The writing deals with those occurrences of pistis and pisteuein which are followed by the preposition epi. epi by itself means "upon" [L&S] or "superimposition" [#1909G]. When it is followed by a word in the genetive case, it carries the idea of distribution over or upon a thing. When it is followed by a word in the accusative case, it carries the idea of motion onto or to the top of a thing. When it is followed by a word in the dative case, it relates the notion of position or station or rest upon a thing. Modern English only retains a miniscule amount of the original case inflection (i.e. she, her, hers) which was prevalent in Old Saxon, so, unless you have studied an inflected language such as Latin, German, Russian or some other Indoeuropean language retaining its inflectional system, you may not have any real idea of how important inflection is in understanding Biblical or Classical Greek.

The first chronological time »faith« is mentioned followed epi is in this statement of Jesus:

In this verse, »the earth« is in the genetive case in the Greek text. So, the verse should read more like this:

Will he find his faith distributed over the surface of the planet?

The mission is to communicate his faith in all nations, to baptize them in the name of Jesus and teach them all things he has commanded us. This is how his faith will be distributed over all the earth.

This requires a foundation and Jesus taught this about the foundation:

The foundation is established in three steps. First, we must come to him. Secondly, we must hear his sayings. Note that it is in the plural. We must therefore hear many inidividual things from him. Thirdly, we must do what he says. This is how we build a foundation for our lives. If we do this, then we will be »like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock«. Note that what we become has also three steps to it. In coming to him, we build a house for his presence. In hearing his sayings, we come into depths in him. In doing what he says, we lay the foundation on a rock. And notice what was missing in the other man. He did hear Jesus' sayings, but he neither came to Jesus, nor did what he was saying. His house had no foundation, no depth, and was sitting upon »the earth« rather than upon a rock. The first man Adam is »of the earth, earthy«, but the »Second Man is the Lord from heaven« (1C 15:47). The other man in this parable remained earthy, and so built upon the earth, that is upon the earthy nature. The first man in this parable, however, but upon the Rock (1C 10:4), upon the Heavenly Man, upon the heavenly nature. Even as rock is much more stable and immovable than earth, so also is the heavenly more stable than earthy. In 1.Corinthians 15:49, Paul wrote, »And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear berar the image of the heavenly«. So we therefore, that there was no transfiguration in the man who built his house upon the earth, the one who hears Jesus' sayings and doesn't do them. This implies also that there was no repentence in him.

We see here that the only foundation that we can lay is Jesus Christ. He is the foundation. Everything which is called the our »foundation« is an aspect of him. So when we come to foundational faith, look at what the writer to the Hebrews wrote:

This preposition »toward« is the translation of the word epi and »God« is in the accusative case. Note also that the word translated as »from« in the phrase »repentence from dead works« is the preposition apo, meaning 'off'. Thus, the more literally reading is:

So are foundational reality is this. Our minds move off of dead works (the old foundation) and our faith moves onto God. In Colossians 1:21, Paul wrote that we were »sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works«. And he described this mindset in Ephesians 4:18, »having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart«. This is what we are changing our minds (repentence, metanoia) from. And this works through the blood of Christ, as it is written, »How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?« (Hb 9:14, KJV). We must set our minds on the things above, the heavenly, not on things upon the earth (Co 3:2), again on the basis of the work accomplished at Calvary, for we are dead and our life in hid with Christ in God (Co 3:3), so that when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then we also shall appear with him in glory (Co 3:4), even as Elijah and Moses did on the mount (Mt 17:1-8). For this reason, Paul wrote further, »Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry...« (Co 3:5, KJV, see also Ro 8:10-13).

In this verse, the preposition epi is untranslated in verse 42 and rendered as »in« in verse 43. Both times, it is followed by objects in the accusative case. Let me correct this passage according to the Greek text:

Although the chief priests, scribes and elders were mocking Jesus when they said these things, they did express the action correctly, although their requirements erred. Had they understood that Jesus was supposed to die on the cross, they would not have said what they did. Note that they said, »we will believe onto him«. This is what we do in laying the foundation, WE BELIEVE ONTO HIM. Many of these people did believe onto him later. Believing onto God is foundational faith. As I said before, it is an aspect of Jesus Christ, and these mocking chief priests, scribes and elders recognized this, even in their mocking. They literally said, »he trusted onto God«. While faith is the gift of God (Ep 2:8-9), which we receive as we hear the utterance of God (Ro 10:17), trusting is something more continual which we do over time, and which doesn't come through hearing, it is learned. It was Jesus' practice to trust onto God. This was how his faith worked. Day after day, he trusted unto God, so that his life was always moving more and more onto God.

