Believing in Christ is an important decision. It carries eternal consequences. Today, I want us to join together in considering what it means to believe in Jesus Christ. We want to make sure that all of us are on the same page in what we believe. This will aid those who have made decisions recently. It will also strengthen those who became believers at some point in the past. As we consider what it means to believe I want to ask three questions. The first question is: what are some substitutes for belief? A second question is: what is the evidence that you have truly believed in Jesus? A third question is: what are the results of belief?
Beliefs are important! A little girl was observed by her pastor standing outside the preschool Sunday School classroom between Sunday School and worship, waiting for her parents to come and pick her up for "big church." The pastor noticed that she clutched a big storybook under her arms with the title, "Jonah and the Whale."
Feeling a little playful, he knelt down beside the little girl and began a conversation. "What’s that you have in your hand?", he asked.
"This is my storybook about Jonah and the Whale," she answered.
"Tell me something, do you believe that story about Jonah and that whale to be the truth?"
The little girl implored, "Why of course I believe this story to be the truth!"
He inquired further, "you really believe that a man can be swallowed by a big whale, stay inside him for three days, and come out of there still alive and OK? You really believe all that can be true?"
She declared, "Absolutely, this story is in the Bible and we studied about it in Sunday school today!"
Then the pastor asked, "Well can you prove to me that this story is the truth?"
She thought for a moment and then said, "Well, when I get to Heaven, I’ll ask Jonah."
The pastor then asked, "Well, what if Jonah’s not in Heaven?"
She then put her hands on her little hips and sternly declared, "Then YOU can ask him!" (Contributed by: Sermon Central)
1. The first question: what are some substitutes for belief?
Illustration: Last fall Judy and I made a trip to China. While there we purchased a number of souvenirs and gifts to bring home. We also purchased a number of DVD’s of popular movies. We were told there were many pirated movies sold in the shops. We never gave the warning a second thought. When we got home the first movie we opened could not be viewed. It was pirated and was only legible in Chinese. We found out why the movies were so cheap. They were substitutes for the real thing. Even so, there are some substitutes to real “belief.” I want to mention three.
The first substitute is knowledge. In America there is much knowledge about Jesus. However, knowledge is not the same as belief.
Illustration: I believe in George Washington; however, I do not know him nor have I ever seen him. Believing in George Washington does not make me his friend nor does it make me a relative.
Knowledge is the pathway to belief. There is a verse in II Timothy that might help us with this. Paul said “I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.” (II Tim. 1:12) See the connection. Paul said “I know whom I have believed.” His knowledge fed his belief. You cannot have belief without knowledge. However, knowledge alone is not enough.
A second substitute for belief is agreement. Suppose I say “I believe it is going to rain.” Does my agreement make me a rain drop? Agreement can be forced or coerced. When I was a boy we often played a game where we tried to force our playmates into submission. If we were wrestling and forced our friend into submission we would make him say “uncle” ,before we let him go. You might get a friends arm, pin it behind his back and twist it until he said “uncle.” (Kids can play the cruelest games.) If someone twists my arm and forces me to say uncle I might agree with him but I will not be a happy camper.
A third substitute for belief is religion. In our text Jesus was speaking with a man named Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a leader of the Jewish people. He was a Pharisee. A Pharisee was an expert in the Jewish religious teachings. A Pharisee was equivalent to a lawyer in our legal system. He was very religious. Many religious people have been converted to faith in Christ. Part of my testimony is that I knew all of the books of the Bible before I came to faith in Christ.
Illustration: In recent years they have marketed a number of sugar substitutes. There is splenda, sweet & low and equal, just to mention a few. In my opinion none of them is a substitute for sugar. You cannot beat the sweet taste of sugar. Some people might say, “Once you get accustomed to the taste you will never know the difference.” There is a good analogy here. Once you allow something to substitute for Jesus you will get to where it does not bother you. However, I want to warn you, there is no substitute for Jesus. The Bible says “there is no other name, given under Heaven by which we may be saved.”
2. The second question: what is the evidence that you have truly believed in Jesus?
The first evidence of belief comes from our text (John 3:16). That passage tells us “whoever believes in Him.” You faith must be centered “in” Jesus. Sometimes I will ask a person if they are a Christian. Many people make statements such as: “I walked down the aisle”; “I belong to a church”; “I was christened”; or “I have been through confirmation.” All of these are focused on religious activities. If anyone asks you if you are a Christian, make sure you tell them you have a faith relationship with Jesus Christ. There is a phrase that is often used in the book of Ephesians. It is the phrase “in Christ.” Paul used that phrase because he knew that the central point of the Christian faith is Jesus.
