… believe in him and receive eternal life.
Summary: Believing in Jesus takes work. Not the kind of work that can save us, but the kind that it takes to resist jumping back into sin.
Once again, Paul includes the Gospel in its essential form. His “trustworthy saying” stated it this way:
“Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…” (1 Timothy 1:15).
Now, Paul tells us how we are saved:
“… believe in him and receive eternal life.” (1 Timothy 1:16)
If we accept that Jesus Christ is God’s Son and that he came into the world to save sinners, then the obvious question is “How does this work?”
The answer is simple.
Unfortunately, people have a way of making things complicated.
Here is the problem: A lot of people come to church burdened by sin and worried about having to go to hell. (Hopefully, they have come to a Bible-believing church.*) While being aware of our sin is good, the “problem” part is that the next thing they want to know is “Am I saved?” If they ask someone this question, it puts them in an awkward spot. What do we do?
A biblical response is to turn to the Bible and point to verses such as Acts 16:31, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Of course, then the next question from the anxious is, “What does it mean to believe?”
Here again, we struggle. The temptation is to want to put a person’s mind at rest. I would love to be able to say to that person, “Yes, you are absolutely saved. You have nothing to worry about! I’ve heard your confession of faith and believe you are repentant and therefor go in peace.”
Unfortunately, Jesus slipped this little gem into his book:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21)
So, we are kind of left hanging, wondering, “Am I really saved?”†
Personally, I find the tension and suspense refreshing! I know me. If I think my ticket to heaven has already been punched, I lose my incentive to stay focused on Jesus — and I need to stay focused on Jesus!
Besides, Jesus never said that believing was going to be easy. In fact, he says just the opposite:
“Jesus answered, ‘The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.’” (John 6:29)
He calls “believing” “work.”
Please do not misunderstand. This “work” he is talking about has nothing to do with saving us. Jesus did the work of salvation on the cross. The kind of work we do is simply remembering who saved us even as the “immense patience” (v 16) of Jesus Christ continues to draw us to him.
Application: Continuously strive to submit to God in every way.
Food for Thought: What happens when we slack off on our “work” of believing in Jesus? (Matthew 14:22-36)
*Sadly, there are some churches that seem to discount or ignore the Bible.
†See Romans 8:16, “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.”
What happens when we slack off on our “work” of believing in Jesus? (Matthew 14:22-36)
We fall short of the mark.
We are imperfect beings seeking to effectively serve our perfect God. Is it easier to walk on water, or live each moment of our lives knowing and trusting in Gods Sovereign will in all circumstances? Can we ride this bike with no hands or do we keep reaching for the handle bars?
Our faith in Christ is not some a program from some self help book. Every believer knows our faith is a gift, received from the Holy Spirit, and we must daily, moment by moment choose to live, placing our faith in the unseen or the seen.
Ephesians 2:8-9, For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.
Hebrews 11:1, Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Proverbs 3:5, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
All believers are living in a process of becoming perfected by God. Every moment, every day is our opportunity to try again. Can we live one full day according to Gods will over our own? If we make it one, can we make it two, and on it goes.
Our salvation is secured and we now remain on earth with a purpose from our creator which is to submit to His will over our own and allow Him to serve others through us. The sooner we fully comprehend this truth, the sooner we will begin experiencing life in Christ, unaffected by the things of this world.
Thank you, Ron!
“… we must daily, moment by moment choose to live,”
Yes. Well said! (Probably better than I said it!! 🙂 )
What happens when we slack off on our “work” of believing in Jesus?
We allow doubt to take over our mind and eventually our actions. We begin to depend on our own abilities rather than listening for the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We, as humans, lack the ability to separate our emotions from our decisions without the stability that the Holy Spirit brings to us in giving us the truth. Fear, anger, sadness, and anxiety take over. We become double-minded and unstable.
James 1:6-8
6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
Yesterday I received some news that sent me into a tailspin internally. I began to experience a flurry of different emotions, all seeming to compete within me for control. I prayed and asked the Lord for clarity of truth, discernment, and peace to make the righteous choice about the situation; I asked Him what He would have me do. He gave me the truth, and so came humility in recognizing the truth of my own role in the situation, that I cannot control what other people do or think, and even recognized that I was being given an opportunity to build up a relationship where I had in initially believed that it was being torn down. So it became clear what the righteous choice was. Had I not believed in the power of God, and had trusted in my own ability to address the situation, I know that I would have made it far worse. Believing in Him, made my relationship with Him stronger, and my relationship with the other person stronger because I was able to act in love without doubt.
Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
Chris,
Thank you! It sounds like yesterday was a rough one. I appreciate you sharing how turning to the Lord helped.
I also appreciate your answer to the question: “We become double-minded…” Yes. It is so important to stay focused on Jesus!