Justification by Faith: What is Faith?
Isaiah 53:11: By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many.
By Richard Bacon

The Text as edited, Copyright 2002 © First Presbyterian Church of Rowlett

Outline

I. Background to Justification

A. In Scripture calling precedes faith

B. Yet Scripture emphasizes that we are saved through faith alone

C. Faith is not a condition of our justification

II. What is faith?

A. Sometimes the term "faith" is used to mean fidelity

B. Sometimes faith stands for the objective truth which we believe

C. Some faith is not justifying faith

1. Historical Faith

2. Temporary faith

3. Miraculous faith

4. Justifying faith requires a commitment

III. Actions of faith

A. We must know

1. Faith is related to the Word of God

2. Faith requires a confession

3. Knowledge and understanding are enjoined

4. Ignorance is the mother of error

B. We must assent to what we understand

C. We must trust (Practical assent)

D. We must seek Refuge

E. We must receive or embrace Christ

F. Reflexive faith is persuaded

G. Reflexive faith is consoled

We have been studying the person and work of Jesus Christ as his person and work are exhibited here in the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah.Note Because verse 11 speaks of justification, specifically of the righteous servant justifying many, we began a series of studies on the doctrine of justification. Our first study was how justification is bound to the person and work of Christ. Our second study was how justification extends throughout the ages, i.e. that it begins in God’s decree in eternity past, and it extends into the future beyond time. We also noted that justification is a forensic term, i.e. a legal term. In Romans 8:33-34 we defined justification by looking at its opposite. In that passage we read, "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." These two terms —"justify" and "condemn" — are used as antonyms. If condemn does not mean to be guilty, but to be found guilty, then also justify does not mean to be righteous, but to be found righteous in a forensic or legal setting.

We are now going to study three other things that demonstrate how justification and faith are tied together such that justification is said to be by faith alone.



I. Background to Justification

A. In Scripture calling precedes faith

Calling precedes faith in Scripture. One must be regenerated — he must have a new heart — in order to believe. We do not believe and then God calls us. Instead, God calls us and as a result of God’s calling, we believe. We do not mean that God calls us on Tuesday and then we believe on Thursday. When we say "before" or "precedes" we are not talking about time, we are talking about a logical or even causal precedence. We are talking about one thing causing or bringing about the other. Faith does not bring about calling: calling brings about faith. Calling logically precedes faith.

Hosea 2:22-23, "And the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel. And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God." Who speaks first? First God says, "Thou art my people," and then the people answer "Thou art my God." First God has mercy, i.e. first God calls us his people; then we believe, i.e. we answer back he is our God. Hosea 2:22-23 teaches that calling precedes faith.

Zechariah 13:9, "And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God." Once again we see this idea of calling. When God calls, "they are my people," the response is "Thou art my God." We are not denying that there was a desire to be delivered. The people, according to Zechariah 13:8, did desire to be delivered. But God brought them through the fire and said, "Thou art my people." Then they said, "Thou art my God." Once again we see the Bible doctrine that calling precedes faith.

Psalm 27:8, "When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek." God called, and then the Psalmist answered.

We are belaboring this point somewhat because its opposite is taught in so many churches and groups today. We must set forth the Scriptural teaching. An error is very much around today: many teach that first men call upon God, then he hears them and makes them his people. But the Bible teaches otherwise. The Bible teaches that first God calls us and we respond in faith as a result of his effectual call.

Jeremiah 3:22, "Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the LORD our God." First God calls "come unto me," and then the response is, "Behold we come unto thee, for thou art the Lord our God."

Romans 8:15-16, "For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God." This New Testament verse teaches that we first receive the Spirit of adoption — first God sheds his Spirit of adoption into our hearts — and then we are enabled to cry, "Abba Father."

This doctrine opposes the teaching that you hear at many so-called "evangelistic rallies" today. Yet, however much the biblical teaching may clash with what we have heard in the past, we must adhere to what Scripture says. That must be our basic commitment. If the Bible says it, that is what we believe, no matter how outrageous it may seem to us. In fact, the reason that some doctrines may seem outrageous to us is that our minds are at enmity with God. Our minds have to be cured and healed by the Word of God. We have to submit to God in all things.



B. Yet Scripture emphasizes throughout that we are saved through faith alone

Calling precedes faith in Scripture, yet Scripture emphasizes throughout that we are saved by faith alone. Merely being called does not save us. We are saved through faith.

