Help My Unbelief! Part 1

“Lord, I believe, help me with my unbelief!” If you ever experience doubt, you're not alone. Moses, Job, Abraham, Elijah, Barak, Peter and Gideon all experienced doubt, yet continued to walk in faith. Many of them are listed in Hebrews 11 in the Great Cloud of Witnesses.

If their example is not enough encouragement, perhaps you will be encouraged to know, that faith

and belief are not the same thing. Over time, meanings have changed but the subtle differences have been lost in translation. This makes some statements confusing:

• We are told we are saved by our belief (Acts 16:31), but demons believe and are not saved (Jas 2:19).

• We are told Abraham's faith reckoned him as righteous (Gen 15:6), but righteousness is doing all He has commanded (Deut 6:25).

• We are told belief is a gift from YHWH (1 Cor 12:9), but without it, we are lost (Mk 16:16).

How can all these things be true? In this series of posts, we will examine faith and belief. We will explore the original languages of the Bible and the etymology (history) of the English words to regain the differences.

My hope is that by looking at the etymology of these important words, we will gain clarity and once again see the simplicity of Yah's plan of salvation. It is not confusing and it is not too hard for us (Deut. 30:11).