The Transition from External to Internal Perfection

The central failure of the Old Covenant was not merely that it was "weak," but that its offerings and sacrifices had become repulsive to God. When rituals are performed without a transformed heart, they are not just empty; they are offensive. God would rather us be cold or hot rather than lukewarm (to be clean on the outside and not inwardly). The Levitical system functioned as an external restraint—a system of "fleshly ordinances"—that could never remedy the internal corruption of man.

Consequently, God rejected these external attempts at appeasement. In Malachi 2:3, God speaks regarding the priests who offered sacrifices, declaring He would "spread refuse on your faces, the refuse of your solemn feasts." The Hebrew word for "refuse" here is peresh (dung), signifying that the religious acts themselves had become waste in His sight. The propitiation (appealing his wrath and anger) offerings became an offense, instead of a sweet smelling aroma going up to God they were like the smell of dung to God.

Into this context of rejection enters the solution: not a better animal sacrifice, but a willing Person.

Hebrews 10:5-7
"Therefore, when He came into the world, He said: 'Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come—in the volume of the book it is written of Me—to do Your will, O God.'"

The "body prepared" is the answer to the "dung" of dead works. God no longer desired the external code; He desired a vessel that would internally and perfectly execute His will.

The movement from the Old Covenant to the New is not a renovation of rituals but a complete relocation of the Law—from stone tablets to the human heart. True perfection is not achieved by the "standing" anxiety of external compliance, but by "sitting" in the finished work of Christ. It is here, in the rest of faith, that the Spirit empowers the believer to fulfill the righteous requirement of the Law from the inside out.

I. The Standing Priest vs. The Seated King: Entering His Rest

The distinction between the Old and New Covenants is captured in the posture of the priest. The Levitical priest "stands ministering daily" (Hebrews 10:11) because his repetitive sacrifices are powerless to remove sin—an unfinished cycle of dead works. In contrast, Christ offered one effective sacrifice and "sat down" (Hebrews 10:12). This posture of "sitting" signals that the work of cleansing is complete and the believer is "perfected forever" (Hebrews 10:14).

This transition is the theological foundation for the "Rest" of Hebrews 4:10: "For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His." To refuse this rest—to continue "standing" in an attempt to appease God through religious performance—is an act of "unbelief" (apistia) (Hebrews 3:191). It is the insistence on offering the "dung" of self-effort rather than accepting the finished work of the King.

II. The Prophetic Fulfillment: Writing the Law on the Heart (Hebrews 10:15-18)

God abolished the "first" system of external performance to establish the "second" system of internal transformation.

Hebrews 10:16 (quoting Jeremiah 31:33)
"This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them."

The Old Covenant failed because it was written on stone, leaving the heart stony. The "perfection" (teleioō) of the New Covenant is that the spiritual aspect of God's laws are internalized. God imparts a new nature—a "new heart" and "new spirit" (Ezekiel 36:26-27)—that naturally desires the things of God. The worshiper is no longer a whitewashed tomb (clean outside, dirty inside) but is through the building up of faith and love, structurally changed from the core.

III. Released from the Letter to Serve in the Spirit (Romans 7)

Paul explains that this shift requires a death to the old way of relating to God. We cannot mix the "dung" of self-effort with the perfection of Christ.

Romans 7:6
"But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter."

The "oldness of the letter" (gramma) is the written code that demands righteousness from flesh that cannot provide it. This system only exposes the corruption of our nature but cannot clean it. To be "delivered" is to stop trying to please God through external checklist compliance and to enter the "rest" of a life empowered by the Spirit.

It is why Paul uses such strong words in Galatians, to go back to the Old is to go back to a yoke of slavery, it is to sever from Christ, to fall from grace. Jesus said if we build the house on sand, it will fall and Great will be that fall. The destruction of such a house causes more harm to the kingdom of God than any good in its building because it was not built on the foundation stone.

IV. Fulfilling the Righteous Requirement (Romans 8)

The goal of this transition is not lawlessness, but true holiness.

Romans 8:3-4
"...that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit."

This is the definition of perfection. It is not the external "cleansing of the cup" while the inside is full of extortion (Matthew 23:25). It is the "body prepared" to do God's will, empowered by the Spirit. It is the shift from offering God the "dead works" of religious striving to offering Him the "living sacrifice" (thysian zōsan) of a transformed life (Romans 12:1).