In Genesis 15, the Word of the Lord came to Abram. In verse 5 we read, "And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be." Abraham was not a young man at that point in his life. Abraham was 75 years old, but he believed God. Verse 6, "And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness." He "counted it to him." Another way of saying that would be that he "imputed it to him," or that he "regarded it for him" as righteousness. In this passage we see Abraham receiving God’s righteousness by faith. Galatians chapter three teaches us that we are the offspring of Abraham if we believe God as Abraham did.

In Romans chapter four, Abraham is set forth as the example of how we are justified. Verse 1 asks, "What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found?" What did Abraham discover about this subject of justification by faith as opposed to being justified by the works of the law? Verses 2-4 answer, "For if Abraham were justified by works," — and the implication here is if he were, but he was not — [then]"he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. For what saith the scripture?" Paul next quoted Genesis 15:6. "Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt." If Abraham had been able to do some work that his justification was conditioned upon, then God would have owed Abraham something. Abraham could then say to God, I have met your condition; now justify me." But verse 5 continues, "But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness." God imputes the righteousness of Christ to us through faith and this faith is counted for righteousness. That is exactly how Abraham was justified and Paul tells us in Romans 4 that also is how we are justified. Scripture throughout teaches that justification is always by faith, and always has been by faith.

Scripture emphasizes throughout that we are justified by faith alone. We are justified by faith not because there is some worthiness in our faith; not because our faith is somehow strong enough, or great enough, or high enough, but rather because it lays hold upon that one who is worthy. The object of our faith is that which has the worthiness. It is not the worthiness of our faith that saves us, but the fact that our faith is placed in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is the object of our faith that saves, not the faith itself.

Think of a frozen river. When we go out on the ice, that ice may be as thin as less than an inch or as thick as several feet. Looking only at the top of the ice, we do not know how thick it is. We could base our faith on the ice and try to walk across it. What if the ice is a mere millimeter thick? It does not matter how much confidence we have; it does not matter if we swagger out onto that ice. If we place our faith in an object that is unable to hold us up, we will fall through no matter how much faith we have. On the other hand, if we try to walk across that same river when the ice is two feet thick, the ice will hold us up! We may not know how thick that ice is. We may go onto the ice with great fear and trembling, perhaps crawling out on our hands and knees an inch at a time with very little faith at all in the ice... and yet with enough faith to be out there on it. It is not because of the greatness of our faith that we are held up. It is because we have placed our faith in ice that is thick enough to hold us up. It is the strength of the ice and not the strength of our faith that holds us up.

So then it is not how much faith we have; it is not the strength of faith; it is not how glorious our faith is; rather it is the object of our faith that is important. With respect to justification it is all important. The idea of faith is often presented to us in such a way that we might be said to have faith in faith. Not so. The object of our faith must be Jesus Christ. We must have faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The principle act of faith is receiving and resting on Christ alone as he is offered to us in the gospel.

We said that effectual calling precedes faith. First God calls us his children and then we call upon him. So how can we say that justification is by faith? It is not the worthiness of our faith that causes God to impute righteousness to us. It is not because our faith is strong enough or good but because of the worthiness of what faith lays hold on that God imputes righteousness to us. It is not just any kind of faith that is counted as righteousness. It is faith as it lays hold on Christ by which righteousness is imputed to us. Colossians 2:15-17, "And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ."

In these verses Paul disallowed our dependence upon ritual as having an ability to make us righteous. He explained that even those things that God instituted in the Old Testament were not there to give righteousness. The rituals of the Old Testament were only to point to Christ. They were the shadow that Christ’s righteousness cast upon the Old Testament. As the Old Testament saints lived in that shadow they understood that faith was required to grasp hold of Christ and of his righteousness. We must not think that faith has worthiness in itself. If faith had its own worthiness, it would not matter what we believed. It is only as Christ is the object of our faith that righteousness is imputed to us.

Galatians 3:5-11, "He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?" Does the Spirit work by the works of the law or by the hearing of faith? "Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." Paul again quoted Genesis 15:6. "Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham." No one is the child of Abraham if his faith does not embrace Jesus Christ as the object of his faith. "And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham. For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them." How many of God’s laws do you have to break to be subject to the death penalty? Just one! "But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith." There Paul quoted Habakkuk 2:4.

Galatians 3:22-24 continues, "But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe." Notice that our Authorized Version follows the Greek at this point by saying the faith "of" Jesus Christ. The modern translations recognize the genitive there, but they translate it as faith "in" Jesus Christ. It is important that we understand that Jesus Christ is not only the object of our faith, he is also the source or producer of our faith. Verse 23, "But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith."

