Hi, thanks for joining us. This is our presentation series on the lectures on faith. Uh If you haven't watched the introduction, I highly recommend it. There is actual content there. It's not just a uh fluffy introduction. So moving into this uh presentation, which is on faith, um specifically what is
faith in the next part of this series, we'll talk about how faith is a principle of action. So stay tuned for that one. So from the first lecture, we read faith being the first principle in revealed religion. And the foundation of all righteousness necessarily claims the first place in a course of lectures
which are designed to unfold to the understanding the doctrine of Jesus Christ. So faith is the first principle. It's the foundation of all righteousness and uh it's critical to understanding the doctrine of Jesus Christ. So what is it when you ask someone, what is faith? You will probably hear them
say faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen, which is from Hebrews 11 1. And in the lectures, uh this scripture is used to say that faith is the assurance which men have of the existence of things which they have not seen and the principle of action in all intelligent
beings. So the assurance of things which have not been seen in the principle of action, but those aren't definitions, those are properties, these are properties of faith, but it's not a definition. If you have faith, then you will have assurance of things which are unseen. If you have faith, then you
will hope that that's not a definition though. It's just says that faith is used for every action, right? So what is faith? We still have this question? The definition of faith is complete trust or confidence in something or someone. And we're not talking about faith in God yet, but faith in general
is complete trust or confidence in something or someone. So the first thing you, you need to have to have faith is trust. And the second thing is an awareness of the object of faith. If you want more faith in something or someone, you need greater trust in that thing or person or entity. And you also
need greater awareness of the object of faith, trust and awareness, that's faith. So when it comes to God, if God is what we are having trust or confidence in, you can have greater trust in God and you can have greater awareness of God. Here's the interesting thing. You can get to the point where your
trust in God is complete and perfect. It's limitless. You can't get to the point where you know all there is to know about God. So you can finish in your acquisition of trusting God. But there is no finish line in learning more about God and learning about what He knows and how He is that keeps on going
. So how do you obtain this greater awareness? Let's start there in lecture two, we read Adam, thus being made acquainted with God, communicated the knowledge which he had unto his posterity. And it was through this means that the thought was first suggested to their minds, that there was a God which
laid the foundation for the exercise of their faith through which they could obtain a knowledge of his character and also of His glory, greater awareness is gained through revelation to you or through others. In lecture three, we read as we have been indebted to a revelation which God made of himself
to his creatures in the first instance, for the idea of his existence. So in like manner, we are indebted to the revelations which he has given to us for correct understanding of his character, perfections and attributes. Because without the revelations which he has given to us, no man by searching could
find out God. This is a top down process. That's not to say that you can't initiate revelation through asking or through seeking. But my point here is that this knowledge comes from God. It's not something we make up in our minds. We don't say, I wish God was like this or I wish God was like that or
I hope God is like this or I hope God is like that. These are things that we have to obtain through revelation. That's how you get a greater awareness of God. What about greater trust in God? Well, greater trust is gained through implementing what you learn in lecture six. We read an actual knowledge
to any person that the course of his life which he pursues is according to the will of God is essentially necessary to enable Him to have that confidence in God without which no person can obtain eternal life. If you don't do what God tells you to do, you can never come to the point where you really
trust him. That is how trust is increased. In lecture six, we read for a man to lay down his, all his character and reputation, his honor and applause, his good name among men, his houses, his lands, his brothers and sisters, his wife and Children, and even his own life also counting all things. But
filth and draws for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ requires more than mere belief or supposition that He is doing the will of God. But actual knowledge realizing that when these sufferings are ended, he will enter into eternal rest and be a partaker of the glory of God. Just believing
that God wants you to do something or just believing that God is a certain way or that He exists, et cetera is insufficient to carry you through the demands of working out your salvation. In lecture two, we read to search after a knowledge of his character, perfections and attributes until they become
extensively acquainted with him and not only commune with him and behold his glory, but be partakers of his power and stand in his presence. You have to trust God more than you do and you get there through implementing everything you learn or by obeying everything he teaches you. That's these are all
one and the same in lecture two, we read for instance, Abel, before he received the assurance from heaven that his offerings were acceptable unto God had received the important information of his father that such a being did exist who had created and who did uphold all things before Abel offered an animal
sacrifice, which was approved by God. He first learned from his father, who God was and how he was. He received this information. He learned more about God and then he implemented it in his life and that's how he grew in faith. So an important point here is that not everyone exercises the same amount
of effort and obedience. In lecture two, we read after any portion of the human family are made acquainted with the important fact that there is a God who is created and does uphold all things, the extent of their knowledge, respecting his character and glory will depend upon their diligence and faithfulness
in seeking after him. Until like enoch, the brother of Jared and Moses, they shall obtain faith in God and power with him to behold him face to face. So several questions arise in this quote. First, when do they obtain faith in God? Only after they've exercised diligence and faithfulness in seeking after
Him? Well, what triggers that they're being made acquainted with the fact that there is a God? So in other words, other people tell them that there is a God. They believe it sufficiently to exercise diligence and faithfulness in seeking after him. And only after that, they obtain their own faith and
power with Him to behold him face to face. Not everyone exercises the same degree of effort and obedience. Look at Cain and Abel and how they differed in their exercise of effort and obedience. But they were both exposed to the same amount of information about God. So what's the difference between faith
and knowledge? Again, faith is complete trust or confidence in something or someone in this case in God? What about knowledge? In Alma 32 we read, there are many who do say if thou wilt show unto us a sign from heaven, then we shall know of a surety, then we shall believe. Now I ask is this faith behold
, I say unto you nay for if a man knoweth a thing, he hath no cause to believe for He knoweth it. Now remember from the preceding quote that we have to search after a knowledge of his character, perfections and attributes until certain things happen. So I think often we get the cart before the horse
and we expect to have a perfect knowledge of a bunch of things before we can exercise faith. All you get before you exercise. Faith is uh someone else telling you that God is real. After that, it's up to you to exercise your own diligence in searching after Him and faithfulness to him or obedience to
what you learn in order to get to the point where you have faith. That's how you get faith. So you have to search after a knowledge of His character, perfections and attributes until you one become extensively acquainted with him. Two commune with him. Three, behold his glory. Four, be partakers of his
power and five stand in his presence in lecture two. This is the general invitation that Joseph Smith makes to everyone. He enumerates these things. So the question is, do you have faith? Have you become extensively acquainted with him? Have you communed with him? Have you beheld his glory? Have you
been a partaker of his power? Have you stood in his presence and some of these things if taken singularly could be explained away? And you could say, well, yeah, I've communed with him because I've felt spiritually connected to him at times or you could say yes, I've become extensively acquainted with
him because I could tell you all about him. Well, ok, but that's not really what we're talking about. The depth of experience that we're talking about here is significant because you have to take all five of these things as they stand and explain if you have them, how you say you have them and if you
don't have them, why is that now if you don't have all these things that I invite you to stay tuned for the remaining videos in this series, the next one will address how faith is a principle of power. But I also invite you to read the book called Seek Ye This Jesus because it's all about obtaining this