Faith = Salvation Right?
by John Morris
INTRODUCTION
Four times the Bible declares, "The just shall
live by faith." Paul famously wrote to the
Ephesians, "For by grace you have been saved
through faith" (Eph. 2:8). And to the Romans
he stated, "we have access by faith into this
grace in which we stand" (Rom. 5:2). Faith,
then, is the door into the halls of redemption.
Where there is faith, there is salvation.
Right?
Right. Provided it is the right kind of faith.
According to the Bible, not all faith is
saving faith.
NOT ALL FAITH IS SAVING FAITH?
Not according to Jesus. Jesus said to Jews
who believed (had faith) in Him, "If you
abide in my word, you are truly my disciples" (Jn. 8:31). To be a true disciple is, of
course, to be saved (Jn. 15:2, 8). But faith, by
itself, was not sufficient to make these individuals true disciples. Jesus said they would
have to add to their faith, obedience.
The apostle whom Jesus loved would later echo
this same sentiment: "Now by this we know
that we know Him, if we keep His commandments" (1 Jn. 2:3). And again: "But whoever
keeps His word, truly the love of God is
perfected in Him. By this we know that we are
in Him" (1 Jn. 2:5). "By this," says John. Both
times. By what? Obedience. We know that we
"know Him" and are "in Him" if we obey Him.
In the gospel that bears his name, John
tells us that many among the Jewish leaders
"believed in [Jesus]" (Jn. 12:42). However,
"they loved the praise of men more than the
praise of God" (Jn. 12:43), John tells us, and
because of this, did not confess their faith in
Jesus. What did this mean for them? Jesus
answers: "Whoever confesses Me before men,
him I will also confess before My Father who
is in heaven" (Mt. 10:32). These men refused
to make a "confession unto salvation" (Rom.
10:10); consequently, they stood outside
the saving grace of Jesus...even though they
"believed in Him."
Finally, Jesus' brother James provides still
more evidence of this truth. He asks: "What
good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have
faith but has no deeds? Can faith save him?"
(Jas. 2:14). James answers: "Faith by itself, if it
is not accompanied by action, is dead...You see
that a person is justified by what he does and
not by faith alone" (Jas. 2:17, 24).
It is possible to have faith-to believe-but
for that faith not to save. Not all faith is
saving faith.
SAVING FAITH INCLUDES OBEDIENCE
JOHN 3:36:
"He who believes in the Son has eternal
life; but he who does not obey the Son
shall not see life, but the wrath of God
abides on him."
Notice how Jesus does not contrast belief with
unbelief, but contrasts belief with disobedience. Why would He do that? Because where
there is disobedience, there is unbelief (see
also Heb. 3:18-19). The two go hand in hand.
You don't have one without the other. And
that being true, the converse must also be
true: Where there is faith (i.e. saving faith),
there is obedience.
JAMES 2:21-23:
"Was not our ancestor Abraham considered
righteous for what he did when he offered
his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his
faith and his actions were working together,
and his faith was made complete by what
he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that
says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was
credited to him as righteousness.'"
James says Abraham's belief was completed
by his obedience. Necessarily, then, faith is
incomplete until there is obedience. Is incomplete faith sufficient to save? James says no
(Jas. 2:14, 17, 20, 26).
So faith is God's prerequisite for salvation,
yes. But the faith the brings about salvation
is a completed faith-a faith which has been
fulfilled through obedience. Faith that is not
accompanied by obedience still gets to wear
the name "faith" or "belief" (Jn. 12:42), but it
is dead ("inoperative and ineffective,"), and
will not save.
FAITH, SALVATION & BAPTISM
This reality helps bring together statements
about salvation in Scripture-particularly,
those about belief and baptism-which
appear, at first, to be at odds with each other
- Belief saves (Ac. 16:31), and yet baptism
does, too (1 Pet. 3:21)
- Belief brings about remission of sins
(Ac. 10:43), and yet baptism does, too
(Ac. 2:38; 22:16)
- Belief is the precursor to receiving the
Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13), and yet baptism
is, too (Ac. 2:38; cf. Mt. 3:16).
Are the scriptures at odd with themselves?
No, of course not. The answer is simply this:
In Acts 16:31, Acts 10:43, and Ephesians 1:13,
the references to belief/faith include baptism.
Baptism is part of the initial process of believing (putting one's trust) in Jesus. By obeying
the command to be baptized, one's initial
faith is fulfilled, thus making it saving faith.
This is why Paul said, "For you are all sons
of God through faith in Christ Jesus. FOR as
many of as you were baptized into Christ have
put on Christ" (Gal. 3:26-27).
ENDNOTES
- Note the "For" at the beginning of Galatians 3:27. It is a translation of the Greek word "gar." According to The
Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (BDAG),
"gar" can serve as:
- a "marker of cause or reason (for)"
- a "marker of clarification (for, you see)"
Applying either definition to Galatians 3:27 reveals that
Paul is, in fact, saying that baptism played
a role in the
Galatians becoming sons of God through faith-that
baptism did not follow their birth through faith into
God's family but was actually part of it. And this agrees
with what Jesus said: "Most assuredly,I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit (comp. Ac. 2:38;
Tit. 3:5), he cannot enter the kingdom of God."