Thus we have seen that even though calling precedes faith, the Scriptures do in fact teach that justification is by faith, or through faith, or out of faith alone. But we must understand that faith is totally non-meritorious. It is not another work. It is not "evangelical obedience." It is not some kind of meritorious obedience to God. Faith is altogether non-meritorious. The term "non-meritorious" means that there is nothing about it that God is obligated to reward.



C. Faith is not a condition of our justification

We have seen that faith is non-meritorious. Not only is faith not a work, neither is faith a condition as the Arminian avers. God does not say that he will justify if we believe, and then wait to see whether we will believe. It is not as though God adds something to the bargain and we add something to the bargain, and God is waiting to see if we are going to come up with our part. Faith is not a condition any more than it is a meritorious work. Many today allege that faith is a condition of justification. Yet we maintain that if it were the case that faith were a condition of justification, then the implication would be that faith is something that we must come up with on our own. We cannot. We cannot believe by our own power. Faith is not conditional in the sense that God waits for us to generate some faith. How can justification be by faith, through faith, out of faith and yet not be conditioned upon faith? In order to understand that, we must look at what faith is. If faith is something that we can generate from within ourselves, then it is a work. If faith is something that we can generate from within ourselves, then it is a condition. It would then be something that deserved a reward. But if faith is something that God gives us as the first fruit of our calling, then faith is not something that depends upon me either as a work or as a condition. Rather, faith is the first virtue that God gives me in the Christian life, from which all other Christian virtues then flow.

II. What is faith?

We often are told, "You just have to believe!" Faith is often portrayed like the story from the book Alice Through The Looking Glass. There the White Queen tells Alice that she must believe that which is impossible. Alice answers that one cannot believe that which is impossible. The White Queen replies, of course we can: we, you just need more practice. "I can believe three impossible things before breakfast," she claimed.

Is that true? Can we believe that which is impossible? Are we called upon to believe that which is impossible? If faith is not "believing what you know is not so," then what is faith?

The Bible defines faith for us in Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."



A. Sometimes the term "faith" is used to mean fidelity

Sometimes the word "faith" is used to mean fidelity. Records used to be called "hi fidelity recordings." That meant that the recording was very faithful to the original artist. It sounded very much like the true voice of the singer. At least, that was the implied claim. Faith is sometimes used in the sense of fidelity, or faithfulness. The term "faith" is used for "doing that which we said we would do." That is how God can have faith. Romans 3:3, "For what if some did not believe?" That is, what if some of the Jews did not believe? "Shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect?" How can God have faith? Can God depend upon another? In this particular instance, faith is used to mean "fidelity" or "faithfulness." To reword the verse, it would say, "What if they did not believe, shall their unbelief make the faithfulness or fidelity of God without effect?"

Sometimes this faith of God refers to the foundation of his justice. Will God be faithful to his Word? Will he do what he said he would do? Will he be faithful? Even if people are unbelieving, God will still have faith. God will be faithful. The fact that we know God will be faithful — that what he has said he will do — forms the very foundation for our understanding of his justice (Numbers 23:19; Romans 4:20-21; etc.).



B. Sometimes faith stands for the objective truth which we believe

Sometimes faith is even used as a synecdoche for the truth itself. The word "faith" is used objectively as the truth itself. Galatians 1:23, "But they had heard only, That he which persecuted us in times past now preacheth the faith which once he destroyed." What was the faith that Paul preached? Was he simply preaching "have faith?" No. The word "faith" as it is in this verse meant that he was preaching the objective truth of Christianity. Sometimes the phrase "the faith" is used to mean objectively that truth which must be believed. Jude 3 refers to "the faith which was once delivered unto the saints." Jude was referring to the objective truth of the gospel. The same thing is true in Galatians 3:25, "But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster." Also, 1 Timothy 1:19, "Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck." When we discuss the fact that "faith" means the truth, we can be talking objectively about the truth itself, or we can be talking subjectively about our assent to the truth. We must carefully distinguish which use is in view.



C. Some faith is not justifying faith

Not all faith is justifying faith. Scripture speaks of several kinds of faith. There is historical faith, temporary faith, miraculous faith, even demonic faith. None of which save. If there are many kinds of faith that are not justifying faith—and there are—and if we are justified by some kind of faith—and we are—then it becomes important that we know what is that faith that justifies. Let us first examine kinds of faith that do not justify.

