# What a true faith practically looks like



## nwink (Oct 7, 2011)

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## jwithnell (Oct 10, 2011)

What faith _looks like_ is becoming more and more like Jesus. What _faith is_ is the conviction of one's depravity and the hope in Jesus alone for salvation. I don't mean to sound overly simplistic, but I think there is some danger in trying to pile intellectualism onto points that are very clear in scripture. Now if you want to talk infralapsarianism, feel free to be complicated.


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## RobertPGH1981 (Oct 10, 2011)

I am not sure if you are looking for simple ways to explain faith and belief, but below are some analogies that I use when I street witness. 

I use this one when somebody says they believe but they live in sin. 
Analogy:
The nature of a pig is to wallow in the mud. If you pull the pig out of the mud and clean him up he might stay away for a small duration of time. Eventually he will find the mud again and wallow. However, if you take a pig clean him up and also give the pig the nature of a lamb. The pig is still a pig but when he finds the mud he might fall into it but will quickly jump out because they the pig no longer enjoys the mud. 

I use this one when somebody says they believe, but they do not trust God (they do not do what the bible says). 
Analogy:
If you were standing in the middle of a field, and I told you lighting would strike in this spot in 5 seconds, what would you do if you believed and trusted me? A: Move... I then explain that God provided us clear language on how to live our lives, and if we trusted him we would believe everything it says, and that belief would produce action. I then would site James in comparison with Romans.

So my point in saying this is this, the true believer believes and trusts in God and strives to be more like Jesus. They also sin, and a believer does not enjoy it and will fight against it (Romans 7), but they know that their salvation is not based on what they do but who they trust (have faith) in. This level of FAITH produces the willfulness to follow and delight in what God reveals to us in scripture.


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## jwithnell (Oct 10, 2011)

> if I were to explain it to an unbeliever, young believer or struggling believer.


 Friend, this is the audience you cited. An _unbeliever_ needs the gospel, not the gospel explained to him. The _young believer_ needs discipleship in all areas, but particularly in sanctification. I would hope his church is teaching the full counsel of God's will so that the great doctrines of our faith will become clear. The _struggling believer_ needs to be observed and counseled in the area he needs help.

Yes, contemplating these topics in our own lives is beneficial, and I tend to be the kind of person who chews and wrestles with whatever I encounter in the faith, so I have no problem with studying any topic in-depth. But how, when, and to what depth I discuss these topics varies with the person and situation.


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