Some people say we must believe that Jesus is the Christ, without necessarily believing in Him for eternal life or any other kind of salvation.
By contrast, we argue that when you believe that Jesus is the Christ—i.e., the Savior—you must have some understanding of the kind of salvation He brings. To believe in Jesus as the Christ is to believe in Him as the One who gives eternal salvation.
Adam and Eve could have lived forever with God. Instead, they brought death into the world. It was understood that the promised Messiah would take care of that fundamental problem.
Here are two passages which strongly suggest that people understood the Messiah is the One Who brought eternal life.
The first example will be familiar to readers of this blog:
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to Him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world” (John 11:25-27).
Jesus asked Martha if she believed Him when He promised that whoever believes in Him “will never die” (i.e., have eternal life). She answered, “Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ.” For Martha, it seems that the title “the Christ” was shorthand for the One Who gives eternal life through faith. Imagine if someone came to you and said, “Do you believe that I am the chief diplomat, chief executive and chief administrator of this country, and commander-in-chief of its armed forces?” You could answer, “Yes, I believe that you’re the President.” The title “President” summarizes those descriptions.
But here’s an even earlier example, from John 6:
Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?” But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (John 6:67-69).
Peter did not want to leave Jesus because He believed Jesus was “the Christ” who had “the words of eternal life.” That is what the Christ does—He preaches words of eternal life, and He gives eternal life to believers.
When you tell people that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior, what kind of salvation do you say He came to bring? Eternal? Or something less?
Woody
Brilliant and succinct!
Rod Norville
Hi Shawn,
In looking at the verses you cite and their context, the issue is not eternal life per se, but rather the identity of Jesus as the Son of God with the authority to grant such life. Martha already believed in the “resurrection at the last day” (Joh 11:23-24). Devout Jews of the Second Temple period generally believed in “the hope and resurrection of the dead,” with the notable exception of the Sadducees. (See Acts 23:5-9) The issue for Martha (and for Peter) centered on the Person of Jesus. Martha’s reply indicated her belief in the person of Jesus as the Son of God and long-promised Messiah. Peter and the twelve had heard Jesus call Himself the Bread of life sent by the Father so that “he who feeds on Me will live because of Me.” (Joh 6:57). Peter believed that Jesus was the Son of God and Bread of life. John the Baptist had asked of Jesus “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?” (Mat 11:2-3). Just as Jesus had told John’s disciples to report all Jesus’ works, Jesus’ response to Martha was to raise her brother from the dead, demonstrating that her belief in Him was not misplaced. “Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him.” (Joh 11:45) At issue was Jesus’ identity as the Son of God. This He affirmed by His words and deeds.
Timothy Grady
Hi Rod .
It sure looks like it could be a both-and , rather than an either-or .
Rod Norville
Hi Timothy,
I am not disagreeing with Shawn. I merely observed that Martha already believed in the resurrection. Jesus wanted her to believe that He was the source of that resurrection, which, as Shawn observed, she confirmed by professing that He was the Son of God. The context of Peter’s response in Joh 6:66-69 as cited by Shawn were Jesus’ words: “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.” (Joh 6:35); “”Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. I am the bread of life.” (Joh 6:47-48); as well as: “”But there are some of you who do not believe. . . . And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.” From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.” (Joh 6:64-66). Once again, the facts of life and resurrection provided by God are not at issue. The object of belief is again the Person of Jesus: Is He the One who comes down from heaven to provide the life and resurrection promised by the prophets, or is He not? In response, Peter voices their collective belief in Jesus as the Son of God, the promised bread of life. These examples involved a Jewish audience. Gentiles need a more contextualized explanation.
Timothy Grady
Thanks Rod .
You agree with Shawn ? Your opening sentence suggests otherwise , unless I’m misreading it .
Simple question : what is it precisely that a person needs to believe in order to be born again ?
Appreciate your time.
Rod Norville
Timothy,
I differ with Shawn only in that he quoted “belief that Jesus is the Christ” without the necessarily related belief that Jesus is the Son of God in the professions of both Martha and Peter. I know what he meant, especially with his explanation of believing in eternal life, but that is fully encompassed by the belief that Jesus is the Son of God. While Jews generally believed that God would resurrect them and that God would send his Anointed One (Messiah or Christ), the two concepts had become separated. Many were looking for a non-divine human messiah who would overthrow the Romans and restore the kingdom of Israel physically and contemporaneously. Simply believing that Jesus was such a messiah would accomplish nothing. Believing that Jesus is the Son of God and the promised Messiah corrects this error. Even so, the full extent of what Jesus would accomplish was not recognized until after the Resurrection. (See Joh 20:1-9; Luk 24:13-33).
As for your question, being “born again” is a work of the Holy Spirit and is a prerequisite for entry into the spiritual realm. Just as the Spirit gave new life to the dead bones in Ezekiel 37, so the Spirit regenerates the one who believes “in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (See Joh 2:24—3:22). Belief in the name is tantamount to believing in the power and authority of the One bearing the name.
Tim Amoroso
In evangelizing, my goal is to point people to Christ and not to myself.
We are to present the truth. The rest is up to God.
And, the truth is,
People no longer have a sin problem.
They have a Son problem.
The Serpant in the wildereness is Jesus. And Jesus is the Christ who gives eternal life to all who simply believe.
So sin is not the issue. They don’t have to change their lives to believe.
So do they believe this?
It’s up to the Holy Spirit at this point.
As Shwan said, Jesus is the Christ who provides all people with eternal life who believe in Him. Let’s lift Him up for the whole world to see.
Great article Shawn. I love it and appreciate it. Keep up the good work. God bless.
Timothy Grady
Thanks Rod .
Does regeneration precede faith ?
Who does the believing – ontologically ?
How would anyone be certain that they have everlasting life ?
Blessings in truth .
Rod Norville
Timothy,
Regeneration is wholly a work of the Holy Spirit. In John 3:1-8 Jesus describes being born again as a prerequisite “to see the kingdom of God” (3:5) and further states “that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (3:6). Jesus likens being born of the Spirit to the unseen mystery of the wind as it blows (3:8). This could be an allusion to the Holy Spirit in Ezekiel 37 where God gathers Breath (ruach) from the four winds (ruach) to breathe on the dead bones so they would live again (37:9-10). God then addresses this resurrected people: “I will put my Spirit (ruach) in you, and you shall live” (37:14). In Acts 10:17-48, this regeneration or rebirth appears to be accomplished at the time of belief in Jesus as the Son of God. Peter was called to preach the Gospel to Cornelius, a Gentile, and his household. Peter did so, in detail, presenting Jesus as God and that ” whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins. While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word.” (Acts 10:43-44).
Ontologically, we as contingent beings must believe in the One Necessary Being, the Godhead. When we believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and that “In Him was life,” we become children of God (John 1:1-13). As a child of God, “we shall always be with the Lord” 1Th 4-16-18). Perception may fail but reality remains (2Ti 2:13).
Timothy Grady
Thanks Rod .
Very well stated .
Appreciate your careful attention to detail .