Many people speak of faith in generic terms. You might hear statements such as “I have faith.” Or “I believe in God.” Those are generic terms. Suppose you have cancer and you find out they have developed a sure fire cure for cancer. The cure is in a pill. The doctor tells you to take one pill a day for 12 days. He tells you those pills will cure cancer in 99.9% of cancer patients. After the doctor gives you your instructions you go to the pharmacist to purchase your pills. When you arrive at the pharmacy the pharmacist does not have the prescribed pills. However, he gives you Advil instead. How would you feel? You would be disturbed that the pharmacist would suggest such a change of drugs. Dear friend, when people try to substitute other things for Jesus it disturbs God. True faith is centered in Jesus Christ.
Illustration: There was an occasion when Jesus carried three of His disciples to the top of a mountain. (That is healthy. I believe everybody ought to take a retreat to the mountains on a regular basis.) As Jesus and the disciples arrived at the top of the mountain they were met by Moses and Elijah. Peter, the spokesman for the disciples, was inspired by that sight. To have Jesus, Moses and Elijah in one spot was a phenomenal event. Peter wanted to make three special shrines for each of these three great men. Only problem, two of them were men and one was the son of God. Peter made the mistake of equating Jesus to Moses and Elijah. When he made this mistake a huge cloud overshadowed them and the voice of God came from the cloud and said "This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!’’ (Mk. 9:7) God was teaching Peter a valuable lesson. The lesson was “do not equate Jesus to anyone or anything else. He is distinct. He has the name that is above all others.
A second evidence of belief is repentance. In the Bible we find an occasion when Jesus was preaching. Listen to the words he spoke. "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.’’ Notice the close connection between the words “repent” and “believe.” They are like Siamese twins. There are some things that belong together. To separate them would be incomprehensible. To speak of Alabama football without mentioning Bear Bryant would be unthinkable. To speak of ABC 33/40 without mentioning James Spann would be unthinkable. To speak of Miss America without mentioning beautiful young women would be unthinkable. Some things belong together. In the Bible belief and repentance belong together. Repentance is one of those Biblical words that is hard to understand. The simplest way to understand it is to understand the concept of a “u-turn.” When you repent you make a u-turn in your life. Has there ever been such a change in your life?
A third evidence of belief is measuring the heart. Some people have religious knowledge in the head. Others have it in the heart. God is looking for faith of the heart. The Bible says “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Rom. 10:9) We use the term heart to describe a deep and sincere commitment.
- A man may tell his wife “I love you with all of my heart.”
- It is sometimes said of sports teams “they played with all of their hearts.”
- Jesus said "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Mt. 6:21)
- A man once asked Jesus which was the greatest commandment. He said “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.” (Mk. 12:30)
3. The third question: what are the results of belief?
One result of belief is trust. You trust what God tells you. If God tells you to believe in His son you must trust Him.
Illustration: A man fell off a cliff, but managed to grab a tree limb on his way down. “Is anyone up there?” he cried out. “I am here, I am the Lord, do you believe me?” the voice said. “Yes, Lord I believe, I really believe, but I can’t hang on much longer.” “If you really believe you will be alright, I will save you, just let go of the branch.” The man paused for a moment then said, “is there anyone else up there?” Trust can be challenging
(Contributed to Sermon Central by Jason Cole)
A second result of belief is obedience. Jesus once said "Not everyone who says to Me, `Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.”
Illustration: I read a story, written by a pastor, about a football game involving deaf high school kids. He said, “How in the world are they going to hear the calls for the plays since they are all deaf?” The pastor said it was interesting to see all the players run onto the field and look at the coach and the coach signs the plays. They nod to the coach and then watch the quarterback, he puts his hands down, the ball is snapped and they take off.
This pastor said “the thing that was most intriguing of all is how they substitute players from the sideline. All of them want to play football. But how does the coach make the exchange since they can’t hear? As soon as the play is done and the guy is tackled, all the kids look at the coach. If he does not sign them in, they watch the play and as soon as it is done, they look at the coach again. Friends, if you have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ you should keep your eyes on Him and obey His commands.
(Adapted from Ken Hart’s contribution to Sermon Central)
The third result of belief is assurance. In John 3:16 Jesus said “whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” What assurance did Jesus give us? (eternal life). I referred to I John 5:13 in another sermon. “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.” The key word is the word “know.” John says “that you may know that you have eternal life.”
- Would you get into a car if you thought the car would not crank?
- Would you get into an elevator if you thought it would break down between floors?
- Would you put your money into a bank if you thought the bank was going to go under?
-Would you accept a job if you thought the company was going bankrupt in a few months?
Assurance is an important commodity! When you truly believe in Jesus Christ you will find assurance in your relationship with God.
