Join us for the final post on believing, part of the bigger series of posts on salvation.
There are many New Testament verses that reference believing as it relates to salvation. The verses below are from the NASB.
These four verses make it very clear that we’re not saved by our works, but by our faith.
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 as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Romans 3:28-30 For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since indeed God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith is one.
Gal 2:15-17 “We are Jews by nature and not sinners from among the Gentiles; nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified. But if, while seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have also been found sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Far from it!
Romans 9:30-33 What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith; but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written, “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.”
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Keeping the previous passages in mind, the following verses add a bit more to the concept of salvation as it relates to faith.
John 1:12-13 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
James 2:24-26 You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
John 3:36 He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
Acts 11:13-18 And he reported to us how he had seen the angel standing in his house, and saying, ‘Send to Joppa and have Simon, who is also called Peter, brought here; and he will speak words to you by which you will be saved, you and all your household.’ And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as He did upon us at the beginning. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how He used to say, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ Therefore if God gave to them the same gift as He gave to us also after believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?” When they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God, saying, “Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life.”
Is Acts 11:13-18 saying that we’re saved by the work of repentance, or is it saying that repentance isn’t a work, and that it’s necessary for salvation?
Romans 10:8-13 ”But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Is Romans 10:8-13 saying that we’re saved by the work of confessing Jesus as Lord, or is it saying that confessing Jesus as Lord isn’t a work, and that it’s necessary for salvation?
Mark 16:16 He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.
Gal 3:26-27 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
Are Mark 16:16 and Galatians 3:26-27 saying that we’re saved by the work of baptism, or are they saying that baptism isn’t a work, and it’s necessary for salvation? (In a later post, we’ll be discussing if this refers to water baptism, baptism of the Holy Spirit, or both.)
So here’s the big question, do these verses about faith ‘and’ cancel out the verses that say we’re saved by faith and not works? No. We’re under the covenant of the new covenant, but New Testament verses don’t just cancel each other out. That’s the human behavior (sin) of picking and choosing which verses to follow.
So how can the verses about faith alone (saved by faith, not works) reconcile with the verses that say faith ‘and’? The only logical answer is that repentance, confessing Jesus as Lord, and baptism aren’t works, since the Bible doesn’t contradict itself.
Some people get angry just reading those words, but we need to take a clear view of the Bible as a whole, removing our cultural lens. This means that we aren’t allowing our interpretation to be biased by our upbringing or what we’ve heard others claim about salvation. Taking a clear and open view of scripture is spiritual maturity.
Are you ready to dive deep into scripture? Read my upcoming posts for more on the topic of salvation.