Genesis 12:1-9; Romans 4:1-8, 13-17; John 3:1-17
Even in our post-Christian culture, it’s not really accurate to refer to non-Christians as unbelievers because the vast majority of people around us are believers … in something. They believe in science and medicine to cure their diseases. They believe in therapy and counseling to mend their relationships. They believe in wealth and possessions for security. They believe in all sorts of things, many of which are good, for deliverance, hope, salvation, and comfort. But what they believe in is not enough. It’s not enough to change people’s hearts, it’s not enough to bring them lasting peace, and it’s not enough to keep them from dying. It’s especially not enough to spare them from the judgment and condemnation of the God who created them and called them to be holy — even if they don’t believe in Him.
One of the most common beliefs among us that is definitely not enough is the belief that good people will escape that condemnation. It’s a belief that appeals to our sense of fairness and our natural tendencies to compare ourselves to other people. We consider it only fair that the people who make an effort to do good things should be rewarded. And it is right in our eyes that only the people who do bad things should face punishments. But believing that God will spare “good” people when He insists that we be perfect people won’t spare anyone on the Judgment Day. Believing that good works can save us is not enough to escape God’s justice.
Believing only serves us well if what we believe in can do what we need it to. Believing is only enough when we believe that Jesus Christ is Lord and that He has spared us from judgment and everlasting punishment by grace through faith. Believing this is enough for eternal life. Believing in anyone or anything else puts us under the Law which always “brings wrath.” But, “whoever believes in Him [has] eternal life.” The idea that simply believing this could be enough to escape what we deserve and receive instead life and salvation is, well, hard to believe. Actually, it’s impossible to believe. But what is impossible for us is possible for the Holy Spirit who has worked faith and life in us. Many people believe that this could not be true and that we are simpleminded fools for believing it. But what they believe is not enough to negate the Word and promise of the God who so loved us that “He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”
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