Your Faith Natural Or Supernat YOUR FAITH: NATURAL OR SUPERNATURAL? by Rob Zins Faith is not the ground of justification. Faith rather sees the only ground of justification as being our Lord Jesus Christ. Faith has no value in the verdict of justification. It cannot be a part of the righteousness contemplated when God justifies the ungodly. Faith that understands justification in this manner is by definition nonmeritorious and never to be considered as the BASIS of justification. Faith sees that it cannot be the object considered in the verdict of God to justify sinners. The faithfulness of Christ and His perfect atonement ever and always remains the only ground of our justification. Thus, Christ as the object of our Faith procures justification, never the act of believing or Faith itself. Since this is so, we have to analyze more carerfully the entire concept of faith. One consideration might be the definition of faith. The second and more important might be the origin of faith. With respect to the definition of faith much has been written. Such aspects as the “essense” of faith or the “certainty” of faith or the “degree” of faith are all tangental to a full-orbed understanding of faith. Also there are many nuances to faith which overlap and interlock with other words working together to help clarify its meaning. But a simple definition of faith may elude our grasp. Perhaps this is why we use helping words to arrive at the heart of this small yet mighty word. We add synonyms such as “trust” or “reliance” or “heartfelt belief” or “obedience” or “abandonment.” Some have used the helping word “leap” as in “leap of faith” to draw out the “let go” or “blind” aspect of faith. We must admit that an easy definition of faith is elusive. It is by scriptural definition the essence of things hoped for and the “proof” of things not seen. Faith is the assurance of what is hoped for and hope involves that which is unseen. Thus faith involves reliance, trust, hope, certainty and confidence in something unseen to give us a sense of well being. However, this sense of well being can be a false hope dependent upon the source of faith one possesses. The Bible speaks of two faiths with similar characteristics as to essence, i.e., trust, hope, confidence, etc., but with drastically differing characteristics as to contents, objects and ultimate source or origin. The first type of faith we shall call natural faith; the second supernatural faith. Natural faith is that faith which originates as part and parcel of the human experience. It emerges during times of trial or sorrow. The objects of natural faith vary from person to person. Some people have “faith” that they are led by the stars. Some have faith in superstition or religion or meditation or their own “grit.” It seems that everyone has faith in something! The first century Pharisees were not without faith; neither were the Greeks or Romans. Paul marveled at the way in which the Greeks covered all the bases at Mars Hill. They even erected a statue to an unknown god. Recently, a dignitary died in our part of the country. To cover his faith in the unknown he had invited clergy from various religions to pray over his funeral. He had faith enough to cover all bases. This is natural faith. It generally is tailor-made to suit the personality of the individual, but the strength of natural faith is not to be denied. Men and women have done everything under the sun to express their faith. Many have given their lives to the cause of their faith. Think of numerous examples of men and women dying for their beliefs. One soon realizes the powerful influence of natural faith. When this natural faith gets involved in the Bible there is no end to the maze of Biblical interpretations and so-called “gospels.” This is precisely the case of Romanism and other “biblically” based religions which emerge when natural faith encounters the Bible. Natural faith absorbs the Bible and reconstructs it according to it own appetite and feeds off the product it creates. And though we must admit that natural faith is stubborn and unrelenting, it is also demonic and grips every man, woman and child with a ferocious stranglehold. This is why the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God. Natural faith thinks the true Gospel is foolishness. The natural faith of the Roman Catholic suffocates the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Supernatural faith, on the other hand, is faith given by God as the first fruit of regeneration (Titus 3:5). Unlike natural faith which accepts any number of objects coming from the mind’s eye, supernatural faith is nonindiginous to the creature and takes only the righteousness of Christ for justification as its object. The contrast between these two types of faith becomes clear upon a closer inspection of natural faith as seen from its popularity within the pages of scripture. Natural faith may or may not be long lasting. It is found directly in Luke 8 and certainly alluded to in Hebrews 6 and II Peter 2. Like repentance (II Cor 7), this faith can be exercised by somebody in a very natural way. We notice there is nothing inherent in the word faith itself to distinguish natural from supernatural. The same word used for faith which is approved by the Scripture (Hebrews 11:6) is used of faith that is unapproved. So, scripture uses the same word “pistis” to describe that which pleases God and that which is spurious. However, natural faith becomes obvious in scripture as the product of the human mind to embrace what APPEARS to be a trustworthy object. It may look exactly like supernatural faith, but in the end it fails. It is only human faith generated by the creature. It can embrace wholeheartedly various and wonderful truths about God, but since it is natural in origin, it cannot know God’s revelation and ultimately is shown to be false (Matthew 7:23). There are multitudes of millions who have this kind of faith. They are involved in religion and fully convinced they are serving God. Indeed they have killed and will kill for this belief (John 16:2,3). The world does not lack this