Believe That Jesus Christ Is That Savior!

“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

    Acts 16:30-31

Once we realize our own spiritual depravity and need for a Savior, it’s time to move to the “B” in the ABC’s of salvation. The word is “believe” and it’s important that we understand what the Bible is saying about what it means to truly “believe.”

Words Matter

The words “faith” and “believe” come from the same root word in the original Greek. This is important because they can be interchanged. To “have faith” is “to believe” and “to believe” is to “have faith”. “Believing” is more than just believing that God exists. “Believing” is more than just believing that Jesus walked the earth some 2000 years ago. At the core of believing, that leads to eternal salvation, is “to trust.” 

If we were to see our adult child head off to a big job interview, we might say something like, “Go get ‘em, we believe in you.” We aren’t saying to our child that we believe that they exist, we are saying that we know they have what it takes to perform well in the interview and land the job. Similarly, when we see someone running a marathon, we line the street and, as they pass by, we might yell, “Good job! We believe in you!” Again, we aren’t saying that we believe that they exist. We are saying that we believe that they can finish the race. In both circumstances, true believing means we believe that the person is capable of doing what they are setting out to do. And with God, to believe, means that we believe He is who He says that He is and that He is capable of saving us as we place our faith in Jesus Christ and what He did for us on the cross. 

And that brings us to a very important point…the object of our faith is key! When we say that we have faith, what are we really saying? Faith in what? Faith in who? Faith is only capable of saving our soul if the object of our faith is rightfully placed. Faith in Jesus Christ and the cross is the only reasonable Person in which to place our faith. It’s not faith in ourselves or our abilities. It’s not faith in our parents or our spouse or the pastor. Saving faith only comes to those who rightfully trust in Jesus Christ alone for their salvation. Good works don’t even come into play in our being rescued and saved (Romans 3:28). Good works come out of our life as a result of salvation, not in order for us to be saved (Ephesians 4:22-24). 

What It Truly Means To “Believe” 

So what does it mean to truly believe? This is where the Amplified Bible helps us a lot. When we believe with a saving faith, capable of giving us eternal life, three things are actually happening. 

First, believing in Jesus means having a personal trust in Him, not only for your salvation but for your life. When we are saved, we trust Jesus with our family, our finances, our entire lives. We become followers of Jesus, a life in which He is now the leader and not ourselves. This is what Jesus is saying when He declares:

And He (Jesus) was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”

      Luke 9:23

Trusting in Jesus with a personal trust means following Him. Some, in today’s modern culture, want God to bless them as they live as they please. But true faith means that we relinquish any rights to our own life and begin to live our lives for Christ. And that brings us to our second characteristic of true faith or “believing.”

When we place our trust in Jesus, we are also confidently surrendering our life to Him.  Not only are we following Jesus, we want what He wants, we move in the directions in which He guides us. The Proverbs says it this way:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding.In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil.It will be healing to your body
and refreshment to your bones.

            Proverbs 3:5-8

Surrendering our lives to Christ means that we trust Him and not our own understanding. We acknowledge Him in everything that we do and follow Him as He guides our paths. We no longer consider ourselves as wise but we reject the world and its ways in order to serve Christ wholeheartedly. 

And finally, believing with a saving faith means that we have a firm reliance on God. Consider the words of Paul:

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

  Philippians 4:4-7

When we rely on God, we can be free to rejoice in life, knowing that He is our ultimate Protector and Provider. Relying on God for everything that we need in this life gives us the freedom and time to focus on Him and the kingdom (Matthew 7:11, Colossians 3:2-3). As we accomplish what He has called us to do in this life, we can know that we are storing up for ourselves treasure in heaven (Matthew 6:19-21). 

Truly believing in Jesus Christ for our salvation means trusting what He did on the cross as sufficient for our eternal salvation then surrendering our lives to Him, demonstrating that we truly belong to Him (2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 4:22-24). 

Only Jesus

Believing in Jesus is also recognizing that the only way for anyone to be saved is through faith in Him and what He accomplished on the cross ( 2 Corinthians 5:19, Colossians 1:13-14). Consider this:

It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all.

  1 Timothy 1:15

and…

And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.

Acts 4:12

Jesus came to save you and me. He came to save sinners, which is the spiritual dilemma of the entire human race. But there is only one name given to mankind by which we can be saved. Those who entertain other names, religions, and philosophies, other than faith in Christ, miss out on eternal salvation. Jesus reminds us that access to the Father and to heaven comes only through Him:

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”

John 14:6

There is only one God and He is only offering one way of salvation, faith in His Son Jesus Christ (John 3:18). And there is good reason for this:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

      John 1:1-3

The “Word” is this passage is Jesus Christ. “All things came into being through Him (Jesus).” If it were not for Jesus, we wouldn’t even exist. That’s why the Christian faith is not an option, it’s the only way. Our very existence is because of Jesus Christ and in Him we find the only way to eternal life!

For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

          Philippians 2:9-11

Jesus is the name which above all other names. There is power in the name of Jesus. It literally means, “God saves.” Speak the name of Jesus…there is power in His name. Pray in the name of Jesus…there is power in His name. The darkness has to flee in the name of Jesus! And one day, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord! Even those who spent a lifetime hurling insults at Him and those who belong to Him, they, too, will bow and confess. For those who belong to Christ, who praise and declare His name now, it will be a glorious day. For those outside of Christ, it will be too late. 

Jesus: God Incarnate

…although He (Jesus) existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,

Philippians 2:6-9

The reason Jesus has been given the name that is above all names is that He “emptied Himself” on our behalf and “became obedient to the point of death,” also on our behalf. This is the only sacrifice that God recognizes for the salvation of mankind. Any philosophy or religion other than recognizing the sufficiency of the cross is promoting mere works, entirely powerless to save anyone. And yes, Jesus is God in human flesh. There is only One God but He exists in three Persons. “Not regarding equality with God a thing to be grasped,” has been misinterpreted by many. This actually means that Jesus didn’t use His position in heaven as a means to refuse to come to earth. In Christ, God was actually taking care of our sin problem and our spiritual dilemma Himself. This verse says it well: 

…namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

        2 Corinthians 5:19

There is only One God and only one way in which anyone can be saved and that is through faith in the name of Jesus, the name that is above all other names. This is why Paul, when faced with the question, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”, could respond, “Believe in the name of the Lord Jesus and you will be saved.” 

So once we have recognized our spiritual depravity and need for a Savior, we then need to recognize that such a Savior does exist and that His name is Jesus! And that will lead us to the final step in receiving salvation in Jesus Christ…actually talking to God and asking Him for it!