“We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love which you have for all the saints…
“For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.” (Colossians 1:3-4,9-12 NASB1995)
What is biblical faith in Jesus Christ? Do you know? Are you sure? There is much talk of faith in Jesus, and yet it seems that few actually define what that means, other than they will tell you that if you believe that all your sins are forgiven and now heaven is guaranteed you when you die. But is that true? In part, it is, but not in whole. For that is only a part of the gospel. We need to know that there is more to it than just that, because it matters with regard to where we will spend eternity and what life will be like for us here.
The word “faith” in the Greek is “Pistis,” and it means “to be persuaded,” which in this case, since this faith is authored by God, it comes from God, it is gifted to by God, and it is not of our own doing, it means to be persuaded by God. And what does God persuade us to? He persuades us as to his holiness and righteousness, and of our sinfulness, and of our need to die with him to sin and to now walk in obedience to his commands in holy living. This faith is a gift from God, so it will align with God’s word and will always.
[Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-17; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:23-31; Hebrews 12:1-2]
Therefore, by faith in Jesus Christ we die with Christ to sin, we are reborn of the Spirit of God to new lives in Jesus, free from our slavery (addiction) to sin, and now we walk (in conduct, in practice, with purpose) according to his New Covenant commands, in the power of God. Sin is no longer what we practice, but now righteousness, holiness, and godly living is our practice, by the grace of God, in the power of God living within us. For this faith is not a status but a practice and a lifestyle empowered by God, gifted to us by God.
So, by faith in Jesus Christ we surrender our lives to him to do his will. We are now his possession, and he owns us, and that means that he is now to be the boss of our lives, and not us, and no longer sin. Our lives are now to be committed to the Lord to following him in his ways in doing all that he commands us to do. For to believe in Jesus with this faith, which comes from God, and to love him as we say that we do, it means that we obey him, in practice, and that sin is no longer what we practice. Faith = obedience.
And then, as those who have denied self, died with Christ to sin, and who are now walking in obedience to his commands, by the Spirit, we need to walk (in conduct, in practice) in a manner worthy of (fitting to, suitable to) the Lord, to please him in all respects. And so we need to be students of the Scriptures who study them for ourselves, IN CONTEXT, and who do not rely on other humans to tell us the truth. For there are many charlatans and wolves in sheep’s clothing teaching a false and altered gospel message.
Yet, over again in the Scriptures, we are taught that we must put sin to death and that we must obey our Lord and his New Covenant commands, that our lives should be given over to the Lord as living sacrifices to him, holy and pleasing to God, and that our lives are to be surrendered to the Lord to doing his will. And his will is that we follow him in all ways in which he leads us in doing what he commands, and that we no longer make sin our practice, but now righteousness is what we practice, by God’s grace.
And when we live for the Lord, to do his will, and no longer for our flesh, to please the flesh, we will bear the fruit of righteousness and holiness and of love for God and love for our fellows humans, and God will use us in the lives of other Christians, to encourage them in their walks of faith in obedience to the Lord and to no longer walk in sin, pleasing ourselves. And he will use us to share the truth of the gospel with the people of the world so that many of them will come to believe in him, in truth and in righteousness.
But all this comes from God, and is not of the flesh. We cannot live for the Lord to please him if we are operating in the flesh, and not in the Spirit. So all the good that is in our lives, and that is being accomplished through our obedience to the Lord, comes from God, and is guided and empowered by God, and is not of us. So we get no credit. All the credit belongs to God. He gets all the praise and glory for all the good that is in our lives and that is produced in and through our lives. To God be all the glory!
To God Be the Glory
Lyrics by Fanny J. Crosby, pub. 1875
Music by William H. Doane, pub. 1875
To God be the glory, great things He has done;
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that all may go in.
O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.
Great things He has taught us, great things He has done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory, great things He has done.
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What is Biblical Faith?
An Original Work / April 25, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
