"Just believe that Jesus is the Son of God and he rose from the dead," is a common answer. But is it biblical? Is that true? If I simply believe that Jesus was God's son and he didn't stay dead then that's really all it takes to have my sins forgiven?
Not exactly.
In James 2:19 we see that even demons believe correct facts about God. But they are not reconciled to God because they believe facts.
Numerous times in the gospels we witness a demon, when confronted by Jesus, ascribing to him names like "Son of God" or "Holy one of God." (See Matt. 8:29; Luke 4:34; Luke 8:28) Demons obviously will not be saved so it cannot be sufficient just to believe the fact that Jesus is the Son of God.
Satan would most certainly agree that the following statements are true:
- Jesus is the Son of God
- The universe was created through Jesus' power
- Jesus lived a sinless life
- Jesus died on the cross
- Jesus rose again after three days
- Jesus ascended into Heaven and is there now, alive
- Jesus will come back again one day
But simply believing these things to be true is not enough to save Satan.
No, faith is about more than just believing facts.
One helpful way to think about this is to differentiate assent from trust.
Some people when they speak of "faith" are really speaking of "assent," or simply agreeing that a certain set of facts is true. That's what Satan and demons are doing.
But when the Bible calls us to have "faith" or "believe" in Jesus, like in John 3:16, it means something more than assent. God is calling us to trust Jesus, to place our faith in him. Doing that means much more than just believing facts. Trusting in Jesus changes you and affects your actions.
Take the men in Mark 2:3-4. They trusted in Jesus' power to heal their friend so they went to the trouble of putting him on a mat and lowering him down through the roof.
Or take James and John, who risked their entire way of life because they trusted in Jesus (Luke 5:10-11).
So the next time you're sharing the gospel with someone, make sure you clarify what it means to put your faith in Jesus, otherwise they may think faith requires no more than what demons or Satan do.
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