Question 65: You confess that you participate in Christ and his blessings by faith. Where does this faith come from?

Question 65: You confess that you participate in Christ and his blessings by faith. Where does this faith come from?

Answer: The Holy Spirit puts faith into our hearts through the Holy Word and strengthens it through the use of the Holy Sacraments.

God does not grant faith to just anyone, but to those who repent and believe in Jesus' death and resurrection. Otherwise, everyone would be under the law. Therefore, God grants those who are free from the law a new birth from heaven through the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Galatians 3:23-25 ​​“Before faith came, we were kept under the law, kept in custody until the faith would be revealed. So the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, so that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.”

The word "holy" is synonymous with "sanctification" and "holiness." It signifies a life set apart for God and union with Him in Christ. God recognizes as holy those who died with Jesus Christ and were resurrected with Him.

Therefore, a sacrament is a ceremony performed by a believer to signify that he or she has been made holy. It commemorates the blood and flesh of Jesus Christ, symbolizing His death and resurrection, with bread and wine, and thus reminds us of His death on the cross and resurrection. Therefore, the term "holiness" is inappropriate for the sacrament itself. However, although the sacrament is a ritual, it must be performed with a reverent heart.

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