If you have the faith that accepts Jesus as Prophet, Priest and King, you have a saving faith, a faith that is a gift of God.
For those that "Believe in"or those who have a true faith in, there will be a dependence. It does not simply mean you believe, it means to trust, to confide in, to commit to, entrust with. Let me ask, is your faith that you have in Christ one of reliance, and trust?
I know you can say this statement to a child of God, more so then to a sinner:
- I do not believe in Jesus Christ because I am persuaded that His blood was shed for me, but rather I discover that His blood was shed especially for me from the fact that I have been led to believe in Him.
I am afraid there are thousands of people who believe Jesus died for them, who are not born of God. Not everyone who believes Jesus died for them, is born of God. There are some who believe that Jesus died for everyone. This is called universal atonement.
Now I believe those who put their faith in Christ, as Christ has intended faith to mean will be saved.. Biblical saving faith is putting your trust in Christ
I find that whosoever trusts Christ shall be saved, I therefore trust Him, and having done so, I learn from His Word that I am the object of His special love, and that I am born of God.
It’s true when I first come to Christ, I can have no knowledge of any personal and special interest in the blood of Jesus, but since it is written:
- "God hath set Him forth to be a propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."
I come and trust myself to that propitiation; sink or swim I cast myself on the Savior, Son of God. Those whosoever have such faith as this are born of God. He has true faith which is proof positive of the new birth.
This faith that we are asked to believe is not something we just say "I am saved, for I have such a charming feeling, or I have had a fantastic dream. I have felt very magnificent sensations. Whereas all such may be nothing but mere assumption.
JUST AS I AM WITHOUT ONE PLEA
- You know that song I have sung 1000 times at least:
- " Just as I am - - without one plea
But that thy blood was shed for me."
I can hear Allen Nunnenkamp sing that song at FBC.
It is surely appropriate for a child of God, to sing this song, but I am not sure as to its being the precise way for putting the matter for a sinner.
"I do not believe in Jesus because I am persuaded that his blood was shed for me, but rather I discover that His blood was shed especially for me from the fact that I have been led to believe in Him." Spurgeon
There is no doubt that there are 1000's of people who believe that Jesus died for them, who are not born of God, but rather are hardened in their sin by their groundless hopes of mercy.
There is no definite efficacy (virtue) in a man’s assuming that Christ has died for him; for it is a mere truism, if it’s true as some teach, that Jesus died for everybody. On such a theory, then every believer in a universal atonement would necessarily be born of God, which is very far from being the case. If every one that believed that Jesus died for them, but did not have true faith for salvation, then the blood of Christ was not shed for every one that said they believed that Jesus did die for them.
When the Holy Spirit leads (note that word) us to rely upon Christ, the truth that God gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him might be saved, is opened up to our souls, and we see that for us who are believers, Jesus died with the special purpose that we should be saved..
For the Holy Spirit to assure us that Jesus shed His blood for us in particular is one thing, but merely to conclude that Jesus died for us on the notion He died for everybody is as far as the east is from the west, from being real faith in Jesus Christ.
One can have the faith that Jesus died for them, and they are not born again. They may say, "yes Jesus died for everyone on the cross." Most people do believe that-- many preachers preach that. So a sinner might say, "Yes, Jesus died for everyone; therefore, I am going to heaven." And in fact they have not been born again. To have human faith in Jesus is not saving faith.
Drafted by Charles E. Whisnant Proof Read by Charity