Summary

The journey from Hebrews 10 to Romans 7 is a journey from the external to the internal. God rejected the "dung" of external religious performance because it could not touch the heart. In its place, He provided a "body prepared"—first in Christ, and then in the believer. By moving from the anxiety of the "standing priest" to the rest of the "seated King," we stop working for salvation and start working from salvation. This is the new way of the Spirit: a law not written on stone to be obeyed by grit, but written on the heart to be fulfilled by grace.

Faith as Assurance, Hope, and Proof of Things Unseen

Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as:

“Now, faith exists assurance, hope, proof (conviction) of things unseen.”

This threefold description of assurance, hope, proof shows that faith is not vague trust but a God-authored persuasion that produces assurance and conviction. Rooted in the Greek πίστις (pistis, from πείθω peithō “to persuade”), faith is assurance of God’s promises, hope in him at present and in His future fulfillment, and proof of unseen realities. Each dimension is distinct yet inseparable, forming a holistic picture of faith in Christ, the author and perfecter of faith.

It is so important that we teach and understand Faith. By faith we know that God exists and rewards those who seek him and by faith we know God created the world (we can teach about the existence of God and creation but people need faith to believe). Through increasing faith we can avoid false teachings. Without faith salvation is impossible, nor can we please God. 

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Faith as Assurance (ὑπόστασις – hypostasis)

Faith begins with assurance—the firm foundation that rests on something unseen. One needs to be assured of their salvation, not a wishful thinking they are. The Greek word hypostasis (ὑπόστασις) means “substance, confidence, reality.” Faith is substance and evidence, not a leap into the dark but the solid ground of confidence in God’s promises.

• Hebrews 3:14 — “We have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end.”
• 2 Corinthians 5:7 — “We walk by faith, not by sight.”
• Colossians 2:2 — Believers are called to “full assurance of understanding.”

Faith as assurance means believers stand on the reality of God’s promises even when unseen by the eye. It is the present confidence that anchors the soul in Christ’s finished work. As faith is increased through the word of God, the full assurance of understanding comes and we grow into maturity, in unity of faith and knowledge of Jesus (Ephesians 4). Paul writes faith and love is the anchoring or foundation we begin with.

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Faith as Hope (ἐλπίς – elpis)

Faith also exists as hope—the forward-looking expectation of what God has promised. The Greek elpis (ἐλπίς) means “hope; confident expectation.” Hope is not hope if it is seen, but hope has substance and evidence of things unseen, as it exists of the definition of faith, of things unseen. Faith and hope are inseparable: faith grounds hope, and hope stretches faith toward the future. "Now these three abide; faith, hope, and love..."

• Romans 8:24–25 — “For in hope we were saved… we wait for it with endurance.”
• Colossians 1:5 — “Because of the hope laid up for you in heaven.”
• 1 Peter 1:3–4 — Believers are “born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”
• Hebrews 6:19 — “We have this hope as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and it enters into the inner place behind the curtain.”

Faith as hope means believers live in confident anticipation of God’s unseen realities. Hope is not wishful thinking, blind trust and waiting, but the fruit of faith’s assurance, looking forward to eternal fulfillment in Christ. It is the anchor of the soul, securing us to Christ’s presence and promises.

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Faith as Proof (ἔλεγχος – elenchos)

Faith exists as proof—the conviction and evidence of unseen realities. The Greek elenchos (ἔλεγχος) carries judicial weight: cross-examination, demonstration, proof. Faith is persuasion that produces conviction. Understanding is key to increasing in faith as Jesus said in the parable of sowing, those with deep roots and understanding grow up to bear fruit.

• John 20:29 — “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
• Romans 4:20–21 — Abraham was “fully convinced” (plerophoreō πληροφορέω) that God would fulfill His promises.
• 2 Corinthians 4:18 — “We look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen.”
• John 3:16 — God persuades us by giving His Son—the proof of His love.
• Ephesians 2:4–10 — God demonstrates His mercy, through his great love, and kindness in Christ, persuading us of salvation by grace through faith.

Faith as proof means believers are persuaded by God’s demonstration in Christ. Proof is not abstract—it is embodied in Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith. Faith convinces us of unseen realities because God Himself has acted persuasively in history and in us. We grow in understanding and knowledge of Jesus, which persuades us of God's goodness and faithfulness. 

