Pistis and Peithō - Some basic Greek to help us understand Biblical faith.

The word most often translated as "faith" in the English Biblical New Testament, is the Greek word, "πίστις", transliterated as "pistis". According to Strong’s Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary, "pistis" is, in turn, derived from the Greek word, "πείθω", transliterated as "peithō".

Pistis, a noun, is defined by Strong's as: "...persuasion, i.e. credence; moral conviction (of religious truth, or the truthfulness of God or a religious teacher), especially reliance upon Christ for salvation; abstract constancy in such profession; by extensive the system of religious (Gospel) truth itself:- assurance, belief, believe, faith, fidelity."

Petihō, a verb, is defined by Strong's as: "...to convince (by argument, true or false)...reflexive or passive to assent (to evidence or authority), to rely (by inward certainty)... agree, assure, believe, have confidence...make friend, obey, persuade, trust, yield."

Faith, or [pistis], is of great importance in the Bible.

Hebrews 11:6a states, "But without faith [pistis] it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is..." Romans 3:28 says, "Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith [pistis] without the deeds of the law."

These are just 2 of 244 occurrences of pistis, but already we can see that the importance of this Greek word cannot be overstated. Without pistis is impossible (not just difficult; IMPOSSIBLE!), to please God. And, pistis deals with the issue of personal salvation; eternal life with God.

Persuade, or [petihō], sheds light on the meaning of faith [pistis].

The apostle Paul presented his case before Agrippa as recorded in the book of Acts, chapters 25 and 26. You can read the entire passage here. At the culmination of the hearing, after Paul had testified, "...Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest [petihō] me to be a Christian." (Acts 26:28).

Paul almost persuaded Agrippa to be a Christian. Paul had "...obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come: That Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people, and to the Gentiles." Agrippa was not fully persuaded [petihō] to the point of faith [pistis]. Agrippa was impressed by Paul's command of the Scriptures. He was intrigued by Paul's testimony. He knew about the death of Jesus of Nazareth, and heard Paul's claim that Jesus Christ had risen from the dead. Agrippa was almost convinced, but he did not come to the point of faith [pistis].

Abraham, on the other hand, was fully persuaded that God was able to do what He had promised. Romans 4:20–22 states, "He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness."

When imprisoned in Rome, Paul arranged to meet with Jewish leaders in Rome, to which they agreed. Acts 28:23-24 "And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading [petihō] them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening. And some believed [petihō] the things which were spoken, and some believed [petihō] not." Some were, like Abraham, persuaded; some were, like Agrippa, not fully persuaded.

Are you fully persuaded, or not?

Biblical faith [pistis] has its roots in being persuaded [petihō]. Like Agrippa, the almost-persuaded person has not reached the point of having Biblical faith [pistis]. God's desire for us to have faith in Him; fully persuaded [petihō], like Abraham, that what God had promised, He will do.

Fully persuaded in what areas of life?

Faith touches on many areas in life where God desires for us to be fully persuaded [petihō] to believe (have faith [pistis]) Him. For example, God desires that we would be persuaded to point of faith that He spoke the universe into existence as the Bible claims: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." (Genesis 1:1) The book of Hebrews explains that this requires faith: "Through faith [pistis] 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." (Hebrews 11:3) Some people are persuaded [petihō] that God spoke the universe into existence, and some not persuaded. Much could be written on the arguments for, and against the claim of the Bible, and much has. But, in the end, many will be fully persuaded [petihō] in in the Biblical claim of the God Who created all things; they will rest their faith in the Biblical account. Others will be fully persuaded in a different belief such as Darwinism or its variants. Many will give the "Agrippa shrug", and remain almost-persuaded by competing ideas and choose "none of the above".

Are you fully persuaded in the most important promise ever made to you?

Regardless of where you land on the issues of the origin of the universe, there is a more important, astounding, personal promise made by God. This promise pre-dates the universe. It is the promise to provide and offer every human being the opportunity to live with God forever. This eternal life is provided by God through the person and work of the only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ.

"In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;" (Titus 1:2)

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth [is fully persuaded [petihō]; has Biblical faith [pistis]] in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved." (John 3:16-17, [comments added])

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith [pistis] in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith [pistis]. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith [pistis] without the deeds of the law. (Romans 3:23-28)

God offers you eternal life with Him, through His gracious, sacrificial work of sending Jesus Christ to die and pay for your sins by His death of the cross. God raised Jesus Christ from the dead to prove that His offer is not only generous beyond measure, but that it is also an authentic offer of eternal life. Jesus Christ has eternal life and the offer stands. What's the catch? There is no catch. You cannot buy eternal life by your works. It is a gift. It must be accepted by faith [pistis]. You must be fully persuaded [petihō] (like Abraham) that what God has promised (eternal life), He is able to perform (make good on the promise to live with Him forever).

For by grace are ye saved through faith [pistis]; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

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References:

James Strong, Strong’s Talking Greek and Hebrew Dictionary.