Lectures on Faith

So I just finished reading Lectures on Faith. They don't really know who wrote it, but the church thinks it might be Sidney Rigdon. It once was part of the scriptures as the doctrine in doctrine and covenants. They stopped publishing it with that in 1921, but you can still buy Lectures on Faith at a church book store if you're interested. These are some of the things I thought/learned from reading it. I'll divide it by the different lectures:
Lecture First

• "Faith being the first principle in revealed religion, and the foundation of all righteousness"
• What is faith?
• "Now faith is the substance (assurance) of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
• "From this we learn that faith is the assurance which men have of the existence of things which they have not seen, and the principle of action in all intelligent beings."
• "...it is faith, and faith only, which is the moving cause of all action in them; that without it both mind and body would be in a state of inactivity, and all their exertions would cease, both physical and mental."
• Faith is the motivation behind all things, because you have to believe in it to feel the need to act for it and persue it (my thoughts) -- 1 Nephi 17:50
• "Are you not dependent on your faith, or belief, for the acquistion of all knowledge, wisdom and intelligence?"
• "Would you have ever sought unless you had believed that you would have found? Of, would you have ever knocked, unless you had believed that it would have been opened unto you?"
• "Faith is the moving cause of all action." -- Mark 16:16
• "But faith is not only the principle of action, but of power also, in all intelligent beings, whether in heave or on earth."
• Hebrews 11:3, Matthew 17:19-20, Ethere 12:13, Alma 14:23-29, Helaman 5:37-50
• Faith is important even when we die, because to create worlds and be Gods ourselves we need faith. (my thoughts)

Lecture Second

• Romans 1:20
• "And I, God, said unto mine Only Begotten, which was with me from the beginning, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and it was so."
• "...though mayest choose for thyself, for it is given unto thee; but remember that I forbid it; for in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die..." (talking about the tree of knowledge)
• God talked with Adam face to face
• "If thou doest well thou shalt be accepted, and thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door"
• Faith builds a testimony and God will make it be known if it is true...
• "...there is a God, who has created and does uphold all things, the extent of their knowledge respecting his character and glory will depend upon their diligence and faithfulness in seeking him, until, like Enoch, the brother of Jared, and Moses, they shall obtain faith in God, and power with him to behold him face to face."
• Enoch, the brother of Jared, and Moses, as well as many others are who we compaire ourlselves to the most had to work diligently on increasing their faith; while it seems we just sit there and expect it to happen... Glory depends on our diligence and faithfulness in seeking him. Do you seek him daily, hourly, by the minute?
• We have faith in our Heavenly Father, but does he have faith in us? Or, is it a knowledge and understanding, or could it be driven by hope?

Lecture Third

• "...it was reason of the knowledge of his existence that there was a foundation laid for the exercise of faith in him... the idea of his existence in the first instance is essential to exercise faith in him." --Romans 10:14 --- "...faith comes by hearing the word of God."
• "So in like manner we are indebted to the revelations which he has given to us for a correct understanding of his character, perfections, and attributes... without the revelations which he has given to us, no man by searching could find out God...the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God."
• Why do people fear to trust in God when we know he loves us and wants us to find the eternal happiness.. for God is love.
• Exodus 34:6, Psalms 103:6-8, Psalms 103:17-18, Psalm 90:2, Hebrews 1:10-12, James 1:17, Malachi 3:6
• "For God doth not walk in crooked paths... his paths are strait, and his course is one eternal round."
• 1 John 4:8 "God is love"
• "...he was God before the world was created, and the same God that he was after it was created."
• Without him the faith necessary for salvation couldn't exist, but neither would we. So we must always show our gratitude towards him.
• "...he is a God who changes not"
• Would we put our faith in something that is changing?
• "...he is the same, yesterday, today, and forever, and that his course is one eternal round."
• "...he is the God of truth and cannot lie is equally necessary to the excercise faith in him."

Lecture Fourth

• "...without correct ideas of his character the minds of men could not have sufficient power with God to the exercise of faith necessary to the enjoyment of eternal life."
• Knowledge: Acts 15:18, Isaiah 46:9-10
• Faith & Power: Isaiah 14:24, 27
• Justice: Zechariah 9:9
• Judgment: Deuteronomy 32:4
• Mercy: Nehemiah 9:17
• Truth: Exodus 34:6
• "for without the idea of the existence of these attributes in the Deity, men could not exercise faith in him for life and salvation."
• "He has power to save all who come to him"

Lecture Fifth

• "he kept the law of God, and remained without sin, showing thereby that it is in the power of man to keep the law and remain also without sin."
• Did it help that Christ knew all things and he was able to take that knowledge with him to Earth? And that he was sent to teach while we learn? But by learning aren't we also capable of teaching? With the more we teach and learn the more it increases our knolwedge to give us up. And with hope you grow to have faith. Which leads to us wanting to know more and the veil seems to lessen a little. Therefore giving us the knowledge and testimony that builds strength to live in righteousness...
• "The Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light"

Lecture Sixth

• "...confidence in God without which no person can obtain eternal life."
• Heb. 10:34, 2 Cor. 5:1
• "...unless they have an actual knowledge that the course they are pursuing is according to the will of God, they will grow weary in their minds, and faint"
• "Those, then, who make the sacrifice, will have the testimony that their course is pleasing in the sight of God."

Lecture Seventh

• "...for no world has yet been framed that was not framed by faith" "...for it is by faith that the Deity works."
• "...when a man works by faith, he works by mental exertion instead of physical force."
• Genesis 1:3, Joshua 10:12-13, 1 Kings 17:1; 18:1, 41-45, Matthew 17:20, Luke 17:6, Leviticus 19:2, Peter 1:15-16, Matthew 5:48, John 14:12; 17:20-24, Romans 9:32, Mark 9:23
• "Faith, then, works by words; and with these its mightiest works have been, and will be, performed."
• "Without faith it is impossible to please God." "...without faith it is impossible for me to be saved."
• "Neither pray I for these (the apostles) alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their words; that they all may be one."
• "Blessed is she that believed, for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord." Luke:45
• "...every man received according to his faith- according as his faith was, so were his blessings and privileges; and nothing was witheld from him when his faith was sufficient to receive it."
• "There is a great difference between believing in God and knowing him- knowledge implies more than faith."

I want you all to read if you feel of it's importance as I have for it to be.

Somethings I wrote a while ago:

What gives someone hope, to believe in something that may or may not occur, to find security in something that might happen, who knows what that hope is grown from, but hope leads to faith, which drives our motives each day, you wouldn’t act or respond they way you do if you didn’t believe in something, you’d be lost, but what do you place your faith on family, religion, death, medicine, the future, the past, something you read once, do you try to grow your faith or do you stay in its shadow?