In verse 25, epi is left untranslated in this passage also. It should read:

Jesus declared unto Cleopas and his companion that their problems were that they were foolish and slow of heart to believe. Believe what? ONTO ALL that the prophets have spoken. The emphasis here is not on the Scriptures per se, but on the CONTENT of the Scriptures, specifically those things concerning himself. This is the Scriptural thing we believe onto so that the teaching and declarations of the prophets, ALL of them and ALL of what they said about Jesus, become part of our foundation. When Paul talked about laying the foundation, this is what part of what he meant, expounding unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Jesus, that they might believe onto that foundation. The foolish man built on earth did not do this. The slow of heart to believe do not do this. Doing this, believing onto all that the prophets have spoken about Jesus, is what Isaiah was driving at when he said, »the heart also of the rash shall understand knowledge« (Is 32:4, KJV). The »rash« are those who are easily flowing, liquid, and prompt [#4116H] to believe, and it is written, »through faith we understand« (Hb 11:3, KJV)! Another wonderful thing we see here is the compassion of Jesus to go to them personally and speak his faith to them, correcting their disappointment by laying a proper foundation for them in Moses and the prophets. The fact that Jesus »expounded« these things unto them means that he didn't only tell them what Moses and the prophets said, but that he explained their words thoroughly [#1329G]. This is what the Unction of the Holy One, the indwelling Anointed does in the saints (1J 2:27). The point I am making here is that one aspect the work of the Spirit of God is to expound from the Scriptures all things concerning Jesus Christ so that we may believe onto these things.

In verse 42, »in« would be better translated as »unto«:

Peter prayed and spoke life to a dead woman. She revived. And people believed onto the Lord as a result. So we see here foundational believing in response to the report of a resurrection from the dead. »Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God«. In this instance, the utterance of God was the report which travelled »throughout all Joppa«.

Verse 17 should so read:

Unlike the events at Samaria, when Peter spoke to Cornelius' house, those who believed onto the Lord Jesus Christ were immediately baptized in the Holy Spirit. Yahweh responds when we are believing onto him. The apostles had believed for three and half years before they received the Holy Spirit, and the Samaritan believers had to wait a couple days, the folks at Cornelius' only a minute or so, but they all received, being accepted of God (Ac 10:35).

Verse 31 is translated well, but lets make it even more literal:

One result of believing onto the Lord Jesus Christ is Salvation. Remember Ephesians 2:8? It says, »by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God«. Faith is the means to effect that salvation by grace. And that faith is faith onto God. And that faith will touch others! This man and his whole household believed according to the word of the Lord. Paul's faith became the prisonkeeper's faith, and that faith was imparted to all in his house, and they rejoiced (Ac 16:32-34). In the KJV, Acts 16:34 says, »And when they had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house«. This phrase, »believing in God«, in the Greek text, literally says, »believing the God«, for there is no prepostion there. Faith onto God results in believing God, the God. The prisonkeeper changed his gods and those of his house. Beloved, repentence from dead works includes putting away any confidence in any other gods. When the prisonkeeper did this, he started to enjoy not only the forgiveness of sins and peace with God, but Yahweh's very Presence with him, so that he was believing not only the word of the Lord that Paul spoke, but the word of Yahweh himself speaking to his spirit. No wonder he rejoiced. Beloved, the joy of the Lord will be imparted to you as you believe onto God and believe him.

When Saul of Tarsus repented, he realized that he had persecuted those who had believed onto Jesus. Saul was a member of the sect of the Pharisees when he was busy imprisoning and beating the believers, persecuting them to the death. Beloved, you can expect religious, but not spiritual, people to persecute those who have moved the foundation of their lives off of dead works and onto God through faith. And some of them, like Saul, will ultimately repent and give Jesus their all. Remember, Saul was consenting unto Stephen's death (Ac 8:1). In the end Saul became Paul and was consenting unto Stephen's faith, the faith of Jesus Christ. And when he repented, he remembered the testimony of that faithful witness (Ac 22:20). When Paul gave this testimony about his past, it was at least 20 years after his repentence. Beloved, that testimony stuck with Paul all of his days. And your faithful testimony will likewise stick with them that persecute you for the name of Jesus.

