得窥天境
得窥天境，须看透红尘万丈；人神相通，只凭借灵犀一缕。信靠耶稣，此外路路是绝望；坚定不移，万里迢迢聚天堂。
Faith
"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen" (Heb. 11:1). It is synonymous with trust. It is a divine gift (
Fall, The
The fall is that event in the Garden of Eden where Adam and Eve disobeyed the command of God and ate of The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (Gen. 2 and 3). Since Adam represented all of mankind, when He sinned, all of mankind fell with Him (Rom. ).
False Prophet, (The)
The second beast of Revelation (Rev. 13:11-18). He is a person who will manifest himself near the culmination of this epoch shortly before the physical return of Christ. He will be a miracle worker and during the Tribulation period will bring fire down from heaven and command that people worship the image of the Beast (Rev. 11:15). See also (-17).
Jesus warned about false prophets in Matt. 24:24 stating that in the last days many false prophets would arise and deceive, if possible, even the elect. False prophets teach false doctrine and lead people away from the true gospel message and teaching of God found in the Bible. Examples of modern day false prophets are Joseph Smith (Mormonism), Charles Taze Russell (Jehovah's Witnesses), Mary Baker Eddy (Christian Science), etc. Each of them distorts the truth sufficient to cause damnation.
Falsifiability
The ability of something to be proven false. A non falsifiable statement would be, "There is a green lizard sitting in a rocking chair on the fourth largest moon of Jupiter." This statement is not falsifiable in that it cannot be proven false because it cannot be verified or denied. Jesus' resurrection was falsifiable in that all the critics had to do was produce the body, but they did not. Falsifiability, generally, is a test of the validity of a belief or occurrence. Something that is not falsifiable can be said to be untrue since it cannot be confirmed or denied.
Fast, Fasting
Depriving oneself of food for a period of time for a specific purpose, often spiritual. It is the "weakening" of the body in order to "strengthen" the spirit. It is interesting to note that sin entered the world through the disobedience of eating (Gen. 3:6). We are called to fast in the N.T. (Matt. ). (See also 1 Kings ; Psalm 35:13; Acts 13:3; 2 Cor. 6:5).
Fatalism
The idea that all things are predetermined to occur and that there is no ability of the person to alter the predetermined plan of God in any event. This is not the correct biblical view. The Bible teaches us that we can influence God with our prayers (James ). How this influence is worked out by God who knows all things from eternity is something apparently unexplainable in Christianity.
Fellowship
There is no specific definition given in the N.T. But we are called into fellowship with one another (1 John 1:3, with Jesus (1 Cor. 1:9), with the Father (1 John 1:3), and with the Holy Spirit (2 Cor. ). Fellowship implies sharing common interests, desires, and motivations. Fellowship requires that time be spent with another communicating, caring, etc. It carries with it a hint of intimacy. As Christians we fellowship with one another because of our position in Christ, because we are all redeemed and share an intimate personal knowledge of Jesus. We share a common belief (Acts ), hope (Heb. -40), and need (2 Cor. 8:1-15).
The Greek word for fellowship is koinonia. This word is also translated communion in 1 Cor. 10:16 in the KJV. This is where we get the term the communion supper.
Fideism
The position that religious doctrines rest not on reason, but only on faith.
Filioque
The doctrine that the Holy Spirit proceeds equally from both the Father and the Son.
Firstborn
The first of the mother's offspring. It stands figuratively for that which is most excellent. The firstborn male of the family carried certain familial rites and privileges (Gen. 27:1-29; 48:13-14) and was given a double portion of the inheritance (Deut. ). The term is also applied to Christ as the pre-eminent one and the first one raised from the dead (Col. 1:15,18). It does not mean first created as Jehovah's Witnesses believe. In fact, the firstborn rites were transferable. Compare Jer. 31:9 with Gen. 41:50-52.
Forgiveness
There are seven words in Scripture that denote the idea of forgiveness: three in Hebrew and four in Greek. No book of religion except Christianity teaches that God completely forgives sins. God remembers our sins no more (Heb. ). God is the initiator of forgiveness (Col. 2:13).
There is only one sin for which the Father does not promise forgiveness: blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Mark ; Matt. ). The contexts suggest this to be the sin of attributing to unclean spirits the work of the Holy Spirit.
For man to receive forgiveness, repentance is necessary (Luke 17:3-4). For the holy God to extend forgiveness, the shedding of blood is necessary (Heb. ; Lev. ). Forgiveness is based upon the sacrifice of Christ on the cross.
Fool
Hater of God. One who is morally weak, who misuses what God has given him for selfish purposes. He is lustful (Prov. ), lazy (Ecc. ), does not fear God (Prov. 14:1), hates knowledge (Prov. ), and is self-righteous (Prov. ). As Christians, we are to avoid foolishness (Eph. 5:4). (See Ecc. 7:25; Prov. 3:35, 10:8.)
Foreknow, Foreknowledge
It is God's knowledge about things that will happen. Past, present, and future are all "present" in the mind of God. He inhabits eternity (Isaiah 57:15). God has infinite knowledge (Isaiah 41:22,23) and knows all things in advance. In the N.T. it does not always mean "to know beforehand" but also to cause to be. See 1 Pet. 1:2,20.
Free Knowledge
The free act of God’s will where, after His free act of creation, He knows all things that are going to happen and that this knowledge is contingent upon His free creative will. Therefore, the free knowledge of God would be different if He had chosen a different creative fiat. In other words, because God created one possible existence instead of another, the range of His knowledge regarding actual existence would have been different had He created something different in the first place. (See also Natural knowledge and Middle Knowledge.)
Free will
Freedom of self determination and action independent of external causes.
Freethinker
A person who forms his opinions about religion and God without regard to revelation, scripture, tradition, or experience.
