Articles
Yes, We Are Saved by Faith
There are simply too many Bible passages that teach this for any professing Christian to deny it: We are saved by faith. But notice, please, that I did not say we are saved by faith alone. There is not one Bible verse anywhere that teaches that, but many teach it as if there was, and many more believe it as if it was true. I hope we know and understand that just because some teaching is widely propagated and/or widely believed does not mean it is true. The means of discerning truth from false doctrine must always be the written word of God, the Bible.
So, what does the Bible say about faith and our salvation? Consider just a few passages that use the specific word faith in concert with our salvation:
Eph. 2:8, 9 - “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” I have actually run across a web page from a denominational preacher who argued that men are saved “by faith alone,” and cited the passage above, adding the word ‘alone’ to the text found on his web page, though it is not in the inspired Scriptures! Friends and brethren, if we have to add words to God’s divinely inspired word to prop up our doctrines, we are in a sad and shaky position, at the very least! Paul most certainly taught that we are saved by faith, but not faith alone, for he wrote that it is “by grace you have been saved through faith.” Can we be honest enough to admit that God’s grace is also included when we are talking about our salvation?
And on the matter of God’s grace, as mentioned here, some will try to argue that faith is granted to [predestined] men, apart from any desire they have or action they may take; but is that [“faith”] what Paul is saying is “the gift of God”? No, for Paul also wrote in another place [also by the inspiration of God], that “the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6:23). Salvation is “the gift of God” — not faith! [See also Rom. 10:17.]
1 Pet. 1:6-9 - [I won’t quote the entire passage here for the sake of space.] Here, Peter acknowledges the trials the early disciples were enduring because of their faith in Jesus Christ, “Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.” Peter is simply reminding the believers that faithfulness and perseverance will ultimately bring about salvation -— “the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.” Continued faith — what we often call faithfulness — is needed to receive the ultimate reward. To say faith is a one-time act or declaration of one’s belief [or even just a ‘feeling’] is a gross mischaracterization of what true faith is, according to God’s word.
On this point, there are abundant passages within the New Testament urging faithfulness among believers, and admonishing some, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful” (Heb. 10:23), and, “Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise” (Heb. 10:35, 36). This is immediately followed by a warning that the Lord has no pleasure in those who turn back [cease having faith], and ends with an exhortation: “But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul” (Heb. 10:37-39). Continued faithfulness is necessary to receiving the ultimate reward of eternal life in heaven.
There are many more Bible passages that speak of our salvation, but do not use the particular word ‘faith’ in the context or, in others, using ‘faith’ but not ‘salvation.’ I believe we would all hopefully agree it is those who obtain the righteousness of God who will be saved, those who are justified by God are saved, and those whose sins are forgiven will ultimately be saved [again, in all cases, if the believer remains faithful until the end].
But what does this faith look like, according to what we find in the Scriptures? If it is not merely a one-time declaration of belief in Jesus or just a public claim or even just a ‘feeling’ one has, what exactly is true faith, as shown in the Scriptures?
It Begins With Belief in Jesus. On this, I am confident many would agree; faith must be a conviction of the truth that Jesus is the Christ and Son of God. This is why the New Testament writers recorded what they did about Jesus (cf. John 20:30, 31), and Jesus Himself said, “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24). And when He sent the apostles out to “preach the gospel to every creature,” the very next thing He said was, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:15, 16). Without a doubt, belief in Jesus as the Christ and Son of God is the minimum when we speak of faith, as seen in the Scriptures. But not all.
Belief Must Lead to Action — Obedience. Someone once said, “A faith that doesn’t move you cannot save you.” On that, they are correct. Can you picture any Christian who claims to have faith in Jesus not doing anything after he is convicted? I cannot, and I cannot because that makes absolutely no sense! When the gospel was first preached and some were convicted by the message [about Jesus], they asked Peter and the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37); when Saul was met by Jesus on the road to Damascus to persecute Christians, and realized he had been wrong about Jesus, he asked, “What shall I do, Lord?” (Acts 22:10); in neither case was the answer, “Nothing, because God has done it all!” Peter told the audience on the Day of Pentecost, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38); Saul was told by Ananias, “Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16). In each case — and in every case of conversion in the New Testament record, those who believed had to do something; they had to obey the command of the Lord!
True Faith Means Trusting in God. Trust is synonymous with faith, and that is important when striving to understand how faith saves us. You see, salvation is most certainly of God and not anything any man can achieve without Him and without His gracious gift. But, as was just noted, that doesn’t mean we do nothing; what it means is we do what He commands, trusting that He will then do what we cannot. I cannot forgive myself, I cannot wash my sins away, and I cannot save myself; but I trust that when I do what God commanded, He will do that! In fact, that is exactly the point Paul makes when he reminded the Colossian brethren that it was when they were baptized into Christ they were “buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses” (Col. 2:11-13). When we obey the command to be baptized, we are not claiming we have done some great work that brought forgiveness and salvation, but trusting in God that He will forgive!
That is faith that saves! — Steven Harper