Your faith onto God is »counted into righteousness« apart from your works. Abraham believed God when he spoke to him (Gn 15:1-6), he believed Yahweh's promise to him. Now there are those who will attempt to convince you that you must perform the works of the law of Moses to be righteous, but they do err. Among the Galatian believers were some that were telling them that they could not be saved unless they were circumcised in the flesh according to the law of Moses, and some of the Galatians believers apparently started to believe these people, so Paul wrote:

If you are struggling with the law, I would suggest that you take the time to read Paul's letters to the Romans and the Galatians carefully. The law will do you no good unless it is mixed with faith within you (Hb 4:2). We receive the Spirit through the hearing of faith, just as Cornelius and his household did (Acts 10:44-48; 11:16-18). Let no one deceive you. I once heard a man preach that the believer would be baptized in the Spirit if he/she did the works of the law and/or stopped sinning. But as Paul was reminding them, it is simply through the hearing of faith. Just believe. The same thing with maturing in Christ, perfection comes through the working of the Holy Spirit, not through the works of law. Again also with the manifestation of the Spirit and the working of miracles, these things work through the hearing of faith. The law of Moses is good and also spiritual, but God has brought in another law which transcends it, the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus, and that law has freed and will free you from the law of sin and death (Ro 8:2). All you have to do is believe and walk according to the Spirit. The law of Moses could not do this because it was weak through the flesh (Ro 8:4). Indeed, it is Yahweh's desire that the righteousness of the law be fulfilled in us, but that will not work through our fleshly efforts to fulfill it. What works is to walk after the Spirit. Repentence from dead works also includes the works of the law.

Here see this principle justification through faith again, but now explicitly connected with the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. We onto the One who did it. This is Faith onto God, knowing that he raised Jesus bodily from the dead, for when he was resurrected, he was resurrected in a physical body which dies no more, the spiritual body, and he was resurrected upon the earth and appeared to his disciples afterward (Mt 28; Mk 16; Lu 24; Jn 20-22). Beloved your faith must be grounded upon the fact of Jesus' literal, physical, bodily resurrection from the dead into immortality. This is why John wrote, »For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?« (1J 5:4-5, KJV), for the Scripture elsewhere declareth, »Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead: By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name: Among whom are ye also the called of Jesus Christ« (Ro 1:3-6, KJV). This is the basis of our Faith onto God, the very foundation of it. In Paul's day also, there were those who denied that the resurrection had occurred and denied that we would be physically raised up from death to put on immortality upon the earth. So he wrote:

When Jesus appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus, he did not appear as a spirit or an apparition or ghost of some kind, but physically, having flesh and bones. Beloved the spiritual body is physical, though not natural and mortal or corruptible.

Beloved, do not waste your time believing them which would take your resurrection or being raised in immortality out in space or in the sky somewhere, or them which deny it, or preach going to heaven when you die to live in heaven forever as being the foundation of our faith. Jesus rose from the dead and put on immortality upon the earth by the power of God. Yahweh raised him physically from the dead in a physical body upon the earth and that is what declared him to be the Son of God. Anything less than this will make your faith vain.

In the previous section, we looked at Faith onto God and what that is. Once our faith has been set onto God, and we come to a position in the Spirit of rest, then it becomes Faith upon God. Remember, I said earlier, when the preposition epi is followed by a word in the dative case, it relates the notion of position or station or rest upon a thing. These next Scriptures are all examples of faith upon God, that is, faith in a position or station or rest upon God. Where did I start? I started speaking about the person who comes to Jesus, hears his sayings, and does them. We learned that that person was like one who »built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock«. God is our Rock. He is our foundation. He is the Lord Jesus Christ. No other foundation can be laid.

When we are believing »upon« Jesus, we shall not be ashamed. To those who base their confidence on anything else, he is a »stumblingstone« in their consciousness. And that is what Jesus is to us also whenever we attempt to attain unto righteousness by our own works. If we attempt through any means other than believing upon him, we will stumble and be offended. Israel failed to attain unto it because they sought it by the works of law. When Jesus came, those who did not believe stumbled, were offended, and ultimately had him killed over it. Some of your Christian brethren will stumble also and be offended as we attain unto righteousness through believing upon him, but we shall not be ashamed. Beloved, many have been polluted with the ideologies and imaginations of men to assume that they could make one righteous step-by-step procedures, psychological techniques, and worldly debate tactics to convince people of the things of God, but it's all vanity.

Here Paul does give us procedure of sorts for being saved. But it is not a step-by-step procedure, all of it is essentially simultaneous. We must make a verbal confession of the Lord Jesus and must believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead. The verbal confession without believing will not save anything, neither will the believing by itself. We must act out of the believing and speak the thing with our mouths. It must be expressed with the human voice. There is no such thing as a silent confession. This is what we read in the book of Acts:

Although Philip did not necessarily tell the Ethiopian eunuch to speak, the eunuch made his confession of the Lord Jesus, saying, »I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God«, unto salvation. And that salvation was sealed in water baptism.

This is so important, let's look at the passage again, with the other prepositions translated. I want you to see what is really going on when we are believing upon Jesus.