As the prophet stated "come reason with me says the Lord," understanding is a reality in Christ. It is like buying (what you value and have worked hard for you exchange for something of equal value). But what God offers doesn't cost money, "come buy that which is free without cost," which implies God wants to seek treasure not of this earth. But how else can we seek treasure unless we find it of value? Thus faith exists proof, to be persuaded.

Faith and Trust: Differences and Nuances

In the Old Testament we see the dominant word, trust, בָּטַח (בָּטַח, bāṭaḥ), meaning “to rely upon, feel secure, place confidence in.” It emphasizes relational dependence—resting in God’s covenant character and proven reliability. Trust is often expressed in waiting, leaning, or hoping in God’s protection.

In the New Testament, we see word for faith, πίστις (πίστις, pistis), rooted in πείθω (πείθω, peithō, “to persuade”). Faith is not only reliance but conviction, assurance, and proof of unseen realities (Hebrews 11:1). We see Jesus as the author and perfecter of faith, thus we are to look to him  (Hebrews 12:2), making faith the higher category: it is persuasion that produces conviction, not merely reliance.

Key Differences

• Trust (bāṭaḥ): Relational posture of reliance, often expressed in waiting or resting.
• Faith (pistis): Persuaded conviction, assurance, and proof of unseen realities, authored and perfected in Christ.
• Overlap: Both involve reliance on God, but faith goes further—it is being fully convinced of His Word and promises. Faith has substance and evidence, not just resting on God's faithfulness in the past, but the present reality of his presence, of the Spirit, and the implanted imperishable word of God dwelling in us. 

Potential Confusion

We can confuse trust and faith if we equate waiting passively with believing actively.

• A person may say, “I am trusting God,” but if that trust is not grounded in conviction of faith, it risks becoming vague hope or passive waiting. We can confuse a blind type of trust that creates timidity or slaves to fear but does not perfect in love which energizes faith.

A further danger arises when false teachers distort trust. Jesus warned in Matthew 20:25 that worldly rulers “lord over” and "exercise authority" over their people, but this is not the way of His kingdom. A false leader will claim God has ordained him and insist that questioning his authority is speaking against God. This creates timid, fearful people under a spirit of error that are afraid to stand for truth. Many believed Jesus but would not confess him for fear of being thrown out of the synagogues. 

Blind obedience is often confused with trust, but it is not biblical trust—it is manipulation. True faith is anchored in Jesus and His words, not in obedience to human authority. In Christ we are encouraged to grow in knowledge of him, to seek wisdom through faith. This implies reasoning, questioning, asking, seeking, knocking so to have understanding and wisdom in him. Blind trust taught by men, in contrast, rests on obedience without understanding.

Jesus protects his kingdom from deceptive men, as he gave example, the great become servants of all. A servant has no authority over people, to lord over them. The essence of serving (ministers) is to build people up in the fullness of God in Christ. A public servant vocation is not a position of entitlement to worldly status and wealth.

Jesus ascended on high and is Head of the church giving gifts to men (gifts not authority) so to build up children so they are no longer tossed to and fro in human cunningness and deceitfulness. Faith exists as substance and evidence so that trust can rest securely in God, never in man’s authority. 

•  Abraham’s example (Romans 4:20–21) shows that true faith is not mere trust but being fully convinced of God’s promises. He grew strong in faith until persuaded beyond doubt.

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Integration: Assurance, Hope, Proof in Christ

Together, these three dimensions show that faith is holistic:

• Assurance anchors us in the present.
• Hope directs us toward the future.
• Proof persuades us of unseen realities.

Faith is authored by Jesus (Hebrews 12:2), who persuades us through His life, death, and resurrection. Thus, faith pleases God (Hebrews 11:6) and anything apart from faith is sin (Romans 14:23). Trust, when aligned with faith, becomes resting in the conviction God has persuaded us to hold.

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Conclusion

Faith (pistis) is defined in Hebrews 11:1 as assurance, hope, and proof of things unseen. Rooted in persuasion (peithō), faith is God convincing us through His Son. Assurance anchors us, hope anticipates fulfillment, and proof persuades us of unseen realities. Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, makes faith both the foundation of hope and the conviction of unseen truth.

