What is belief in God? You may know OF Him, but do you actually KNOW Him? [Spirituality & Religion]
Can a person believe in some sense, but not be saved?
There are different levels of belief, and different objects of belief, and not all that’s called “belief” is actually saving faith. James 2:19 says, “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” So, if a person simply believes that there is a God in heaven—and that’s the extent of his faith—then he has exactly the same faith as the demons of hell. That’s not saving faith, even though it involves a measure of belief. Therefore, yes, a person can “believe” in some sense, but not be saved.
Believing is so much more than head knowledge. It is Heart knowledge, and a desire to turn from your sins and follow Jesus. It’s like the husband who desires and believes that his wife has given full commitment and love to him, and not just half her heart, however, the real proof, is in her actions, which reflect what’s truly in her heart for her husband. The manner in which we talk and conduct our daily lives...the way we love and serve Jesus after we are saved, reflects our love for Him. Someone who loves Jesus, does not serve Him out of obligation, but from the deep love, he or she feels in their heart for Him.
It is quite possible for a person to have an initial positive response to the gospel without being saved. He may feel his heart stirred at the stories about Jesus. He may even identify with Christ through baptism and church membership and get involved in ministry—all the while not being born again. We see instances of this in Scripture (Matthew 7:21–23; 13:24–30) and in everyday life.
We can illustrate the disconnect between some kinds of “belief” and saving faith this way: many Americans are overweight, and at the same time there are thousands of weight-loss products available. People will see an infomercial about the latest home exercise equipment, and they say, “That’s just what I need!” and they buy the equipment. They receive their purchase and eagerly use it—for a couple of weeks. Six months later it’s back in the box packed away somewhere. What happened? They believed in a product, but it wasn’t the type of belief that led to lower body weight. Nothing really changed in their lives. They had an initial positive response, but rather than possessing genuine “faith,” so to speak, they were merely indulging a passing fancy. People do this with Christ as well (see Matthew 13:5–7).
In Matthew 7:21–23 Jesus says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Notice here that these people were actively involved in ministry, but they were not genuine believers. They had faith of a sort—they acknowledged who Jesus is—but they had no relationship with Him. Jesus does not say that at one time He knew them, but then He later rejected them. No. He says, “I never knew you.” In other words, they were never saved to begin with!
Even Judas is never presented as a disciple who lost his salvation; rather, he is one who had never truly believed unto salvation (see John 6:64).
God knows our hearts. We, however, cannot see the hearts of other people, and may often be deceived about our own hearts, as well. That’s why Paul writes, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?” (2 Corinthians 13:5). If we want confidence about our spiritual situation, we need to do more than look back to some words we said in the past when we “accepted Christ”; we need to also examine our current condition to see if there is evidence of God’s work in our lives today—changing us from within, convicting us of sin, and drawing us to repentance.
God is no fool, nor can He be fooled. He knows our heart, our motives, our intentions. We reap what we sow. Commitment, faith, and faithfulness, will!
The epistle of 1 John is important because it provides many signs of saving faith, so that we can know that our faith is genuine (see 1 John 5:13). Also, believers have the gift of the Holy Spirit, and “the Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children” (Romans 8:16).
There are different levels of belief, and different objects of belief, and not all that’s called “belief” is actually saving faith. James 2:19 says, “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.” So, if a person simply believes that there is a God in heaven—and that’s the extent of his faith—then he has exactly the same faith as the demons of hell. That’s not saving faith, even though it involves a measure of belief. Therefore, yes, a person can “believe” in some sense, but not be saved.
Believing is so much more than head knowledge. It is Heart knowledge, and a desire to turn from your sins and follow Jesus. It’s like the husband who desires and believes that his wife has given full commitment and love to him, and not just half her heart, however, the real proof, is in her actions, which reflect what’s truly in her heart for her husband. The manner in which we talk and conduct our daily lives...the way we love and serve Jesus after we are saved, reflects our love for Him. Someone who loves Jesus, does not serve Him out of obligation, but from the deep love, he or she feels in their heart for Him.
It is quite possible for a person to have an initial positive response to the gospel without being saved. He may feel his heart stirred at the stories about Jesus. He may even identify with Christ through baptism and church membership and get involved in ministry—all the while not being born again. We see instances of this in Scripture (Matthew 7:21–23; 13:24–30) and in everyday life.
We can illustrate the disconnect between some kinds of “belief” and saving faith this way: many Americans are overweight, and at the same time there are thousands of weight-loss products available. People will see an infomercial about the latest home exercise equipment, and they say, “That’s just what I need!” and they buy the equipment. They receive their purchase and eagerly use it—for a couple of weeks. Six months later it’s back in the box packed away somewhere. What happened? They believed in a product, but it wasn’t the type of belief that led to lower body weight. Nothing really changed in their lives. They had an initial positive response, but rather than possessing genuine “faith,” so to speak, they were merely indulging a passing fancy. People do this with Christ as well (see Matthew 13:5–7).
In Matthew 7:21–23 Jesus says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Notice here that these people were actively involved in ministry, but they were not genuine believers. They had faith of a sort—they acknowledged who Jesus is—but they had no relationship with Him. Jesus does not say that at one time He knew them, but then He later rejected them. No. He says, “I never knew you.” In other words, they were never saved to begin with!
Even Judas is never presented as a disciple who lost his salvation; rather, he is one who had never truly believed unto salvation (see John 6:64).
God knows our hearts. We, however, cannot see the hearts of other people, and may often be deceived about our own hearts, as well. That’s why Paul writes, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?” (2 Corinthians 13:5). If we want confidence about our spiritual situation, we need to do more than look back to some words we said in the past when we “accepted Christ”; we need to also examine our current condition to see if there is evidence of God’s work in our lives today—changing us from within, convicting us of sin, and drawing us to repentance.
God is no fool, nor can He be fooled. He knows our heart, our motives, our intentions. We reap what we sow. Commitment, faith, and faithfulness, will!
The epistle of 1 John is important because it provides many signs of saving faith, so that we can know that our faith is genuine (see 1 John 5:13). Also, believers have the gift of the Holy Spirit, and “the Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children” (Romans 8:16).