1. Historical Faith

The first kind of non-justifying faith is a simple historical assent that there is one God. The devils believe that. They even tremble, yet they are not justified. James 2:19, "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble." The devils believe, but their "faith" is not a justifying faith. It is an assent to the truth that there is one God, but it is not a justifying faith in God. This is called an historical faith. An historical faith might simply be a faith that believes something happened or exists, but that is not necessarily a justifying faith. It is not a trusting or a fiduciary faith. An historical faith believes a report. It believes the testimony, but it does not necessarily place a confidence in Christ.

2. Temporary faith

The second is often characterized as a temporary faith. In Matthew 13:20-21, in the parable of the sower and the seed, some of the seed fell into stony places. "The same is he that heareth the word, and anon" [that is shortly] "with joy receiveth it. Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while." Note he does not "endure," but just "dures" for a while. "For when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended." Does he believe at all? Yes, for awhile. Temporarily, he believes. But a temporary faith, a faith that comes and goes, a faith that leaves us in times of persecution, is not a justifying faith.

3. Miraculous faith

The third type of faith is a miraculous faith. A miraculous faith believes in or even performs miracles. It is a faith that trusts in miracles and signs, but is not a justifying faith. An example is 1 Corinthians 13:2, "And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing." In the time of the apostles, there was a faith by which Judas performed miracles. But it was not a justifying faith. In 2 Thessalonians 2:9, we are told that Antichrist is even able to perform lying wonders such that he can deceive those who love not the truth. Yet, we do not believe that Antichrist has a justifying faith.

4. Justifying faith requires a commitment

A commitment is required for justifying faith. John 2:23-25, "Now when he [Jesus] was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did." They too had a faith based on believing the miracles that Christ performed. "But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men, And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man." In our Authorized Version we have the word "commit" here in verse 24. In the Greek Testament we have the same basic Greek root word, both for "believe" in verse 23 and for "commit" in verse 24. They believed him, but he did not commit himself to them. Regardless of what historical or miraculous faith they may have had, it was not justifying because Jesus did not commit himself to them. I want you to see that the idea of the word "believe" and the word "commit" are virtually interchangeable. We must understand that the root idea of faith, of belief, is commitment. When we read that God "had faith" in Romans 3:3, it was a commitment to his own Word: that what he said, he will do; what he has promised, he will perform. It is a fiduciary faith. Latin scholars will recognize the word for "faith" in the word "fiduciary." It is God’s faithfulness that causes us to characterize him as having faith. So it is in the faith that God gives us there are certain actions that arise from faith. These actions are the products of our commitment, or faith.



III. Actions of faith

Faith has three elements: understanding, assent and trust. In those elements of understanding, assent and trust, there are also several actions. Faith acts. Faith is not merely passive. Faith does not just sit. Once God has implanted faith in us; once God has regenerated us such that we can believe, faith is active. Faith works. We must make detailed distinctions as we discuss the actions of faith. Faith has both a direct or active aspect and a reflexive aspect. Direct faith, or active faith, is something that acts outward, or reaches out, or trusts. Reflexive faith occurs as we think about the faith itself. This distinction is quite important because assurance of salvation is not the same thing as salvation. The knowledge that we believe is not the same thing as believing. If those two things were the same, then every doubt would become a "falling from grace." So it is important to make the distinction between how we think about Christ and how we think about our own faith. Direct faith has the content of the gospel as its object. Reflexive faith looks to faith itself.

We maintain that there are seven actions of faith. The first three actions of faith are seen in knowledge, assent and trust. We must have knowledge or understanding. We cannot believe what we do not know. Knowledge as an action means that we have to know something before we can believe it. Assent means that we have to recognize that it is true. Can we believe that which is false? I put it to you that not only can we not truly believe that which is impossible, we also cannot truly believe that which is false. We may act upon something that is false, but we cannot have a biblical faith upon that which is false. The third action of faith is trust.



A. We must know

There is a heresy present in the church today that teaches that it does not matter so much what you believe as long as you have enough faith. We of the Reformed faith maintain that knowledge is the beginning of faith. We must know something before we can believe it. I am going to demonstrate that principle to you from Scripture. What is eternal life? John 17:3 answers that question, "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." If eternal life comes down to knowing God and knowing his son, then knowledge is very important to our faith. It is foundational. It is the beginning of our faith. It must be the basis for our faith. It is not the end of our faith, but it is the beginning. We must know God; we must know Jesus Christ, if we will have life eternal.

