The Necessity of Believing in Jesus Christ

As a pastor, I am sometimes asked about the Jewish people today who believe the Old Testament, but not the New Testament. Are they saved? The Bible is clear on this. When Jesus Christ came, God revealed Himself as a triune God--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. There are hints of this in the Old Testament. But it was not revealed until Christ came. Now that God has revealed Himself as a triune God, He holds man accountable to believe in His triunity. In fact, the New Testament speaks many times of the necessity of believing in Jesus as the Christ and the unique Son of God. This morning I came across one such verse. 2 John 9 says, "Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son" (ESV). In other words, now that Christ has come, if a person does not believe and follow the teaching of Jesus, they neither truly know God nor are in relationship with God nor can receive His greatest blessings. This reminds me of 1 John 5:11-12, which says, "And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life" (ESV). Now that Christ has come, eternal life is found only in relationship with Jesus. The reason for this is that it is Jesus Christ who died on the cross for our sins. There is no salvation apart from Jesus and the blood He shed for those who will believe in Him. The good news is that He graciously invites all to believe in Him for salvation!

Being a Doer of the Word of God

The last two Sundays I preached Luke 8:1-21, in which Jesus teaches about being a doer of the Word of God. Such a person is one who believes the Word, holds fast to it, and bears fruit with perseverance. I spoke about the importance of applying to our life every passage we read or hear preached, which is what Jesus is getting at. To be someone who is responsive to the Word, we need to understand the various ways in which God wants His Word to affect our lives. There is much more to the Word of God than commands to be obeyed. So there is much more to being responsive to the Word than obeying the commands. Below is a list of 8 questions that are helpful for discerning the way that God intends for us to respond to any passage of Scripture:

1. Is there a truth about God for which to worship Him?

In Exodus 34:6-8, the Lord revealed Himself to Moses, saying He is “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth.” Moses’ response was to worship the Lord. We also should worship Him for any truth about Him revealed in a passage we are meditating upon.


2. Is there a truth to believe?

For example, Romans 6:1-11 teaches that we who believe in Christ have died with Christ to sin and are alive in Christ to God. It teaches us this truth so that we will believe it, and so that believing this truth we will not live in sin. Actively believing this truth is an essential way to apply the passage to our life.


3. Is there a theological error to avoid?

Galatians 5:1-4 warns against seeking to be justified by obeying God’s law. Avoiding this error, and any other error Scripture warns against, is an essential type of application.


4. Is there an example for me to follow or avoid?

1 Corinthians 10:1-11 says God’s punishments of the Israelites for their sins that are recorded in the Old Testament, happened as an example so that we would not repeat the same sins. God intends that we will avoid the negative examples and follow the good examples in Scripture.


5. Is there a command to obey?

Some of the commands in Scripture are not for us, such as circumcision, which was only for the Israelites. But many of the commands in Scripture are there so that we will obey them, especially the commands of Jesus and the commands in the epistles. After Jesus gave such commands He asked, “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46).


6. Is there a promise to claim?

For example, in John 14:2-3 Jesus promised believers, “I go to prepare a place for you,” and “I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.” If you are a believer, an essential application of this passage is to believe this promise.


7. Is there a condition to meet?

For example, 1 John 5:14-15 teaches that if we ask anything according to God’s will, He hears us and we will have the requests which we have asked from Him. The condition given for answered prayer is asking according to God’s will. So an essential application of this passage is to seek to pray according to God’s will.


8. Is there a prayer to repeat?

1 Thessalonians 3:11-13 is a prayer of Paul for the believers in Thessalonica. This and many of the other prayers in the Bible are examples for us of how God wants us to pray. Following these examples is one way in which God intends for us to apply them to our life.


The next time you read the Bible devotionally, ask these eight questions of the passage you are reading. Then respond to the passage appropriately, in the power of the Spirit, for the glory of God. Remember Jesus' promise of blessing upon those who are doers of the Word of God: "So take care how you listen; for whoever has [whoever is faithful to respond appropriately to the Word], to him more shall be given."