Some say "Salvation: So easy a cave man could do it" but I think this is false. Salvation is a VERY hard thing to accomplish for various reasons (If it were so easy why did it take the death of God Himself to secure it?). For one thing, the deadness of man in sin causes us to require a new birth in order to be saved. This new birth is a supernatural work of God alone that some have said "exceeds the power of God displayed in the creation of the universe." But there is another thing that makes salvation so hard and that is what it requires: Faith.
Faith is simple yet complex. I think it's safe to say that faith is a mystery of itself. It is such a simple requirement, and yet it costs its possessor everything. It transforms lives and goes completely against human nature. The Roman Catholics and other belief systems within as well as outside of Christianity have defined faith in two parts.
1. Knowledge of a thing.
2. Assent to it.
This is also the belief of non-biblical sects within Christianity that believe that one can have faith with no affect on the person's life. To these as well as the RCC, faith is mental assent to some kind of truth. This mental assent does not necessarily have to affect the life of the individual. It is mere hollow belief. It is this type of faith that James spoke of when he said "You believe there is one God; you do well. Even the demons believe, and tremble." It is clear that mental assent does not save. The Protestant (and, I believe, the Biblical definition) adds one thing onto the end of this equation. Faith in the orthodox Christian mind goes like this:
1. Knowledge of a thing.
2. Assent to it.
3. Trust in it.
It is the third point that defines faith. Knowledge and mental assent to God is not enough; one must trust in God and what he says. Faith reads of Christ being "pierced for our transgressions, and crushed for our iniquities" (Isaiah 53) and responds in absolute trust in that sacrifice, being confident of inclusion in it. Hebrews puts it this way: "Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1). In other words, faith has confident assurance in what God has said even though the thing is "not seen." This is especially true of the gospel. One is left helpless and, logically, unable to be saved through the knowledge of the law but by faith one has assurance that another has kept the law for Him and atoned for His sin; Jesus Christ. But it can also be said of any Biblical revelation.
And this is where faith gets really hard. Believing the gospel and giving up on self-righteousness is a miracle in itself but it doesn't get any easier from there. By faith we are called not to lean on our own understanding. When joining in on the fun of the world seems so fulfilling to our needs and wants, God calls us to have faith that His ways are truly fulfilling. When a marriage is not going well and communication isn't happening between two people, it takes faith in God's goodness not to turn aside to the beautiful, talkative secretary at work. When an unbiblical TV show is on, one must believe that denying that lust is the better way to go based on the mere fact that a good, wise and loving God has spoken.
So the question becomes in regard to any situation: Do you believe God? It is indeed the hardest thing to do to abandon human wisdom, desires and ambitions and humbly trust in the will and wisdom of another. But what we have to remember, friends, is the character of the one we are called to trust in. If we can get a glimpse of the power, love and goodness of God one can see that trusting in His ability to justify the ungodly as well as regulate our daily lives is the only logical thing to do. May we base our entire lives on this truth: God has spoken.
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