*Daring Faith Part 4 WHAT IT MEANS TO BELIEVE IN JESUS T.R.U.S.T. *Look at Acts 16:31 Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved NIV A lot of people would say, I believe in the Lord Jesus but they are not going to heaven. They are going to miss heaven by eighteen inches because they believe with their head but not with their heart. There is a big difference. We need to understand the word believe in its Biblical context. Biblical belief is much more than just intellectual belief. Would it surprise you if I told you that even the devil believes there is a God and he believes that Jesus is the Son of God? That s why he put Jesus on the cross and killed him. *Look at James 2:19 Are there still some among you who hold that "only believing" is enough? Believing in one God? Well, remember that the demons believe this too-so strongly that they tremble in terror! TLB The demons believe so strongly in the existence of God they tremble in terror! But you re not going to find any demons in heaven. Why? Because Biblical belief is more than just head knowledge. We get a better understanding of the meaning of word believe when we look at the original language. *The word translated belief in Greek is the word pisteuo. It means more than just knowing about something. *It means to trust in, rely on, adhere to, and commit to. There is a big difference between Biblical belief and just having a head knowledge. Biblical belief is a commitment of your heart. Let s look at five expressions of the heart that reveal what it means to believe in Jesus. This a good opportunity to examine what kind of belief you have. *We are going to use the acrostic TRUST to help us remember what biblical belief is. TS Believing in the Lord Jesus means *Turning everything over to Jesus. It means turn your whole life over to Jesus; the good, the bad, the ugly, all your hopes and dreams. It means turn over your past, your present, and your future. It means giving Him my finances, my relationships, and my body.
Page 2 of 5 If I intentionally give God only part of my life, that is not biblical belief and I am not going to heaven. For example, if someone says, I will try to live a good life and help my neighbor out but I am not going to be a follower of Jesus and try to obey all the Scripture. I will obey some of it, but not all of it. I am going to live my life my way. That person will not be in heaven. Lord is not a word we use any more so we have trouble understanding what is required to be saved. I must recognize and receive Jesus as the boss of my life, but He is more than just a boss. I owe Him total obedience. He must be the God of my life. If I quit following Jesus, that is an indication that I never believed in Him. If you know someone that joined a church when they were younger, but now they are not living for Christ, that is an indication that they were never a believer. *Look at 1 John 2:19 They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. NIV So believing in Jesus means making Him the God of my life and turning everything over to Him and it means *Relaxing in God s love. Believing in Jesus means relaxing in God s love. The opposite of relaxing is working. You don t have to earn God s love and you do not work for your salvation. It is a free gift. We have all been conditioned to think that nothing is free. But the Bible gives us a different message. When you believe in Jesus, you receive God s unconditional love and His free gift of eternal life. Jesus paid the penalty for all your sin on the cross so He could provide you with the free gift of eternal life. You don t have to pay for eternal life. Your salvation is not based on what you do, but on what Jesus has done. *Look at Romans 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? *Romans 8:38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor
Page 3 of 5 depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. NIV To have true security, you must put your trust in something that can never be taken from you. You can lose you money, you can lose your home, you can lose your family and friends, and you can lose your life. One day we will lose all of that. But if you believe in Jesus, you will never be separated from the love of God in Christ Jesus. TS Believing in Jesus means relaxing in God s love and it means *USING MY LIFE TO SERVE GOD BY SERVING OTHERS. We are saved to serve. That is why Jesus brings you on His team and into the church. The greatest service you can do for anyone is to point them to Jesus. *Jesus said, Follow me and I will make you fishers of men. Matthew 4:19 NIV If you are not fishing for men, you are not a follower, if you are not a follower, you are not a believer. If I have no desire to point people to Jesus, I have every reason to doubt that I m a believer. God did not come to earth and die on a cross and pay for all my sins just so I could live a selfish life that is all about me! God has a wonderful plan for your life and that plan involves serving God by serving others. Jesus taught us that every time we do something good for someone in need it is the same as doing it for Jesus himself. *Matthew 25:40 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' NIV Your life was given to you to make a difference in the world. There is no greater thrill than being used by God to change the world. If I claim to be a believer in Jesus Christ, but I have no desire to serve God by serving others, then I have every reason to doubt that I m a believer. *Look at James 2:19 Are there still some among you who hold that "only believing" is enough? 20 Fool! When will you ever learn that "believing" is useless without doing what God wants you to? Faith that does not result in good deeds is not real faith. TLB
Page 4 of 5 Believing in Jesus means Using my life to serve God by serving others and it means... *Suffering for doing what s right. This is a hard one for us understand, but when we look at the life of Jesus Christ it helps us. Jesus lived a perfect life. He never sinned. He never did anything wrong, He only did good. That s why he could pay for your sin and mine on the cross. But even though Jesus was perfect, not everybody liked Him. They misjudged Him, maligned Him, hated Him, and wanted Him dead. Why did people hate Jesus and want to kill Him even though He was perfect? Evil hates good. Darkness hates light. Wrong hates right. Believing in Jesus means recognizing that some people hated Jesus and wanted him dead and if you follow Him, they will feel the same way about you. If you believe in Jesus, you should expect people to react to you the same way they did Jesus. *John 15:18 "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. NIV Let me give you an example. ILL Charlie s boss came to his job site and told all the men he wanted to take them out to dinner at Hooters for doing such a good job. Charles thanked his boss for the invitation but told him he did not think Hooters was a good place for him to go. The boss decided to take them all out to a more wholesome restaurant. Some of the mem were very angry at Charlie because he spoke up. People suffer for doing the right thing all the time just because they are Christians. *Philippians 1:29 For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him, NIV Believing in Jesus means Suffering for doing what s right and... *Trusting what God says. If Jesus says to do it, then I do it. What I can t do is pick and choose from the Bible. I can t say, I like that verse so I m going to follow it but I don t like that one; so I m not going to follow it. That s not what a true believer does. A true believer says, God said it, that settles it.
Page 5 of 5 *Jesus said in John 14:15 "If you love me, you will obey what I command. NIV The commandments are given to us because they are what is best for us. In my work, in my marriage, in my relationships, and in every area of my life obeying God makes life better. Not obeying God always causes harm. Believing in Jesus means believing in the promises of God. When you re going through the dark days, the tough days, the days of doubt, the days of depression, the days when you can t see forward;hold on to these promises. Believing in Jesus means believing what God says. Challenge: That is what it means to believe in Jesus. Is that your heart s desire? *Have you believed in Jesus as your Savior and God? Ask him to be your Savior and God. He wants to come into your life and give you new life and eternal life.