Paul tells us where the believing takes place, »WITHIN thine heart« (the preposition is en, literally 'within'), WITHIN your spirit, WITHIN the very core of your being. Remember, every human being consists of a spirit (his/her core), a soul (his/her mind), and a body (1Th 5:23). When that precious Seed is sown into your earth (Mt 13:3-8,18-23; 1P 1:23) and sprouts, it sprouts from your spirit, growing into your soul, and then into your body. When you confess with your mouth, the expression moves the same way, that is, you believe the word, it passes into your soul so that you know what you are believing, then into your body when you speak, the vocal organs being engaged by your will to express it. And this brings you INTO something! »with the heart man believeth INTO righteousness«. Here the preposition is eis, which most literally means 'into'. While some attempt to WORK their way into righteousness, we BELIEVE INTO RIGHTEOUSNESS. »with the mouth confession is made INTO salvation«. While some speak incantations, chants, mantras, and self-affirmations in the hopes of improving themselves, we CONFESS WITH OUR MOUTHS INTO SALVATION. And we confess the Lord Jesus. The word translated as »confess« is homologeô, which literally means "to ascent, i.e. covenant, acknowledge" [#3670G], that is, 'to say the same thing'! The Ethiopian eunuch said the same thing that the Spirit was speaking/sowing into his heart through Philip, when he said, »I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God«.

And look at how generous Yahweh is with this Faith upon God:

Yahweh didn't make one program for the Jews and another for the rest of the nations. No! He made one program, that we should believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ, believing within our hearts into righteousness, and saying the same thing with our mouths into salvation. It is for »whosoever«, anyone and everyone! And so...

Beloved, do you have any idea how truly great this Faith upon God is? Each one who believes upon Jesus Christ is a lively stones, part of a spiritual house, part of a holy priesthood. Each one believing upon him offers up spiritual sacrifices and is acceptable to Yahweh our Elohim. The One upon whom we are believing is the Chief Cornerstone, that Stone which marks the beginning of the building, elect and precious. And you shall not only not be ashamed, but you shall not be confounded who believe upon him. Look at Peter said again, »ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light«. You and I and Jesus together are the House of God, even his Holy Temple because we are believing upon him. Look at what Paul wrote about this Spiritual House:

Beloved Believer upon Jesus Christ, you are part of this holy temple in the Lord. Together we are growing together, being builded together for »an habitation of God through the Spirit«. Remember that man who »built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock«? That man was Jesus. He built his house in the Spirit. And he digged deep, even being made sin, dying on the cross, and buried in Joseph's tomb, trusting all the while unto God. He paid the price for a people who were not a people, that might become a habitation or dwelling of God through the Spirit. Remember what the Father did?

This Habitation of God through the Spirit, established on Jesus Christ, the Foundation is meant to have everlasting life, being clothed with HIS life, and here's the key: »whosoever believeth INTO him«. The Father gave his only begotten Son for this purpose, that we, believing onto God, and believing upon Jesus, might believe into him unto the extent, that we should be attain unto the resurrection of the dead, whether we sleep, or whether we live and remain. Our believing upon him is our basis for believing into him also. Foundational faith is Faith upon God.

See what I mean? Paul says it right here, »believe UPON him INTO life everlasting«. Yahweh made Paul a pattern for a people in God who would literally believe into immortality. Some believe they fly away. Some don't believe in the resurrection at all. Some believe they will become immortal in name only. Some believe that some kind nutritional or pharmaceutical compound will do it. No, no, no. This people will believe upon Jesus into deathlessness! Jesus taught this himself. Jesus told Lazarus' sister Martha about two groups of believers who would do this and then proceeded to raise Lazarus from the dead to drive home his point. She didn't understand. He had said to her, »Thy brother shall rise again« (Jn 11:23), but all she could think about was the future, saying, »I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day«. But Jesus meant that day, not the »last day«. Look at his reply to her:

Lazarus was one of those who believed into him and he became Jesus' example of what he told Martha in this statement. Well, if we die, Beloved, yet were believing INTO him, we, like Lazarus shall hear his voice and be raised from death. And that includes all who have believed into him and have »fallen asleep« as Paul described. But that is not the only group that shall »believe upon him into life everlasting«, for he also said:

Let's look at this statement more literally:

This means that it is possible to believe into immortality without having to drop dead first. And the basis for this is faith upon God, faith upon Jesus Christ. Beloved, it is possible for us to live and to believe into Jesus as the Resurrection and the Life to such a degree that we NEVER die. Somebody is going to believe into immortality right here upon the earth! God is going to have a people who will do this. This is why it so very important to lay a proper foundation, believing upon God. It is the foundation for immortality. Eventually, some will do it. Enoch did it. Elijah did it. Both of them NEVER DIED. When Jesus was transfigured on the mount, Elijah appeared with him in glory just to prove it. Moses died, but appeared there also. They were so glorious in their appearance in their glorified bodies that Peter wanted to build booths for each of them because he was afraid.

Let us therefore believe and not faint!

END.