Faith and trust are related but not identical. Trust is reliance; faith is persuaded conviction. Trust may wait, but faith is convinced. False leaders may confuse blind obedience with trust, but true faith is anchored in Jesus and His words. Faith exists as substance and evidence so that trust can rest securely in God. Faith, therefore, is not passive trust but the persuaded conviction that rests in Christ, anticipates His promises, and proves unseen realities by God’s own demonstration.

Elemental Principles Have No Power To Mature

The Greek word Paul uses for "elemental principles" is stoicheia. In ancient Greek, this referred to things like the letters of the alphabet (the ABCs) or the basic physical elements of the universe (earth, air, fire, water). Paul uses it to describe a rudimentary level of religion, a pretense of piety without reality, —basic rules about physical things that have no power to change the spiritual condition of a man. When believers return to these elemental things after knowing Christ, Paul considers it a regression from maturity to infancy, and from freedom to slavery. 

Elemental Principles have no power to mature or perfect the individual in regards to righteousness and godliness nor to give life.

I. Colossians 2: The Failure of Asceticism ("Do Not Touch")

In Colossians, the error was the belief that strict self-denial and harsh treatment of the body constituted "perfection." Paul argues that these regulations are merely human commands concerning things that perish with use.

• The Warning:

  "see to it that no on takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the elemental principles of the world [stoicheia], and not according to Christ." (Colossians 2:8)

• The "Touch Not" System:

  "if you died with Christ from the elemental principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations—'Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,' which exists all destined to perish with the using—according to the commandments and teachings?" (Colossians 2:20-22)

• The Verdict: No Value Against the Flesh:

  "such words indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and harsh treatment of the body, but are of no value against the gratification of the flesh." (Colossians 2:23)

This is the critical connection to Hebrews 9 and Hebrews 10. A person can follow a strict diet, observe religious washings, and fast until they are weak (harsh treatment of the body), yet the "gratification of the flesh"—pride, anger, lust—remains untouched. It is an "appearance of wisdom" without the power of transformation.

II. Galatians 4: The "Weak and Beggarly" Calendar

In Galatians, the "elemental principles" manifested as the observance of the Jewish religious calendar. The Galatians were being told that to be truly perfect Christians, they needed to adopt the Mosaic Law's system of holy days. Paul calls these "weak" because they cannot justify, and "beggarly" (poor) because they have no spiritual riches to offer.

• Enslaved to Non-Gods:

  "Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world." (Galatians 4:3)

• Returning to Poverty:

  "But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elemental principles, to which you desire again to be in bondage? You observe days and months and seasons and years. I am afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain." (Galatians 4:9-11)

Paul views the transition from pagan idolatry to Jewish ritualism not as an upgrade, but as a lateral move from one form of slavery to another. This is what he means when he says do not submit again to a yoke of slavery, for Christ has set you free (Galatians 5:1-2). A worldly or religious system that rely on "elemental principles" rather than the Spirit of the Son in the heart, have no power to overcome the flesh (Galatians 4:6; Galatians 5:17).

III. Shadows vs. The Substance

The core problem with "elemental principles" is that they confuse the shadow for the object casting it.

"So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ." (Colossians 2:16-17)

The "perfection" spoken of in Hebrews 6 and Hebrews 10 is the Substance (Christ). The "dead works" are the Shadows. When a man embraces the Shadow (the ritual) thinking it will make him perfect, he is boxing at air. The Shadow cannot cleanse the conscience before God; only the Substance can.

Summary: Why This is Not Perfection

Paul classifies these activities as "weak and beggarly" because they are inherently external.

1. They are Earthly: They deal with food, drink, and days (Colossians 2:21-22).

2. They are Powerless: They cannot stop sin (Colossians 2:23).

3. They are Elementary: They are things destined to perish, not of the substance and reality of the heavenly. 

There are principles of God's word, (which speaks not of all of the Bible, as some have gone back to the Old Testament for godliness). Certainly in context 2 Timothy 3:16-17 speaks of the living and active word, of the one who came in the flesh, who is the substance and reality of the heavenly, in him there are teachings of righteousness for the mature (Hebrews 5:12-14). 

True perfection is found in the "new creation" (Galatians 6:15), where the believer is dead to the world’s elementary principles and alive to the law of the Spirit, a new living way of the Spirit.