you “faith” someone, especially a Rabbi, meant you are living your life according to their teachings, their expectations.

My only point is to recognize the verb “faith” has at its core meaning, outward actions not inward actions.

Peace to you

Yes, faithing is not mere mental assent, but acting accordingly. Faith is not wishing for something to happen, but living as though it has already happened. Faith in Jesus is following, imitating, conforming to Him.

 

[canadyjd]

Yes, faithing is not mere mental assent, but acting accordingly. Faith is not wishing for something to happen, but living as though it has already happened. Faith in Jesus is following, imitating, conforming to Him.

Well stated

Peace to you

 

[Van]

Faith itself is all the evidence we need, it is substantial and metaphysically concrete — but it is fortified by remembering God’s past accomplishments for us.

We expect something to happen, like healing or having other needs met, and the literal evidence that it already exists, though we do not yet see it, is our faith. Believing it is as good as having already received it.

Hebrews 11:1 NASB

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Matthew 21:22

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

1) Faith is NOT evidence.
2) Yes, faith in what is not in evidence is fortified by remembering God's faithfulness in keep His past promises, such as the resurrection of Jesus.
3) Faith is the certainty of our expectations based on God's past performance.
4) Hebrews 11:1 Faith is the (Hyposttasis = Confidence or Undergirding) of promises hoped for, providing the certainty of expectation for God's promises not yet fulfilled.

 

[Van]

The verb form of the noun Pistis is Pisteuo, and usually refers to our mental action of placing our trust in someone or something. We entrust Christ for our salvation. God committed to born anew believers the task of being Ambassadors of Christ. Paul was entrusted to carry the gospel to the Gentiles. But the vast majority of usages refers to humans believing the gospel message with certainty.

 

[Ascetic X]

1) Faith is NOT evidence.
2) Yes, faith in what is not in evidence is fortified by remembering God's faithfulness in keep His past promises, such as the resurrection of Jesus.
3) Faith is the certainty of our expectations based on God's past performance.
4) Hebrews 11:1 Faith is the (Hyposttasis = Confidence or Undergirding) of promises hoped for, providing the certainty of expectation for God's promises not yet fulfilled.

The Bible clearly states that faith is the evidence of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1,3 NASB

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Evidence is information, objects, or testimony that supports, proves, or disproves a claim, revealing the truth or existence of something.

The term evidence or elengchos suggests a legal proof or argument, indicating that faith makes the invisible spiritual realm real and reliable to the believer.

Substance = "hupostasis" — it is used to convey the idea of a foundational reality or essence. It can refer to the underlying base or actual being of something, as opposed to mere appearance.

 

[37818]

Hebrews 11:1, Now faith is . . . the evidence of things not seen.

Verse 6, But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

 

[Van]

The Bible clearly states that faith is the evidence of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1,3 NASB

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

Evidence is information, objects, or testimony that supports, proves, or disproves a claim, revealing the truth or existence of something.

The term evidence or elengchos suggests a legal proof or argument, indicating that faith makes the invisible spiritual realm real and reliable to the believer.

Substance = "hupostasis" — it is used to convey the idea of a foundational reality or essence. It can refer to the underlying base or actual being of something, as opposed to mere appearance.

1) No, faith is NOT evidence. The Greek word translated as "evidence" by the your translation choice does not mean evidence. Look at other translations:
Conviction is found in ASV, DARBY, ESV, MOUNCE, NASB95,
That which convinces in found in CJB, EHV, GW, NOG, NET,
Assurance is found in NIV,

Bottom line, faith provides our conviction in the reality of things promised.

2) We agree, faith undergirds our belief in the reality of what we hope for.