NATURE OF SAVING FAITH

THE NATURE OF SAVING FAITH
 Negatively:

  Not mere intellectual assent - (Rationalist view)

      Acts 8:13 with 18-23 "Simon himself believed"...."Thy heart is not right in the sight of God."

                        Note: But there can be no saving faith without it.

                                    cf. John 8:30-31, 45, 59

                                                (1) 30-31 Intellectual assent

                                                (2) 45 Refused to go into spiritual appropriation & commitment

                                                (3) 59 Demonstrated lack of saving faith by attempting murder.

                        Not a kind of meritorious work - (Romanist view)

                                    Rom. 4:4-5, 16

                                    Faith is an act of grace from God, and not a meritorious work on the part                                       of man. Cf. Eph. 2:5, 8-9 “and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.”

                                    But cf. 1 Thess. 1:3 - Faith works, but is not a work.

                                    Christ, not Faith, is our Savior.

                               But He saves us through faith. Don't have faith in your faith, but in God.

                        Not a  kind of mystical Grace imparted to a passive soul (Quietist view)

                        -           Misrepresents faith - cf. Anderson

                                         -           Based on faulty interpretation of Eph. 2:8 - cf. Robertson, Word Pictures

                        -           Believing not a psychological impossibility for man.

                        -           Problem is moral, not mental - man can believe - 2 Thess. 2:11-12

                             -           The word comes from to be persuaded. It is the persuasion of the human will based on facts of knowledge, concerning things not present to the senses. The facts may be few or many. The persuasion is complete in either case.

                Positively:

                        (1) Saving faith is a way of receiving salvation from God through Christ.

                                    Eph. 2:8

                                    John 3:36

                                    Acts 16:31

                                    "Faith is the hand of the heart" (Godet)

                                 (2) Saving faith is man's act performed under the power of the Spirit. 1 Cor. 12:3

                                 (3) Saving faith is a single act of the whole man.
                                    Rom. 10:9-10

                                    Explain "heart"- refers to whole man, not emotions. Contrast is not                                      between heart and head, it is between the heart and lip (genuine and                                               pretense).

                                                la. Example of Jesus - Ethical.

                                                2a. Information about Jesus - Intellectual.

                                                3a. Substance of Jesus - Mystical, experiential.

              An Analysis:  three distinct elements:

                                 (1) Belief - "I believe" the truth about Christ (Intellectual assent) 1 Cor. 15:1-5                               The Gospel with emphasis on certain facts.

                                    1 John 5:1 Jesus is the Christ. Union of two natures in one person.

                        (2) Appropriation - "I take" - Christ as my Savior.

                                    John 1:12 - "lambano" - not merely accept.

                                    cf. John 6:54 and 35, 44 - "Come", "take", "eat".

                        (3) Committal - "I commit" - my soul to Christ.

                                    2 Tim. 1:12

                                    cf. Usage in Jn. 2:24 "But Jesus did not commit himself unto them."

             Luke 16:11 'Who will commit to your trust the true riches." cf.                                                        prepositions used with pisteuo eis, en, epi

                                    The third aspect is present in all passages dealing with salvation, and its                                          presence implies the presence of the others.

                                    Notes:

                                                a. See John 1:12 for all three elements.

                                                            (1) Believe - intellectual assent

                                                            (2) Received - spiritual appropriation

                                                            (3) On His name - personal commitment.

                                                b. The three great affirmations of saving faith:

                                                            (1) I believe Christ to be the Savior;

                                                            (2) I take Jesus Christ to be my Savior;

                                                            (3) I commit myself to Him for salvation.

                                                c. If "trust" is used for (3), it should be "entrust".

                                                         d. These three elements are present in every act of saving faith ­                                                                    perhaps not consciously present - Illus. of boat.

                                                e. Be careful to emphasize all three elements in preaching.

                                                -           needs of hearers should guide one on this point.

                                                -           guard against lop-sidedness in preaching.

                                                -           above all, do not fail to mention the third aspect.

                                                         f. W. C. Robinson in "The Certainty of the Gospel" - "Faith is the                                                                unlimited willingness to let God do all the saving."