1 John 5:13, "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God." It is so important that we have knowledge that the Apostle John wrote an epistle for that very purpose.

This is the text from which we have pursued the doctrine of justification. Isaiah 53:11 "By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many." Not merely by Christ knowing his elect, but by our knowing Christ.

Hebrews 11:3, "Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear." Through faith we understand. Through faith we have knowledge.

Here are other passages that follow this theme. John 6:69, "And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God." Colossians 2:2, "That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ." 2 Timothy 1:12, "For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day."

1. Faith is related to the Word of God

Because faith is related to the Word of God, we must know and understand the Bible. Since faith is related to the Word of God, it is related to knowledge of God’s word. There is a relationship between the Word and knowing or "hearing" the Word. Romans 10:17, "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." John 6:45, "It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me." But "hearing" in these contexts does not mean simply having vibrations in our ears — there is an implicit statement that we must hear to the point of understanding, even as 2 Timothy 3:15, "And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus."

2. Faith requires a confession

Faith requires knowledge because it requires a confession. Romans 10:9, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, … thou shalt be saved." Faith is not simply a mystical kind of knowledge, but a knowledge that can be expressed. The church has held to this in her creeds. "I believe in God the Father almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth." It is possible to blurt out nonsense but that is not the confession that Scripture requires. Scripture requires a knowledgeable confession. 1 Peter 3:15, "Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear." We are supposed to give an answer and a reason for the hope that is within us. That reason may not satisfy the other person. Just because you can give a reason, does not mean that the other person is going to be satisfied with your reason. If he has not been called, if his heart has not been prepared to receive the Word of God, he will not accept your reason. That does not change the fact that we are supposed to be ready to give a reason. That we are supposed to be able to give a reason implies that there is a reason. That there is a reason implies that faith requires understanding.

3. Knowledge and understanding are enjoined

In Scripture, understanding is enjoined upon us. We are commanded to understand. Knowledge and understanding are required of us throughout Scripture. Deuteronomy 4:6, "Keep therefore and do them ["them" being the commandments of God]; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people." That is not an admonishment to believe just anything without understanding it. It is quite the opposite. We are supposed to understand what we believe. We are admonished to know the commandments of God, so the nations — the heathen round about us — will look at what we are doing, and listen to what we are saying, how we are speaking and how we are thinking, and they will say, "That is really wise; that is quite profound." In order such a thing to happen, we must have knowledge. We must have understanding.

Daniel 9:21-23, "Even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding. At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth, and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore understand the matter, and consider the vision." Note the order of things here in Daniel, for it is significant. First Gabriel informed Daniel — he passed along a body of information. Then he granted a sort of enlightenment. Daniel required more than a set of notebooks. Gabriel required Daniel to understand the content of the notebooks. We, too, must have a content to our faith and we must consider and understand the content.

I have to study my Bible to understand it better. I cannot just put my Bible under my pillow and wake up the next morning with greater understanding.

Paul tells Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God." You must work at it. Understanding requires work.

There are numerous other places where knowledge and understanding are required of us. John 5:39, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." Acts 17:11, "These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so." 1 Corinthians 1:5, "That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge." 1 Corinthians 10:15, "I speak as to wise men; judge ye what I say." Colossians 2:2-3, "That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge."

4. Ignorance is the mother of error

Ignorance is the mother of error and the destroyer of faith. Hosea 4:6, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge." Isaiah 1:3, "The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider." That is not a commendation; it is a condemnation. Psalm 32:9, "Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee." Matthew 22:29, "Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God."

The first act of faith is to know, to understand; to consider. We are not saying that this exhausts what faith is. It is important for you understand, however, that faith is not simply an emotion. Faith is not something you can generate from within yourselves. Faith, properly understood, begins with knowledge; it begins with understanding. Therefore we cannot say that anything is faith that does not have an object. We believe something. We do not "just believe." And the object of justifying faith is the finished work of Jesus Christ.

