The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews says, "Through faith 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." He then goes on to recount instances in which Old Testament characters walked by faith to a promised goal. Among them were Enoch, who "was translated that he should not see death"; Abraham, who listened to God's voice and obeyed, "not knowing whither he went" Hebr. 11:3-8; and became the forebear of mighty hosts that were taught the worship of one God; and Moses, who was led by faith to liberate the children of Israel. Others knew with certainty that the invisible and heavenly were substance. These people first of all believed in God, and having established His presence in consciousness, they put their entire trust in Him. That which upheld them was not simply an unfounded belief in a power greater than themselves, but a confidence in and a conviction of unseen realities.
Can we not see here instances of growth from belief to faith—a development or an unfoldment wherein mere believing takes on diviner aspects and individuals no longer accept unproved claims as true but through divine inspiration distinguish the true from the false and identify that quality of faith which is confidence or trust? A dictionary states that "belief may or may not imply certitude in the believer whereas faith always does."
Mrs. Eddy says: "Faith is higher and more spiritual than belief. It is a chrysalis state of human thought, in which spiritual evidence, contradicting the testimony of material sense, begins to appear, and Truth, the ever-present, is becoming understood." Later in the same paragraph she continues, "Until belief becomes faith, and faith becomes spiritual understanding, human thought has little relation to the actual or divine." Science and Health, p. 297;
