Faith
1. Faith is a Duty.
All men are required to believe in God as their Creator. They already know He exists; they are called on to agree and submit. Without faith, it is impossible to please God. Whoever comes to God must first believe in God (Heb. 11:6). Whatever is not based in faith is sin (Rom. 14:23). This is a general duty imposed on all men as creatures. Those who hear the Gospel are further required to believe in Jesus Christ. "Believe in God; believe also in me" (John 14:1). Sinners are commanded, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 16:31). It is a duty. In that sense, it is a work (John 6:29). It is something that God commands of us as a duty.
2. We are Saved by Faith Alone.
The Reformers boldly protested against Romanism's faith-and-works system by proclaiming, "Sola fide!" (faith alone). Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone (Eph. 2:8-9). That is, by grace alone as the source, and faith alone as the response. Rome, following the Galatian Judaizers, says that we are saved by faith, but not by faith alone. By faith we receive the sacraments, they say, in order to receive grace that enables us to do enough good works to produce a righteousness in us so as to merit God's approval. This is poisonous heresy. Good works follow faith and salvation, as Eph. 2:10 shows. The Catholic and Galatian order is this: faith - works - justification. The Bible's order is this: faith - justification - works. We are saved by faith without good works, for the unregenerate sinner is incapable of producing even one good work.
3. There is No Merit in Faith.
Though faith is a duty, there is no merit in it. We do not earn salvation because of the value of our faith. We do not buy salvation with the coin of faith. Salvation is by grace and cannot be bought by us in any form or fashion, not in whole or in part. To try to buy that which is of infinite value is an insult to God. Faith is the instrument of receiving salvation. The value is in the gift, not the hand that receives it. We are not saved on the basis of our faith, but on the basis (or ground) of the work of Christ.
4. Faith Agrees with the Gospel.
What is faith? Faith has 3 necessary elements: knowledge, assent, trust. The first means that faith is not blind. It has an object, a content. It is not faith in faith, blind optimism, a positive mental attitude, the power of positive thinking, etc. Second, faith agrees with the true content. The content is the Word of God, specifically the Gospel. "Believe the Gospel" (Mark 1:15). A believer believes "that" certain things are true. He gives his mental agreement. He is enlightened by the Spirit. He may not understand all the ramifications and implications, but he knows and sees the Gospel as true. His heart says, "Amen", which is the Hebrew word for faith.
5. Faith Trusts in Christ.
The third and crucial element of faith is trust. The believer trusts Christ personally from the heart (Rom. 10:9-10). The Bible speaks of believing in, into, and upon Christ, or simply believing Christ Himself. It is not faith in self; it is faith in Christ. It takes Him at His Word, trusts in His trustworthiness, and commits to Christ personally.
6. Faith Submits to Christ as Lord.
Saving faith also has the element of submission in it, which is part of trust. We are to submit to Christ as a wife is to submit to her husband (Eph. 5:22-24). In conversion, the believing heart accepts Christ's hand in marriage by saying "I do". I do accept and submit. I surrender. I hand Christ the reins, the key, the throne. I bow. They are in serious error who suggest that one may be saved merely by believing in your mind that Jesus is Lord without submitting to Him as Lord. This part of faith differentiates true believers from false.
7. Repentance is Part of Faith.
Repentance is a requirement of salvation (Luke 13:3, Acts 3:19). But it is not really a second condition, but actually part of faith. Faith has 3 elements; so does repentance. First the sinner is convicted of sin and mourns for it as sin (not just because he was caught). He grieves for it (2 Cor. 7:10). Second, he changes his mind about it. He then turns from it. It is more than a change of mind; it is a change of direction from sin to God. Thus, repentance is linked with faith (Mark 1:15, Acts 20:21). It is associated with the word "convert", meaning to turn (Acts 3:19). Unless we turn, we will burn.
8. Faith is a Gift of God.
Faith is a duty, but no man can do that duty. So God gives us the faith that He commands. The Bible often says that faith is a gift (2 Pet. 1:1, Phil. 1:29, John 3:27, 6:65, Rom. 12:3, 1 Cor. 3:6, 4:7) It is given through the Word of God (Rom. 10:17). Faith is not merely offered to us; it is actually bestowed. It is not held out to be accepted by us if we ask, for James 1 says that we receive nothing unless we ask in faith. So God must sovereignly give us that faith. And it is not given to all. Also, repentance is a gift that God gives (2 Tim. 2:25, Acts 5:31, 11:18).
9. Assurance is Part of Faith.
The
Catholic Church denies that anyone can have assurance, but I John 5:13 says
otherwise. All believers can know that they have eternal life. Moreover, in one
sense, all believers have some degree of assurance. They know the Gospel is
true. They also know that Christ died for them and that His promise is sure.
They have some assurance from the very first moment of faith. But they are not
perfected in faith. They still have doubts. So we need to grow in faith and
assurance to the "full assurance of faith". We grow by exercising our
faith and feeding on the Word of God, which is the source of faith. The three
main tests that confirm faith and produce
assurance: belief in the true Gospel, the evidence of a changed and
obedient life, and the internal testimony of the Holy Spirit. These are the
tests in I John that I John 5:13 refers to.
10. True Faith Produces Good Works.
"Faith
works by love" (Gal. 5:6). "Faith without works is dead" (James
2:26). True faith is a mark of regeneration, and will produce works. Life in
the root will produce fruit on the branch (Matt. 7:17). Those who do not have
good fruit will have only bad fruit, and thereby show that they are still
unregenerate. A Christian still sins, but he will not stay in permanent sin. He
will keep bearing fruit of good works. Our new nature cannot be killed, and
will keep believing and obeying (I John 3). So, we are not saved by faith and
works, but saved by grace through faith so that we may show our gratitude by
good works (Eph. 2:8-10).