kind of faith. It is stronger in some than others. It produces in many cases splendid works. It is self- denying and pious. In some cases it is impossible for the human eye to differentiate the fruit of the natural from supernatural faith. However, the scriptures define two common varieties of natural faith. The first is that which falls to produce fruit while still purporting to believe God. This is the James 2 variety or dead faith. The second is much more popular. This is the natural faith that produces piety, human fruit, good works, love, etc., WITHOUT believing God’s revelation. Roman Catholics, Mormons, Liberals, JWs, etc., etc. dominate this class. In one form or other, these two aspects of natural faith are found in all humans. That natural faith is common to all mankind is not foreign to God’s revelation. God has stamped the idea of eternity into our hearts. Faith is the instrument of the human mind that gives equilibrium to its frailty and finiteness. Natural faith is part and parcel of the human experience. Its origin is human and its objects of trust too myriad to mention. Whether it be the creature or creation, man has had faith in it. But remember this faith is valueless before God. It only illustrates man’s endless groping for meaning beyond himself. This faith may even, as we suggested earlier, latch onto the Bible. It might even search the Bible and create a man- made religion from the Bible. Faith knows no boundaries in the human experience. In contrast to natural faith, supernatural faith is altogether different. It does not have its origin in the mind of man. It is not temporary. It is supernatural and produces fruit acceptable to God. The origin of supernatural faith is God through a direct act of His Holy Spirit upon the natural mind. The determination that there is a supernatural faith stems from the outstanding stellar fact of its origin. It is our contention that supernatural faith is defined by its origin. If produced by God it will display characteristics altogether different with regard to the content and object of faith. Natural faith involves trust. So does supernatural faith. But we must not let the similarities obscure the eternal differences. The eternal gap which separates them is their origin. Natural faith propels the creature to heights of charity and love, so does supernatural faith. Both trust their objects. Both have reliance, hope, “heartfelt” and undying devotion to their particular object. Who would say the “faith” of a Mormon, Muslim or Roman Catholic is weak? Who would say that no common good has come from these three religions? Why then is the “faith” of these three religions unacceptable to God? What is the difference? Surely not the amount of faith, but rather the origin, content and object of faith. Despite the common good done in the name of faith, the natural faith of man is odious to God. Why? Because it like every other notion of man is sin laden and deceitful. It is warped and not clear eyed. It is tainted with man’s noxious mind. It is debilitated and unable to apprehend the truth of God. It can grasp portions, but not the essence. Natural faith trusts in that which it can apprehend. The natural faith of man believes all that its corrupt heart can conjure and fashion. It is not a matter of sincerity or amount of faith. It is a matter of origin. As long as faith originates with man it will be sin laden and veined with error. It will not apprehend the truth. It cannot! Natural faith, however noble, is cancer infested and blighted. It cannot know God. Supernatural faith is necessary to know God. God must give this faith before one can know Him. The faith is not indigenous. It comes from the outside. Nor is it the refurbishing of natural faith. On the contrary, the bright light of supernatural faith drowns out our paltry natural faith. The words of our Lord to Peter resound, “Blessed art thou, Peter, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in Heaven.” Natural faith has all the elements of supernatural faith in so far as “seeing” the unseen and hoping against hope. But the difference is seen in the object of that faith. Only supernatural faith can believe that Jesus Christ died for me and that I will never be lost. Only supernatural faith can have the assurancwe of things hoped for (including salvation) and the evidence of things unseen (including justification apart from works!) The faith of the Roman Catholic is sincere and measures up in the natural. However, it is not born from above. The Roman Catholic religion has invented its own spawning ground for a natural faith which cannot begin to comprehend the finished work of Christ and justification by faith alone. Why? Because the origin of the Romanist’s faith is not of God. It is his own. Faith which is supernatural is also a gift (Ephesians 2:8,9; Php 1:29). Paul’s exhortation to the Corinthian church does yet stand today. The natural man (with his natural faith) cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God. In our Lord’s earthly ministry He assured the multitude that salvation was impossible with man (Mark 10), but that all that the Father gives Him would come (John 6). We come to understand that the only faith acceptable to God is the faith which He gives through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. Until that is given, one cannot believe. When this faith is given then one cannot help but believe. This then is our hope in witnessing to Roman Catholics. The supernatural faith given by God will blind their natural faith and they will see Christ. Let us rest in the fact that God alone can bestow this supernatural faith as we reach out to our Roman Catholic friends in biblical evangelism. The entire Roman Catholic Citadel is no match for one with a clear understanding of God’s requirement, and God’s free gift, of supernatural faith that can believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
The reason so many people do not pray is because of its cost. The cost is not so much in the sweat of agonizing supplication as in the daily fidelity to the life of prayer.
Samuel Chadwick