Salvation In Christ: Lesson Four

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FAITH IN CHRIST

The Bible clearly teaches that a person must have faith or trust in God and Jesus Christ in order to be saved from sin.

"And without faith it is impossible to be well-pleasing unto him; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that seek after him" (Hebrews 11:6).

Jesus said, "I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for except ye believe that I am he, ye shall die in your sins" (John 8:24).

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life' (John 3:16).

"Be it known unto you therefore, brethren, that through this man is proclaimed unto you remission of sins: and by him everyone that believeth is justified from all things ..." (Acts 13:38,39).

Other Bible scriptures teaching the necessity of faith include Mark 16:15,16; John 6:29; 11:25-27; 12:36; 20:31; Acts 10:43; 15:9; Romans 1:16; 3:25; Ephesians 2:8.

WHAT IS FAITH IN CHRIST?

Because Jesus Christ is God's gift which makes salvation possible, this lesson will emphasize the importance of faith in Him. In order to obtain the salvation we desire we must first learn what it really means to have faith in Christ.

WE BELIEVE IN WHAT WE HAVE NOT SEEN

We must accept the fact that Jesus is God's Son and our Saviour. We have not seen Jesus in person, but we believe that He really exists. We believe that He is God's Son and our Saviour.

Why do we believe? Because of the testimony of evidence given in the Bible. Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as "a conviction of things not seen." We have never seen the famous people who lived and died many years ago, but we believe they lived because the evidence is so clear. We have never seen Jesus in person, but we have the evidence concerning Him in the Bible (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). This evidence found in the Holy Scriptures produces our faith in Jesus.

"So belief cometh of hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17).

Peter declared that those who believed did so because they heard the gospel.

'Brethren, ye know that a good while ago God made choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel, and believe" (Acts 15:7). 

Other scriptures producing belief in Jesus as our Saviour include John 17:20; 20:30,31; Acts 17:11,12.

IS BELIEVING ONLY ACCEPTING?

We must do more than accept the fact that Jesus is God's Son and our Saviour. Believing that Jesus is the Son of God and the Saviour of man is necessary, but it is not all that is required. John tells about some people who did believe but were not acceptable to God.

"Nevertheless even of the rulers many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess it, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: for they loved the glory that is of men more than the glory that is of God" (John 12;42,43).

Jesus will not confess us before God unless we have enough faith to confess Him before men (Matthew 10:32,33).

If faith requires nothing more than accepting Jesus as God's Son and man's Saviour, the demons would be saved, because "the demons also believe, and shudder" (James 2:19).

While just believing is not enough, it is necessary for our salvation. No one would desire the salvation provided by Jesus until he was convinced of the gospel facts concerning Christ. When Hebrews 11:1 says that "faith is assurance of things hoped for," it means that our hope is supported by our faith. If a person does not believe in Jesus Christ, then he has no reason to hope for salvation in Him. The believer has a reason for his hope, and he obtains the salvation hoped for when he does what God commands.

WE MUST HAVE TRUST IN CHRIST

We must have trust in Christ. The true believer accepts the fact that Jesus is God's Son and man's Saviour, and he obeys God's commandments. He is able to do this because he learns to trust completely in Christ. A person must learn to trust Christ for the salvation he cannot obtain from any other source. We have not yet seen God; we have not gone to see the glory of Heaven; we do not know what it is like to die. Jesus has done all of these things, and we trust Him when He says, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father but by me" (John 14:6).

WE MUST OBEY THE GOSPEL

We must obey the commands of the gospel. Obedience truly follows acceptance of Jesus as God's Son and man's Saviour, and trusting Him for salvation. There is no real answer to Jesus' question,

"And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" (Luke 6:46).

One who will not obey Jesus has no reason to call Him "Lord." Near the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus stressed the necessity of obeying the things commanded.

"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 7:21).

Peter and James also wrote about the importance of obedience.

"Seeing ye have purified your souls in your obedience to the truth ..." (1 Peter 1:22).

"Ye see that by works a man is justified, and not only by faith" (James 2:24).

In Romans chapter six, verses seventeen and eighteen, Paul said that when the people in Rome "became obedient from the heart" they were "made free from sin." Obedience was that which changed them from servants of sin to servants of righteousness.

The Scriptures which teach that salvation is received by obedience are not in conflict with those which teach that salvation is received by faith. Saving faith always produces obedience, for "The faith which saves is the faith which obeys." In Hebrews 11:4-38 we have an impressive list of faithful people, and in each case the faithful person is described as doing something his faith led him to do.

The second chapter of James gives special point to the importance of faith being expressed in obedience. After noting that the demons believe so strongly that they shudder in knowing their condition, James concludes, "faith apart from works is dead" (James 2:26).

We should clearly point out that there is no conflict between James' teaching of salvation by works and Paul's teaching that salvation is by grace and faith. Paul taught:

"For by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, that no man should glory" (Ephesians 2:8,9).

By such teaching he simply said that salvation is not earned by works of credit which men may do. At the same time he recognized that saving faith calls for an obedient answer by the faithful man. His own life as a Christian was Paul's most eloquent teaching that the real man of faith is the man who obeys God. One who has so little faith that he refuses to obey God is the one who rejects God's saving grace.

"And Peter said unto them, Repent ice, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:38). "To him bear all the prophets witness, that through his name every one that believeth on him shall receive remission of sins" (Acts 10:43).

FAITH INCLUDES BELIEVING AND OBEYING

Again we ask, "Is there a war between the teaching that remission of sins results from repentance and baptism and the teaching that remission of sins is the result of belief?" It is easy to see that there is no war if one realizes that faith is a general term including everything involved in believing and obeying God.

The people who heard Peter's sermon and accepted it were baptized (immersed), according to Acts 2:41. Verse 44 describes the same people as those who believed. Obviously the word "believed" in verse 44 includes the act of baptism (immersion) mentioned in verse 41. In similar fashion, Crispus is described as one who believed (Acts 18:8) and one who was baptized (immersed) (1 Corinthians 1:14).

In Acts 16:31 the jailer in Philippi was told, "Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt be saved, thou and thy house." Continuing the reading of the story makes clear what he understood belief to include. Verse 32 says that Paul and Silas preached the word of the Lord. Verse 33 says that he and his household were baptized (immersed) the same hour of the night. There is no question that they understood the command to believe to include baptism (immersion) and other acts of obedience. In every other case of conversion described in the book of Acts, faith was always expressed in obedience to the Lord's will. There is no exception.

We have learned in this lesson that faith in Christ is essential to salvation. The faith which saves is the faith of complete trust, and the faith which causes us to obey every commandment given by God. May God bless you in believing, trusting, and obeying Him.