B. We must assent to what we understand

It is possible to know that Christianity teaches the doctrine of the Trinity, and yet deny the truth of the doctrine. Assent is that which we might refer to as historical faith. How many of us have actually been to France? But how many of us believe that France actually exists even though we have not been there? All of us believe that France exists. That is an historical faith. It is an assent to the truth of the proposition that there is country named France, even though we may not have any empirical evidence. Why does one who has not been there believe there is a place called France? Because he has heard testimony to that fact. Others whom he trusts have testified to him that France exists. This is called an historical faith. This is the only way we know history. Is it possible to know history empirically? No, we cannot know history empirically. The only way we can know history is by way of testimony: the testimony of others who were alive and present: who were witnesses. This kind of faith is characterized as historical faith.

However, true scriptural faith is also based on testimony. True faith is not based on the evidence of our own senses. It is not based on what we can see with our eyes. 2 Corinthians 5:7, "For we walk by faith, not by sight." Scriptural faith is based on testimony. Isaiah 8:20, "To the Law and to the testimony!" Our faith is based upon the testimony of God’s Word. There is, therefore, an historical aspect to Scriptural faith. We cannot look disparagingly upon historical faith. But we must understand that while historical faith is necessary, it is not sufficient. Historical faith cannot be missing, it cannot be absent; but its presence is not enough. Knowledge is necessary. Assent to the truth of that knowledge is also necessary.

C. We must trust (Practical assent)

The third action of is trust, or what we might call "practical assent." We must not only assent to the truth of the testimony, we must act upon that truth. We must not be like a person who does not know how thick the ice is. He might believe the testimony of his friend who told him the ice was thick enough to hold him up, but he never steps onto the ice for himself. He just walks away. That is an assent to the truth, that is a knowledge of the truth, but it is not trust. As he places his own weight upon the ice, he not only has an assent, it is a practical assent. He has placed his trust in the ice. With respect to the gospel, this practical trust means that we judge the gospel to be true, we judge the gospel to be good, and therefore worthy of our love and desire. We desire the gospel. We desire the truth. We desire God’s Word. We embrace Christ’s death on our behalf. There is a longing for, a desire after the gospel. Romans 4:21, speaking of Abraham, characterizes this faith as, "He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform." Abraham was fully persuaded. He was so fully persuaded that he was willing to give his own son to the altar. That is how "fully persuaded" Abraham was. It was a faith that acted upon an assent to the truth that God could raise Isaac from the dead (Hebrews 11:17-19).

Colossians 2:2, "That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ." Here again faith is characterized as a full persuasion. This idea of being fully persuaded and fully assured may be what has given some people the idea that apart from a full assurance there is no true faith. We reject that idea, but we say that normally faith will grow into a full persuasion. Remember the man in Mark 9:24, who said, "Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief." We spend most of our days in some tension between faith and unbelief. Let’s be honest with each other here for just a moment. Most of us spend our lives in a tension between believing and not believing. We sin daily in thought, word, and deed. We do not always believe what the Bible says about us. We do not always believe what God’s Word says about his commandments. That tension still exists: we have faith, but we also have unbelief. Yes, we want to obey, yet we do not always obey. Paul spoke of himself in this dilemma in Romans 7:15, "For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I."

We see full assurance of faith in Hebrews 10:22, "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water." These are acts of trusting. In the illustration of the ice, it is stepping out on the ice. But there the illustration breaks down a bit. We must move away from the ice illustration and apply it to the death of Christ.

We cannot simply generate our own belief in Christ. We cannot give ourselves faith in Christ. We cannot make ourselves have confidence in him the way we can work up a belief in the thickness of ice. A heathen can go ice skating. But the trust we have in Christ must come from God. We have to understand that this is a supernatural trust, because it must overcome our natural enmity toward the things of God.



D. We must seek Refuge

The fourth act of faith is seeking refuge. Seeking refuge is seeking pardon and salvation from Christ on his terms. The Old Testament type of this act of faith were the cities of refuge. There were certain Levitical cities within the nation of Israel in which a person who had unintentionally killed someone could find refuge. A person could not go to any city for refuge. A person had to go to the cities that God had appointed. So it is that when we take refuge in Christ we are seeking pardon and salvation from Christ on his terms. Not simply seeking pardon and salvation. Every one wants pardon and salvation. But most people want it on their own terms. However God has determined that you can have pardon and salvation only on his terms. What is meant by seeking refuge on God’s terms alone?

First of all we must approach to Christ alone. Matthew 11:28, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Christ commands, "Come unto me." He does not say come to a doctrine, but come to me. Doctrine is important. The knowledge aspect is certainly a key aspect of our faith. We must have knowledge before we can come to Christ. But we cannot simply rest in that knowledge. We have to go beyond the knowledge to seeking refuge where that knowledge reveals the refuge can be found. "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest…learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart." We must know we are sinners; we must assent to the truth of that proposition; we must acknowledge that salvation is found in Christ alone; and we must esteem Christ’s work as altogether sufficient.

