How much faith does it take to be saved? Some people think they don’t have enough faith to be saved. Others, who have placed their faith in Christ, doubt their salvation because they fear their faith is too weak. But the answer to this question is that we are saved, not by the strength of our faith, but by the strength of our Savior.
A few Sunday mornings ago, my pastor told a great story about three people on an airplane that illustrates this point very well.
“In the seat by the aisle is a businessman who flies all the time. In the seat in the middle is a student flying on her own for the first time. In the seat by the window is an old lady who has never flown before, and is already vowing that she will never fly again.
As the plane taxis to the runway, the businessman takes out his paper, the student in the middle is slightly on edge, and the old lady is holding onto the seat white-knuckled with fear.
When the lunch is served, the businessman eats the lot, the student eats about half, and the old lady can’t watch. She has her nose in the barf bag. Here’s the amazing thing: All three of them arrive in exactly the same place at precisely the same time, though their flights were enjoyed (or not enjoyed) in varying degrees.
Why? It’s not your degree of confidence, but the trustworthiness of the plane that will get you there.”
In like manner, our arrival in heaven does not depend on the degree of confidence we have in Christ, but on the Christ in whom we have placed our faith. Therefore, if we are in Christ, our destination is secure. Weak faith will get us there just as surely as strong faith, because it is Christ who saves us, not our faith.
Conversely, many people think it's inappropriate and even presumptuous to confidently claim they're saved because everybody still sins. (But didn’t Christ die for sinners?) If you ask these same people if they believe their works or sinlessness saved them in the first place, however, most would emphatically say, "No!" Yet somewhere along the line they were taught to intertwine the salvation message with works. You hear it all the time: "You can't have the one without the other!" Or, "If you don't persevere, then you were never saved in the first place!" It seems the focus is on the believer — it is the believer who perseveres — instead of on Christ. And even though they say it is God's power that is causing them to persevere, the center of attention is still on the believer. But, how many works does it take to prove you're a believer or sins to prove that you're not? There can be very little assurance of salvation if our focus is on us and what we do — because we all still sin. In fact, many who hold to this doctrine have concluded that only those who are presently persevering can be assured of eternal life at that moment, and that those who confidently claim they're saved at all times, are just being presumptuous.
Now it may well be that some are not truly saved — if their lives show absolutely no evidence of faith. But even then, who are we to judge? Only God knows their hearts. Look at it another way, aren't unbelievers able to be kind to their neighbors, be gentle, use self-control, etc. just like believers can? Yet we wouldn't want to assure them of salvation simply because they're demonstrating something that mimics the fruit of the Spirit. When we judge by what we see, we can never be sure we're seeing the whole story. And the truth is, those who have placed their faith in Christ and yet have grown very little over their lifetimes, are just as securely saved as those who are spiritual giants. This does not, of course, give us an excuse to remain mere babes (2 Cor 8:7, 10:15; 1 Thes 3:2; 2 Thes 1:3; Col 2:6-19; Eph 4:1-6; Phil 3:12-21; 1 Pet 2:2; 2 Pet 3:18) or to willfully sin (Rom 6). Let's not forget who we are in Christ (2 Cor 5:17; Gal 3:26; Eph 1:3, 2:10). Be yourself!
Thankfully, salvation does not rest on the strength of our faith (Rom 12:3, 14:1; 1 Cor 2:5), on our works (Gal 3:1-3), or on how little we sin (Rom 7:14-8:4). It never was, nor does it ever become, what we do. Rather, salvation always rests fully on what He did (Jn 3:16, 5:24, 6:47)!
My pastor puts this so well -
“If salvation rested on what you do for God — your praying, your serving, etc. — then assurance would be nothing but pride and presumption.
Salvation does not rest on our work but on Christ’s, not on our righteousness, but His righteousness made ours through His finished work on the cross. Far from exalting ourselves, Christian assurance exalts Christ because it is confidence, not in what we have done for Him, but in what He has done for us.”
Wouldn’t it be great to enjoy full confidence and assurance that you are eternally saved, instead of being miserable and worrying all the time like the old lady on the plane? Scripture is full of this wonderful assurance (e. g., 2 Cor 5:6; Rom 8:1, 38-39; 2 Tim 1:12). Take Him at His Word! Assurance of salvation and eternal life is possible; it only wanes when we take our focus off God, His promise of eternal life, and the finished work of Christ.
You know those cookbooks you get as gifts as a child; the easy-to-follow cookbooks made especially for kids? Well that's where this next recipe came from. I don't remember if it was from my cookbook or my sister's, but this cookie recipe has been a family favorite for years. I remember making and eating them as a kid and they still manage to show up at most family get-togethers today. In our house, our youngest daughter frequently makes them, and let me tell you she's a whiz at it — they always turn out soft and chewy.
