×

Unless God is Faithful, There’s No Saving Faith

Faith plays a vital role in the Christian life. You simply can’t overstate its importance. Without it, we have no place with God and cannot please God (Hebrews 11:6). Unless our concept of the Christian life is more than a matter of personal effort, it is futile. Simultaneously, our concept of faith must be richer than “just trust in God.” True Christian faith is multifaceted, while always marked by complete dependance on God. But what is saving faith?

Faith plays a vital role in the Christian life.

Below I explore four aspects of saving faith. Firstly, I’ll show that it is based on the firm conviction that God is faithful to his covenant promises. Then, secondly, saving faith justifies us. Its confidence rests totally in the faithfulness of God. Thirdly, true faith will not fail to produce fruits, maturity, and obedience. Finally, all of this comes from God by his grace.

Saving Faith Depends on God’s Faithfulness

Firstly, by faith we entrust ourselves to the faithfulness of God. Such faith is evident in Abraham’s life. For he “believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness” (Genesis 15:6; Hebrews 11:8-10). Abraham placed his confidence in the promise of God. This is saving faith. God had promised Abraham countless offspring (Genesis 15:5), and the patriarch believed God. He took God at his word.

Commenting on this Old Testament passage, Paul writes: “No unbelief made [Abraham] waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised” (Romans 4:20-21). Abraham wasn’t righteous. Rather he was counted righteous because he trusted God. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves, to the next point.

Nowhere else is God’s covenant faithfulness more clearly displayed than in Christ’s work for us.

The question in the Jewish mind of Jesus and Paul’s day was this: Will God be faithful to the covenant he made with Abraham? Paul found the answer to that question in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As he writes, “[Righteousness] will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification” (Romans 4:23-24). Nowhere else is God’s covenant faithfulness more clearly displayed than in Christ’s work for us.

Saving faith means taking hold of that, resting in God’s faithfulness towards us and finding total assurance in God’s promised salvation.

We are Justified by Faith, Not Works

As I’ve already hinted at in the previous point, saving faith means that we’re justified by faith in Christ. In him, God acted “for our justification” (Romans 4:23-24). Jesus was delivered up for our trespasses, and raised for our justification (Romans 4:25). Earlier, Paul makes this explicit. Quoting David in Psalm 32:1-2 he writes: “To the one who does not work but trusts him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness” (Romans 4:5).

In the next chapter of Romans, Paul continues to unpack this remarkable truth. God reconciles sinners to himself in Christ, by his work. Central to this is God setting us free from sin and death. As the Westminster Confession of Faith puts it: “Christ, by his obedience and death, did fully discharge the debt of all those that are thus justified, and did make a proper, real, and full satisfaction of his Father’s justice in their behalf” (11.3). Christ’s faithfulness to his Father is credited to us, just as he bore our sins.

Saving faith is the conviction that the covenant faithfulness of God in Christ was for our justification.

Saving faith is the conviction that the covenant faithfulness of God in Christ was for our justification. Our faith takes hold of his work and obedience.

Saving Faith Involves Fidelity to God

My third point anticipates a commonly raised objection against justification by faith alone, through Christ alone. While we are not saved by our works, saving faith is the fertile soil out of which gospel fruits grow. In other words, though saving faith is a conviction and belief, it also includes obedience to God. We already saw this, at least in part, in the case of Abraham (above). But we can also illustrate it using Mark 10:17-31.

A rich man was in conversation with Jesus, after running and kneeling before him. Clearly, he was excited, even ecstatic, to meet Jesus. Then he asks what he must do to inherit eternal life. It seems as though he’ll do anything to follow after and know Jesus. But then Jesus commands him to give up his great wealth. At this, the man left sorrowful. For he prized his many possessions above Jesus. Likewise, for us, saving faith means the pursuit of increasing and unwavering submission to God. He must be Lord; not only Saviour.

Saving faith means the pursuit of increasing and unwavering submission to God.

Perhaps this is nowhere made clearer than in the book of James. For Jesus’ half brother says that even demons believe in God, only this doesn’t mean they have the same faith as Abraham (James 2:19-20). James goes on to say that faith that doesn’t produce works is dead (James 2:26). Faith entails fidelity or faithfulness. If true it will express itself practically. Of course, this fidelity isn’t what saves us; Jesus’ righteousness does. However, true saving faith will never be without fruit.

God Graciously Enables Faith

Finally, the Bible consistently teaches that we are incapable of this faith. It is only possible because of the grace of our Lord. Working through Ephesians 2:1-10 both the impossibility of our ability to muster this faith and God’s gracious initiative to make this faith possible becomes apparent. Paul doesn’t only speak about us being disobedience without Christ, but dead in our sins (Ephesians 2:1). Saving faith is in many ways therefore a kind of resurrection (Ephesians 2:5), which theologians have called regeneration.

We are incapable of saving faith. It is only possible because of the grace of our Lord.

In closing then, listen to Ephesians 2:8-9, “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” In many ways those verses summarise my entire article.

LOAD MORE
Loading