Second, we must find access to God by Christ alone. Romans 5:1-2, "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." Our hope is not just salvation. God is not in heaven worried about whether you are going to be saved. He has already decreed in eternity past whether or not you will be saved. God’s concern in the gospel is not anthropocentric (centered in man). God’s concern in the gospel is to bring glory to himself. The gospel brings glory to his mercy on those whom he saves, and glory to his justice both on those whom he saves and on those whom he reprobates. His justice is glorified in saving the ungodly because Jesus Christ still had to pay the penalty. If God simply winked at sin, that would not be glorifying to his justice. But he glorifies his justice in the fact that he poured out his wrath on his son. He will not forgive apart from that sacrifice being made.

Third, refuge involves not only approach, not only accessing, but also in seeking. Isaiah 55:1, "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters." There is seeking in that verse. Isaiah 55:6, "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near." The implication here is that he will not always be findable, he will not always be near, so it necessary that we call upon him on his terms — while he is near, while he may be found.

We are to hunger and thirst after Christ and his righteousness. Matthew 5:6, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled." Psalm 42:1, "As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God." Revelation 22:17, "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." Isaiah 55:1-2, "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness."

The desire must be for Christ. The desire must be to receive Christ on God’s terms. That is what we mean by the term "seeking refuge."



E. We must receive or embrace Christ

The fifth act of faith is the last of the direct acts. The fifth act of faith is that of receiving or resting upon Christ alone as he is offered to us in the gospel. Our confession characterized this act as the "principal" act of justifying faith. Matthew 13:45-46, "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it." He sells everything to get that one pearl of great price. The kingdom of God like that in the sense that we have to give up everything in order to embrace Christ. We have to push away everything else. We have to dis-embrace everything that we would trust of our own, in order to embrace Christ. John 1:12, "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name." In this context, what does it mean to "receive Christ?" Does it mean to "ask Jesus into your heart?" Does it mean say a sinner’s prayer? This verse says "even to them that believe on his name." Receiving is an act of believing. John 1:13 goes on to say, "Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." Not of the will of man, but of God. Romans 5:17, "For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." Colossians 2:6, "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him."

Our faith reclines upon Christ in Psalm 23:2, "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters." This is that same idea as receiving and resting upon him. We recline on Christ.

Isaiah 10:20, "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth." Isaiah 48:2, "For they call themselves of the holy city, and stay themselves upon the God of Israel; The LORD of hosts is his name." Micah 3:11, "The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet will they lean upon the LORD, and say, Is not the LORD among us? none evil can come upon us."

This receiving; this embracing; this resting is referred to in Ephesians 3:17 and John 15:5 as union with Christ. John 15:5, "…He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." Ephesians 3:17-19, "That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge."

This act of faith is receiving Christ. This act of faith is resting on Christ. This act of faith is reclining upon Christ. This act of faith is being joined with Christ. This is the act of faith that embraces Christ as he is offered to us in the gospel.



F. Reflexive faith is persuaded

This is just the area where many people experience some problem. They are told to "just believe," or to "trust your faith." In fact, we must look at our faith and judge our faith. That is reflexive faith. Reflexive faith looks back upon itself, like in a mirror. Reflexive faith concludes that it has found Christ, and that Christ suits all of its needs. This is assurance. But this is not direct faith. Direct faith acts. Direct faith rests upon Christ. Direct faith receives Christ. Direct faith reclines upon him. Reflexive faith simply looks at itself and concludes, "I have found Christ and he is altogether lovely." Galatians 2:20, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." Paul concluded in this verse that he found Christ and that Christ lived in him. How did he know? He knew by examining his faith. 2 Timothy 1:12, "For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." "I… am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." This verse expresses both direct faith and reflexive faith. It is a faith in Christ, yet it is also an assurance that Paul’s faith found Christ. That is what we mean by reflexive faith.



G. Reflexive faith is consoled

But the seventh act of faith also a reflexive act, is confidence and consolation. This act is a result of the reflexive act of faith. We have confidence and consolation. This is the sweetness of faith. Interestingly enough, according to our Westminster standards, the way we gain assurance is not by seeking assurance. Assurance is a by product of our seeking Christ in his ordinances. As we seek Christ — as we seek to embrace him — assurance comes as a by product.

Westminster Confession of Faith XVIII:3. Duty of Diligence: "This infallible assurance doth not so belong to the essence of faith, but that a true believer may wait long, and conflict with many difficulties, before he be partaker of it yet, being enabled by the Spirit to know the things which are freely given him of God, he may, without extraordinary revelation, in the right use of ordinary means, attain thereunto. And therefore it is the duty of every one to give all diligence to make his calling and election sure; that thereby his heart may be enlarged in peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, in love and thankfulness to God, and in strength and cheerfulness in the duties of obedience, the proper fruits of this assurance: so far is it from inclining men to looseness."

"Infallible Assurance!" How amazing that the Westminster divines used this term. God will give you infallible assurance. Someone said that he would like to read the book of life to see his name written down there. So would we all. But that is not the kind of infallible assurance that God gives us. God gives the kind of infallible assurance that "doth not so belong to the essence of faith, but that a true believer may wait long, and conflict with many difficulties, before he be partaker of it." Notice that a "true believer" might wait long. That is to say that one who has truly acted directly in embracing Christ as he is offered to us in the gospel may not immediately have this infallible assurance. "…yet, being enabled by the Spirit to know the things which are freely given him of God, he may, without extraordinary revelation, in the right use of ordinary means, attain thereunto." How is it that we attain this infallible assurance? We use the means that God has set before us. What if we start to doubt that we are saved, and because of that, we decided not to go to church? We would be doing exactly the opposite of what we need to do to receive this infallible assurance of which our confession rightly speaks.

The Confession concludes, "And therefore it is the duty of every one to give all diligence to make his calling and election sure." How do we make our calling and election sure? By waiting upon the ordinances of God. Be there when the church doors are open. In fact, you should be standing outside the door waiting for the man with the church keys to come. We need to be eager for the preaching of God’s Word. That is what it means to give all diligence to make our calling and election sure. In our catechism we are instructed to make diligent use of all of the outward means of salvation (WSC 85 cf. WSC 88). Those outward means of salvation are the Word, sacraments and prayer. We are to make diligent use. We are to be at the church where the Word of God is being preached, where the sacraments are being rightly administered, where discipline is being duly exercised. We are to be submissive to the ordinances of God. The result of that diligent use is "…that thereby his heart may be enlarged in peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, in love and thankfulness to God." The implication here is that if our assurance is not full enough, it is because our hearts have not yet been enlarged by his Word. Our hearts need to be stretched. Our hearts are stretched by undergoing afflictions and learning to trust in the Word of God. What are the afflictions we must undergo? The confession says, "many difficulties." The confession tells us that sometimes it may even seem to us that God has turned his face away from us. Why? That we might learn the more to seek after him. Sometimes God turns his face away from us because we are in the midst of sin. Sometimes God turns his face away from us because we are in the midst of complacency. In either case, he would have us seek after him more diligently.

"…that thereby his heart may be enlarged in peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, in love and thankfulness to God, and in strength and cheerfulness in the duties of obedience, the proper fruits of this assurance." The chief objection to the doctrine of justification by faith alone is that this assurance will cause the believer to live loosely. But our confession here teaches the opposite. Rather than this assurance being something that makes us live loosely, it stirs us up to our duties of obedience. Loose living is not the fruit of this assurance; being stirred up to our duties in obedience to God’s Word is the fruit of this assurance. It has an effect opposite to inclining men to looseness.

What we have seen is that while assurance and confidence are not of the essence of faith, nevertheless we ought so to work with faith as to arrive at assurance. We may not receive assurance on day one. We may not receive assurance on our last day. We may never arrive in this life at the full infallible assurance that our names are written down in glory. But that does not change our duty. Our duty is still to make diligent use of the means of grace. Our duty is to walk in his commandments. Our duty is to trust in Christ. Our duty is to rest in him. Our duty is to grasp hold of him. Our duty is to embrace him as he is offered to us in the gospel. Whether we ever have assurance does not change our duty to rest in him and to call upon him while he may be found; to call upon him while he is yet near. Therefore, I press you to that duty. There is no duty to have that infallible assurance. We are not commanded to have the confidence that our names are written down in glory. But we do have a duty to make use of the gospel. We are commanded to make use of the Word, to make use of prayer, and to make use of the sacraments. And most of all we are commanded to that justifying faith which "receives and rests upon Christ alone for salvation as he is offered to us in the gospel." (WSC 86)